Called to Be Saints: An Invitation to Christian Maturity

by Gordon T. Smith

Publisher:

IVP Academic

, 2014

Overview

Christianity Today Award of Merit.

Best Book of Spirituality—Academic, from Byron Borger, Hearts and Minds Bookstore.

Evangelicals are known for their emphasis on conversion. But what about life after conversion and beyond justification?.

Desperately needed is a comprehensive theology of the Christian life from beginning to end, along with the means of formation and transformation. In Called to Be Saints, Gordon Smith draws on a distinguished lifetime of reflecting on these themes to offer us a theologically rich account of our participation in the life of Christ.

Both profound and practical, this book is a trinitarian theology of holiness that encompasses both justification and sanctification, both union with Christ and communion with God. Smith unfolds how and why Christians are called to become wise people, do good work, love others and enjoy rightly ordered affections..

If holiness is the ongoing journey of becoming mature in Christ, then there is no better guide than Smith. Christians in every walk of life will find this a rich resource for learning what it means to “grow up in every way...into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15).

Key Features

• Exposes a trinitarian theology of holiness.
• Encompasses both justification and sanctification.
• Contains many profound insights couched in disarmingly simple language.

Praise for the Print Edition

This is a much-needed book today. It answers the pressing yet almost forgotten question of character by articulating how the sanctification gap came to be and how to bridge it. This book is a wise guide to abundant living, not through self-help techniques but by learning how to live an abundant life in Christ. Read this book, study this book, live this book, and you will find wisdom, goodness, love and joy.

-James Bryan Smith, author of The Good and Beautiful God

To be saints is to be mature in Christ. Smith explains what this statement means theologically, and thoughtfully works out its ramifications in work, relationships and one’s own emotions. The book contains many profound insights couched in disarmingly simple language, making it readily accessible to a wide readership. But what sets it apart is that it locates the foundation of sainthood in divine wisdom, and thus contributes a distinct perspective to the ongoing conversation on Christian spirituality.

-Simon Chan, Earnest Lau Professor of Systematic Theology, Trinity Theological College, Singapore

Gordon Smith compellingly connects Christian maturity and holiness in a way that reminds us that we need not shy away from calling ourselves saints as we grow in our life with Christ. Indeed, it is in reclaiming the idea of sainthood for every believer that we find the doorway into a proper understanding and practice of the holy life.

-Steve Harper, emeritus professor of spiritual formation and Wesley studies, Asbury Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Title: Called to Be Saints: An Invitation to Christian Maturity
• Author: Gordon T. Smith
• Publisher: IVP Academic
• Print Publication Date: 2014
• Logos Release Date: 2018
• Pages: 256
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Christian life; Holiness Christianity; Sanctification Christianity; Spiritual formation
• ISBN: 083086489
• Resource ID: LLS:9780830864898
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-06T20:46:24Z

About Gordon T. Smith

Gordon T. Smith (PhD, Loyola School of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University) is the president of Ambrose University and Seminary in Calgary, Alberta, where he also serves as professor of systematic and spiritual theology. He is an ordained minister with the Christian and Missionary Alliance and a teaching fellow at Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia. He is the author of many books, including Institutional Intelligence, Courage and Calling, Called to Be Saints, and Evangelical, Sacramental, and Pentecostal.

Sample Pages from Called to Be Saints: An Invitation to Christian Maturity