Meditation and Communion with God: Contemplating Scripture in an Age of Distraction
"John Jefferson Davis is one of the best and most important evangelical theologians alive today in North America. Whenever I read his works, I feel thrilled and fascinated by his profound insights and inspirations.Meditation and Communion with Godis another superb example of his robust and thought-provoking theology. I enjoyed especially his engagement with other religious traditions, primarily Asian. This book will be deeply loved by numerous readers not only in North America but also in the majority world. A must-read for every Christian that is interested in biblical meditation, trinitarian theology and symbolic hermeneutics." (Sung Wook Chung, associate professor of theology, Denver Seminary)"Davis's passionate conviction that biblical meditation is an antidote to the bewildering busyness and fragmentation of twenty-first-century life shines through in this engaging, incisive work. Integrating theology and cutting-edge neuroscientific discovery, Davis creatively adapts meditative methods of the past for evangelicals in an age of tehnology, teaching us practical ways to grow deeply through our encounters with God's Word." (Gwenfair Walters Adams, Ph.D., associate professor of church history, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary)"Finally, a book about meditation on Scripture that is theologically rich, built on the great Christian tradition, attuned to the contemporary scene and practically helpful! Jack Davis has provided a needed service to the church, one that will be spiritually refreshing to pastors, missionaries, teachers and laypeople alike. I for one was deeply challenged and encouraged by this fine book. I highly recommend it." (Steve Roy, professor, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, author, What God Thinks When We Fail)"InMeditation and Communion, John Jefferson Davis brings decades of reflection on the current malaise of the Western church to bear in this insightful and well-organized book. This is a wise and provocative book that revisits one of the most basic Christian acts--namely, the reading of Holy Scripture. Davis prophetically bridges the boundaries between descriptive analysis and constructive imagination. In the process, he returns to the church the gift of meditation, a word which for over a century has become identified mostly with non-Christian religions. If his challenge is taken seriously, we will never again read Scripture without an increasing sense of the presence of the risen Christ in our midst." (Timothy C. Tennent, professor of world Christianity and president of Asbury Theological Seminary)"According to Davis, the resurrection of Christ inaugurates a new ontology upon which a solid theology of meditation could be based.  Davis does not teach us how to meditate but gives us compelling reasons why every Christian should." (Simon Chan, Earnest Lau Professor of Systematic Theology, Trinity Theological College, Singapore)"John Davis has written a much-needed book in this age of spiritual hunger and confusion. Working with insights from communication technology, recent discoveries of neuroscience and fresh understandings of the nature of the human person, Davis develops for us an engaging biblical and theological framework for authentic communion with the living God through meditating on the Scriptures. Focusing on the wonder of union with Christ, the good news of inaugurated eschatology and the unspeakable grace of sharing in the inner life of the Trinity, he opens up a fresh way to allow God to write the text into the hard-wire of our souls. What a gift!" (Rev. Darrell Johnson, First Baptist Church, Vancouver)"Jack Davis has taken key themes from contemporary theological study--inaugurated eschatology, union with Christ and communion with the Holy Trinity--and written about how they provide  a fresh way to recover the ancient Christian practice of meditation upon Scripture. Biblically, theologically and historically learned as the auther is, Davis sets his proposal in realistic discussions of popular culture, neuroscience and the widespread interest in Eastern meditation. This book leads the reader into the wonder and glory of a deeper life in God." (Rev. Andrew Purves, Ph.D., professor of Reformed theology, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary)