pursuing faithfulness to the Word of God and fullness of the Spirit of God
Book Reviews
Book Review – Forgotten God (Francis Chan)
Aug 6th
The book is subtitled “Reversing our tragic neglect of the Holy Spirit”. As someone who has come from a charismatic background, it does seem a little strange to hear the Holy Spirit referred to as the “Forgotten God”. If anything, those in my circles are often accused of an over-emphasis on the Spirit. Which perhaps explains why I really felt as though I was not quite in the “target audience” for this book.
Chan seems to be aiming at a popular level, perhaps at those who rarely read theology books, and at those who theologically occupy a middle ground somewhere between cessationism and full-blown pentecostalism.
The first two chapters are devoted to urging us to be willing to completely rethink our opinions on the Holy Spirit, returning to the Bible. This is sound advice, but I didn’t feel he went on to overthrow any existing beliefs I had. His chapter on the theology of the Spirit is only the briefest of overviews of Biblical teaching on the Spirit.
Scattered throughout the book are short biographical accounts of people that Chan considers to be “Spirit-filled”. The focus is (perhaps deliberately) not on those whose lives have been characterised by miracles or supernatural gifts, but on those who showed extraordinary godly character (fruit of the Spirit) and who took bold steps of faith to serve the poor. It is a helpful reminder that the Spirit-filled life is not always necessarily a spectacular one.
There is a chapter on the importance of having a real relationship with God through the Spirit. Chan picks out “comfort” and “volume” as being two things that hinder us from truly connecting with God – we are too comfortable or too busy to have a deep relationship with God (see Tim Chester’s post for these obstacles to intimacy).
Another chapter warns against being so focused on God’s will for your life (i.e. your future plans) that you forget to follow him in the now. He reminds us that we do not invite Jesus to follow us around, but we are to follow him. The call to take up our cross is a call to a radical faith. And this is Chan’s passion – that we would settle for nothing less than a life sold out to following Jesus – a life following the Spirit. He argues the same for churches in the final chapter. It is too easy for a church to rely on simply doing things well. But even if it brings growth, without the Spirit, it is meaningless.
Overall I felt there were many things about the Holy Spirit that were left unsaid in this book. And to be fair, Chan has deliberately kept the book short and accessible. He has a great way with words, and it won’t take you long to read through. The book’s chief strength is not as a theology of the Spirit, but as a challenge to live radical lives following the lead of the Spirit. It would be a good place to start for a Christian who has thought little about the Holy Spirit before. And the call to a more radical, wholehearted following of Jesus as we are led by the Spirit is one that all believers and local churches, desperately need to heed.
Book Review – The Message of Ecclesiastes (Derek Kidner)
Aug 6th
This is one of the earliest volumes of the Bible Speaks Today series, having been written in 1976 and only later incorporated into the series. In a brief introduction Derek Kidner asks what Ecclesiastes is doing in the Bible. He introduces us to the author, Qoheleth. He thinks that this teacher puts himself in the shoes of a “super-Solomon” for the purposes of writing the book.
Kidner interprets the book as being written from “ground level” – the author deliberately views life “under the sun” from a human perspective – if you like, from a secularist vantage point. Qoheleth will explore path after path to the point that it comes to nothing, and in the end, only one way will be left.
Kidner makes regular references to various stories, quotes or poems that make similar points to Ecclesiastes. In Eccl 3:1-8, he does not take the common approach of assuming it is about the idea that there is an “appropriate” time” for every activity. Rather he sees it as a comment on the perpetual pattern of change – everything has a beginning and an end. However, he does see Eccl 3:11 as a key verse – part of the very reason that we find so many seemingly good things unsatisfying is that we have eternity in our hearts.
Every few chapters, Kidner inserts a brief “backwards glance”, summarising the argument so far, which is a helpful touch. He thinks that Qoheleth’s mission, like Jeremiah, is first to tear down and destroy before he eventually gets round to building up (Jer 1:10). Kidner sees a turning point coming after Ecclesiastes 9, by which time Qoheleth has made his case against human self-sufficiency.
Overall I think Kidner has done a good job of interpreting the train of thought in this book that can be quite perplexing at times. I find it interesting that many of the better known verses in Ecclesiastes seem to have a different meaning to their popular interpretations when considered in the light of the whole book’s progression of thought.
Book Review – Jesus Freaks
Jul 30th
But when I opened it up and discovered it to be a book of stories about martyrs, my opinion changed. For martyrdom is a subject that, unlike dc Talk, is not “cool” in any way. This is in effect, a modern day “Foxe’s book of Martyrs”.
