Embracing Grace: A Gospel for All of Us (Paperback)

~ Scott Mcknight (Author)
Key Phrases: missional gospel, gospel comedy, holistic gospel, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, Father Joe (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this earnest interpretation of the Gospel message, McKnight reaches out to believers and potential believers wrestling with the complexities of a pluralistic world. A professor of biblical and theological studies at North Park University and author of more than 10 books, McKnight uses the Genesis story of Adam and Eve to posit that human beings are "cracked Eikons." Created to relate to God and to others but broken through disobedience, men and women need restoration through the Gospel. Comfortably navigating between classical theology and Scripture, McKnight also uses fictional, autobiographical and biographical examples to scrutinize traditional theological concepts such as creation, sin, redemption and grace. In asserting "the Gospel is the work of God to restore human beings to union with God and communion with others," McKnight is highly concerned to counter individualism, which he terms the greatest barrier to embracing grace. Being God's "special creation" is, instead, about being in relationship with others and about embracing responsibility for the whole created world. Although McKnight's prose sometimes hovers awkwardly between that of the theologian and the popular writer, this is a well-grounded introduction to some of Christianity's great themes in an appealingly contemporary style. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

This fascinating book explains that the gospel is about the restoration of "cracked Eikons" (fallen humans) so that humans can be in union with God and in communion with the saints. In the candid and lucid style that has made McKnight's THE JESUS CREED so appealing to thousands of pastors, lay leaders, and everyday people who aresearching for a more authentic faith, he encourages all Christians to recognize the simple, yet potentially transforming truth of the gospel message: God seeks to restore us to wholeness not only to make us better individuals, but to form a community of Jesus, a society in which humans strive to be in union with God and in communion with others. Prisim ePistle July 26, 2006

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Product Details Paperback: 183 pages Publisher: Paraclete Press (November 1, 2005) Language: English ISBN-10: 1557254532 ISBN-13: 978-1557254535 Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #213,614 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books) Popular in these categories: (What's this?) #24 in  Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Holidays > Easter #28 in  Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Holidays > Lent

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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
missional gospel, gospel comedy, holistic gospel, systemic evil, missional community, entire created order, communion with others, gospel claims

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, Father Joe, Stories of the Gospel Story, Eikons of God, Mister Rogers, The Divine Gospel Comedy, Fred Rogers, Eikon of God, The Litany, Performing the Gospel, Miroslav Volf, Dancing Grace, John Muir, Frederick Buechner, Asia Minor, New Jerusalem, Solomon's Porch, Paul Carlson, The Beginning of the Gospel, Harriet Tubman, Embracing Grace

