The Incomparable Christ - Hardcover

Stott, John R. W.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0830823433 ISBN 13: 9780830823437

Publisher: Intervarsity Pr, 2002

Synopsis

Who is Jesus Christ No human question is more pivotal. No thoughtful answer fails to stretch our language, our categories or our aspirations. In recent years numerous books have been written on Jesus, books that are shaped by faith or skepticism or follow the Western academic quest for the historical Jesus. The result has been a kaleidoscope of Jesuses, a thicket of viewpoints, some troubling to faith, some puzzling to the intellect, and a few that enrich our vision as they explore familiar terrain from new and promising angles. Here is a book written by one who for a * has followed Christ with heart, mind, soul and strength. John Stott offers us a vision of Christ whose portrait is discerned in the mosaic pattern of Scripture, whose influence is traced in the great currents of history, and whose compelling call has shaped the story line of ordinary humans who have been charged with extraordinary faith and courage. The minimalist criteria for weighing the authenticity of Jesus' sayings and deeds yield only a thin outline of Jesus, the barely discernible image of a Jewish sage or prophet. But the criteria of Scripture's testimony and the effective power of Jesus in lives and history point to a multidimensional, incomparable Christ who defies measurement. Jesus is the one figure who, like no other, has changed lives, shaped culture and offers one sure hope for the future. He is the center of history, the focus of Scripture, the heart of mission. He is the incomparable Christ.

About this title

Review:

"John Stott's books are always eagerly awaited. . . . His books always penetrate to the heart of the matter being expounded and are expressed in clear, attractive prose and as simply as the subject allows. [The Incomparable Christ] is a gem."--Themelios

From the Back Cover:

"Regardless of what anyone may personally think of him or
believe about him, Jesus of Nazareth has been the dominant figure in the
history of western culture for almost twenty centuries." Jaroslav Pelikan

Jesus Christ has been the centre of history for two thousand years, and his
birth the pivot of our calendar. He is the focus of Scripture: as Luther
declared, the entire Scripture deals only with Christ everywhere. He is
the heart of mission, the message that countless Christians cross land and
sea, continents and cultures, to deliver.

In masterly surveys, John Stott looks at the New Testament witness, at the
way the church has portrayed Christ down the centuries, at the influence
Christ has had on individuals over the last two thousand years. Finally,
turning to the book of Revelation, he asks what Jesus Christ should mean to
us today. Here is the fruit of a lifetime of biblical study, rigorous
Christian thought, and devotion to the person of Christ.

Review
David Edwards describes John Stott as, with the exception of William
Temple, 'as the most influential clergyman in the Church Of England of the
20th century'.
It was appropriate, therefore, that for the millennium "London Lectures",
in fact founded by John Stott, he should have been invited to be the
lecturer. The topic in such a year could be none other than Jesus - 'The
Incomparable Christ'- a magnificent four-part overview of Jesus Christ
based upon these lectures.

Each Lecture is worked up into a section of the book:
the biblical record - 'The Original Jesus';
the teaching of the Church - 'The Ecclesiastical Jesus';
personal responses from great people - 'The Influential Jesus'; and the
challenge for today - 'The Eternal Jesus'.

As we might expect from John Stott, the book deals with issues in depth but
in a way that is easily accessible.

The final section of the book presents the eternal Jesus, interestingly
presented to us through comment upon the Book of Revelation. Here we have
what is almost a mini-commentary, taking this most difficult book and
showing us "the eternal Christ who never changes, but who challenges us to
follow him today".

This is a book to treasure, to stretch our minds and to be a helpful
resource in years to come. Above all else, it lifts up Jesus Christ, just
as John Stott has done in his lifetime of ministry.

Martin Turner
Methodist Recorder

About this edition

• Publisher: Intervarsity Pr
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0830823433
• ISBN 13: 9780830823437
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 250