If you are total pragmatist when it comes to ministry, you won’t like this book. If you are a theologian-pastor type, you may well love Andrew Purves, The Resurrection of Ministry: Serving in the Hope of the Risen Lord
. Purves’ earlier book, which we blogged through, was called The Crucifixion of Ministry: Surrendering Our Ambitions to the Service of Christ
, and this one takes us from Good Friday, coaxes us away from dwelling in a Holy Saturday ministry, and invites us into a Resurrection theology that can reshape ministry.
Pastors: How does Easter impact your pastoral theology? your ministry? your daily life? your preaching? your liturgical practices?
The book must be read slowly to savor the theology, but I want to highlight the progressive steps he walks through for the pastoral theology that dwells in the resurrection:
Focus on Jesus
Rewrite the roadmap of ministry
Become a theologian
Learn how the Lord works
Put ascension day back in place
Sharpen the edge (use present tense for Jesus etc)
Come to terms with a risen, but hidden, Jesus
Become martyrs
Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Insert Trinitarian words into your liturgical expressions
Trust in the resurrected Lord that your ministry is accepted by God
Let resurrection faith resist evil
Declare in your preaching; preach with conviction
Ministry practices the atonement
Ministry moves also from Easter into Good Friday: crucifixion is praxis.
Intentionally celebrate joyfully
Ministry is a joy
Celebrate funerals in the mood of Easter
Liturgies of forgiveness can be reshaped
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