Engaging God’s World and The Call Book Summary
The books that we were required to read for Bible 115 class were Engaging God’s World – A Christian Vision Of Faith, Learning And Living by Cornelius Plantinga Jr. and The Call – Finding And Fulfilling The Central Purpose For Your Life by Os Guinness. Both books offered very useful advice for today’s Christians. Engaging God’s World is written for students and will help them make sense of their education in a Christian perspective. Both authors use scripture, humor and common sense to validate their points.
In Engaging God’s World, Plantinga looks at Christian higher education and how it fits into the world. It is intended to help Christian teenagers, college students and young adults
Salvation is not deserved, but is a gift from God.
In the Chapter 5 entitled “Vocation In The Kingdom Of God”, Plantinga discusses the role of Christians in today’s world. He asks the compelling question “Do contemporary Christians bring the same passion to their hope of redemption as people in the Bible did”? He answers the question with a very compelling observation; it depends on how good their lives are. The primary role of Christians is to help others in their communities and in their world; “meshing our kingdoms with the kingdoms of others”. Jesus spent his time on Earth “doing” and it is the role of Christians to “do”. Later in the chapter, the role of a “prime citizen” of the kingdom of God is described as someone who passionately yearns for the kingdom; someone who has been redeemed in spirit and in heart; someone who relishes God’s word; and someone who rejoices in God the Savior. God also uses institutions in His kingdom – government, industry, hospitals and schools – to promote His will and do His business. Christians should be a part of these institutions to seek the interest of the kingdom. Plantinga concludes by stating that career choices matter and college is a natural place to think about them and also that one’s career choice should take into consideration how that career might promote