Proclaiming the Scandal of the Cross

It's not often that a book is written to answer the "So what?" question, but that's precisely the case with *Proclaiming the Scandal of the Cross*. Inspiration for the book came when Mark Baker and Joel Green wrote *Recovering the Scandal of the Cross*, an argument against those evangelical theologians and pastors who focused on the penal satisfaction theory of the atonement to the exclusion of other complementary explanations. Readers were struck by their argument, but they asked, "How do we now preach the atonement? And how do we explain the saving significance of the cross when we evangelize?"  
  
*Proclaiming the Scandal of the Cross*, brings together presentations of the atonement given in a variety of contexts, from Africa to suburban Los Angeles, from junior high Sunday school classes to coffee shops. The images and metaphors in the book have been developed by pastors, writers, and theologians.  
  
Contents  
  
1. Contextualizing the Scandal of the Cross -*Mark D. Baker*  
2. Deeper Magic Conquers Death and the Powers of Evil -*C. S. Lewis*  
3. Rising Victorious -*Frederica Mathewes-Green*  
4. Atonement in the Coffee Shop -*Chris Friesen*  
5. A Different Story: Mark 15:21/39 -*Debbie Blue*  
6. Atonement as Drama in a Sunday School Class -*Dan Whitmarsh*  
7. The Forgiveness of Sins: Hosea 11:1/9; Matthew 18:23/25 -*Rowan Williams*  
8. Atonement: A Beach Parable for Youth -*Mark D. Baker*  
9. Made New by One Man's Obedience: Romans 5:12/19 -*Richard B. Hays*  
10. Participation and an Atomized World: A Reflection on Christ as Representative New Adam -*Steve Taylor*  
11. The Cross as Prophetic Action -*Brian D. McLaren*  
12. Naked but Unashamed -*Doug Frank*  
13. The Family Table -*Grace Y. May*  
14. Jesus, the Ultimate Outsider -*Mike McNichols*  
15. A Father's Advocacy -*Ryan Schellenberg*  
16. Present -*Luci Shaw?*  
17. Salvation through the Sacrifice of God's Firstborn Son -*Gwinyai H. Muzorewa*  
18. He Shared Our Aches -*Curtis Chang*  
19. Absorbing the Three D's of Death *Steve Todd*  
20. Go and Do Likewise -*Mark D. Baker*  
Notes  
Index  
  
As such, the book will appeal to pastors, professors, students, evangelists, youth leaders, and Bible study leaders who want to profit from the theology of the atonement as it applies across the whole spectrum of human experience.  
***-Publisher.***  
  


Because many modern Christians can offer a reasonable explanation of the meaning of Jesus' death on the cross, they find it hard to understand the confusion displayed by the disciples after the events in the last pages of the Gospels. But if Paul were alive today, he would find it inexplicable that we modern believers are not scandalized by the cross. Proclaiming the Scandal of the Cross introduces pastors, church leaders, students, and lay readers to the need for contextualized atonement theology, offering creative examples of how the cross can be proclaimed today in culturally relevant and transformative ways. It makes helpful suggestions on how this vision for a culturally relevant message might be developed. The impressive list of contributors includes writings from C. S. Lewis, Rowan Williams, Frederica Mathewes-Green, Brian McLaren, and many more who are actively working out just how to make this life-transforming proclamation.Read less