Book Review: Managing God's Money

Book Review: Managing God’s Money                         

Most Christians know at least one thing the Bible says about money: we’re not allowed to love it (1Timothy 6:10, in case you’re not familiar with it). Well, I have a problem. I love to spend money. I don’t know if that means I love money, but I do love spending it, especially on me! Here is a book that is working on me. It’s called Managing God’s Money, written by Randy Alcorn.

It is really good at explaining what God wants you to do with HIS money that He has given you to manage.

      The book is divided into six sections that will help guide you to the part where you would like to focus. However, I recommend that you read the whole book from beginning to end, and then go back to the sections where you need the help. Alcorn’s first section lays biblical groundwork for all that follows as he takes you through the Bible to help you develop a proper outlook on money management.

      The table of contents is especially helpful when you are ready to look for answers to your specific situation. With every chapter you will find all of the subtopics that will be discussed, usually in the form of a question. For example, here is what you will find in chapter 17, titled “Questions and Answers about Debt”.

 What about borrowing to buy a house?

 Should we have and use credit cards?

 Should we pay all debts before giving money to God?

 How can we get out of debt?

      With this type of detail, you will be able to quickly find information that you need. You will find this book provides you lots of valuable information. But do yourself a favor and read through the whole book first so that you will understand why he gives the advice that is offered.

      You notice that he deals with the subject of debt. He also talks about saving, investing, giving, and more. How about retirement planning? One chapter that most of you will not want to miss gives you advice on how to teach your children to manage their money and possessions.

     Here are some other questions that are asked as subtopics that will catch your attention (or they should catch your attention!).

Is it possible to follow God and make money?

What’s wrong with wanting things?

How do we keep money and possessions in perspective?

What if we can’t afford to tithe? (a whole chapter that talks about tithing)

Is gambling okay? (oh, oh!)

Is it really God’s money, or does it belong to our children? (inheritance time!)

      I came away from this book recognizing that I like to spend a lot of money on me and my kingdom. Those chapters on materialism were painful! I should be spending more on God and His kingdom. Have you ever heard of affluenza? It’s worse than influenza! Alcorn will tell you about this “killer disease” that many of us have caught and are passing on to our children and those around us.

      This book has provided Christians with solid, biblical advice when it comes to our money. Whether I like it or not, I am God’s money manager. The question I should be asking is this: How am I doing with managing God’s money? It’s easy to read, though you may find it difficult. Why? Because his advice goes against much of the way that we now live. And putting it into practice will not be the easiest thing you have ever done. But if it is your desire to live according to God’s will when it comes to handling money, then read this book and make some changes.   

Book Review: Counterfeit Gospels

Nobody likes a counterfeit. Fake money, fake jewels, fake anything is a huge disappointment. But the worst counterfeit of all has to be a counterfeit gospel because it affects eternity. Trevin Wax has exposed some of the fake gospel messages that exist in churches today in his book Counterfeit Gospels. We would do well to listen to the message of this excellent book.

Of course, knowing the real thing real well always helps to distinguish between the real and the counterfeit. That is how Wax goes about exposing the counterfeit gospels. He sees the gospel as a three-legged stool (Gospel Story, Gospel Announcement, Gospel Community) and then exposes specific fake gospel messages that are present within churches. Take away one of the “legs” and you have a stool that is not usable. All three legs are necessary.

The first leg involves the Gospel Story, which Wax identifies as the Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration. It is the story of the Bible. We should see something of this message throughout all of scripture. Two different gospel messages (with variations in each) ignore important parts of the story. The Therapeutic gospel ignores the Fall, or at least downplays its importance to the gospel story. Instead, the gospel becomes a way to reach our potential. The Judgmentless gospel attacks the restoration part of the story. There is no judgment. Everyone will get to heaven. We don’t need to be concerned about God’s justice or wrath.

The second leg is about the Gospel Announcement. We can only make an announcement (the proclaimation) of the gospel if we have the gospel story down solid. As he says, “You can’t tell the gospel story without making the announcement of good news; neight can you properly make the announcement without telling the story” (pages 88-89). Two different gospels that weaken the announcement are the moralistic gospel and quietist gospel. The moralistic gospel is what it sounds like: We look at the Bible story as a lot of moralistic teaching. We teach someone how to be a good person. So a person’s life is spent trying to do something to please God. The quietist gospel is one that makes the gospel message into something that is only personal, with no impact on what is going on in the world. We only need to be concerned with evangelism, and ignore the problems that confront the world.

