Christianity is in a state of moral crisis. Even though people make moral decisions every day, many Christians lack both the ability to evaluate these decisions and a community of discipleship to help inspire a morally faithful life. Compared to the people around them, there is often no discernible difference in how Christians go about making moral choices. As a biblical and practical theologian with three decades of pastoral experience, who has also spent years teaching ethics to undergraduates, Gary Tyra approaches the topic with the practical goal of facilitating moral formation and encouraging an "everyday" moral faithfulness. Tyra argues that Christians can have confidence in their Christ-centered, Spirit-enabled ability to discern and do the will of God in any moral situation. Moral faithfulness follows from a life of Christian discipleship. In an age of moral apathy and theological confusion, Pursuing Moral Faithfulness is a breath of fresh air and a sign of hope for the future.

Pursuing Moral Faithfulness: Ethics and Christian Discipleship

Politics & Social Sciences

Tyra, Gary

Philosophy

IVP Academic

The emerging and missional church movements have raised decisive questions about what it means to embody the Christian faith in a post-Christian and postmodern world. A common reactionary response denies the significance of the context and reasserts the supremacy of classical orthodoxy. An equally common position at the other end of the spectrum involves a rejection of orthodoxy as contextually insensitive and incapable of being inclusive and missional at all. The one asserts its orthodoxy at the expense of being missional and contextual; the other emphasizes generosity at the expense of its fidelity to "the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints" (Jude 1:3). The church today needs a theology that is both orthodox and missional--doing justice to both aspects. Gary Tyra has written just such a book. In A Missional Orthodoxy he critically engages with the works of Brian McLaren and Marcus Borg for the sake of developing a comprehensive missional theology that retains what he calls the "four Christological verities" at the heart of Christian doctrine. Tyra discusses the methodological question of contextualization, offering an incarnational model of recontextualization that unites the postmodern insights of the culture with the truths of the biblical text. On the basis of this missional foundation, he examines all the major Christian doctrines in order to overcome the false antithesis between a fighting fundamentalism and a too-accommodating liberalism. The result is a humble, modest, missionally faithful orthodoxy that provides a compelling witness within a world of competing extremes.

A Missional Orthodoxy: Theology and Ministry in a Post-Christian Context

History

The church has been called to participate in God's mission in the world. But without a robust, biblical sense of the Spirit's action, how can we be sure we're fulfilling that call? Gary Tyra employs a biblical theology of the Holy Spirit to deepen and inform our understanding of life as the church, the people of God. Since the church's mission to and into the world is both evangelistic and prophetic, the task calls for the working of the Spirit in our preaching, proclamation and service. Tyra brings together both charismatic and evangelical emphases resulting in a theological and practical synthesis that is richer than when either is taken separately.

The Holy Spirit in Mission: Prophetic Speech and Action in Christian Witness

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

Truly healthy marriages fulfill a transformational purpose: helping one another to reach the full status of being persons, responsible and autonomous beings who do not run away from life. What is required is that couples must eventually move beyond the bliss and unrealistic expectations, to a place in their marriage where they are willing to engage in some hard work and thrive in a broken world. In his best-selling book The Road Less Traveled, M. Scott Peck makes the point that life is difficult, problems are inevitable, and that we, as individuals, can either learn to deal with our problems wisely, becoming more emotionally and spiritually healthy in the process, or we can allow them to undo us. "Four life disciplines", says Peck, "make all the difference." In this groundbreaking book, Gary and Patti Tyra explain how applying Peck's four life disciplines to our marriages is crucial to their becoming transformational in character. Our marriages can become truly healthy, empowering both marital partners to become more fully and responsibly human.

