The Theopolitan Vision

Theopolis Fundamentals #1

by Peter J. Leithart

As the modern world crumbles, Christians scramble for answers. The solution is right in front of us—the Christian church, an outpost of the heavenly city among the cities of men. The Theopolitan Vision explains what the church is, and how the Spirit empowers the church's world-transforming mission through Word and worship, Scripture and liturgy. It shows how the church can be a city of light in a dark age.

Genres: Theology, Cultural, Church, Ecclesiology, Christianity, Religion, Christian

124 pages, Paperback

Published May 14, 2019

About the author

Peter Leithart received an A.B. in English and History from Hillsdale College in 1981, and a Master of Arts in Religion and a Master of Theology from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia in 1986 and 1987. In 1998 he received his Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge in England. He has served in two pastorates: He was pastor of Reformed Heritage Presbyterian Church (now Trinity Presbyterian Church), Birmingham, Alabama from 1989 to 1995, and was founding pastor of Trinity Reformed Church, Moscow, Idaho, and served on the pastoral staff at Trinity from 2003-2013. From 1998 to 2013 he taught theology and literature at New St. Andrews College, Moscow, Idaho, where he continues to teach as an adjunct Senior Fellow. He now serves as President of Trinity House in Alabama, where is also resident Church Teacher at the local CREC church. He and his wife, Noel, have ten children and five grandchildren.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

For as short as this book is, it packs a punch! Leithart has somehow condensed the grand vision that the Theopolis Institute is working to bring to the world. That vision is not 'theirs', so much as it is a comprehensive way of understanding God's Word and applying it to all of life. The three emphases of the Theopolis are hermeneutics, liturgy, and culture.

The Theopolis Institute is a ministry devoted to teaching "men and women to lead cultural renewal by renewing the church." As Leithart writes, "Central to the Theopolitan vision is the conviction that the church drives history, for good or ill. Political and cultural trends are secondary to happenings and movements in the church." (p. 19) Leithart helps his readers see the power that the church has-- a power that we so readily dismiss because we do not see with eyes of faith.

The "bowl of water", "loaf of bread", and "jug of wine" that God gives us are the very weapons we are to use to "Make disciples of all nations..." and "Build the City of God in the world." He asks rhetorically, "What else could you need?" (p. 69)

The book casts a vision for what Theopolis is attempting to do, and what we can do in our own churches and communities to do the same kind of work. It is all done and offered in humility, acknowledging that it is simple, humble men and women being faithful in the small, but powerful acts of ministry.

It all begins with hermeneutics--for it starts by seeing the broad, sweeping vision that God began in the world and will bring to completion. This hermeneutic is different than what most will be familiar with, for it draws out symbolism throughout Scripture that most are not even looking to see. Leithart and the Theopolitans take a unique approach to Scripture, asking the hard questions and finding connections throughout Scripture. It helps us see the glory of Scripture in ways that we're so often blind to because we're not trained to see them.

There is much to agree to in this book, I'm still not fully on board with Leithart's catholicity. I admire his desire to see the church re-unified and share that desire myself. Yet the differences that Protestants have with Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox are not only real, but significant. As long as those differences exist and they are both unwilling to reform, there must always remain separation.

As the vision is cast in the Word, it is lived out in the liturgy of the church, and then lived out in the communities we're a part of, building the City of God here on earth. I am eager to see what the next volumes in this series will bring us, this first volume is outstanding.

[Samuel Sadler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leithart offers a great introduction to Christian life, particularly relevant for the Protestant Evangelical who is dissatisfied with "happy-clappy" protestantism but doesn't feel right about going to Rome or Constantinople. Leithart offers a vision for Protestant life and worship grounded in Scripture and connected to church tradition. He discusses the church as the heavenly city on earth, fleshes out what that means for church life, and speaks to the individual's adoption into and purpose within the church.
This book is the cure for your friend who went to college, saw an icon and then decided he might want to be a Roman Catholic.

[Lucas Dorminy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic little book laying out a cosmic vision for the local church. I highly recommend this read.

[William Schrecengost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. A fairly basic treatise on the purpose of the church and the Christian. He argues for the centrality of the church and discusses the battle between the city of man and the city of God. The church is to be influencing and forming culture, we spread the kingdom through worship, and we must be transforming our whole lives by the Word of God.