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews 5 star:  (7) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 5.0 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars EMBRACING GRACE: NOT A McGOSPEL, March 21, 2006 By  John Frye (Grand Rapids, MI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    Scot McKnight's *Embracing Grace* is a redeeming book and the object of redemption is "the gospel." The USAmerican (or "western") gospel is a shrivelled specimen of the gospel presented in the Bible and lived and proclaimed by Jesus, the apostles and early church. One line in the book captures a boatload of truth. Scot writes about the younger generation of Christians who are aware of a bigger gospel than the previous generation could imagine. Scot states, "That gospel comes in the shape of a community." Think about that. The gospel comes not in the shape of a sermon or a pamphlet or 3 steps to this and 4 steps for that. A community. Weaving together the grand story of God's redemptive purpose, McKnight brings together the broken strands of God's creation design for humanity. Sin shattered the eikons of God, that is, sin corrupted men and women who bear God's image and who exist to live a life of love with God, with each other and with creation itself. This design includes being content within ourselves as well. The western monkey-wrench that clogs up the process of God's gospel of restoration is our renegade worship of the idol of "individualism." Sin made Adam and Eve primarily individuals which was a devastating crack in God's majestic Eikons. We've been in a deep, gooey mess ever since. In McKnight's unfolding of the marvels of the biblical gospel we appreciate the wonder of the forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness is breath-taking, no doubt. But forgiveness is the foothills of the Rockies. Restored relationships are the peaks of the gospel. Sin destroys relationships as well as muddies up our lives. The gospel is about restoring relationships with a joyful, divine Community called God the Father, Son and Spirit. The gospel is about restoring us to one another in a wholeness of life called Shalom. "Any gospel that stops short of Shalom distorts the gospel." The gospel is about restoring us to creation (which to this day is groaning because of sin). Get Embracing Grace and read it. I feel I'm flailing to describe it. A community of restored Eikons loving God and people for the sake of the world is what Jesus' redeeming work is about. Heaven when we die? Yeah. Sins forgiven? Yeah. But to reduce the gospel to the foothills of redemption is a sad reduction, indeed. Jesus Christ is a much more majestic Person and had in mind a much more majestic Purpose than to prop up the sappy, reduced gospel prevalent in the West. Scot is right. There is a young wave of Christians who will not settle for the foothills where it's quite comfortable and safe and clean and boringly painless. They would rather hazard the climb to the peaks and adore a more beautiful and mysterious God, breathe a cleaner version of salvation air and see more expansive vistas of God's wonderful and wounded world. And they will do this even if they die trying. Scot McKnight's *Embracing Grace* helps them (and all of us) in that climb. 6 of 6 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A Recalibrated Vision of the Gospel, February 1, 2007 By  Thomas E. Ward Jr. (Delaware, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    There's a rare, rhythmic pulse that pervades this book, an ancient beat that doesn't usually accompany today's most popular Christian literature. It's a catchy tune too, like one of those radio jingles that you can't get out of your head. I had almost forgotten that the gospel is supposed to have this kind of unforgettable impact on me, on us. After reading Embracing Grace, it's hard for me to recall the last time the gospel looked so big, so beautiful, so extraordinarily relevant to our times. 6 of 6 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Scot McKnight's book on grace is a gift, January 19, 2007 By  Adam Ellis "I Believe In A Better Way..." (North Augusta, SC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)       Until I read this book, I had only heard "of" Scot McKnight. I knew that lots of the "emergent" guys have a lot of respect for him. Now that I've read this book, I know why. It's amazing. McKnight is both thoughtful and engaging. He weaves plainspoken theology with short biographical profiles into a tapestry of God's incredible grace. He presents grace not as the magic pill that takes care of our sin problem, but rather as the enabling force of God's love that we as a community are to reflect to the world. I highly recommend this book to anyone longing for hope, for community, for purpose, and/or faith. McKnight's discourse on grace is so heart achingly beautiful that I frequently found myself wiping tears from my smiling face. Thank you Scot for this gift to Christianity and the World. AE		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars dancing grace I join my voice to the other reviewers. the book is simple and full of grace.it made me know a little bit more what a great and good thing the gospel is. Published 7 months ago by Elias Tannous 5.0 out of 5 stars Dancing Faith - Good News for creation, the world, community, you and me I purchased Scot Mcknight's book, "Embracing Grace - A Gospel for All of Us because I read, "the Jesus Creed" about loving God and loving your neighbor. Read more Published on March 16, 2007 by G. Stephen Goode 5.0 out of 5 stars A Holistic Gospel the Tells the Overall Biblical Story The emerging generation is fed up with plastic presentations of Jesus and impersonal propositions that one must believe in order to be "in. Read more Published on December 26, 2006 by Robert W. Robinson 5.0 out of 5 stars An wholistic gospel of restoration In this wonderful book, Scot McKnight provides a fresh picture of a gospel of restoration. Humans were created as images ("eikons" is the term Scot prefers) of God, and the gospel... Read more Published on February 9, 2006 by Dr. Paul A. Baggaley Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 183 pages
• Publisher: Paraclete Press (November 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557254532
• ISBN-13: 978-1557254535
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #213,614 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #24 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Holidays > Easter
  #28 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Holidays > Lent

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EMBRACING GRACE: NOT A McGOSPEL, March 21, 2006

By	John Frye (Grand Rapids, MI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Scot McKnight's *Embracing Grace* is a redeeming book and the object of redemption is "the gospel."

