Timeless Wisdom for Modern Christian Discipleship

How can Christians effectively engage today's world while remaining faithful to Scripture?

In the God's Word for Today series pastor Tim Chester adapts John Stott’s classic The Contemporary Christian for a new generation of readers to explore this vital question. Through this collection, Stott calls us to listen attentively to both the Word and the world, showing how Christianity can preserve its authentic identity and remain relevant for today's issues. Discover an insightful path to faithful living, spiritual growth, and meaningful engagement with the culture around you.

Explore the books in the God's Word for Today series:

• The Gospel: Stott presents Christianity not as a religion but as God's good news. He explains the human paradox of both dignity and depravity, considers common objections to the gospel, and explores the importance of Jesus' resurrection and Lordship for all of life.
• The Disciple: Stott explores four neglected aspects of discipleship: being good listeners to God, others, and the world; the indispensable roles of the mind and emotions; discovering God's will for our lives; and recognizing that love is the primary distinguishing mark of a Christian.
• The Bible: Stott explains that for the church to be renewed or influence culture, Scripture must be respected and its teaching followed. He details how Christians can stand firmly on the Word, respond with obedience, and interpret it faithfully in our cultural contexts. He also describes authentic biblical preaching, where both preacher and hearers listen and respond to God's voice.
• The Church: Stott presents the biblical portrait of the church as a covenant community central to God's purposes. He considers how the church can be sensitive to current societal needs, mobilize for mission, seek holistic renewal, and promote healthy leadership, all while keeping in view both God's ideal for the church and our shortcomings.
• The World: Stott presents four major aspects of the church's mission to engage the world with the good news. He addresses Christ's uniqueness in a pluralistic world, the biblical basis for mission, the relationship between evangelism and social responsibility, and what Jesus' life and work teach us about mission.

Praise for the Series

"Vintage Stott, with all that that implies. In it, as usual, we find him digesting and deploying a wide range of material with a symmetry matching that of Mozart, a didactic force like that of J. C. Ryle, and a down-to-earth common sense that reminds us of G. K. Chesterton. It is really a pastoral essay, a sermon on paper aimed at changing people . . . an outstandingly good book."

—J. I. Packer

"Every church should buy a copy, every church bookstall should stock it, and every minister should read it!"

—Peter Cotterell, in Christian Herald

"I am delighted that a new generation will now be able to benefit from this rich teaching, which so helped me when it first appeared. As always with John Stott, there is a wonderful blend of faithful exposition of the Bible, rigorous engagement with the world, and challenging applications for our lives."

—Vaughan Roberts, author of God's Big Picture

"InterVarsity Press is doing a very good thing by bringing John Stott's The Contemporary Christian back into print—slightly modernized, helpfully rearranged, and broken into short, reader-friendly books. The result is a boon to a new generation of readers who will greatly benefit, as many have before, from Stott's thorough grounding in Scripture, unusual help for living the Christian life, and perceptive interaction with the contemporary world."

—Mark Noll, coeditor of A History of Evangelicalism