[Samuel G. Parkison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many minor quibbles, and most edifying, as per usual. The vision of pastoral ministry Leithart casts in chapter four is beautiful and harrowing. Still waiting for some postmillenialist to come along and make sense of the “pilgrim” and “suffering” paradigms so as to push me over the optimistic-amillennialist edge, but until then, I’ll take what I can get from Leithart with gratitude.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Leithart’s The Theopolitan Vision lays out a vision indeed, a Christian manifesto grounded firmly in scriptural truth and directed to the glory of the Lord, of what the church is, why she exists, and how we as pastors and parishioners can help bring that vision to reality in our daily lives. Read this book.

[Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful. Highly enjoyed this book. Dr. Leithart has a beautiful gift for writing. This was Dr. Leitharts attempt to hit many major topics that he’s been speaking and writing about for many years. Highly commend the Theopolitan vision. The usage of Revelation 21 throughout the book was glorious.

[Michael Philliber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed much of it. I was frustrated or disappointed by some parts. Lays out some biblical concepts worth pondering.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Think of this as a kind of manifesto: a manifesto for the kingdom of God and the church of Jesus Christ. Leithart outlines a vision for the “city of God”, which is a place of worship, a domain of rich biblical engagement, confrontation with the culture and evangelisation of the word

[D. Ferguson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much of this book contains weak argumentation. Leithart promotes the practice of modeling modern worship after Old Testament practices, but gives no explanation of why some practices are chosen and others rejected. Here's an example: "There is no command for pastors to wear robes, but Israel again provides a salutary example. The priests wore distinctive clothing that manifested their office ..." If preachers should wear robes because OT priests wore distinctive vestments, why stop with robes? If the priestly practice is a model, shouldn't pastors wear robes with all the prescribed features of the OT priestly garments?

It seems to me the author picks only the traditions popular in Reformed circles as practices we should carry on because of OT example.

I also found myself puzzled by many of his arguments, such as his continual emphasis on the fact that the church is made up of real people. He brings this up repeatedly in response to the concept of what theologians call "the invisible church." But it strikes me as a straw man. Those who speak of the invisible church are not suggesting it's made up of people who are not real. Rather, it simply refers to the fact that since we cannot see the heart, we cannot tell from looking for sure who is a true member of the Church.

I did find a couple things in the book helpful. I liked the reminder that communion should be celebratory. I also very much appreciated his point about how, when speaking with unbelievers, we should think not so much in terms of bringing the conversation from secular things to spiritual things, but rather to show how "secular" things really are spiritual things (pp.110-112).

Most of all, I enjoyed the explanation of how each part of the Old Testament points to Christ. Often, when people attempt that, the connections are contrived. I thought Leithart's explanation was extremely helpful (pp.60-64).

[Drew Norwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

A vision of the church as the city of light, the mountain of God, the temple pouring forth living water, the festal table, the kingdom of priest. I don’t necessarily agree with all of his positions, but what Peter Leithart and the Theopolis folks do exceedingly well is the offer a full, rich vision. This vision is of God’s work in the world through His church--as Leithart puts it, “the city of God on a mission of urban renewal.” Tony Reinke, in his book Competing Spectacles, talks about the “expulsive power of a superior spectacle"--how our minds are hard-wired to seek glory an our hearts yearn to be awed by some "spectacle." Leithart gets this. He doesn’t avoid textual argument or dialectic, but he devotes his efforts to cultivating a superior spectacle, a vision of the Church and its task that has expulsive power. He constantly connects the Christian and the Church to the Biblical story of redemption and consummation, and he makes good use of the rich metaphors and images the Bible adopts to attune us to this reality.

As an aside, this book is unique in its style and scope. Written partly for pastors, partly for non-pastors, it oscillates between the two throughout. And whereas most books shy away from the issues/topics that are outside of its scope, this book has the unique quality of taking strong, definitive positions of numerous topics, even when there is no time to develop the position or explain it. (Should we have the Lord’s Supper weekly? Definitely. Should you leave public schools? No doubt about it. Should kids take communion? Absolutely.) It’s a surprise, and refreshing at times, but then it also leads to more questions.

[Clay Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

All Christians can benefit from Leithart's highly integrated vision of the church in the world as it foretastes the world to come. You are not going to agree with every prescription for the church and its people in this book, but don't let yourself be distracted from the glory of the vision. Spit out the bones (they aren't very big) and concentrate on tasting the meat. Use it as a blueprint to ponder the deep spiritual, narrative, and visual interrelationship of all Scripture. That all the stories, images, ritual, liturgy, imagery, and dogma flow into the same telos is incredibly motivating and encouraging.

Memorable phrases are frequent - "The whole apparatus of Bible study and teaching is for you so that you can be shattered and reborn by the hammer of God's word." The unfolding of God's vision in worship and life with steady movement toward the permanent heavenly city are good food for thought. For example, seeing the ascent of the people to God in corporate worship as a progressive extension from the smoke ascending to God in Levitical worship forward to our song as an ascending sacrifice of praise (Heb. 13:15) is good to ponder.

