"There is nothing we can do to make God love us more. There is nothing we can do to make God love us less." (from back of book)
PROUDLY PRESENTS
A MORE CHRISTLIKE GOD
A MORE BEAUTIFUL GOSPEL
by
Bradley Jersak
SUMMARY FROM LITFUSE
What is God like? A punishing judge? A doting grandfather? A deadbeat dad? A vengeful warrior?
Believers and atheists alike typically carry and finally reject the
toxic images of God in their own hearts and minds. Even the Christian
gospel has repeatedly lapsed into a vision of God where the wrathful
King must be appeased by his victim Son. How do such good cop/bad cop
distortions of the divine arise and come to dominate churches and
cultures?Whether our notions of ‘god’ are personal projections or inherited traditions, author and theologian Brad Jersak proposes a radical reassessment, arguing for A More Christlike God: a More Beautiful Gospel. If Christ is “the image of the invisible God, the radiance of God’s glory and exact representation of God’s likeness,” what if we conceived of God as completely Christlike—the perfect Incarnation of self-giving, radically forgiving, co-suffering love? What if God has always been and forever will be cruciform (cross-shaped) in his character and actions?
A More Christlike God suggests that such a God would be very good news indeed—a God who Jesus “unwrathed” from dead religion, a Love that is always toward us, and a Grace that pours into this suffering world through willing, human partners.
AUTHOR
Brad Jersak (PhD) is an author and teacher based in Abbotsford, BC. He is on faculty at Westminster Theological Centre (Cheltenham, UK), where he teaches New Testament and Patristics. He also serves as adjunct faculty with St Stephen's University (St. Stephen, NB).
He is also the senior editor of CWR (Christianity Without the Religion) Magazine, based in Pasadena, CA.
His heart is to share the good news that God is Love and that God's love was shown to us perfectly in Jesus of Nazareth. Through his books and seminars, Brad teaches the contemplative practice of "listening prayer" and more recently, "The Beautiful Gospel" (or 'Gospel in Chairs').
REVIEW
When I was young, I thought that God wouldn't speak or listen to me if I was being bad. No one told me this. Somehow I just came to this conclusion. There are two things you can do regarding God. To make God love us more - stop sinning. To make God love us less - sin more. This book is based on grace and redemption, a book that is a modern classic. The author took three hundred pages and split it into three sections. Part 1: Two competing ways we see God. Will and Love. "What is God really like?" Many people are afraid of God since they see him as angry, wrathful. The only thing keeping him from doing away with sinners already is his mercy. There will come a day when time for repentance will run out. Part 2: Exploring and enlarging God's love in the cross's light. Jersak observes, "What I'm hearing is, 'God once tried being the cross-bearing servant, but praise the Lord, next time around he will be the sword-bearing, flesh-tearing warrior.'" Part 3: The author shows how this transforms the way we understand a wrathful deity.Biblical writers often refer to God as wrathful. When we we actually discover what divine wrath is, it is our experience of our own bad choices. God is not wrathful but is full of love even when we sin. God doesn't punish us, he allows us to punish ourselves.
Wrath, not as the vengeance of an angry God, but as the
process of perishing under the curse and decay of sin. And what did God
do? He unwrathed us! He freed us from sin's slavery and unwrapped us
from death. How? By wrathing Jesus in our place? No! By becoming one of
us and, as Jesus, overcoming wrath by his great mercy!" (262-3)
The finishing in the final chapter is about the "beautiful gospel" and some tips for sharing with others. I would recommend this book to anyone who believes or perhaps is unsure. or believes in something totally different. It will give you a different perspective. It is written with great passion as the author understands. Everyone has their own beliefs and how much they believe in those belief's.
I was given a complimentary copy of A MORE CHRISTLIKE GOD - A MORE BEAUTIFUL GOSPEL from the author, Bradley Jersak and Litfuse Publicity Tours.The finishing in the final chapter is about the "beautiful gospel" and some tips for sharing with others. I would recommend this book to anyone who believes or perhaps is unsure. or believes in something totally different. It will give you a different perspective. It is written with great passion as the author understands. Everyone has their own beliefs and how much they believe in those belief's.
I would give this book 3 STARS.
GIVEAWAY
Enter to win a copy of A More Christlike God—five winners will be chosen! The winners will be announced June 26th on the Litfuse blog!
LINKS
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