The Threat of Life: Sermons on Pain, Power and Weakness
Overview
Known as one of America’s best theologians and one of the world’s foremost scholars on the Old Testament, Walter Brueggemann has inspired young scholars and students and driven the discourse on theology with some of the biggest players in contemporary Bible scholarship.
These 22 sermons from a master interpreter demonstrate how ancient texts can speak to the whole gamut of human experience even now. Included in Walter Brueggemann’s preview are keen observations about the timeless issues of human life, both personal and social: the pain we face, often inflicted on each other; the use and abuse of power; the weakness and fragility of life; the redemptive power of faith; and much more.
With the Logos Bible Software edition, you can journey through this volume with today’s most advanced tools for reading and studying God’s Word. All Scripture passages are linked to your library’s original language texts and English translations. Enhance your study with Logos’ advanced features—search by topic to find out what Brueggemann teaches on the Exodus, or find every mention of “Psalm 91” throughout his works.
Key Features
- Provides essential Old Testament scholarship from one of the most prominent living scholars
- Contains clear and deep insight on theology, history, hermeneutics, ancient sociology, and Scripture
- Includes material perfect for pastors, professors, counselors, and Old Testament scholars
Contents
- Part One: Torah Texts
- A Demanding Long-Term Miracle
- Taking a Second, Painful Look
- I Will Do It . . . But You Go
- The Midnight of Power and Weakness
- Wondrous Solidarity, Devastating Starchiness
- Part Two: Prophetic Texts
- Power for Life Flown in by a Bird
- Afterward . . . After George . . . After Bill . . . Newness
- Power to Remember, Freedom to Forget
- Outrageous God, Season of Decrease
- God’s Relentless “If”
- Part Three: Texts from the Writings
- A Bilingual Life
- Trusting in the Water-Food-Oil Supply
- Deep Waters
- Penultimate Honesty
- Beyond Honesty to Trust
- What You Eat Is What You Get
- Always Again before Nebuchadnezzar
- Part Four: New Testament Texts with Old Testament Allusions
- Checkpoint John
- On the Wrong Side of the Ditch . . . For a Long Time
- The Threat of Life: Permitting Its Intrusion
- The Surge of Dangerous, Restless Power
- A Loser’s Powerful Footnote
Product Details
- Title: The Threat of Life: Sermons on Pain, Power, and Weakness
- Author: Walter Brueggemann
- Editor: Charles L. Campbell
- Publisher: Augsburg Fortress
- Publication Date: 1996
- Pages: 176
About the Author
Walter Brueggemann through his teaching, lecturing, and writing, has effectively demonstrated the significance of the Old Testament for our fractured world today. Recognized as the preeminent interpreter of the ancient texts in relation to questions posed by a variety of academic disciplines, he has shown the way toward a compelling understanding of the major components of the faith and life of ancient Israel, especially its Psalms, the prophets, and the narratives. His award-winning Theology of the Old Testament quickly became a foundational work in the field.
Brueggemann, who holds a ThD from Union Seminary, New York, and a PhD from St. Louis University, is William Marcellus McPheeters Professor of Old Testament at Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Georgia. He was previously professor of Old Testament at Eden Theological Seminary, St. Louis. His many Fortress Press books, including The Threat of Life: Sermons on Pain, Power, and Weakness, exhibit a fecund combination of imaginative power, sound scholarship, and a passion of justice and redemption.
About the Editor
Charles L. Campbell is professor of homiletics at Duke Divinity School. His publications include Preaching Fools: The Gospel as a Rhetoric of Folly, The Word Before the Powers: An Ethic of Preaching, and Preaching Jesus: New Directions for Homiletics in Hans Frei’s Postliberal Theory.
Top Highlights
“That kind of moral certitude, however, does not matter ultimately, because we are not saved by our virtue.” (Page 87)
“My life is larger than I imagined, and I decided to embrace that largeness that is God’s gift for my life. I acted differently because I acted in ways befitting God’s odd way with my life.’” (Page 12)
“Pharaoh feebly says to departing Moses, ‘Bless me, be a blessing to me, bless me as well.’” (Page 27)
“The God who can give a baby can give everything. The God who can work this new life can work all new life in every circumstance.” (Page 5)
“What happens in one quick rhetorical flourish is that God’s wondrous resolves are transposed into dangerous human work” (Page 22)