Also good to see a confident proclamation of the breadth and depth of God's good news in Jesus Christ beyond the critical dimension of personal individual salvation to His full-orbed redemption as far as the curse is found--along with the concomitant implications for evangelism ("If you're filled with awe at the scope of Christ's kingship, if you truly believe that Jesus claims every inch, there's no need to manipulate a conversation toward Jesus. Jesus is always already implicated in everything, for in Him all things cohere.") This is naturally part of Leithart's Liturgy After the Liturgy: the extension of of the liturgy of corporate congregational life and worship into our lives as the pattern to live and display: "The gathered liturgy of the Lord's day sets the pattern for the dispersed liturgy of day-to-day life."

It's a romp, not a treatise, thoroughly enjoyable and motivating.

[Robert Godinho · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Theopolitan Vision is a vision of God’s will on earth as it is in heaven. To take the city of God, that is our church, and to shine it’s light onto the city of man. As Leithart says multiple times in this book, the church is the city of God on a mission of urban renewal. Our aim as citizens of the city of God, is to make the city of man more like the city of God. To confirm it to the pattern of the heavenly city that John saw from the mountain in Revelation. Jesus is our King and ruler of all the cities on earth. He writes chapters specifically for pastors and for workers of the church and to the “layman” Christian and the job duties and responsibilities assigned to each. We are called to bear the cross and follow Jesus no matter the cost. Since the city of man is structured to inhibit Christian faithfulness, we are expected to face resistance and expected to be disruptive. To be a witness, not only on Sundays but everyday of the week. To act as citizens of the city of God at our daily jobs and to our colleagues and the people we come in contact with. To evangelize to the citizens of the city of man. As Leithart puts it, “Jesus comes as the Last Adam to put us back on track, to reorient the cultural work of sinners toward the original Adamic mandate, to transform this world into something resembling the city that is yet to come.” I pray that every Christian would read this book and put feet to their faith and get to work on the urban renewal project.

[Hunter Perdue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Leithart and the rest of the Theopolis Institute have a mission of laying out Scripture’s compelling vision for the Church. For being just 118 pages, there is a lot covered here. I went through this with a group and found that method very helpful. Leithart is intentional to point out that the structure and plan of the Church is illustrated all the way from Genesis to Revelation. In a time where the Lord is reminding me that Jesus is in all of Scripture, this stuck out.

I loved the emphasis on liturgy. A church’s liturgy is incredibly important. This also made me thankful to be a part of a church that values this. Especially weekly communion. There is also a big push in the book to pursue unity among other churches. This is especially important and sometimes gets lost in American churches.

It does seem difficult to apply everything that is suggested in the book. Additionally, not all of it seems necessary. Some of the suggestions did cause me to think about ideas I had never considered before.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and will definitely be using more Theopolis resources.

Quotes:

“The church is the city of God on a mission of urban renewal. Our aim is to make the city of man more like the city of God, more conformed to the pattern of the heavenly city that John saw from revelation.”

[Terry Feix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leithart's ecclesiology is consistent with his body of work and a delight to read. The chapter written to pastors is particularly convicting and encouraging. A very biblical view of what the church is and isn't.

[Nate Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smart, concise, deeply Biblical. Read this book.

[Jared Mcnabb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good introduction to Leithart’s vision of the church.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Sean Kewley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and two the point, Leithart offers the biblical foundation of the Church. Noting that indeed the Church is the "City of God", or the "Theopolis", Leithart offers a corrective course for a continuation of Christ's conquering of the entire world. A must read for discouraged Evangelicals.

[Timothy Nichols · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS is what the rash of fashionable books on neighboring are missing: an expansive, thick vision of the Kingdom of God as the mountain that covers the whole earth, and the Church as the present, growing seed of the Kingdom.
If you dig being nice to your neighbors, but it feels like there should be more to it than that, I have good news for you: there is! Peter Leithart has articulated a deep vision of our place in the world that gives you a context in which to tangibly love your literal neighbors, and understand what’s really at stake when you do that—or fail to.
He’s a bit clericalist for my taste, but that appears to me to stem from a very old disagreement in the Church over whether ‘pastor’ is a biblically attested church office on par with ‘elder’ and ‘deacon.’ He would say yes; I am not convinced.
Inevitably, lots of folks will find Leithart’s exegesis of Revelation controversial, but the practical implications of his exegesis raise ethical challenges that none of us can ignore. If Psalm 2 is true, and applicable now (and Acts 4 says it is), then something like what Leithart advocates has to be true as well.
This was a tiny little book, coming in at 120 pages, and I took my sweet time reading it. It was well worth savoring, and I highly recommend it.