The third leg is the Gospel Community. This is my favorite leg, and one that is often neglected. God brings us into a family, a community. It’s called the church. It is not an option or an add-on. It’s part of God’s purpose. Gospel counterfeits that harm this “leg” include the Activist gospel where people are united around some “cause” that is extemely important to the group. We are here for social change. Then there is the Churchless gospel, which should be self-explanatory. We don’t really need the Church. We don’t need to go to the church. It’s an option. Of course, that is not what is found in the New Testament. In fact, it is the opposite: The Church is needed. Church involvement is expected and assumed. You do not find a “churchless” believer in scripture.

Counterfeit Gospels is a much-needed message for Christians today, for church leaders as well as for individual Christians. Wax does an excellent job of exposing false gospels that will deceive both churches and their members. He not only explains their false teaching, but he also provides advice on how to counteract their message. He recognizes that there are strengths in those messages, but in the end, they are providing a false hope to people who need to hear the gospel story announced. This book is well-worth a good read.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.

Book Review: One Forever

Christian. Believer. Saved. Disciple. All of these are words that people use to describe a person who is a Christian. Here is a term that is used frequently in scripture: in Christ. In his book One Forever, Rory Shiner explores what the Bible means when it says the Christian is “in Christ.” With a subtitle of The Transforming Power of Being in Christ he wants to show us how such a term is “graspable, substantial, and, above all, liveable.

     How does Shiner do that? He begins at the beginning: Creation, when God created man and woman, which Paul uses in Ephesians 5 to picture our relationship to Christ. He then proceeds to take us to the incarnation of Christ where we see the union of God become united to man through the coming of Christ.

     Those first two chapters set up the great truth of being in Christ is seen everywhere in the New Testament. Shiner points out important pictures that show a relationship of Christ with the believer: the vine and the branches, the body of Christ, as well as the “one flesh” picture already mentioned. 

     This is followed by a wonderful chapter on justification, the important doctrine of being declared righteous in the “righteous court of God” (p. 45). He then uses the questions found at the end of Romans 8 to show that our union with Christ is eternal. Nothing can separate us from Christ.

     That brings us to the all-important topic of sin in the Christian life. Our union with Christ is our “defence against the playground bullies of sin and temptation” (p. 56). In chapter 5 he goes to Romans 6 to find that we have new life because we have been crucified with Christ.

     The final two chapters then deal with our union with Christ as it relates to the Church and the Resurrection. In the chapter on the Church, Shiner turns to 1 Corinthians 12 to talk about the relationship we have with one another as the body of Christ. He makes a great conclusion when he says, “So, here’s a practical suggestion for growing in union with Christ: show up to church. I mean really show up. Go expecting to be a gift to the body, to bless the body, to love the body, and so to love Christ.” (p. 74) I couldn’t have said it better.

     The resurrection chapter takes us to 1 Corinthians 15, showing how we are united to Christ also in His resurrection, with the practical conclusion of being “steadfast, immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord” (I Corinthians 15:5). Shiner challenges us in light of our resurrection of Jesus and our future hope to be engaged “passionately, with your whole heart. With single-minded devotion. With everything you’ve got.” (p. 87).

     This book is short, easy to read, and helpful for all Christians. I especially like the description that Shiner provides (click here to see the description on video) when he compares our relationship to Christ to a passenger in an airplane. After using terms that we might use to describe our relationship to Christ as being under Christ, inspired by Christ, or following Christ, he says this:

Of course, the key relationship you need with the plane is not to be under it, behind it or inspired by it. You need to be in it. Why? Because by being in the plane, what happens to the plane will also happen to you. (p. 34)

     I like that idea. Trusting Christ means that we are united in Him. “And we are in him, so that whatever is true of Jesus is also true of us.” (p. 35) I would encourage you to read it and share it with someone else. It makes a great discipling tool for a new Christian or a book that you can read together with another one who is “united with Christ” like you are. Your life just might be transformed! Here is a link to purchase the book: One Forever

Book Review: One to One Bible Reading

Bible reading made simple! That’s another title for an excellent little book that is actually called One to One Bible Reading. The subtitle says it well: a simple guide for every Christian. That is exactly what you will find as you read it. By the way, it’s also an easy read. You will finish it in one sitting! The author is David Helm, a pastor in Chicago, and what you will read is the result of his own personal ministry of Bible reading with others.

The basic message of the book is that every Christian can read the Bible with another person and gain understanding of God’s message. The early part of the book establishes the purposes of reading one to one: evangelism, discipleship, training, and relationship. You can do your reading with someone who is not a Christian, someone who is a new Christian, someone who needs training for ministry, or someone with whom you wish to strengthen your relationship. The focus is on God’s Word.

