Flesh-and-Blood Jesus, Second Edition

Christians are prone to so focus on the realities of Jesus' divinity that we minimize or ignore the realities of his humanity. That he called himself the Son of Man more than any other title emphasizes that Jesus lived humanly in our fallen world, facing our temptations and living out the tensions of being human in the flow of life. He was just like us, human in a sinful world, yet he did not sin. So what can we learn from Jesus' glorious life about the meaning of our own humanity, about the tensions of being human in a sinful world and the difference between being a sinner and being a finite, flesh-and-blood human being? With this book as a helpful and trustworthy guide, you will begin to see how we can learn from Jesus how to: - live gracefully in our bodies, even our wounded and dying bodies - live with integrity as finite human beings who are created to enjoy limits - love our family, friends, neighbors, strangers, and enemies - enjoy being alone without being lonely - enjoy the good things of life - wear our scars with hope and dignity - learn to die As Dr. Russ shows, it is by truly encountering, understanding, and learning from Jesus' humanity that we can become more fully and truly human. ""This book is a little gem rich with quiet wisdom and deep insights, and is beautifully written. This is a book to read slowly and savor long."" --Os Guinness, author of A Free People's Suicide: Sustainable Freedom and the American Future ""A book of uncommon power and insight. By providing incisive commentary on the gospel's story of Jesus's humanity, Russ opens wide a window into our own."" --Robert Walter Wall, Paul T. Walls Professor of Scripture and Wesleyan Studies, Seattle Pacific University ""I don't know when I have been more pleased with a book on Christian life than I am with this stunningly helpful examination of the humanity of Christ. . . . This is the kind of book that not only deserves, but needs, a wide readership."" --Luder G. Whitlock Jr., Former President, Reformed Theological Seminary ""A marvelously surprising book. Surprising because it uncovers an obvious truth we have persistently managed to obscure or ignore. Marvelous because, like all truths, its discovery has the capacity to set us free, free to enjoy the limits of our finitude, and free to marvel, once again, at the full-orbed wonder of the Word-made-flesh. A tour de force."" --Stan D. Gaede, President, Christian College Consortium Dan Russ is Academic Dean and faculty member at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts. He is also a Fellow of the Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture and a Senior Fellow of the Trinity Forum, where he has also served as a moderator, resource scholar, editor, and project director. He has previously published on biblical and classical literature as well as education.