For People Like Us: God’s Search for the Lost of Luke 15
Foreword by Justin Brierley
Description.
Is God really for us? It has been said that no person ever rises above their view of God. Whom we worship, what we worship, is irrevocably tied to who we become. Worship predicts identity.
Without a new vision of God there can be no new vision of hope. In the middle of Luke’s Gospel, in chapter 15, are three of Jesus’s most treasured parables. They are the “holy, holy, holy” of Luke’s Gospel. The parable of the lost sheep, the parable of the lost coin, and the parable of the lost son(s)" are more than earthly stories with heavenly meanings. They are images of theological revolution.
For People Like Us is not merely a commentary on these parables; it is a study that captures a fresh vision of what God is like. This vision not only influences our reading of Luke 15, but our reading of this text, in turn, influences our theology. Once we appreciate this, we find that God, the creator of innumerable stars, is not merely for us. It is to his honor to be so.
Without a new vision of God there can be no new vision of hope. In the middle of Luke’s Gospel, in chapter 15, are three of Jesus’s most treasured parables. They are the “holy, holy, holy” of Luke’s Gospel. The parable of the lost sheep, the parable of the lost coin, and the parable of the lost son(s)" are more than earthly stories with heavenly meanings. They are images of theological revolution.
For People Like Us is not merely a commentary on these parables; it is a study that captures a fresh vision of what God is like. This vision not only influences our reading of Luke 15, but our reading of this text, in turn, influences our theology. Once we appreciate this, we find that God, the creator of innumerable stars, is not merely for us. It is to his honor to be so.
Endorsements.
"For People Like Us is my favorite kind of book. It is concise, elegantly structured, and written with not a word wasted. It is profound, bristling with insights that I will be meditating on for a while. And it is inspiring, centering us anew in the unrelenting love of God."
Randal Rauser
Professor of historical theology, Taylor Seminary of Kairos University
"Luuk van de Weghe reminds us that some of the most important parables in Jesus's teachings are about the heart of the gospel--love from the heavenly Father and belonging in the kingdom family. The essential religious questions are 'who is god?' and 'what is god like?' The Gospel of Luke presents a clear answer: God is for us. Exegetically insightful, theologically rich, and spiritually nourishing, For People Like Us is a big gift packed into a short book."
Nijay K. Gupta
Professor of New Testament, Northern Seminary
Randal Rauser
Professor of historical theology, Taylor Seminary of Kairos University
"Luuk van de Weghe reminds us that some of the most important parables in Jesus's teachings are about the heart of the gospel--love from the heavenly Father and belonging in the kingdom family. The essential religious questions are 'who is god?' and 'what is god like?' The Gospel of Luke presents a clear answer: God is for us. Exegetically insightful, theologically rich, and spiritually nourishing, For People Like Us is a big gift packed into a short book."
Nijay K. Gupta
Professor of New Testament, Northern Seminary