Helm then gives two different approaches to studying the Bible with the other person. One approach, the Swedish Bible Study approach, using simple diagrams of a light bulb, question mark and an arrow to highlight areas where a person is either impressed by something in the passage (a light bulb), has a question about something he/she does not understand (a question mark), or sees a specific application to their life (an arrow). These items are then discussed between the people involved.

The second approach uses COMA questions, where the readers focus on specific questions relating to Context, Observation, Meaning, or Application. This approach is a more advanced and in-depth way of studying the Bible.

The appendix of the book gives you some general questions to ask for the various genres that you find in the Bible (narrative, poetry, expository, prophesy, etc.). These questions are also available through the publishers website for free to be printed as needed (much better than copying the pages from the book!). The questions are based on the COMA Bible study method.

Allow me to share with you my own personal experience using the One to One Bible Reading approach. I have used it in small groups as well as one to one. I have used it with my wife. Though I have tried both approaches to studying the Bible with someone else, the COMA method has been particularly effective in getting to the meaning and application of the passage after determining context and doing the important work of observation.

I have been blessed by the insights I have gained as I shared thoughts with those who are reading with me. It does not require a great deal of preparation (you can do all the work when you are together or in advance, your choice!), nor does it require one person to be the teacher and the other a student (both are students, learning together!). Yes, there will be times when you will want go deeper by studying other resources (commentaries come to mind), but there is plenty of “gold” to mine right there in your Bible.

This book is an excellent tool to be used for evangelism and discipleship. I cannot give it any higher recommendation. Get a hold of a couple of the books and share it someone else so that you can begin the life-changing process of allowing God’s Word transform your life and the life of someone important to you.

Book Review: How to Finish the Christian Life

Here is a book that is written by a son (Donald Sweeting) who is in his 50s, and his father (George Sweeting), who is in his 80s. It is entitled How to Finish the Christ Life. They offer wisdom for those who are approaching their senior years, or who have already entered those senior years. Both men have been in ministry for their entire careers, George as a pastor, evangelist, and past president of Moody Bible Institute, and Donald as a pastor and President of Reformed Theological Seminary. Their wisdom is based on both scripture and their own pastoral experience. It is wisdom that is to be highly regarded.

The fifteen chapters are short and practical. It would be difficult to cover everything in a short review, so let me mention what I found most helpful. First, I loved the emphasis on the gospel. Much is written in recent years about preaching the gospel to yourself, and the authors include that emphasis in the second chapter, showing how important the gospel is to those in the  “second half” of their life. They need to share it with others regularly, explore it deeply, and preach to themselves continually.

Another highlight is in the fifth chapter (You Can’t Run This Race Alone) where they emphasize a need for having a mentor and also being mentored. There is an overall theme of our lives being a marathon (starting with chapter one), but it is so important that we remember that the race is a team effort. Towards the end of the chapter it is stated that leaders “forget that the younger generation needs to see a living curriculum!” We can’t stop learning, but we also can’t stop showing others the Christlike life. That would be a great book in itself!

Other chapters deal with suffering, funerals, finances, finishing well, facing death, and many others. They’re all good! We need information like this. We would do well to give serious thought to what our lives will be like as we come to our second half of life. This book gives us much to consider.

I did find one weakness in the book. There were so many excellent ideas, surely too many to address with specific recommendations. I think it would have been helpful to include some suggested resources that would guide the reader in implementing the ideas.  

For example, when talking about how to handle your finances in chapter eight (“You Can’t Take It With You”), the authors might have provided some books or other places the reader might go that would guide them in the right direction. This was done in a couple of chapters, but I found myself asking “How do I do that?” so many times throughout the book. How do I mentor someone else? How do I restore relationships with people?

If you are approaching those senior years (I would call you a Senior in Training!), please get this book and prepare to live many more productive years for the purpose of bringing glory to our Savior. If you have already arrived at those golden years, read this book and make some adjustments as needed. God will be pleased. I highly recommend it!

I received this book from Moody Publishers and in return I am submitting a review of this book. My review of this book is my honest opinion.

Book Review: The Cross of Christ

Can you ever get enough of the gospel? Hopefully your answer is a loud NO! Every believer should spend the rest of their life thinking through the gospel. We will never fully understand everything that God has done. But here is a book that will help. The Cross of Christ, written by John Stott (who just went to be with the Lord at the age of 90 this past July), is a superb presentation of what Christ has done for us on the cross.