Beyond the Bliss: Discovering Your Uniqueness in Marriage

Tyra, Patti

IVP Books

We all have deep longings and desires that can only be filled by His empowering presence. While many spiritual classics contain repeated references to a particular spiritual exercise: the cultivation of an ongoing awareness of Christ's empowering presence, Gary Tyra makes the claim that this particular activity is at the heart of Christian spirituality and provides the reader with: 
<ul>
<li>A clear vision of what the experience of Christ's empowering presence looks like</li>
<li>Citations from the spiritual masters that will serve to inspire them over and over again to make it their intention to live the rest of their lives enjoying Christ's empowering presence</li>
<li>A thoughtful discussion of the means by which this key spiritual dynamic can be experienced on a daily, moment-by-moment, basis.</li>
</ul>

Christ's Empowering Presence: The Pursuit of God Through the Ages

Pharisaism (legalism, dogmatism, separatism, judgmentalism, etc.) is alive and well and a destructive force in too many evangelical churches. This plague hinders effective outreach, burns out professional and lay leaders and has contributed to the mass alienation of tens of thousands of young people from evangelical churches to the point where they have no church affiliation at all or they associate with churches that may have compromised the gospel in their attempt to be culturally relevant. This book makes the point that the key to defeating Pharisaism is by proactively steering people away from Pharisaism while at the same time showing them the life-giving truth that is found in true kingdom living, beautifully communicated through the Sermon on the Mount. As Jesus trained his disciples, he kept pointing at the Pharisees and saying "Do not be like them."

Defeating Pharisaism: Recovering Jesus' Disciple-Making Method

Some reputable sociological research indicates that a surprising number of evangelical churchgoers are living out a version of the Christian life that's more informed by the values of the surrounding culture than by the discipleship teachings of Jesus and his apostles. Viewing the cause of this disturbing trend in the church to be a "discipleship deficit" that's exacerbated by a "pneumatological deficit," Gary Tyra has written a book that addresses both. In this work, Tyra encourages evangelical Christians of all stripes to become more fully aware of the tremendous difference it makes when the Holy Spirit is experienced in ways that are real and existentially impactful, rather than merely theoretical, conceptual, and/or ritualistic. Intended to be read by church leaders as well as by students in Christian colleges and seminaries, the message here is that the cure for the ministry malady currently confronting us is the recovery of a robust, fully Trinitarian doctrine of the Spirit. A pneumatological realism, says Tyra, combined with an understanding of just how important a spiritual, moral, and missional faithfulness is to a genuine Christian discipleship, can revitalize the lives of individual Christians and churches, making it possible for them to reach their post-Christian peers for Christ!

Getting Real: Pneumatological Realism and the Spiritual, Moral, and Ministry Formation of Contemporary Christians

Cascade Books

Some reputable sociological research indicates that a surprising number of evangelical churchgoers are living out a version of the Christian life that's more informed by the values of the surrounding culture than by the discipleship teachings of Jesus and his apostles. Viewing the cause of this disturbing trend in the church to be a "discipleship deficit" that's exacerbated by a "pneumatological deficit," Gary Tyra has written a book that addresses both. In this work, Tyra encourages evangelical Christians of all stripes to become more fully aware of the tremendous difference it makes when the Holy Spirit is experienced in ways that are real and existentially impactful, rather than merely theoretical, conceptual, and/or ritualistic. Intended to be read by church leaders as well as by students in Christian colleges and seminaries, the message here is that the cure for the ministry malady currently confronting us is the recovery of a robust, fully Trinitarian doctrine of the Spirit. A pneumatological realism, says Tyra, combined with an understanding of just how important a spiritual, moral, and missional faithfulness is to a genuine Christian discipleship, can revitalize the lives of individual Christians and churches, making it possible for them to reach their post-Christian peers for Christ!

