Скачать или смотреть Thursday Night Christian Education: Surprised by Hope

In this Lenten study, we will read and discuss N.T. Wright's book, Surprised by Hope. In Surprised by Hope, Wright dismantles the common misconception that the ultimate goal of the Christian faith is an escapist, disembodied "going to heaven when you die," replacing it with the robust, biblical vision of bodily resurrection and the renewal of all creation. Wright argues that the resurrection of Jesus was the "first fruits" of a new world, signaling that God’s plan is not to abandon the physical earth but to redeem it entirely—a concept he famously describes as "life after life after death." This shift in perspective transforms the mission of the church from a waiting game into an active vocation; if God intends to make all things new, then our current efforts toward justice, beauty, and evangelism are not just temporary fixes, but meaningful contributions to the building of God's kingdom here and now.