This work deserves careful study, with the promise of great reward by way of increased awe and wonder at the Cross of Christ. The author has taken biblical words and passages, given them careful study, and then communicated exactly what we need to know to comprehend the wonder of the cross. The book is divided into four parts, with an outstanding concluding chapter that takes you through the book of Galatians and its emphasis on the cross.

The first part, Approaching the Cross, sets the scene for the entire book. After showing the centrality of the cross throughout scripture and the history of the church, Stott answers the question in chapter 2 “Why did Christ die?” More specifically, who was responsible? He traces the answer from the Roman soldiers, to Pilate, to the Jewish leaders, to Pilate. But that is looking at the reason from a human level. From the divine level, it was the Father who gave Him up, and He gave Himself up. “He went to the cross voluntarily, even deliberately. From the beginning of his public ministry he consecrated himself to this destiny.” Amazing, isn’t it?

The second part, The Heart of the Cross, we see the problem that people have with forgiveness through the cross due to their lack of understanding of both the seriousness of sin and the majesty of God. The high point of this part of the book comes in chapter 9 where he proves the necessity of the only possible substitute: Himself. “The biblical gospel of atonement is of God satisfying himself by substituting himself for us.”  This goes against what men want: they want to “insist on paying for what we have done. We cannot stand the humiliation of acknowledging our bankruptcy and allowing someone else to pay for us.” Yet that is what must be done.

The third part, The Achievement of the Cross, is probably my favorite, especially Chapter 7. What makes it especially powerful is the full and clear descriptions of the biblical words propitiation, redemption, justification, and reconciliation. You would do well to spend a lot of time in this chapter as Stott teaches from Romans 5 and 2 Corinthians 5 what these words mean and how the Cross has accomplished each of them. Besides these great words, there are two other chapters which show that the Cross has revealed God’s love and justice, and that it has conquered evil.

The fourth part, Living Under the Cross, is where Stott shows how the Cross should impact our daily life. Here we find the importance of the new community created by the Cross, which is celebrated together in worship at the Lord’s Table. Also, there is an interesting chapter on Self-Understanding and Self-Giving. He states, “Christians can longer think of themselves only as created and fallen, but rather as created, fallen and redeemed.” This should result in both self-affirmation and self-denial, resulting in self-sacrificial love for God and for others. Including our enemies! The final chapter of this part of the book deals with suffering and how it relates to the Cross. This chapter will be especially helpful as we experience pain in our lives.

I mentioned earlier that there was a concluding chapter to the whole book. I found it to be a real inspiration and encouragement as Stott goes through the book of Galatians to see the emphasis of the Cross in the Christian life. You will appreciate more than ever the great verse in Galatians 2:20 where Paul says, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." And then there is great help in applying the 24th verse of chapter 5 where Paul writes, "Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." Taking what he has said about the Cross earlier in the book, Stott shows how the believer needs to do the same thing in his own life. A real challenging chapter, not to be missed or dismissed.

Every chapter is full of Bible exposition to show the supremacy of the Cross of Christ. Do not let the size of the book scare you (that’s what it did to me at first!). Read it in small chunks. You will find many quotes like this final one that will make you stop and think, then love and praise God:

The concept of substitution may be said, then, to lie at the heart of both sin and salvation. For the essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man.  Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be. Man claims prerogatives that belong to God alone; God accepts penalties that belong to man alone.

Book Review: Tell the Truth

These days in sports, they talk about PEDs (Performance Enhancing Drugs) Let me tell you about a PED for Christians (Performance Enhancing Device). It’s a book about witnessing.  Tell the Truth, written by Will Metzger, who has been a campus evangelist for almost 50 years, offers not only the “how-to-do-it” of evangelism, but also a greater understanding of the gospel that we are sharing. Understanding and practicing what is taught in this book will make you effective in sharing your faith with others, something all Christians know they should do.

The book is divided into three parts, with three extensive appendixes that should not be overlooked (the way many of us do with an appendix). In the first part, Metzger carefully explains the weakness of many modern approaches to evangelism. Me-centered evangelism focuses on meeting the felt needs of the individual to whom we witness. God loves you and will help you. True enough, but when the needs are not met as expected, a person is likely to turn away from the faith that was supposedly professed. 

In what he labels God-centered evangelism, the focus is on God, who is King and will save you. God is proclaimed as a God of love, but also justice, who requires that a sinner be reconciled and submissive to Christ as Lord.

