The Better Story

Living God’s Good Plan For His Creation

Discover the better story

There’s a story so beautiful, so hopeful, you might think it’s too good to be true…

We want to share with our church – and the world – the goodness of God’s story, particularly as it relates to some important and controversial areas of life. Followers of Jesus need to be confident about how good God’s way is, and those who don’t know Him need to know what they’re really missing out on.

We’ve chosen to do this by looking at some of the key themes established in the creation accounts of Genesis and fulfilled in the concluding scenes of Revelation. To help us to see things clearly, realistically, and hopefully, we look at each topic through a four-part summary of the Bible’s story: Creation: How things are meant to be.  Rebellion: What has gone wrong. Redemption: How God makes it right. New creation: How things will be.

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Explore Further...

Learn about the principles behind this preaching series, and the individual topics addressed with in.

The Bible’s Story

 

Understanding Western Culture

  • Book: A Better Story: God, Sex And Human Flourishing, Glynn Harrison (given as a talk here and here)
  • Book: The Secular Creed: Engaging Five Contemporary Claims, Rebecca McLaughlin
  • Book: Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality, Nancy Pearcey (summarised here and interviewed here)

 

Creation Care

 

Evangelism

 

Euthanasia and Abortion

  • Book: Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality, Nancy Pearcey (summarised here and interviewed here)
  • Book: Matters of Life and Death: Human Dilemmas in the Light of the Christian Faith, John Wyatt

 

Humans as Image-Bearers

  • Video: “Image of God”, BibleProject
  • Book: You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit, James K. A. Smith

 

Identity

 

Marriage

  • Video: “Marriage as a trailer”, Living Out
  • Book: The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Marriage with the Wisdom of God, Timothy and Kathy Keller

 

Men and Women

 

New Creation

  • Article: “Ascent, Descent, and Human Destiny”, Peter Leithart
  • Book: The New Creation and the Storyline of Scripture, Frank Thielman
  • Book: Surprised By Hope: Rethinking Heaven, The Resurrection and The Mission of The Church, Tom Wright

 

Parenting

  • Website: Care
  • Book: Raising Confident Kids in a Confusing World: A Parent’s Guide to Grounding Identity in Christ, Ed Drew
  • Article: “How Should I Respond If My Child Comes Out to Me?”, Sean Doherty
  • Book: Gender: A Conversation Guide for Parents and Pastors, Brian Seagraves and Hunter Leavine

 

Sexuality

  • Podcast episode: “From Atheist Gay Activist to Christian Author”, David Bennett and Jez Field
  • Book: A Better Story: God, Sex And Human Flourishing, Glynn Harrison (given as a talk here and here)
  • Website: livingout.org
  • Book: Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality, Nancy Pearcey (summarised here and interviewed here)
  • Book: People to Be Loved: Why Homosexuality is Not Just an Issue, Preston Sprinkle

 

Singleness

  • Book: Seven Myths About Singleness, Sam Allberry (summarised here)
  • Article: “What Is The Gift of Singleness?”, Andrew Bunt
  • Book: The Meaning of Singleness: Retrieving an Eschatological Vision for the Contemporary Church, Danielle Treweek (interviewed here)

 

Transgender

 

Work

  • Book: Garden City, John Mark Comer (given as a talk here)
  • Book: Every Good Endeavour, Timothy Keller