Simply Good News: Why the Gospel Is News and What Makes It Good
Simply Good News: Why the Gospel Is News and What Makes It Good book cover

Simply Good News: Why the Gospel Is News and What Makes It Good

Hardcover – January 6, 2015

Price
$24.28
Format
Hardcover
Pages
208
Publisher
HarperOne
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0062334343
Dimensions
1 x 6.2 x 9.1 inches
Weight
12.8 ounces

Description

Review “For those who are new to Wright, Simply Good News will offer a helpful introduction to and summary of . . . the work of an undoubtedly brilliant artist.” — Christianity Today “ Simply Good News is a potent reminder that the gospel is an announcement of a past event, and this ensures the future and transforms the present. In a world of competing allegiances and rivals for cultural dominance, Wright steps in to say, ‘Jesus is Lord.’” — Gospel Coalition “Takes aim at pious church-going Christians who cling to a naive but persistent belief--that Jesus’ teaching is all about getting your caboose into Heaven. . . . Wright is a giant among conservative Christian thinkers, often compared to C.S. Lewis in stature and influence.” — The News & Observer “Wright wipes off the dust of history and culture and finds that the good news of Jesus is more exciting, dynamic, and inspirational than what we have settled for. . . . Excellent scholarship expressed clearly and simply . . . a short gem.” — Above the Haze “Explains the nature of good news, the essence of what that good news is and is not, and what it means for the way we live now, think about God, and pray . . . readable and insightful, characterized by Wright’s familiar mixture of rich scholarship, vivid illustration, and contemporary application.” — Christianity Today “Clarifies what exactly the good news is, and why such an undertaking even matters . . . well-articulated.” — Seedbed “Thoughtful and accessible, offering concrete Biblical wisdom as to how we can live as good news people.” — Unfundamentalist Christians Praise for N. T. Wright: “Tom Wright is, as always, brilliant at distilling immense scholarship into vivid, clear and accessible form.” — Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury “Wright’s direct style, reminiscent of C. S. Lewis’ writings, invites readers in but allows for internal argument.” — Booklist (starred review) “When today’s leading New Testament theologian has something new to say about anything, readers pay attention.” — Kimberly Mauck, The Christian Chronicle “Wright’s books have overpowered both Lewis and Stott because he has expanded those studies and set it all in a firmer historical orientation.” — Scot McKnight, author of The Jesus Creed “ Simply Good News sets out to reorient and refocus the Christian faith by examining its central tenet: the gospel… His exegesis of Jesus’ words is thoughtful and accessible, offering concrete Biblical wisdom as to how we can live as good news people.” — Patheos “Wright’s got another masterful book under his belt with Simply Good News .” — Clarion Journal From the Back Cover Discover the Real Story Jesus Came to Announce Many people think the message of the gospel is that if we believe in Jesus we will be saved from hell and be transported to heaven after we die. But what if that is not what the Bible actually teaches? What if the good news Jesus came to announce is much bigger, much better, and includes much more than merely what happens after we die? Revered bestselling scholar N. T. Wright reveals what the gospel really is and how it can transform our todays just as much as our tomorrows. About the Author N. T. Wright is the former Bishop of Durham in the Church of England and one of the world’s leading Bible scholars. He serves as the chair of New Testament and Early Christianity at the School of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews as well as Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford University. He has been featured on ABC News , Dateline , The Colbert Report , and Fresh Air . Wright is the award-winning author of many books, including Paul: A Biography , Simply Christian , Surprised by Hope , The Day the Revolution Began , Simply Jesus , After You Believe , and Scripture and the Authority of God . Read more