The first part concludes with a superb chapter that clearly teaches what every believer needs to know about their salvation, including an excellent tool (a “Come Home” diagram) that can be used to explain the gospel to an unbeliever. It details the five primary points that should be clearly presented. In a nutshell, here they are:

1. God: our Owner, Father and Judge.
2. God-centered living: two rules of the road (the great commandments)
3. Man-centered living: separated and enslaved (we can’t keep those commandments)
4. Jesus Christ: the way back to life
5. Our necessary response: Coming home to Jesus

The second part of the book is a masterful description of God’s grace. It includes not only a biblical description of sovereign grace, but the fact that people have to respond to it, thus balancing that controversial topic of God’s sovereignty versus man’s responsibility (which he calls “two friends”, not two enemies as some would see them). I liked one way he expresses it: man has the ability to respond because of God’s grace, which he called “respond-ability”. Excellent!

The last chapter of this part of the book was especially challenging to me. Simply titled “Worship”, Metzger deals with the question “Why should we witness?” It’s one thing to say we have a burden for the lost, but what happens when the burden is not there? As he says, he is “compelled to put evangelism in its proper place: it’s number two on God’s agenda. Worship is number one.”  If we truly have a passion for God, we will want to share it with others.

The third part of the book is where the author really starts to deal with the “how to” of witnessing. The author provides useful information about the different types of people you will encounter in your personal witnessing experiences, along with suggestions on effective ways of reaching them. He also emphasizes the fact that we have a goal of disciples, not decisions. Disciples will be obedient, involved in God’s church, and find ways of serving.

Earlier I mentioned the appendixes. They are so valuable, providing practical ideas for sharing the gospel using questions, being prepared for questions that unbelievers are asking, using stories from the gospel to illustrate the message, and much more. There is even a study guide included if you wanted to work through the book with a group.

I want to especially call your attention to Appendix 2 where Metzger provides a detailed, amplified explanation of his Come Home diagram. This is a section that needs be read, studied, learned, and practiced. Make it something you can easily use because it is an important part of your life. It will turn you into a gospel theologian, hopefully giving you a passion to share it with others.

Click on the book cover above to find the best price I found on the internet. Christians training for godliness need this book!

What Is Marriage All About, Anyway?

Lots of books are available on marriage. Some of them are pretty good, some are okay, and some are way off base. The Meaning of Marriage, written by Tim Keller, along with his wife, Kathy, is just the kind of book that we need to be reading. It’s way beyond “pretty good.” It will help you figure out what marriage is supposed to be according to God’s Word. 

The authors arrive at their meaning of marriage by explaining what Paul is teaching in Ephesians 5, the most extensive passage in scripture to show us God’s plan for our marriage. And because they use that passage, the meaning of marriage is clearly going to be centered in the gospel. The fact that the book is centered on the gospel surely makes it valuable. But beyond that, the Kellers have been married for nearly forty years and can therefore offer biblical counsel that they have learned and applied.

In chapter 1 they offer “two of the most basic biblical teachings by the Bible on marriage-that it has been instituted by God and that marriage was designed to be a reflection of the saving love of God for us in Jesus Christ. The gospel! In chapter 2 they show how the work of the Holy Spirit is fundamental to battling the main enemy of marriage: sinful self-centeredness. Chapter 3 is about love, looking at how the feeling of love is related to actions of love.

Chapter 4, “The Mission of Marriage,” turns to the purpose of marriage and offers a long discussion of spiritual friendship. This is a highlight of the book: Keller asks: “What, then is marriage for? It is for helping each other to become our future glory-selves, the new creations that God will eventually make us.” In this spiritual friendship, husband and wife are helping one another know, serve, love, and resemble God in deeper and deeper ways.

Chapter 5 then teaches three basic tools on how this spiritual friendship can be developed: the power of truth, the power of love, and the power of grace. These tools are explained (again in context of the gospel), and it’s shown how they are applied in the marriage relationship. Using these three tools together will help develop your spiritual friendship.

Kathy Keller does the writing in chapter 6, and she does an excellent job of explaining what the Bible means by “headship” of the husband and “submission” of the wife. She has two better terms that provide a more biblical emphasis. The husband is the “servant-head” and the wife is the “strong helper”. She provides both biblical support in her explanation as well as giving some great examples of how this all works in a marriage.

Keller’s ministry in New York City has a majority of its members who are single. In chapter 7 he talks about singleness and marriage. Here he explains that the gospel again enters into play.  It is our relationship to Christ and the Church which is important. To make marriage a goal because of the demands of society and culture is to also make it an idol. Singles must find their hope in Christ.

