Why do we have bodies?

When it comes to thinking about our bodies, confusion reigns. In our secular age, there has been a loss of the body's goodness, purpose, and end. Many people, driven by shame and idolatry, abuse their body through self-harm or self-improvement. How can we renew our understanding and see our bodies the way God does?

In Wonderfully Made, John Kleinig forms a properly biblical theology of our bodies. Through his keen sensitivity to Scripture's witness, Kleinig explains why bodies matter. While sin has corrupted our bodies and how we think of them, God's creation is still good. Thus, our bodies are good gifts. The Son took on a body to redeem our bodies. Kleinig addresses issues like shame, chastity, desire, gender dysphoria, and more, by integrating them into the biblical vision of creation.
Readers of Wonderfully Made will not only be equipped to engage in current issues; they will gain a robust theology of the body and better appreciation of God's very good creation.

2024 Illumination Book Awards Gold Medal Winner for Bible Study

You read it. But do you understand it?

While the Bible is the most famous book in history, it can be intimidating. Yet God's word is for us and all people. It is living and active and has the power to save, give life, and heal. Do we read the Bible attuned to the power of God's word?

John W. Kleinig opens up the riches found in the Bible. He likens God's word to a lavish meal that nourishes and satisfies our souls. He shows us the centrality of Scripture to Christian faith--the word through which the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit speak with one voice to believers on Earth.

You receive Communion. But what does it mean?

In The Lord's Supper: A Guide to the Heavenly Feast, John W. Kleinig awakens a hunger for meeting Jesus in the bread and wine. The Bible tells us that Jesus came from heaven to earth to give us himself, and his self-giving continues in the meal that he hosts. In the sacrament of Communion, Jesus offers believers nothing less than his holy, life-giving body and cleansing blood. He brings heaven to earth for us and gives us a foretaste of the heavenly supper of the Lamb. And by faith, we commune with him. In the Eucharist, Christians give thanks for God's gift of himself.

My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods. --Psalm 63:5

Christian spirituality is, quite simply, following Jesus. It is the ordinary life of faith in which we receive Baptism, attend the Divine Service, participate in the Holy Supper, read the Scriptures, pray for ourselves and others, resist temptation, and work with Jesus in our given location here on earth. - from the Introduction

The longing for spiritual fulfillment, inevitably paired with spiritual frustration, is common among Christians.

• Do we read and study the Bible enough?
• Do we worship often and in the right way?
• Do we pray enough, in the correct way, and for the right things?
• How do we become truly spiritual?

And the answers from numerous self-help spirituality books only lead to confusion and the fear of missing key steps on the road to becoming spiritual.

In response, John W. Kleinig clarifies that there is no process for becoming spiritual. Instead, God graciously gives to us every spiritual gift that we need, beginning with the very gift of faith in Christ, our Savior. Because God has joined us to Christ, He continually comes to give us life.

Why do the books of Chronicles regard the performance of choral music as an integral part of the sacrificial ritual at the temple, despite the lack of sanction for it in the Pentateuch? And why do they stress that it must be synchronized with the presentation of the regular public burnt offering at the temple? These and other questions are answered in this challenging new volume. After an introductory chapter defining the scope of the study as an analysis of the ritual function and theological significance of sacred song, the author examines the divine institution and royal establishment of the Levitical choir in Jerusalem. This is followed by an examination of the components of the Lord's song in terms of its contents, location, times, instruments and performers. A chapter on the function of sacred song as determined by its place within the sacrificial ritual follows, and the fifth chapter deals with its theological significance as the proclamation of the Lord's presence with his people.