Getting Real

Wipf and Stock

The Dark Side of Discipleship

There's a dark side to Christian discipleship church members ignore to their peril. The New Testament has much to say about why and how Christ's followers must deal with the devil. Learning to take the evil one seriously without obsessing over him is crucial to the spiritual endurance training we all need if we are to someday hear Jesus say to us: "Well done, good and faithful servant!"Specifically, pastor/theologian Gary Tyra argues in this work that key to overcoming Satan is a balanced, Spirit-empowered engagement in what he refers to as the four cardinal components of Christian discipleship. Understanding the various ways the devil attempts to derail our experiences of worship, nurture, community, and mission can serve to motivate us with respect to them! With the help of the Holy Spirit, church members can cultivate a "lifestyle spirituality" that enables them to don the "full armor of God" and engage in several critical "close-quarters combat tactics" the New Testament encourages. In the end, The Dark Side of Discipleship is a no-nonsense yet inspirational New Testament theology of spiritual warfare that can serve Christ's church as a powerful aid to the spiritual, moral, and ministry formation of contemporary Christians.

The Dark Side of Discipleship: Why and How the New Testament Encourages Christians to Deal with the Devil

Product Description 
There's a dark side to Christian discipleship church members ignore to their peril. The New Testament has much to say about why and how Christ's followers must deal with the devil. Learning to take the evil one seriously without obsessing over him is crucial to the spiritual endurance training we all need if we are to someday hear Jesus say to us: ""Well done, good and faithful servant!"" Specifically, pastor/theologian Gary Tyra argues in this work that key to overcoming Satan is a balanced, Spirit-empowered engagement in what he refers to as the four cardinal components of Christian discipleship. Understanding the various ways the devil attempts to derail our experiences of worship, nurture, community, and mission can serve to motivate us with respect to them! With the help of the Holy Spirit, church members can cultivate a ""lifestyle spirituality"" that enables them to don the ""full armor of God"" and engage in several critical ""close-quarters combat tactics"" the New Testament encourages. In the end, The Dark Side of Discipleship is a no-nonsense yet inspirational New Testament theology of spiritual warfare that can serve Christ's church as a powerful aid to the spiritual, moral, and ministry formation of contemporary Christians. 
 Review 
"The Christian tradition has long recognized the 'three enemies of the soul' as hindrances to spiritual growth: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Tragically, many modern Christians have either demythologized or sensationalized the third enemy. Gary Tyra does neither but proposes that having a sound, biblical understanding of the demonic is indispensable to true discipleship. This book will challenge those who are either dismissive of or fixated on the devil." 
--Simon Chan, editor of Asia Journal of Theology\n"Tyra addresses a frequently bypassed theme when talking about Christian discipleship: we have a formidable adversary whose cunning is distracting, derailing, or destroying the faith journeys of countless Christians. He acknowledges the tendency of some to give the devil too much visibility, while others naively act as if the Bible is silent on this 'roaring lion' whose destructive intent is clear. Tyra's alternative replaces an avoidance of the topic, with an empowerment that is a primer on spiritual endurance training." 
--Byron D. Klaus, President of Assemblies of God Theological Seminary (1999-2015)\n"To my own peril I ignored thinking about spiritual warfare for much of my Christian life. Readers of this insightful book can learn, as I have, that following Jesus involves awareness of the enemy of our soul. Gary Tyra provides a welcome orientation to this dark side with sound biblical teaching and encouraging pastoral guidance for endurance training in developing a lifestyle empowered by the Spirit." 
--Klaus Issler, Professor of Educational Studies and Theology, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University\n"Written from a pastor's heart, informed by a scholar's mind, Gary Tyra's The Dark Side of Discipleship speaks with characteristic precision and breadth to a subject rarely addressed, but arguably more needed now than ever before--spiritual warfare. Beginning with a solid biblical foundation, he is able to avoid the extremes of sensationalism and dismissal and provides theologically sound and pastorally informed study of how the devil seeks to derail and distract the disciples of Jesus. He then turns to a compelling discussion of what might--and must--be done in response. An exceptional work of pastoral theology--recommended without reservation." 
--W. H. Dogterom, Professor of Pastoral Ministries and Spiritual Formation, Vanguard University\n"As a child of the 1980s, the phrase dark side easily conjures up images of Darth Vader, the most notorious villain in film history. As Obi Wan Kenobi warned Luke Skywalker in Episode IV, there is always a temptation of being seduced by the dark side. Just ask Lord Voldemort of Harry Potter fame, or T

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