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We know the bedrock themes upon which the Christian faith stands: creation, fall, redemption, restoration. As Christians, we live within these great moments of God's plan for humanity and all of his creation. In other words, our lives are part of Christian theology-every part of our lives, even surgery.As a part of Zondervan's Ordinary Theology series, The Scalpel and the Cross recounts New Testament professor Gene Green's encounter with open-heart surgery and carefully examines the many ways in which Christian doctrine spoke into the experience. The result is a short book that avoids shallow explanations and glib promises, instead guiding readers to deeper understanding and enduring hope in the face of one of modern life's necessary traumas.

Each day, the world's urban population swells by almost 200,000. With every passing week, more than a million people new to cities face unexpected realities and challenges of urban life. Just like the sheer volume of people in the city, these challenges can be staggering. As with the height and breadth of our metropolises, the wonders of urban life can be breathtaking. Like the city itself, the questions and challenges of urban life are both sprawling and pulsing with vitality. As part of Zondervan's Ordinary Theology series, this volume offers a series of Christian reflections on some of the most basic and universal challenges of 21st century urban life. It takes one important dimension of what it means to be humanthat human beings are made to be for God, for others, and for creationand asks, ';What are the implications of who God made us to be for how we ought to live in our cities?' This book is intended for Christians facing the riddle of urban creation care, discerning the shape of community life, struggling with the challenges of wealth and poverty, and wondering at the global influence of cities. It is meant for those whose lives and livelihoods are inextricably bound up in the flourishing of their neighborhood and also for those who live in the shadow of cities. Most of all, it is meant for those grappling with the relationship between the cities of tomorrow and the glorious city to come.

What might it mean for public and political life to be understood as an important dimension of following Jesus? As a part of Zondervan's Ordinary Theology series, Vincent E. Bacote's The Political Disciple addresses this question by considering not only whether Christians have (or need) permission to engage the public square, but also what it means to reflect Christlikeness in our public practice, as well as what to make of the typically slow rate of social change and the tension between relative allegiance to a nation and/or a political party and ultimate allegiance to Christ. Pastors, laypeople, and college students will find this concise volume a handy primer on Christianity and public life.

Many believers accept traditional Christian sexual morality but have very little idea why it matters for the Christian life. In Faithful, author Beth Felker Jones sketches a theology of sexuality that demonstrates sex is not about legalistic morals with no basis in reality but rather about the God who is faithful to us.In Hosea 2:19-20 God says to Israel, ';I will take you for my wife forever; I will take you for my wife in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love, and in mercy. I will take you for my wife in faithfulness; and you shall know the Lord.' This short book explores the goodness of sexuality as created and redeemed, and it suggests ways to navigate the difficulties of living in a world in which sexuality, like everything else, suffers the effects of the fall.As part of Zondervan's Ordinary Theology series, Faithful takes a deeper look at a subject Christians talk about often but not always thoughtfully. This short, insightful reflection explores the deeper significance of the body and sexuality.