The final chapter deals with the topic of sex, with information that is valuable for putting sex into its proper context in the relationship. They explain that God restricts sexual activity to the marriage relationship, but then they also give practical advice on living in accordance to God’s Word, both as single persons and married couples.

This book requires slow and careful processing. It is not a quick read. You also may not find it an easy read. But it is a must read! If you are married (no matter how long!), this book needs to be read and discussed with your spouse. If you are planning to be married, you need to read this book so that you know where you are headed and what you need to do to get there. You will be amply rewarded!

Book Review: A Theology of Luke and Acts

Here is a book for you consider adding to your library: A Theology of Luke and Acts. The author is Darrell Bock, who is a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary. It is in a class of reference works called Biblical Theology. As a reference work, it is not one that you would just sit down and read from cover to cover, but rather you would use it as a study aid. You would be looking for specific information about a Bible doctrine that you are studying. With this book, you would want to know what does the Bible teach in the book of Luke and Acts about the doctrine of God, or the Holy Spirit, or the church?

 

After covering some introductory information in the first part of the book (including a thorough and helpful outline of both Luke and Acts in chapter 4), Bock then begins taking a chapter at a time to look at various doctrinal teachings. Here are some examples of chapter titles that will give you the idea:

Ø  Chapter 5: The Plan, Activity and Character of God: A Survey in Narrative Order

Ø  Chapter 6: The God of Promise, Fulfillment, and Salvation: Synthesis of Texts on the Plan of God

Ø  Chapter 9: The Holy Spirit in Luke-Acts: Power and Enablement for the Promise and Witness of the New Era

Ø  Chapter 12: Israel in Luke-Acts

Ø  Chapter 17: Women, the Poor, and the Social Dimensions in Luke-Acts

Ø  Chapter 20: Eschatology, Judgment, and Hope for the Future in Luke-Acts

I think you get the idea. These chapters make up the vast majority of the book, (which is almost 500 pages!). Let me give you some of the ideas that Bock gives us in his chapter on Eschatology to help you more.

The chapter is outlined to easily follow the author’s logic in presenting the teaching of Luke. He sees the Kingdom being taught in two parts: the Already and the Not Yet. The Already teaching is the promise of a kingdom to come from the Old Testament prophecies and the ministry of John the Baptist. The Not Yet element shows what Luke teaches concerning the Kingdom “in which God’s promises will be brought to full realization. All the prophetic promises made to Israel will be fulfilled (Acts 3:19-21).”

From that point, Bock moves to talking about accountability in connection with eschatology: We are motivated to serve by “love generated by the grace of God” (Luke 7:36-50), as well as “duty of service” (Luke 17:7-10), which is thoroughly emphasized through some of the parables that Luke includes in his narrative.

The author also deals with the visit of the Messiah in connection with the Battle with Satan and his demons, with Jesus, as well as Paul as recorded in Acts, “turning people from Satan to God, showing the cosmic dimensions of the battle and the victory that comes through the one God has sent.” The theme of hope is also emphasized in Acts, mostly through the messages that are preached by Paul. This hope is always connected to the “hope of Israel” (Acts 28:20). But, as Bock points out:

Israel’s story of hope is also the world’s story of hope. So Acts ends with Paul speaking to anyone who listen about the kingdom of God and the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 28:30-31). This is where Luke’s eschatology takes us-to the kingdom of God and to Jesus as its Lord Messiah. Deliverance, vindication, justice, hope, and peace are found here for Luke.

This is a scholarly work, not easy to just pick up and read. Prepare yourself for some serious study. But you will gain much valuable information from it. You will be better able to explain what God wants us to know about Himself and His plan. There is a helpful scripture index at the end of the book that you can go to time and again when you are studying various passages, just to find out what someone has to say about the verses you are studying.

Zondervan provided me with a copy of this book to review and share my thoughts. They did not require to me make any recommendation. But I do recommend it for the serious Christian who wants to know more about what they believe and why they believe it.

Book Review: Age of Opportunity

Raising children is a full time job. When they become teenagers, it means overtime!  Age of Opportunity by Paul David Tripp is a great way to help you know how to use that extra time effectively. It will show you how to help your teenager (and you!) how to train yourself for godliness.

In part one of the book, Tripp lays the groundwork for the challenge, providing an easy-to-understand definition of family (a learning community). He also gives parents their job description of the family as a theological community (loving God), a sociological community (loving others), and redemptive community (confessing your sin and need of a Savior). He concludes this part with a chapter titled “Parents, Meet Your Teenager”. Here he uses the book of Proverbs to describe the characteristics of teenagers, though you might find yourself saying “I’m like that!”  You will see yourself throughout the book, which makes it good for anyone to read, not just parents of teenagers.

