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A review by matthewwester
Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church by N.T. Wright
5.0
In this book, N.T. Wright suggests the popular view most Christians have of Heaven, that it is a spiritual place we are whisked off to when we die, is not accurate. Unfortunately, Plato's dualism of the flesh vs. spirit has had more of an impact on our perceptions of Heaven than the biblical account, which presents the Kingdom of God as the new creation, brought to the present by Jesus Christ's resurrection and building us towards the future when He comes again.
Our afterlives will be bodily, then, with all of time, and space, and matter, being transformed into the new creation. Until then, the things we do on this earth are important because they aren't destroyed, or completely scrapped by God as a mistake, but rather transformed when the new creation is "birthed." [If I'm doing a bad job explaining it then read the book(!), Wright is brilliant at communicating his thoughts]
Most of my Seminary friends have this book on their to-read list if they haven't read it already, yet I wouldn't think twice about recommending this to a non-reader, non-theologian either. Though the content is extremely thought-provoking, the arguments are clear and the book reads easily. So yeah, definite 5 stars from me -- if you have any interest in the afterlife, especially in an accurate Christian view of the afterlife, then I strongly encourage you to check out this book.
Our afterlives will be bodily, then, with all of time, and space, and matter, being transformed into the new creation. Until then, the things we do on this earth are important because they aren't destroyed, or completely scrapped by God as a mistake, but rather transformed when the new creation is "birthed." [If I'm doing a bad job explaining it then read the book(!), Wright is brilliant at communicating his thoughts]
Most of my Seminary friends have this book on their to-read list if they haven't read it already, yet I wouldn't think twice about recommending this to a non-reader, non-theologian either. Though the content is extremely thought-provoking, the arguments are clear and the book reads easily. So yeah, definite 5 stars from me -- if you have any interest in the afterlife, especially in an accurate Christian view of the afterlife, then I strongly encourage you to check out this book.