Priority One: A True Understanding of God's Grace in Our Lives

This is a timely reminder that the gospel is not only good news for the unbeliever, but also for the believer. Here we see the priority of God's grace - as seen, primarily, in Christ and His cross. The main sections deal, in practical ways, with grace remembered, received and reapplied, showing what it means to live by this grace, day by day. Today, many Christians have a poor knowledge of the Bible, as well as Christian doctrine. This book has in mind those who have been converted for some time, but who need a fuller understanding of all that Christ has done. The writer is clear that we not only begin with the cross, but that we go on living, daily, in the power of that same cross. This is done in a throughly Biblical way, but also practically with helpful illustrations that, in equal measure, encourage and challenge. Christopher Wright (Langham Partnership) observes that the book's title "is exactly right. There is no more important priority in the Christian life (in all of life, indeed) than the grace of God...it is a joy to recommend this book".

About the Author :
Josh Hooker is a lecturer at Namibia Evangelical Theological Seminary. He served as a pastor in the UK before going to Africa to be involved in theological education in Lesotho and Namibia. He trained at All Nations Christian College and Oak Hill Theological College and is a member of the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches Pastors' Association.

Review :
It is always good to return to the gospel and, as Josh Hooker suggests in this excellent book,"to make it a daily discipline to return in our minds to the cross of Jesus. If we fail to remember God's grace shown to us each day then our lives will not be intentionally shaped by that grace."Priority One is a great tool to help us do just that,particularly showing us in some depth how the New Testament authors applied the gospel of grace to the situations facing various churches and believers. There is much here for twenty-first-century churches and individual Christians alike.' -- Andy Lines 'The title of this short book is exactly right. There is no more important priority in the Christian life (in all of life, indeed) than the grace of God, the creator and redeemer of the universe.We need to seek God's grace not just at the moment of conviction and conversion,but every moment ever after. Unfortunately the church easily generates a culture of pretence or denial.There is an unholy paradox that in order to become a Christian and belong to the church the first thing you have to do is admit you're a failure in need of God's mercy and grace, but in order to "sustain your membership" as a respected member of the church, the last thing you should ever do is admit you're a failure. So we struggle on with inner guilt and shame, while our outward lives either stiffen with righteous rules or slacken with casual worldliness. Josh Hooker's book points a better way - indeed the only way: not only to start with the cross but to go on daily living in the power of the cross and the resurrection life that follows. Josh Hooker's book is thoroughly biblical in its approach, practical in application, rich in lively illustration, and full of encouragement and challenge in equal measure .As one of Josh's former teachers at All Nations Christian College, it is a joy to recommend this book.' -- Christopher J. H. Wright