Books

Since I just finished reading this book, I thought I would give a quick review of it.

I believe that this is one book that everybody who is seeking to understand and live the kingdom of God should read. Not that this book communicates the whole message of the kingdom, but this book reveals in depth one aspect of the kingdom of God. To release the oppressed, to free the prisoner, to advocate for those who can't speak for themselves. In other words to help bring justice in a hurting world.

In one sense the book is an easy read, in another sense it is a very painful and difficult read. He walks you through story after story all over the world of people whose lives have been shattered. From children labor practices, to forced prostitution, to murder, and all the realities in the world that we try to shelter ourselves from. But they are real, they are true, and we are called to do something about it.

Jesus sees all that is in the world, is near to those who are being abused, and grieves for them. To follow Jesus means to no longer be in the dark, but to educate ourselves with what is going on, to have our hearts break as Jesus' does, and to avail ourselves to be used to bring the love and freedom of Jesus.

Reading this book has changed the way I see the world. It is like putting on glasses . . . Being able to see clearly where things were blurry before. It is scary to see better.

The Good News about injustice . . . It's for the oppressed . . . God wants to free them through you and me.

Several people asked me to review Brian McLaren's new book: The Secret Message of Jesus. So here is my review in the form of a top ten list.

10. The last 2 books he wrote were very controversial. I do not expect as much controversy from this book.

9. That being said, if people really understand what Brian is say and live it (which most people won't) this could be his most revolutionary book to date.

8. Great subject matter: all about the kingdom of God . . . This is a subject I have been studying in depth this last year, I am excited to see a good book come out on it.

7. If you are going to read it (which I recommend) you must read the whole book. It starts slow, and almost like he is trying to conceal what he is say (kind of like Jesus did). He approaches the kingdom of God from various angles, and as the book moves along it gains momentum (like the kingdom).

6. A book I enjoyed reading with it was The Good News about Injustice (which I just have a few pages left of). I recommend reading these two books together as the book on Justice develops one aspect of the Kingdom of God in greater detail.

5. My understanding of the Kingdom of God was enhanced because of this book.

4. Again, I may not be 100% behind everything Brian says in this book, but that is not really the point of reading is it. Learning is (for me) and enjoyment, I did both with this book.

3. Lots of people like to criticize Brian, saying that he is drifting away from the bible. Yet this books has more scripture than any of his books to date.

2. One thing I appreciate about Brian is after I read any of his books it gives me a deeper hunger for the Word of God. I have questions like "Could it really be?" and I am led back to scripture. In this case Revelations . . . A book I had given up on long ago.

1. One things I am taking away from the book. I have been struggling for a while to come up with other metaphors for the kingdom of God. "Kingdom" does not really communicate in our day and age like it did back in Jesus, for a ton of reasons. I have felt a need to explore new ways to communicate it. If Jesus were here today, what metaphors would he use to communicate his message. Brian explores some that are very helpful. My favorite metaphor for the "kingdom of God": The dream of God. We spread God's dream (desire) for his creation where a nightmare currently exists. God brings a better way to live where people find forgiveness and reconciliation.

I believe this is a very important book for Christians who want engage missionally in the world to read. Lessie Newbigin’s book, “The Gospel in a Pluralist Society” deals with the question, how is one to preach the gospel in a society where people question the ability to know truth, and have a wide range of religions backgrounds. We can not merely quote Bible verses and speak of the Bible as the truth, when the world doesn’t except the bible as truth, we must go deeper, and be more thoughtful.

One of the themes that surfaces through out the book is how we see the gospel. The gospel is not just about individuals going to heaven when they die, but it is about joining the mission of God in redeeming the world back to Himself. This theme even carries over into his view of election, “To be elect in Christ Jesus, and there is no other election, means to be incorporated into his mission to the world, to be the bearer of God’s saving purpose for his whole world, to be the sign and the agent and the firstfruit of his blessed kingdom which is for all.” (p. 86-87)

Out of all of the chapters, however, the one that was the most helpful to me was his chapter on “The Gospel and Other Religions.” Lessie is makes clear that Jesus is God’s Son, and that it is only through Jesus life, death, and resurrection that anyone can be saved. At the same time he sees the question, “Who can be saved?” as flawed. In that we are only asking “Can the good non-Christian be saved?” And what we mean is not, “Can the non-Christian live a good and useful life and play a good and useful role in the life of society,” but we are only asking “Where will she go when she dies?” The question is flawed because . . . 1) It is God’s place to judge ultimate destinies, not ours. 2) It is a question concentrating on abstraction of the individuals soul after death. It is ignoring the “full reality of the human person as an actor and sufferer in the ongoing history of the world.” (p. 178) Salvation deals as much with God’s plan on earth as humanity as it does with what happens after death. 3) “That question starts with the individual and his or her need to be assured of ultimate happiness, and not with God and his glory.” We should start with the question, “How shall God be glorified? How shall his amazing grace be known and celebrated and adored?” (p. 179)

So we ought to tell the story of Jesus, the story of the Bible. It is not our job to convert that is up to the Holy Spirit. It is our job to live out the gospel of Jesus in a world that desperately needs it.

So when I am finished reading a book I plan to wright a little bit about the book. Things I appreciated about it, or in what ways it helped me, etc. I hope it is of help to you, and might even inspire you to pick a books that are of interest.