The book has been produced in association with “The Voice of the Martyrs”, an organisation started by Richard Wurmbrand, and contains stories and quotes spanning the centuries.
Each story is told in just a page or two. It includes stories from the Bible, from the Roman persecution of the church, through to the time of the Reformation, through to Communist persecution of believers, and contemporary persecution of Christians in Islamic countries. It is full of Scripture verses as well as quotes from persecuted Christians and extracts from the hymns that sustained them through their suffering.
Many of the stories are shocking and horrific, and yet the peace and joy so often displayed by the believers is a powerful testimony to the grace of God at work in their lives. Not all the stories are of actual martyrdom, several are of imprisonment and torture.
This will not make for comfortable reading. I wouldn’t even put it in the “inspiring” category. “Challenging” would perhaps be a better word. When I consider how much these believers were willing to sacrifice for their faith in Jesus, many of whom could simply have escaped pain by denying their beliefs, it puts to shame my timidity in sharing my own faith with others. These believers stand as a shining example of total devotion to Christ, and what it means to live with an eternal perspective.
There is a second volume available. Details of the books can be found at this website.
Book Review – Hebrews For Everyone (Tom Wright)
Jul 28th
The “For Everyone” series is Tom Wright’s project to write an accessible commentary / devotional on the entire New Testament. He brings his massive scholarly learning to the table, but these volumes are anything but dry academic tomes.
The unique features of the series include the author’s own translation, which is a fairly loose paraphrase in many places. There is no book “introduction”, so if authorship and dating are covered, it is only in passing as he goes through. And he always starts each section with a brief anecdote, from his seemingly endless supply of illustrations, almost all of which prove helpful in illuminating the text although there are rare occasions where one suspects he was a little short of ideas.
His quirky approach to capitalisation from his more academic tomes also shows up in these books (e.g. “holy spirit”), although “God” does get capitalised throughout. Finally, there is a glossary at the back in which he defines several key terms which are highlighted in bold throughout the book.
Hebrews Commentary
Hebrews rests heavily on Old Testament quotations and allusions, and Tom Wright does a good job of explaining first the sense of the OT passage before showing how it functions in the author of Hebrews’ argument.
A strong theme comes out of Jesus as the climax of biblical history. Wright explains that the law is a good thing, but a temporary, preparatory thing, and so why go back to it, now the real thing has arrived. Moses matters – but Jesus matters even more.
Much of his familiar work on our future hope can be detected in this commentary, as he reminds us that we are not expecting to go from a material present to a spiritual (i.e. non-material) future, but rather we look to a world in which evil has at last no place. He does see a reference to the second coming in Heb 9:28, although is somewhat equivocal about Heb 10:37 which he starts off calling a reference to the second coming, but ends up linking it to the temple destruction in AD70.
Whilst he does not engage in the “once-saved always saved” debate in the way that other evangelicals might, he does tip his hand towards a perseverance of the saints position, saying that Rom 5-8 shows you can’t become a Christian and lose it all. Along with most interpreters he sees a major purpose of the author to encourage his readers to keep persevering in the face of persecution.
Verdict
Tom Wright has the knack for bringing a fresh perspective to just about every topic he approaches and this is no exception. Preachers will find this especially useful as a source for illustrations and fresh ways of saying things. It shouldn’t be the only thing you read on Hebrews, but it nevertheless is well worth getting hold of, especially if, like me, you sometimes find Hebrews a bit heavy-going.
Book Review – Bible Study Methods (Andy Deane)
Jul 26th
Overview
Deane devotes the first six chapters to some basic principles on the why and how of Bible study. These are full of excellent advice, essentially giving a brief introduction to hermeneutics (without the long words).
The Methods
The bulk of the book is devoted to describing and illustrating forty methods of Bible study. The point is probably not to read and try them all, but rather to peruse them looking for one that will work for the type of Bible study you want to embark on. Each is described in a page or two, and then a concrete example is given of a study performed using the method.
The methods are organised into groups. The "basic methods" mainly revolve around giving you a set of questions to ask of the passage under study. They are often based on mnemonics. Sometimes the questions can feel contrived and may not be applicable to every text, but the benefit is learning what sort of questions you should be asking of the text.
The "major Bible study methods" give solid advice for tackling small or large portions of Scripture, as well as thematic studies on topics, character or words. A section on "creative Bible study methods" mixes things up a bit and gives some different approaches. I liked the idea of reading the same book (or 7 chapters of the same book) every day for 30 days.
