The Household of God

Lesslie Newbigin challenges Christians of all denominations and types in The Household of God. For Newbigin, the divisions among Christians are scandalous in light of the gospels clear teaching that Christians are of one body and one faith. In this book, Newbigin is calling Roman Catholics, Protestants and Pentecostals to reject denominational boundaries and protectiveness in order to fulfill the gospel's mandate for unity in the Body of Christ. He does not advocate throwing away the practical orgainzations of the church, but he does not pull punches when lamenting how far the church has fallen from the community of the early church. He somewhat chastises Christians for not recognizing or being complacent about the church's characteristics that completely contradict the union we have in Christ. The main reason for Newbigin writing this book I think is that fact that some of the behavior of Christians undermines the church's proclamation of the gospel to the world. Newbigin is concerned about the church's mission above all. I was impressed with Newbigin's grasp of the many topics on which he writes. He is versed not only in his argument but in the contrary points of view also, and he lays these out in his book and recognizes their valid bases. Newbigin presents the full picture of Christianity and the mission of the church as it exists in the time between Christ's comings. Newbigin emphasizes the regeneration of believers for the purpose of engaging the world and the powers of this age in advancing God's Kingdom. He discusses in a full chapter the role of the Holy Spirit in this age. He illustrates the place of the individual in Christ and in the community of believers. The only fault I found with this book is that Newbigin may try to do too much by leaving no stone unturned in trying to help the reader understand the nature of the church. Craig Stephans, author of Shakespeare On Spirituality: Life-Changing Wisdom from Shakespeare's Plays