[Kevin Godinho · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fantastic. Leithart breaks down in glorious detail what the mission of the Church is; what "on earth as it is in heaven" looks like. As we receive the word, God is molding us into the image of His Son. As we obey the word, heaven is reaching down to earth, pressing its signet on the world around us; conforming the world around us to New Jerusalem above.

God has chosen us, believers, to build the city of God, here, on earth. He has chosen us to bring forth new creation from the resurrection of Christ; the Gospel. How do we do it? By worshipping Him in spirit and truth. By loving one another: practicing hospitality, teaching, correcting, tending to needs. These are the weapons of our warfare. This is how we wage war: reading, preaching, praying, feasting. This is how the nations of the earth receive the healing leaves that grow on trees that drink from rivers of living water. As we worship God on the mountain top, in the church service, as we conclude by feasting on Christ in the Lord's Supper, we are then commissioned into the world to bring forth life giving fruit, whose leaf also shall not whither and whatever is done prospers.

Let's get to work.

[Jack W. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great aspirational and inspirational manifesto encouraging pastor and parishioner alike.

[Abel Babu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Form (3/5): The form lacked a certain coherence. Leithart had a lot of ideas that were moving in and out of the chapters, hence it was a little difficult to get the central argument out in a clear way. Though a simple read, it lacked that beauty of a well-written work (I am sure this subjective).

Content (4/5): The book had some fresh insights into what a church can be or maybe even should be. A few things that stood out for me are:
- A vision for a church that is engaged as passionately with social/cultural engagement and renewal as it is with the proclamation of the word.
- The role (significance) of liturgy and the liturgy after liturgy (read the book to find that out).
- Perspectives on the roles of clergy and lay.

What was missing was the methodology used by Leithart for his exegesis and the assumptions that he is making. Maybe this book is not meant for that, but a hint of the same would have been great.

[Jason Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book--the first in the 'Theopolitan' series--after I read the second, Theopolitan Liturgy. While I enjoyed the second book better than the first, I'm still willing to give this one five stars, especially since I declared in *that* review that I would have given it six if available. :-)

The world needs a positive vision--one that replaces both the "don'ts" of moralistic Christianity and the "do-anythings" of godless society. Leithart's Theopolitan Vision provides just such a vision. He describes the church as an outpost of the future city of God, and writes to the Theos and Theas who consciously inhabit it.

Along the way, he combats Christian dualism and other truncated forms of weak-kneed Christianity, presenting a full-fleshed view of history as the work of God creating a heavenly city for the Bridegroom and His bride.

I'm looking forward to future books in this series.

[Mason Goss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid Book. Where Leithart excels is in his Biblical Theology and weaving of Scripture and Liturgy. My favorite section was Chapter 4 where Leithart paints a vivid picture of Biblical Liturgy and the structure of our worship. This is shortened and paraphrased so you’ll have to read the book to get the full picture :)

He outlines the call, the Lord’s invitation for people to gather in His presence. Like the Father’s invitation to His children, the King’s invitation to His courtiers. We then enter the courts of the Lord with joy but a healthy fear is also necessary. For that our sins must be washed and repented of. This requires confession and then forgiveness. Israel went through a series of purifications at the foot of Sinai. They washed their clothes and bathed their bodies and offered offerings. Only then did Moses ascend to the cloud. Christians still need cleansing before we ascend. That’s what confession is for: If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9-10). Having been cleansed, we ascend. This is our consecration. In the new covenant, the one who ascends is the mountain is Jesus, the greater Moses. Unlike Moses, he doesn’t leave us at the foot. When he ascends He takes us, His body, with Him. We haven’t come to Sinai but to the heavenly Zion, to the assembly of angels and the hosts of heaven. At the mountaintop, the Lord speaks. That means, Pastor Theo: You speak. You speak in the name of the Lord. You have been given the authority to speak in God’s name. You’re not done when you’re done with the sermon. You’re not done when you’ve offered a pastoral prayer. There’s still communion to come. In fact, the whole service is a Eucharistic service. The whole liturgy is an ascent toward joy, the joy of the wedding feast. In the commission and benediction, Pastor Theo, you have the privilege of sending the people of God back out into the world, back down the mountain, to love and serve Jesus the Christ. You send them out with the blessing of God so that the church, dispersed, can carry on the urban renewal project that is our mission.