Features & Highlights

  • The bishop, Bible scholar, modern heir to C. S. Lewis, and revered author of
  • Simply Christian
  • and
  • Simply Jesus
  • offers a fresh look at the Gospel, explaining why Jesus’ message is “good news” and why it is more timely and transforming today than we know.
  • The Gospel means good news. But if the message has been around for 2,000 years, what makes it significant today? What’s so “good” about stories involving damnation, violence, and a God who sacrifices his only son?
  • Noted Bible scholar N.T. Wright shows us how Christians today have lost sight of what the “good news” of the gospel really is. In
  • Simply Good News
  • , he takes us back in time to reveal how the people of the first-century—the gospel’s original audience—would have received Jesus’ message. He offer a clear and thoughtful analysis of what the “good news” really is, and applies it to our lives today, revealing its power to transform us.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(334)
★★★★
25%
(139)
★★★
15%
(84)
★★
7%
(39)
-7%
(-39)

Most Helpful Reviews

✓ Verified Purchase

Must Read!

This is a fabulous book and gives great hope and purpose to the "NOW"-joys of being a christian.
2 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

the best of his "Simply" series

In my opinion, the best of his "Simply" series. It all seemed to come together for me with this book. Maybe that is because I have read most of the others. Maybe it's because it is the best of the series. Read and see. You will never think of Christianity the same again.
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Great book!

Another winner by N.T. Wright. What a great mind he has and makes his points very clearly. Excellent book.
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Honors a Jewish Perspective

I'm not Jewish, but in the past 3 years I've learned to read Hebrew and have become familiar with many Hebrew words. I've studied with Jews from all branches of Judaism including the ultra-Orthodox and have completed a number of courses on Judaism, including Melton, sponsored by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. I attend shul two or more times weekly.

A Jewish understanding of things tends to be multi-dimensional, in keeping with the way Hebrew scripture is written.

The point to all this is that NT Wright is refreshingly Jewish in his understanding and presentation.
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Tom Wright is a great resource for preachers preparing sermons (as in the "for ...

Tom Wright is a great resource for preachers preparing sermons (as in the "for Everyone" series). But, like all of us who have what my wife calls "an expensive education", Tom can get "technical" sometimes. This book is written "for everyone." I read it so fast that I passed it on to a friend to read also within a month of it's publication! He has found it helpful also. That's what this book was supposed to do.
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Simply Good News is terrific.

I've become a fan of N.T. Wright's books, and I found this one very compelling in its directness and accessibility. He takes on distortions of the "Good News" and through his treatment of Scripture shows what's at the heart of genuinely "Good News."
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Transformative and highly readable

This was the first book I read by NT Wright. I can honestly say as a 40 yr old lifelong Christian I have gotten some flawed slogans and teachings in many well intentioned sermons and conversations. When you think that the gospel is that you say a prayer and believe all the right doctrine and you get to be taken off to heaven forever, it not only makes for a simple surface level set of beliefs, but it creates an uneasiness when you picture 90% of all of humanity thus far who will not see God, but perish in hell. Wright shows you what Jesus and Paul the apostle were actually saying. When I learned that the resurrection was news and the starting point of Gods new creation and not the beginning of a new religion or “good advice”, I literally began to see everyone around me differently. Heaven became something not individualistic, but collective and much more meaningful. I see my days now as opportunities to contribute to the new creation that God is developing, and it’s about the here and now and our honor of having a place in it. My favorite quote in the book I’ll never forget is( -Paul wasn’t saying “here’s a new kind of torch to see better at night.” , he was saying “the sun has risen and if you would only open your windows you would see that there is no more need for torches.”
Beautiful and one of the most transformative and illuminating books I’ve read in regards to Christianity.
I’d also highly highly recommend :
Discovering an Evangelical Heritage (Dayton)
The Sin of Certainty (Enns)
Wholehearted Faith (Evans)
and A New Kind of Christianity (McLaren)
✓ Verified Purchase

Wright Rights the Modern Misconception

Modern society has boiled the good news out of the Good News, leaving a bland collection of doctrine and dogma. Wright breathes life back in the New Testament reminding us that the Good News really is good news. This book refreshed my faith and brought me motivation to share the Good News with others.
✓ Verified Purchase

Four Stars

Inspiring
✓ Verified Purchase

Five Stars

excellent