Part two provides five Biblical goals that a parent has in raising their teenagers. This is the heart of the book. These goals are drawn from scripture and described by what they will look like in the life of a teenager. Here are the goals:

1.  To help them focus on the spiritual struggle they face.  Teens look at the physical world. So do we oftentimes. But our battle is more with spiritual forces.
2. To develop a heart of Biblical convictions and wisdom. Convictions are the clear-cut "thus says the Lord" direction from scripture. But most of life is full of wisdom decisions. There is no clear direction from the Bible, so we have to help out teens apply Biblical principles to decisions that they face. 
3. To teach them how to understand and interact with their culture, the world. Some of us isolate ourselves from the world, while others assimilate, or become like the world. There is a third, and better way.  
4. To develop a heart for God.  We all need to have a hunger for God, and we need to help our teens have that hunger.
5. To prepare them to leave home. They have to leave sometime and this is your last chance to get them ready! 

Part Three gives strategies to use while you were raising these teenagers. But don’t think that Tripp did not include some great ideas/strategies as he explained about the goals. He did! The first two parts had a lot of information, which caused me to think, “How can I do all of that? Where do I start?” That is what these final two chapters will do for you. It does not happen over one magical weekend, or week, or even a year. But you have to start someplace, and Tripp provides you with some great tips.

An excellent study guide is provided at the end of the book. It includes not only the typical study questions which can basically be answered by reading the chapter, but also gives great application questions so that you can see where you need to get to work. This study guide would be great for parents to use in small groups to support and encourage one another.

Age of Opportunity is a must read. It’s also an easy read, with plenty of great stories to illustrate the principles that are taught. Don’t wait any longer! Get this book and get started! You’re going to be working overtime! 

Book Review: The Explicit Gospel

The gospel of Jesus Christ is something that we as Christians cherish deeply. Matt Chandler, the pastor of The Village Church in Dallas, has written a book that should change the way you look at the gospel, with the result that you will cherish it even more.

Chandler looks at the gospel from two perspectives: 

• ·       The Gospel from the ground: this is the gospel message that is most familiar to us. It is the gospel that saves us as individuals.
• ·       The gospel from the air: this is the gospel that we often overlook. It is the gospel that is bringing the whole creation into restoration.

Both of these perspectives flow from the fact that everything is about God’s glory. Read on for why it is important that we are explicit with both perspectives of the gospel because there are dangers if we neglect either one of these two perspectives.

In part one of the book, the author looks at the gospel from the ground. The gospel for our personal salvation begins with God and the fact that the Bible is not just a message to us, but it is a message about God and His glory. But man has violated that purpose and fallen short of that glory. So God has provided a remedy in Christ. But that provision requires a response from each individual. That is the explicit gospel from a personal perspective: God, man, Christ, response.

In part two, Chandler views the gospel from the air. Here again we find four parts, this time called creation, fall, reconciliation, consummation. Whereas the gospel from the ground emphasizes the personal salvation of each individual who responds its message, the gospel from air sees the gospel as what the author calls cosmic restoration. God has created this world for His glory, with perfect harmony of all things that He created. But man has destroyed that harmony by rejecting God and His will. So God provided a way of reconciling the world to Himself through the cross of Christ, with the end result being the return of Christ when there is a new heaven and new earth.

There is a third part of the book that is particularly helpful. Chandler deals with what happens when a person (or church) spends too much time on the ground or in the air. It has some devastating results which he clearly explains. From becoming a self-centered gospel that ignores the needs of those around us, to evolving into a social gospel that rejects the sinfulness of man and thus eliminates the need for the cross of Christ, the message will be either lost or distorted. In the final chapter, we find direction for what is called “grace-driven efforts” to grow in this glorious salvation. Here he speaks of the grace weapons, killing the roots of sin, having a fear of God, being dead to sin and alive to God, and finally,  destroying sin in our life.

The Explicit Gospel needs to be not only understood, but also proclaimed by the church as well as each individual Christian. Chandler writes in a way that makes it easy to read. Except that reading this book is more like listening to a sermon (and an excellent sermon at that!) 

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism

In his book The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Mark Dever has written a challenge for every Christian to become involved in the Great Commission. He does so by asking and answering questions about such a task. Each chapter is titled in a question format:

Why Don’t We Evangelize?