The USAmerican (or "western") gospel is a shrivelled specimen of the gospel presented in the Bible and lived and proclaimed by Jesus, the apostles and early church.

One line in the book captures a boatload of truth. Scot writes about the younger generation of Christians who are aware of a bigger gospel than the previous generation could imagine. Scot states, "That gospel comes in the shape of a community."

Think about that. The gospel comes not in the shape of a sermon or a pamphlet or 3 steps to this and 4 steps for that. A community.

Weaving together the grand story of God's redemptive purpose, McKnight brings together the broken strands of God's creation design for humanity. Sin shattered the eikons of God, that is, sin corrupted men and women who bear God's image and who exist to live a life of love with God, with each other and with creation itself. This design includes being content within ourselves as well.

The western monkey-wrench that clogs up the process of God's gospel of restoration is our renegade worship of the idol of "individualism." Sin made Adam and Eve primarily individuals which was a devastating crack in God's majestic Eikons. We've been in a deep, gooey mess ever since.

In McKnight's unfolding of the marvels of the biblical gospel we appreciate the wonder of the forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness is breath-taking, no doubt. But forgiveness is the foothills of the Rockies. Restored relationships are the peaks of the gospel. Sin destroys relationships as well as muddies up our lives. The gospel is about restoring relationships with a joyful, divine Community called God the Father, Son and Spirit. The gospel is about restoring us to one another in a wholeness of life called Shalom. "Any gospel that stops short of Shalom distorts the gospel." The gospel is about restoring us to creation (which to this day is groaning because of sin). Get Embracing Grace and read it. I feel I'm flailing to describe it.

A community of restored Eikons loving God and people for the sake of the world is what Jesus' redeeming work is about. Heaven when we die? Yeah. Sins forgiven? Yeah. But to reduce the gospel to the foothills of redemption is a sad reduction, indeed. Jesus Christ is a much more majestic Person and had in mind a much more majestic Purpose than to prop up the sappy, reduced gospel prevalent in the West.

Scot is right. There is a young wave of Christians who will not settle for the foothills where it's quite comfortable and safe and clean and boringly painless. They would rather hazard the climb to the peaks and adore a more beautiful and mysterious God, breathe a cleaner version of salvation air and see more expansive vistas of God's wonderful and wounded world. And they will do this even if they die trying.

Scot McKnight's *Embracing Grace* helps them (and all of us) in that climb.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Recalibrated Vision of the Gospel, February 1, 2007

By	Thomas E. Ward Jr. (Delaware, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

There's a rare, rhythmic pulse that pervades this book, an ancient beat that doesn't usually accompany today's most popular Christian literature. It's a catchy tune too, like one of those radio jingles that you can't get out of your head. I had almost forgotten that the gospel is supposed to have this kind of unforgettable impact on me, on us. After reading Embracing Grace, it's hard for me to recall the last time the gospel looked so big, so beautiful, so extraordinarily relevant to our times.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scot McKnight's book on grace is a gift, January 19, 2007

By	Adam Ellis "I Believe In A Better Way..." (North Augusta, SC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Until I read this book, I had only heard "of" Scot McKnight. I knew that lots of the "emergent" guys have a lot of respect for him. Now that I've read this book, I know why. It's amazing. McKnight is both thoughtful and engaging. He weaves plainspoken theology with short biographical profiles into a tapestry of God's incredible grace. He presents grace not as the magic pill that takes care of our sin problem, but rather as the enabling force of God's love that we as a community are to reflect to the world. I highly recommend this book to anyone longing for hope, for community, for purpose, and/or faith. McKnight's discourse on grace is so heart achingly beautiful that I frequently found myself wiping tears from my smiling face. Thank you Scot for this gift to Christianity and the World. AE