How do you enjoy life at its very best? In the brand-new book The Christian Manifesto: Jesus’ Life-Changing Words from the Sermon on the Plain, Alistair Begg navigates us through the extraordinary teaching from Jesus that explains the key to a life that truly satisfies.
The Christian Manifesto unpacks Jesus’ iconic, landmark sermon in Luke 6. In this well-known section of Scripture, Jesus explains that the hallmarks and priorities of Christ’s kingdom are vastly different from the world’s, so its citizens will be vastly different too.
A manifesto is a public declaration or proclamation issued by a monarch or head of state, or by a representative of a company or organization. Here is a manifesto for the Christian life, straight from the lips of Jesus, as he gathered both his followers and those who were thinking about becoming his followers on “a level place”—on a plain—and taught them one of his most famous sermons, found in Luke’s Gospel and known as the “Sermon on the Plain.” It is a manifesto that is not oriented towards the political arena, but towards the relational and individual one. — Alistair Begg
In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus calls us to turn everything our sinful hearts embrace about forgiveness, integrity, obedience, and blessedness upside down! Alistair helpfully guides us through this challenging instruction to better understand what it means to love our enemies, love our neighbors as ourselves, and not judge others.
He also helps us interpret phrases like “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh,” or “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” You’ll dive deeper into how to live out the marks of a genuine Christian life according to Jesus’ values regarding wealth, obedience, generosity, and forgiveness. The Christian Manifesto reminds all of us that Jesus’ teaching was, and still is, radical and often in contrast to human intuition.
The Sermon on the Plain is a highly recommended passage for you to examine with your Bible study group. In addition to using The Christian Manifesto book to guide you along the way, your group will benefit greatly by answering the thought-stirring questions in the corresponding study guide, also newly released as a companion to the book. Using the book and study guide together, you’ll jointly consider what it looks like to find fortune in hardship and forgive without limits. The Christian Manifesto study guide can be purchased separately as a booklet in our online store or downloaded for free.
Request your copy of The Christian Manifesto when you donate to Truth For Life, and explore what it means to be a child of God by embracing the upside-down ideals that lead to the greatest blessings of all.
See the supplementary study guide in our online store.
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