Summer Reading

Here is a list of books I have read/am reading this summer:

King’s Cross by Tim Keller

Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas

The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns

Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster

Money, Possessions, and Eternity by Randy Alcorn

Life as a Vapor by John Piper

Finally Alive by John Piper

The Twelfth Imam by Joel Rosenberg

Epicenter by Joel Rosenberg

We Shall See God by Randy Alcorn

The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron by Howard Bryant

Being as Communion by John Zizioulas

Brilliant Author

If you have not read Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave by Frederick himself, you should probably read it. Douglass is a brilliant writer and storyteller. The following quotes are examples of his brilliance that you can read more of in his brilliant book.

But, by this time, I began to want to live upon free land as well as with Freeland [his relatively kind master] (pg. 91)

On the one hand, there stood slavery, a stern reality, glaring frightfully upon us, –its robes already crimsoned with the blood of millions, and even now feasting itself greedily upon our own flesh. On the other hand, away back in the distance, under the flickering light of the north star, behind some craggy hill or snow-covered mountain, stood a doubtful freedom–half frozen–beckoning us to come and share its hospitality. (pg 93)

Like I said (excessively): Brilliant

Embracing the Love of God

A couple of days ago, I posted a passage from the book Embracing the Love of God: The Path & Promise of Christian Life by James Bryan Smith. Today, I am writing my “review” of sorts for Smith’s book.

If I had to sum the book up in one word, I would choose refreshing. Smith writes with a respect for the authority of God’s word, hard to find amidst the explosion of the Emergent church, and a proper view of the doctrine of salvation.

The book is about God’s love, as one could probably guess from the title, and is divided into three sections: “Knowing God’s Acceptance,” “Receiving God’s Forgiveness,” and “Experiencing God’s Care.” Within these sections are chapters that talk about how God accepts/forgives/and cares for us, how we ought to accept/forgive/care for ourselves, and finally how we ought to accept/forgive/care for others. I will provide a “teaser” from each chapter that I not only feel sums up the chapter itself, but also that sums up the love of Almighty God.

Chapter 1 “God’s Acceptance”: The first thing that it is important to note about God’s love is that he loves us in spite of our shortcomings. He accepts us as we are. Smith puts it like this: “God loves me just as I am, not as I should be.” Here’s the thing about God, he knows who we ought to be, and we fall far short of that. The amazing thing is that he loves us anyway, and gave his son to bring us back into a right relationship with him. Smith hits the nail on the head.

Chapter 2 “Accepting Ourselves”: For this chapter, I return to what I posted the other day: “Today, we live the lie that we are ‘pretty good people’ who occasionally ‘make mistakes.’” The fact is that without Christ we are rotten people, living in rebellion against the living God, our Creator. Until we see ourselves in this way, we fail to see how deep the Father’s love is for us and how much Jesus sacrificed on the cross.

Chapter 3 “Accepting One Another”: Smith reminds us that “if we have been comprehensively accepted, than we must accept others comprehensively. No one is unacceptable in God’s eyes. We are called to have the same vision.” Smith talks about the following “lines of exclusion” that we draw: race, status, religion, and gender. He then reminds us that Jesus erased these lines, he came to save everyone, and we as Christians must accept everyone in order that they may choose to follow Christ as well.

Chapter 4 “God’s Forgiveness”: “Too many of us have lived with the misconception that God would rather condemn than forgive, and as a result we have lost the joy of living honestly and freely before a loving heavenly Father.” Here is the amazing thing about God: he WANTS to forgive us. It is not something that he does begrudgingly. If he did not want to forgive, he would not have sent his only Son to die in our place. This reality should bring joy to our hearts, and make us treasure the Lord above all things.

Chapter 5 “Forgiving Ourselves”: “God’s love, manifest in forgiving us, is the foundation upon which we can begin the process of forgiving ourselves.” Once our sins have been forgiven by God, we must be able to forgive ourselves. Otherwise, what message do we send to God? “I know that you forgive me, but I can’t forgive myself” is an unacceptable position. Are we higher than God? No! God’s forgiveness allows us to let go of our sin and the guilt we feel. ” My sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord!”

Chapter 6 “Forgiving One Another”: “Forgiveness is not about justice, it is about healing. It is not logical, and it is not fair. But it is the way to real freedom, and if we can navigate through the turbulent waters of our pain and ask God’s help in forgiving those we need to forgive, we will experience an inner peace that this world does not understand.” People will hurt us, that is a given. But what should our response be, as those whose grievous sins against God have been wiped away? If you said forgiveness, you are correct. How dare we not forgive others when we have been forgiven for our sins. To not forgive is to devalue the forgiveness we have been given. Trust me. it is not easy to forgive, and that’s why Smith says that we needs God’s help. Without God, we cannot forgive. It is not in our nature.

Chapter 7 “God’s Care”: “God looks in our heart and sees what we really need. The answer may not come as we anticipate, but I have learned that it will come.” Sometimes God is confusing; he does things that we do not understand and then we think for some reason that he does not care about us. Hear this: God always has our best interests in mind. He has a love for us that we will never fully comprehend, and even when it seems that he is hurting us, the outcome is always for our benefit.

Chapter 8 “Caring for Ourselves”: “If we are to become aware of God’s presence, we must search. This searching, this intentional openness to God’s presence, is the primary way we care for ourselves.” The best way for you and me to care for ourselves is to seek after God in all that we do. Where the Lord is, there is no evil. By seeking Him, we care for ourselves.

Chapter 9 “Caring for one Another”: “God provides for us the example of how to care for one another. How does God care for us? God cares for our spiritual life, God cares for the health of our soul, and God provides for our physical needs. God is available, God listens, and God never abandons us. This is how we are to care for one another.” Christ gave us the example of how to care for those in need. He was always concerned about their physical needs, but he was equally concerned about their spiritual needs. You cannot separate the two. Because of the Emergent church, there has been too much emphasis on the physical realm, including the environment. Jesus did not some to save the ozone layer, he came to save people. And we accomplish that by meeting people’s physical needs, but always with the intention of exposing them to the salvation that comes through Christ. After all, what good does it do to save some one’s earthly life, but do nothing to save their eternal life? If you said “nothing” than you’re correct.

In summary, I was impacted greatly by this 163 page masterpiece. I feel as though James Bryan Smith did a fantastic job of summarizing the love of God, and how we ought to live in response to that love. I leave you with the words of one of the most powerful hymns out there:

How deep the Father’s love for us,

how vast beyond all measure.

That he would give his only son,

to make a wretch his treasure.

How great the pain of searing loss,

the father turns his face away.

As wounds which mar the chosen one,

bring many sons to glory.

Behold the man upon the cross,

my guilt upon his shoulders.

Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,

call out among the scoffers.

It was my sin that held him there,

until it was accomplished.

His dying breath has brought me life,

I know that it is finished.

I will not boast in anything,

no gifts, no power, no wisdom.

But I will boast in Jesus Christ,

his death and resurrection.

Why should I gain from his reward?

I cannot give an answer.

But this I know with all my heart,

his wounds have paid my ransom.

 

God bless