The section dealing with "Studying Specific Passages" is especially valuable, since a failure to recognise the variety of genres of biblical literature can mean that we find it hard to "get anything out" of our personal Bible study. There is a final section of methods suitable for children, which are mainly simplified versions of some of the earlier ideas.
Summary
In many ways you could say that a lot of these forty methods are different mixes of the same basic ingredients. These include re-reading the passage several times or in different versions, paraphrasing the text, asking plenty of questions of the text, exploring cross-references and reading it in context. Adding these to your arsenal of Bible study techniques is probably more valuable than slavishly following any particular "method".
I can see this book as being a very helpful resource for Bible study group leaders, or those who desire to go deeper in their personal study of the Bible but find it a challenge. The book has a good website where you can find out more about the book and explore more resources.
Overall its value is in its very practical approach to Bible study. It is written at a slightly more entry level than a book like Fee & Stuart’s excellent How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth
Book Review – NIVAC Esther (Karen Jobes)
Jul 13th
In a 30 page introduction Jobes outlines some of the unique features of the book of Esther, including its notable lack of reference to God or anything explicitly religious, and the enigma of why some Jews had chosen not to return to Jerusalem at this point. She identifies “reversal of destiny” (or “peripety”) as a key theme of the book, and the providence of God as the main theological lesson. The book of Esther teaches that the Jews still are God’s covenant people, even with no temple, no city and no prophet.
For the most part, Jobes deals with a chapter at a time, although some are broken into smaller chunks. She is cautious in her approach to application, rightly noting the dangers of an “exemplary” approach to hermeneutics (i.e. deciding that everything Esther or Mordecai does is there as a good example for us to follow). Indeed, she shows that there is a good deal of moral ambiguity about their actions, and they may show signs that the Jews in Persia have become secularised to some extent. In any case, the point of the story is not to say whether Esther and Mordecai did right or not, but that God’s covenant purposes were providentially fulfilled through them.
She picks up an idea from Ryken that Esther’s two names suggest a dual identity – she is the king’s wife and a Jew. As the story progresses, these two identities must merge into one. She discusses the challenges of how as Christians we attempt to live within our culture without compromising our values.
As with several other commentators, Jobes shows the link between Mordecai and Haman’s conflict and that of Saul and Agag. She argues persuasively that we are to see the counter-decree as an example of “holy war”. This explains why no plunder was taken, despite it being permitted.
The death of Jesus Christ, the Messiah of Israel, provides the only basis for the cessation of holy war, and the infilling of the Holy Spirit provides the only power by which one may love one’s enemies as oneself
One strength of the bridging contexts sections, is how Jobes always seeks to interpret the events of Esther in the light of the gospel. She never uses allegories or even suggests that the events foreshadow the gospel, but she does nevertheless keep approaching topics in the light of the cross and new covenant.
Much of the discussion relates to “providence”, and Jobes shows how “God works mysteriously, patiently, and inexorably through a series of ‘coincidental’ events and human decisions, even those based on questionable motives and evil intents.” She includes a ten page postscript examining the doctrine of divine providence in a bit more detail.
Her analysis of the structure of Esther is very interesting. She shows how feasts are central to the narrative, and that the book starts with a pair of feasts, has another pair of feasts in the middle and ends with a pair of feasts. This leads her to conclude that the “pivot point” of the book is the king’s sleepless night. In other words, neither Esther nor Mordecai do anything to “turn” events into their favour – it is the providential work of God in a seemingly insignificant occurrence that changes everything. She also shows how the reversal of fortunes of both Haman and Mordecai are arranged in a chiastic structure.
Obviously, the book of Esther brings up various issues relating to women in particular. Jobes does not see this as central to the book’s message, noting that the main adversarial relationship in the book is not between male and female but between the Jews and their enemies. However, she does give some helpful thoughts in the final chapter on male and female partnerships, noting how Esther and Mordecai worked together as “lay leaders” in “secular vocations”. She also emphasises that being a wife or mother on one hand, or being ordained on the other, by no means exhaust the possibilities of vocations, and that much of the debate has been too narrowly focused.
Overall I have to say this is an outstanding contribution to the NIV application series, and I found it very helpful and thought provoking. This is the second of Jobes’ commentaries I have read (the first being her BEC commentary on 1 Peter which was also excellent) and I will be eagerly looking out for any forthcoming volumes from her.
