God's Wider Presence

257 Pages·2014·2.693 MB·English

by  Robert Johnston

GOD’S WIDER
P R E S E N C E
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’
G O D S W I D E R
P R E S E N C E
RECONSIDERING
GENERAL REVEL ATION
ROBERT K. JOHNSTON
K
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These websites are hyperlinked.
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
www.bakeracademic.com
www.brazospress.com
www.chosenbooks.com
www.revellbooks.com
www.bethanyhouse.com
© 2014 by Robert K. Johnston
Published by Baker Academic
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.bakeracademic.com
Printed in the United States of America
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the
prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Johnston, Robert K., 1945– author.
God’s wider presence : reconsidering general revelation / Robert K. Johnston.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8010-4945-3 (pbk.)
1. Revelation—Christianity. I. Title.
BT127.3.J64 2014
231.74—dc23 2014032343
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989, by
the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United
States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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For Eleanor, Jayne, Anna,
James Harris, and Thomas Robert
May God’s wider Presence
surprise you often
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One of the best gifts for the critical mind and for
a living tradition is the gift of a new question.
Mary Collins
For man [and woman] does not see God by his
own powers; but when He pleases He is seen
by men, By whom He wills, and when He wills,
and as He wills.
Irenaeus
Ring the bells that still can be rung
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.
Leonard Cohen
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Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Preface xiii
1. God’s Wider Revelation 1
2. Experiencing God Today: Our Turn to the Spiritual 19
3. Reflecting on Experience: A Case Study—The Movie Event 42
4. Broadening Our Biblical Focus, Part 1 67
5. Broadening Our Biblical Focus, Part 2 90
6. Engaging the Tradition 120
7. Moved by the Spirit 160
8. God’s Wider Revelation Reconsidered 188
Selected Bibliography 215
Index 223
ix
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