Against Nothingness

Gerhard Lohfink, Jesus of Nazareth: What He Wanted, Who He Was. Liturgical Press, 2012.  "There are innumerable books about Jesus. The reason is obvious: We can never finish with him, and every age must encounter him anew." (xi) Indeed. Here, then, is another such book. Lohfink seeks to give a comprehensive overview of Jesus, examining his actions, message, and life in a combination of historical critical research and theological thinking.  Lohfink does many things well. A friend, the one who requested that I review this book, commented of this book that it made Jesus more real to him than any other book he has read about Jesus. I can see that. Lohfink does an excellent job of bringing what we know about 1st century Palestine to bear on Jesus' life and teachings. Not only that, Lohfink is unquestionably a talented writer (and, I presume, Linda Maloney must also be a talented translator). I often found myself admiring Lohfink's details surrounding Jesus p...

Thielicke, Helmut. The Silence of God . Eerdmans Publishing, 1962. I am almost always in the middle of a book of sermons. I read them both to increase my own skill as a preacher and to hear, in the voice of these other preachers, the word of God preached to me. For the year 2014 I am also almost always in the middle of a book by Helmut Thielicke. I am experimenting this year with taking one author who I respect and learn from and attempting to read all of their books. I’m not sure if I am going to make it. Thielicke wrote a lot. Much about Thielicke’s writing impresses me; more than I am willing to type out in a book review. One of the constant themes, however, is his ability to speak deeply into the experience of doubt and struggle in faith. So far this book does this best. The Silence of God is a collection of ten sermons – six ‘regular’ sermons and four ‘festive’ sermons (those preached on holy days). Each deals with the ways silence of, or questions of, or action...

I thought I knew them all but I was wrong. I learned a new sin . Pusillanimity. Did I mention that I also learned a new word? Technically, pusillanimity is the state of being timid or cowardly but Aquinas' definition is better: A shrinking from greatness out of littleness of soul. It is caused by an ignorance of one's own capabilities and by a fear of failure. For an example, we may turn to Moses at the burning bush. Moses would have been prideful to take up the leadership of God's people without tremble but equally prideful, and pusillanimous, to refuse the command of his Creator.  For me, this learning came with power. What I mean is that it came with the power of a new category, a new explanation, a new understanding, and with the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Let me explain. Shrinking from greatness caused by fear of failure? That's me. One of the characteristic fears in my life is a fear of failure.  As a teenager I took kayaking lessons and jo...

Skye Jethani.  With: Reimagining the Way You Relate to God . Thomas Nelson, 2011. 224 pgs.  This book was provided by Thomas Nelson, through Booksneeze, for review.  The copy for this book might as well read: Why are there so many problems in the church? (A few specifics are listed: burn out, lack of freedom in Christ, etc.) Is it possible we have misunderstood the call of the Christian life? Jethani argues that this is just what we have done. He believes that most Christians in the modern west have settled for less than a relationship with God; they have settled for life under, over, from, or for God when what they ought to desire is life with God.  I think that for many people, Jethani is right. While I am not sure that all the problems of the church can be laid just here, it would certainly take us a long way to get these issues straight. Through the first five chapters Jethani explores the first four ways of relating to God as the failures they ...

ed: C. Stephen Evans.  Exploring Kenotic Christology: The Self-Emptying of God . Regent College Publising, 2009. 360 pgs.  Full disclosure: This book was provided by Regent College Publising for review.  "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God,  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing,  taking the very nature of a servant,  being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man,  he humbled himself and became obedient to death--  even death on a cross!  Therefore God exalted him to the highest place  and gave him the name that is above every name,  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,  in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,  to the glory of God the Father." - Philippians 2:5-11 Have...

Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch .  Faith of Leap, The: Embracing a Theology of Risk, Adventure & Courage (Shapevine) . Baker Books, 2011. 224 pgs.  In The Faith of Leap Frost and Hirsch encourage the reader to leave the idols of security and safety behind and live out our adventure with God. They remind us that faith always involves risk, that God calls us to make a leap for him and, in that leap, to have the "faith of leap". In order to develop these themes, Frost and Hirsch explore the difference between community and communitas, as well as liminality and how these things affect our churches and are lived out in our mission. Their final chapter then points us to our own communities as the places in which we live out this adventure through the "risk of neighborliness."  There is much to be praised in this book.  Chapter five is clearly the highlight, as Hirsch and Frost directly assault our idol of security in an argument and encouragement to get ov...

(Last month I wrote a post entitled  "It Sounds Good But..."  in which I spoke, briefly, on the need to exercise appropriate judgment in the face of bad ideas that sound good. If that topic had become a series then this post would belong in it.) I am sure that you, like me, have heard the phrase "spiritual but not religious." It appears on book covers, in magazine articles, and on the lips of people near and far. It embodies the pernicious idea of a divide between the 'religious,' epitomized in dead institutions with their rites, rituals, dogmas, and creeds, and the 'spiritual', visible and vibrant in our personal lives through heartfelt, passionate, subjective and real experiences. It has become a trend, a near automatically assumed position, to be 'spiritual' but not 'religious'. After all, who wants to wade through the legalism, hypocrisy, politics, and conflicts of an 'institution'?  What you may not know (and really, w...

