ordinary christianity for the world.
Practically Christian — Applying James Today
by Phillip A. Ross
Second Edition, 135 pages.James was written to correct a church that was going astray in the early years of Christianity. From James we learn that the gospel is intensely personal, that it is not just a matter of signing a pledge or joining an institution.
The gospel, James reminded his readers, is a practical way of life. And where the actual living of that way of life is not demonstrated in the lives of Christians, the Holy Spirit must be presumed to be absent and the faithfulness of such people called into question. The gospel is not just a head belief, nor a heart-felt experience. It is primarily a way of life. Initiated through the grace of God alone, the gospel is not the gospel apart from its actual, behavioral manifestation in the lives of believers (James 2:14).
This book seeks to shine the light of Scripture into the darkened recesses of the contemporary church by shining the light of James into the hearts of its contemporary readers. This is an intensely personal work in the sense that it attempts to get at issues that few people (or preachers) are willing to talk about, but are essential for the gospel to take root in our lives.
As such, it will provide a critique of the contemporary church from a biblical perspective, that of James. Many beliefs and practices of contemporary Christians and their churches will be found to be short of the biblical mark. As James has been grist for my mill, so this book is offered as grist for yours.
Rather than a straight-forward commentary on James I have put together various thoughts and tangents that have been inspired by James in the midst of ministry. My objective is to help people see that James is applicable today in the same way that it was when it was written.
"Practically Christian offers a fresh and insightful application of the ancient Christian epistle of James to the contemporary American Evangelical world. Against the Antinomian backdrop of a Christianity shaped by the Church Growth Movement, Ross puts teeth into Christianity, pressing for a practical realism in order to restore some theological balance and sanity. His book is by no means dull reading or trite, but is replete with fresh anecdotes illustrating the salient points he is conveying. I found his exposition of James 1:2-4 to be especially instructive and profound, and on that basis alone the book was worth reading. Ross's commitment to Reformed doctrine is quite obvious throughout, and nearly every question the book raised in my mind was satisfactorily addressed as I read further. Many parts of the book I wish I had written myself!"
(comment from David C. Brand, Pastor and author of Profile of the Last Puritan: Jonathan Edwards, Self-Love, and the Dawn of the Beatific, Scholars Press, Atlanta Georgia).
Who might be interested in this book? Christians. Church members and pastors who have an interest in Christian theology, or who are concerned about the deteriorating condition of the churches or just interested in Christianity will find much grist for the mill here.
Those most likely to benefit from this book are serious Christians and church leaders (pastors and elders). Why? Because here you will find a renewed understanding of the historic, Protestant perspective applied to James, and see how it interacts with various historic and popular movements.