How often does our church worship resemble this picture? God’s Word does not lack in examples of people worshiping Him and there is a way that pleases God and displeases Him. It was a thought provoking book.

Where it was weak was when Leithart touches on politics. Although the section is only a brief part of the book, his thoughts felt the most shallow. Stick with what you know.

Looking forward to the next entry in the series.

[Abrahamus · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the “To the Reader” introduction:

“The Theopolitan vision is a view of the church and her role in the world. . . the church is an outpost of the future city of God. The city of God exists now, in the present, as a real-life society among the societies of men. This real-world, visible community is the family of the Father, the body of the Son, the temple of the Spirit. It exists to transform and renew human societies, inside and out, top to bottom. As God’s city, the church carries out a global mission of urban renewal.”

“Worship is the primary work of God’s city. Christian worship should be attuned to the liturgical tradition of the church, the whole church, but it should avoid traditionalism and nostalgia.”

“Don’t think for a moment that throwing yourself into the mission of God’s city is a safe decision. . . . The world is always hostile to the church, but some worlds are more hostile than others.”

In the pages which follow (only 120 – it's brief) Leithart goes on to lay out his inspiring vision (and that of the Theopolis Institute) for ecclesiastical ministry, rooting it in both Scripture and theology as he goes along, and addressing practical matters as well (without any pretense that he is attempting to do so comprehensively). Apparently subsequent volumes are planned in which particular aspects of the vision (e.g. liturgy and worship, sacraments, the role of pastors/elders, the role of lay congregants, etc.) will be fleshed out even further. I look forward to those.

I’m enthusiastically on board with all of this (with just a few minor quibbles here and there hardly worth detailing), and pray that the same vision will inspire myriads of individual Christians and congregations the world over. May the Lord be pleased to make it so!

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really, really loved this book about the nature of the church and her mission in the world. I did lots of underlining and will definitely be reading this again. A few quotes:

“The church is an outpost of the future city of God. …It exists to transform and renew human societies, inside and out, top to bottom. …Worship is the primary work of God’s city. …Worship should be saturated with Scripture - Scripture read, Scripture taught, Scripture sung, Scripture turned into a dialogue of love between the Lord and His Bride.” p. xiii.

“The world understand, sometimes better than Christians, how radical the gospel is, how fundamental the repentance it demands, how much things will have to change if the gospel is true. The world doesn’t want to repent and it doesn’t like people who call for repentance.” p. xv

“…the church is in fact a city among the cities of men.” p. 3

“The church isn’t merely a means for individuals to be saved. THe church isn’t a channel of salvation. The church is humanity saved. The church is communion with God and one another in God; it is the future perfect city in an imperfect present. The church is salvation in social form.” p. 15

That’s just the tip of the iceberg - read this book!

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not agreeing with everything, this was excellent and inspiring. It's really a concise summary of what Leithart has been teaching and refining for years, and as such, is great to read together as one vision.

There are some places where his contrast between his own vision and the older Protestant understanding is overstated. I also think he is mistaken in his understanding of nature and grace in the older divines; he sees dualism where there are merely distinctions being made.

In fact, his intense fear of gnosticism leads him to somewhat over-play the social and bodily aspects of church; especially to the detriment of the evangelical doctrine of the new birth, and the spiritual realities of the sacraments. (And yet his basic teaching on those aspects are some of his most helpful insights, adding rich layers to our understanding; they are just carried too far).

Overall I loved it.

[Grant Van Brimmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leithart doesn't seem to miss anything in this little volume, though maybe not in great depth. From worship, to family, to vocation and more, Leithart shows how the resurrection power of the Spirit is at work in the world turning the cities of man into the heavenly city seen at the end of the book of Revelation. I think he's spot on. This was an encouraging and motivating read. Though God's power through His Spirit accomplishes the work, God has still put into our hands the great task of building the heavenly city. Thus, it is fitting that after Leithart lays out all of the theology, he ends the book with "Get to work". For how much I loved it, I'm not even going to mention my couple of little tedious disagreements. I highly recommend this.

[RyanG37 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written intro to the Theopolitan vision.

Some who know a lot more than me might be unconvinced by his reading of Revelation 21, but, for what it is worth, I think it made sense (and also don't think the vision completely falls apart if one disagrees).

A couple of sections left me wanting more explanation or argument (eg on how to read the Bible) but that simply explains why there are further volumes in the series.

Did I agree with absolutely everything that was said? Certainly not (although I agreed with much more than I thought I might) . But was I challenged, encouraged, delighted, woken up, rebuked? Certainly. This is a book to expand your vision of what the church is and can be. For that reason, I give it 5 stars.