Jonathan Lunde .  Following Jesus, the Servant King: A Biblical Theology of Covenantal Discipleship (Biblical Theology for Life) . Zondervant, 2010. 312 pgs.  Introduction I seem to be reviewing quite a few books on discipleship this month. "The Invitation" by Greg Sidders  was the first; a fine simple introduction to the subject. Then came "The Gospel Commission" by Michael Horton ; a not so fine book. The more I think about it the less I like it, and not because Horton is a reformed theologian, but because I think he has missed the point.  Now, in comes a third in Jonathan Lunde's addition to the "Biblical Theology for Life" series. So far, the series stands at two volumes; this one, and " The Mission of God's People: A Biblical Theology of the Church's Mission " by Christopher Wright. I have to say that the first book was incredible and the second book, the subject of this review, does not disappoint. I have gre...

Michael Horton . The Gospel Commission: Recovering God's Strategy for Making Disciples . Baker Books, 2011. 320 pgs.  Michael Horton is concerned. He is concerned that evangelical Christians are suffering from 'Mission Creep.' That is, that we are giving up our focus on the mission God has given us, becoming distracted by other activities, and losing our clear and biblically founded grasp on the truths which God has given us with regards to the gospel commission (Matthew 28:18-20).  One might justly sum up this entire book as an extended theological commentary on the great commission. Horton divides his book into three sections: The Great Announcement, The Mission Statement, and The Strategic Plan. In the first of these, Horton seeks to help us understand the gospel message, especially by placing it in it's full biblical context. "The Great Announcement" is, in fact, an excellent summary of the work of scholars such as N.T. Wright, Christopher Wright, and ...

Walter Brueggemann, An Unsettling God: The Heart of the Hebrew Bible . Fortress Press, 2009. 192 Pages.  Here, then, is the third book I mentioned when I reviewed Eric Siebert's book last week.  "It is an exciting time to be studying the Old Testament... In some ways the Old Testament strikes us as ancient, odd, and remote from us. But in other ways it is clear that the Old Testament offers categories of interpretation and guidelines for life that are rich and contemporary in their force. The present volume is an attempt to articulate some of the categories of interpretation and guidelines for life that could make a difference in our present social context." Thus begins An Unsettling God. This book is largely drawn from Brueggemann's previous volume, Theology of the Old Testament  (available here , among other places). The focus of this book is on the relational, or dialogical, nature of God. This is the subject of the first chapter. From there, we see YHWH in c...

Rob Bell,  Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived . 2011, Harperone. 224 pages.  Love Wins is, shockingly, a book about heaven, hell, and the fate of every person who ever lived. Imagine a "Nooma" video, but longer. Much, much longer. You now have a good picture of the style of this book. Typical Bell.  In terms of content, the book is divided into 8 chapters. If I were to re-title them so that the title clearly conveyed the content/issue of the chapter, the table of contents would look like this: Introduction: Millions of people will want to read this book, and enjoy it, because it will fix all the negative images you have of Jesus and Christianity.  1. How are we saved? 2. What/when/where is heaven? 3. What/when/where is hell? 4. Does God get what God wants? or Does Love win?  5. What happened on the cross and in the resurrection? 6. Jesus lives and works outside of the church too and you...

Thomas Jay Oord, The Nature of Love: A Theology . Chalice Press, 2010. 208 pages.  #SpeakEasyLove Book Review Summary Whenever you pick up a systematic theology textbook you will find that the author has been forced to make a decision about what he considers central, and what he considers peripheral, in talking about God. There is not space nor intellect enough in this world to say everything, so where do you begin? And, just as important, where do you end?  According to Oord there is only one answer to these questions: Love. Love ought to be at the center of our conception of God, our theology, our reading of the bible, and more. Of course, this begs another question: What is love? It certainly doesn't do any good to say 'God is love.' A more circular argument would be hard to find. Instead, Oord works out his own definition of love which, he claims, is consistent with the biblical witness though not found in this precise form therein. That definition? "To lov...

Last month I performed my first wedding. Afterwards, I included that fact in the post  "Many Joys" , along with other things I have been blessed with.  Last week I performed my first funeral. Being inexperienced, I spent several hours over several days reading Psalms and scripture passages which are common at funerals, reading minister's manuals which include the sermons, thoughts, and prayers that have been used throughout the ages at funerals, and trying to pull together my own thoughts and put them down on paper. Weddings are much easier. Then comes this week, which really began with Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Once again I am faced with death, for Lent is, after all, a season to remember the death we deserve. From dust to dust. Psalm 39 seems an appropriate place to begin this Lenten season.   "Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days;  let me know how fleeting  is my life.   You have made my days  a mere han...

James Davison Hunter,  To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World . Oxford University Press, 2010. 368 pgs.  Get ready for a long summary.  Summary To Change the World is organized into three 'essays' consisting of multiple chapters. Hunter calls them essays because in them he is painting with broad brushstrokes and exploring big ideas while not exhaustively perusing and sourcing the literature behind all of his issues. While some may find issue with this, I think Hunter has found an appropriate balance given the issues he is exploring. What issues, you ask? Let me tell you.  The first essay is an extended critique of the assumed definition of culture and method of changing it which is predominant in Christian circles. The problem, says Hunter, is that Christian projects for 'transforming culture' and 'changing the world' assume an 'idealistic' worldview. In other words, t...