Book Review – The Message of Acts (John Stott)
Jul 12th
I have tried, therefore, to address myself with integrity to some of the main questions which the Acts raises for today’s Christians, such as the baptism of the Spirit and charismatic gifts, signs and wonders, the economic sharing of the first Christian community in Jerusalem, church discipline, the diversity of ministries, Christian conversion, racial prejudice, missionary principles, the cost of Christian unity, motives and methods in evangelism, the call to suffer for Christ, church and state, and divine providence.
His attention to contemporary issues raised by the text makes this commentary a much more vibrant read than several other commentaries I have read on Acts (TNTC by Howard Marshall, NICNT by F F Bruce, NIBC by David Williams). Stott does address issues of historicity, geography and historical background, but not to the same depth as these other commentaries, leaving him plenty of space to reflect on theology and practical application.
The group of churches I am part of, newfrontiers, tends to favour different interpretations of the book of Acts to Stott in several places. First of all, Stott is convinced that the concept of an “apostle” belongs to the first century only, arguing that there are no more apostles today, since apostles must be directly appointed by Christ. This causes him to make less emphasis on Paul’s church planting methods and relationship with those churches as a paradigm for modern day church planting and apostolic ministry.
Second, Stott is not a charismatic, and so plays down expectations that gifts of tongues and prophecy as well as signs and wonders may occur today. Third, he strongly disagrees with the Pentecostal (and Catholic) understanding of baptism in the Spirit as distinct from conversion. There are other places where his Anglicanism is noticeable, such as his plea not to abandon the “institutional church”, as well as his views on the mode of baptism.
Notwithstanding these differences of opinion, there is a wealth of profitable material to be gleaned from this commentary. He highlights some interesting parallels between Luke’s gospel and Acts, including the way Paul’s journey to Jerusalem mirrors Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem. In addition, the arrest and trial narratives of both Jesus and Paul have various parallels. Another is the similarity between the Emmaeus road and Ethiopian eunuch stories. By telling these stories in parallel ways, Luke shows how the early believers (and Paul especially) walked in the steps of Jesus.
Just as the Spirit came upon Jesus to equip him for his public ministry, so now the Spirit was to come upon his people to equip them for theirs.
Though he does not take it up at every point, Stott chooses a few key places to defend the historicity of Luke’s account, such as the ascension and the relationship between the three tellings of Paul’s conversion.
Stott brings out plenty of helpful principles for evangelising and for communicating the gospel as he works through the various stories of the mission of the early church, especially in how different approaches were needed for those of different religious and cultural backgrounds.
Although in Acts 19:1-6 Stott is adamant that the Ephesian disciples were clearly not believers, his language sounds remarkably similar to David Pawson’s concept of the “normal Christian birth” consisting of distinct elements:
The norm of Christian experience, then, is a cluster of four things: repentance, faith in Jesus, water baptism and the gift of the Spirit. Though the perceived order may vary a little, the four belong together and are universal in Christian initiation.
Though Stott’s views on the Spirit will not be agreed with by those like myself from newfrontiers, we do find a lot of common ground on his comments on eldership. He sees eldership as being “local” and “plural”, with no pyramid structure, but rather a team. “Elders”, “pastors” and “overseers” are all terms referring to the same office.
This was my second reading of Stott’s commentary on Acts, and it only serves to cement its place as my favourite on this book. I would recommend consulting it to all who preach from or study the book of Acts.
Book Review – The Message of Esther (David Firth)
Jun 30th
Introduction
The introduction fills us in on the historical background to Esther, and tells us about the three versions there are of the book. Firth describes the book of Esther as a ’dramatized history’. He introduces us to each of the main characters, and explains the significance of Haman being an ‘Agagite’.
Commentary
Though the book of Esther is notable for its lack of explicit mention of God, Firth does think we can detect various allusions to other Biblical passages. He is cautious not to read more into the text than the author says, but on the whole interprets Mordecai and Esther’s decisions positively – e.g. “Esther neither sought entry to the harem, nor advancement within it, yet both came to her”. He does however think it likely that her failure to reveal her Jewish identity would inevitably mean that she could not retain a kosher lifestyle.
He draws out lessons of remaining faithful to God’s purposes, even in an antagonistic culture, and it is as we do this that we see his providence at work. He picks up on the foolishness of alcohol-fueled decision making. He also reflects on the need for God’s people to challenge evil when we see it, and to speak out from a biblical perspective, taking the risks of faith that God has led us to.
He sees Esther as embodying wisdom in contrast to Haman’s folly. As one would expect there is plenty of discussion of the providence of God, working in ways and with timing that are not what we would expect. He attempts to soften the rather bloodthirsty sounding edicts issued by Esther, by proposing that they were only to be fulfilled in self-defence against those who explicitly attacked the Jews.
