Reckoning with Power: Why the Church Fails When It's on the Wrong Side of Power

by David E. Fitch

Publisher:

Brazos Press

, 2024

History is clear: Whenever the church has aligned itself with worldly, coercive power, it ends up on the wrong side of important justice issues.

But when the church cooperates with God's power through his presence among the least powerful, its witness for Jesus transforms the world into a better place.

In Reckoning with Power, David Fitch unpacks the difference between worldly power, or power over others, and God's power, which engages not in coercion but in love, reconciliation, grace, forgiveness, and healing.

In a world where we can see the abuses of power everywhere--in our homes, schools, governments, and churches--Fitch teaches readers how to discern power and avoid its abuses and traumas. By learning from the church's historical pitfalls, Fitch empowers Christians to relinquish worldly power and make space for God to disrupt and transform our culture for his kingdom.

From the Back Cover

How the Right Kind of Power Can Disrupt and Change the World

History is clear: Whenever the church has aligned itself with worldly, coercive power, it ends up on the wrong side of important justice issues. But when the church cooperates with God's power through his presence among the least powerful, its witness for Jesus transforms the world into a better place.

In a time when we see abuses of power everywhere--in our homes, schools, governments, and churches--David Fitch teaches us how to discern power and avoid its pitfalls. By learning from the church's historical triumphs and failures, we can relinquish worldly power and make space for God to disrupt and transform our culture for his kingdom.

"Reckoning with Power is the critical reassessment the church needs--particularly the church in North America. I urge those who hope for a better Christianity to read this book."
--Brian Zahnd, author of The Wood Between the Worlds

"At this moment, there's nothing the church needs more than a Jesus-centered theology of power. Fitch's book brings that needed word. May the church listen."
--Beth Felker Jones, Northern Seminary; author of Practicing Christian Doctrine

"Fitch asks us to look deeper, question more, and release that which so many of us have striven for: worldly power."
--Sean Palmer, author, pastor, speaking and teaching coach

"This book should be required reading for Christian leaders and influencers. It is the best Christian introduction to the subject I have read."
--John Fea, author of Believe Me: The Evangelical Road to Donald Trump; Messiah University

"Fitch calls us to Christ's power as the church's first and final reckoning with worldly power. Powerful!"
--Jonathan Tran, Baylor University; author of Asian Americans and the Spirit of Racial Capitalism

Contents

Contents
Introduction: The American Church on the Wrong Side of Power
1. Defining Power: The Many Versions
2. Worldly Power and God's Power: There Are Two Powers, Not One
3. The Persistent Temptation to Blur the Powers
4. The Lure of Christian Nationalism: The Refusal of God's Power
5. Playing God with Worldly Power: The More Subtle Temptations
6. Living under the Power of Christ: The Church on the Right Side of Power
Epilogue: We Can Be a Different People; Getting Back on the Right Side of History
Index

Product Details

• Title: Reckoning with Power: Why the Church Fails When It's on the Wrong Side of Power
• Author: David E. Fitch
• Publisher: Brazos Press
• Print Publication Date: 2024
• Logos Release Date: 2023
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Ebook
• ISBNs: 9781493444908, 9781587434150, 1587434156, 1493444905
• Resource ID: LLS:9781493444908
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2023-12-24T20:07:46Z

About David E. Fitch

David E. Fitch (PhD, Northwestern University) is the B. R. Lindner Chair of Evangelical Theology at Northern Seminary. He is also the founding pastor of Life on the Vine Christian Community, a missional church in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. He is the author of The Great Giveaway and The End of Evangelicalism? and is the coauthor of Prodigal Christianity. Fitch coaches a network of church plants in the Christian and Missionary Alliance and he writes, speaks, and lectures on issues the local church must face in mission including cultural engagement, leadership and theology. He has also written numerous articles in periodicals such as Christianity Today, The Other Journal, Missiology as well as various academic journals.