What Is the Gospel?
Who Should Evangelize?

How Should We Evangelize?
What Isn’t Evangelism?

What Should We Do After We Evangelize?

Why Should We Evangelize?

Each of these chapters is easy to read and full of practical examples and ideas, as well as biblical support for everything that is taught. Dever speaks about the need for honesty in our evangelism (tell them the whole truth of the gospel, not just an “easy-believism” message to get a positive response). Not only do we bring the gospel to people with honesty, but also with urgency. They need to respond to God’s call now. Don’t wait. But there is also a need for joy in sharing the gospel; people need to know that this good news of a restored relationship to God will bring them great joy.

Dever’s conclusion, “Closing the Sale” provides a great balance for us as we share the gospel. It is not our job to close the sale, to get a decision, to force a choice. God does all of that. We are called to share the message. And the book provides you with great ideas and challenges you to do that. But it is God who is going draw the person into the kingdom.

What was my big “takeaway” from this book? There are many, but in the chapter on How Should We Evangelize, Dever does not recommend a simple, one-size-fits-all method, but rather suggests some general principles that should be a part of our personal evangelism opportunities. I particularly like two of those suggestions. First, use the Bible so that people know that you are sharing God’s plan for salvation, not your own. Second, use the church. That means not only invite them to church, but also let them see the church (God’s people, God’s temple) in action. Let them see how “attractively different” the Christian community is. What a great suggestion!

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism is a book that every Christian needs to read. You will find it easy to follow (and very easy to read!). It will challenge you. It will help you.

Book Review: The Bookends of the Christian Life

Jerry Bridges has a new book out, this one written with a younger man that he has been mentoring, Bob Bevington. It is their second book written together. This effort, The Bookends of the Christian Life, is a book that presents a personal worldview for every Christian. It is a picture of a Christian’s life as a bookshelf, with the books representing all of the activities of your life, including spiritual and temporal activity (work, recreation, home life, church, serving, etc.). The bookends that hold the life together are the two sections of the book: the righteousness of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. Without those two truths holding the books up, our life becomes like a bookshelf without bookends: the books fall over, often causing a domino effect with others falling over, some onto the floor. We need to lean on each of the two bookends to stabilize our entire life.

The first half of the book discusses the righteousness of Christ. Our own righteousness is not enough because we fall short of God’s requirement, which is perfection. God does not grade on the curve. It’s 100% or we fail. So we are all under God’s curse. We need a Savior. The truth of our righteousness is found in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” In this verse we find the sinlessness of Christ, His perfect obedience; our sin is transferred to Christ because he was sinless (“just-as-if-I’d never sinned”); His righteousness is credited to us (“just-as-if-I’d always obeyed”).

This position of Christ should then motivate us to love and serve Him as it did Isaiah in the Old Testament and Zacchaeus in the New. They then explain the danger of two gospel enemies: self-righteousness, where we begin to think we deserve God's blessing because of our own persona obedience, and persistent guilt, when we will not accept God's forgiveness as already being secured when fall short of our own expectations. The end of this part of the book, then offers three suggestions, or focus points so that we lean on this bookend. First, we focus on our own sinfulness; second, on the righteousness that is secured by Christ on the cross; third, reject those actions and duties that we tend to depend on, which they call "functional saviors", things or activities upon which we depend (money, family, recreation).

The second bookend, the power of the Holy Spirit, is also needed to keep our lives under control. This is a fine balancing act, because it is the work of the Holy Spirit to change us into the image of Christ, yet we have responsibility. Bridges has called this in previous works "dependent responsibility". We depend on the work of the Holy Spirit while we obey the commands of scripture. The Holy Spirit uses a variety of means to enable us to grow in our salvation: the Word of God, prayer, fellowship. Of course, there is another danger, another gospel enemy, that arises. That is self-reliance. We depend on ourselves, our own efforts, to make us more like Christ. We become legalistic and proud as we look at all the wonderful works we perform. This section is closed with more focus points so that we lean on this bookend. First, recognize our desperate weakness; we are helpless to accomplish anything. Second, rely on the Holy Spirit to do the work of changing our lives. Third, reject self-reliance. We have to say that “God is God, and I am not.” Then we have to replace self-reliance with humility and godliness.

The book has a concluding chapter that puts forth the message of the book as an appropriate worldview for every Christian. And indeed, it does. The book identifies two truths that are absolutely essential for every Christian, and should be followed. The book is an easy read and every believer will benefit by leaning on these bookends. I highly recommend this book.