Verdict
I found this an interesting read and a good guide to the book of Esther. It fulfils the goals of the Bible Speaks Today series as it both illuminates the text and draws out principles for application. Sometimes I wondered whether he overlooked some of the moral ambiguities surrounding Mordecai and Esther’s behaviour. There was no real attempt to find echoes of the gospel story in the book. Arguably that may be a good thing, as those who do so often seem to need to put a lot of “spin” on various characters and events to make it fit, but I would have appreciated some discussion of where Jesus is to be found within the book. My favourite Esther commentary is Karen Jobes’ NIVAC commentary, but this one has a slightly different perspective so complements it well.
Book Review – The Message of Ezekiel (Chris Wright)
Jun 12th
In his introduction, he helps us understand Ezekiel’s context and life story. One of Wright’s strengths is bringing Ezekiel as a person to life, so we can understand how he is feeling, and his hopes and aspirations. Ezekiel is passionately God-centred, and understood that the reason God saved people is ultimately for his own glory. In fact, Wright is almost Piper-esque as he shows how Ezekiel’s primary motivation, even above compassion for people, is the glory of God in everything. Ezekiel is appointed by Yahweh as a “watchman”, but ironically, it is Yahweh himself who is the enemy that Ezekiel must warn the people about.
Wright is very good at helping you picture the scene as Ezekiel performs his bizarre prophetic mimes, becoming a virtual tourist attraction. In keeping with the goals of the series, he also brings out plenty of practical application both personally and for the church as a whole. He prophetically cautions that the church, like ancient Israel, has often been tempted into unholy and idolatrous alliances with the world.
Misson is another theme he picks up throughout the book, showing Ezekiel does have a concern that the nations come to know Yahweh in a saving way. His treatment of the final chapters of Ezekiel avoid fanciful speculation and show how the vision primarily is concerned with the return of the presence of God and the restoration of the worship of God.
The exposition runs to 368 pages, so the book is covered in good depth. I would wholeheartedly recommend this for those who find Ezekiel an impenetrable book, and especially to those willing to take the time to work their way through the whole thing. His breadth of concerns is impressive, ranging from social issues such as the environment and the poor, through to mission to the nations, through to matters of great theological importance such as holiness and the glory of God. It’s one of my favourites in the BST series, having read it twice now.
Book Review – The Message of 2 Corinthians (Paul Barnett)
Aug 18th
Posted by Mark Heath in Book Reviews
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2 Corinthians is a more personal and emotional letter than 1 Corinthians, but that does not mean it is without theological contributions. Barnett picks out several of these in his introduction including teaching on the new covenant, the death of Christ, and giving.
As he works through the early chapters, Barnett explains the nature of the opposition that Paul is facing from the “super-apostles”, who he sees as having an Old Covenant mentality. He highlights several places in which Paul’s Damascus road experience is behind what he says.
Perhaps some of the best material is the discussion of the relation of the Old to New Covenants, which he explains as “promise” and “fulfilment” – there is continuity between them. Paul opposes a “back to Moses” program, but is not anti-law. “Until the law had been internalised by the Spirit, it remained a letter, which kills.”
Barnett sees “God’s strength in weakness” as the chief theological theme that ties together the whole letter. The new ministers in Corinth, unlike Paul, had nothing to say about suffering, death and judgment – theirs was a superficial message. They were fixated on Israel, the temple, and the law – “things seen not unseen” (2 Cor 4:18).
He makes an interesting point on 2 Cor 5:11,14 that Paul’s two motivations were fear of the Lord and love – these two are not incompatible. He explains the teaching on the atonement in 2 Cor 5:21 by saying that Christ’s death is for us both as representation and as substitution.
Another strength is Barnett’s comments on the nature of true Christian leadership, which is sacrificial rather than boastful and triumphalist. “Sacrifice is at the heart of the gospel and also at the heart of ministry.”
The age of the book is betrayed as he discusses how Christians are to share their surplus, rather than indulge in luxuries such as microwaves and “videos”, though the point is just as timely:
This is the only commentary on 2 Corinthians I have read so I have nothing to compare it to, but overall I would say it fulfils the goals of the Bible Speaks Today series admirably. It explains the meaning of the text clearly and brings out plenty of helpful doctrinal and practical application. 2 Corinthians can be a bit neglected since much of the material is directly about Paul and countering the “new ministers” in Corinth, but Barnett shows that the letter still has much to say to us today.