This is a great book for anyone who is unsure of how they view the bible's statements on women in ministry, leadership, and culture or those who are o...moreThis is a great book for anyone who is unsure of how they view the bible's statements on women in ministry, leadership, and culture or those who are open to the possibility of egalitarianism. If you aren't open to the idea then the only reason I can see for you to read this book is to make yourself angry. In it McKnight makes clear and pretty hard to argue with assertions as to why "Junias" in Romans is actually "Junia" (a woman not a man). This then is a great supporting argument for a lot of what he has written in many of his other books as to why women should be accepted as equals to men on all fronts. After making his case he makes a plea to pastors and teachers to make sure to include teaching in our churches about the great women of the bible and our culture that have done and are doing the work of God as leaders.
I haven't always seen it this way, but after reading "Blue Parakeet" - also by Scot McKnight - I was convicted of my error. This exceptionally short ebook is a great quick read and encouragement on the subject.(less)
Not to say his sermons weren't interesting to read, but easily the most enjoyable part of this whole book was the introduction which gave a brief glim...moreNot to say his sermons weren't interesting to read, but easily the most enjoyable part of this whole book was the introduction which gave a brief glimpse into his personality and experience as a pastor. I loved it because it gave me hope that I'm not alone in my experience. He was also an introverted pastor accused of many of the same shortcomings that I am but still managed to be one of the most important theologians of our time. It gave me hope that there is still a place in pastoral ministry for me even though I'm not the traditional gregarious people person that many pastors are.
The sermons themselves were an interesting look at where some of his more well known thoughts developed from and helped me as I thought through creating sermons of my own, especially his message on the birth of Christ. I may not line up with him completely on his feelings of God as the unreachable, wholely other but it was a good read.(less)
I spend about an hour reading in bed every night to unwind at the end of the day. I'm not looking for the next great novel necessarily, just somethin...moreI spend about an hour reading in bed every night to unwind at the end of the day. I'm not looking for the next great novel necessarily, just something to relax with before going to sleep every night. The title and a couple of the amazon reviews made me think this book would be worth the couple of bucks that it sold for. What guys doesn't like the combination of bullets and exploding monkeys? That being said, this book was awful.
The characters were unbelievable, the dialogue was cliche, and the story was painfully predictable. You'd think with a title like this the book would be funny. Some of the apparently real reviewers said it was like a cross between an action movie and the office. Maybe an action movie on a late night cable network. Maybe it was like The Office in that it contained scenes set in an office, but it contained nothing remotely funny. To say it had humor like the office would be to say my life is like Dale Earnhart's because I drive a car.
I paid next to nothing for this book and was still disappointed in the value I got from it. Don't judge a book by it's cover, but more importantly don't judge it from a catchy title. Lesson learned.(less)
First off the top, why this book is described as "Christian" is total mystery given the actual content of the book. It uses Christian terms...moreFirst off the top, why this book is described as "Christian" is total mystery given the actual content of the book. It uses Christian terms but in reality it's just Nietzsche with a Jesus mask on. It's probably better reclassified as an atheist attempt at explaining why we should still love people when life is in actuality devoid of meaning. That being said, I did actually find some really good nuggets in the book to help me become a better follower of Jesus.
1. His call for the Jesus follower to be willing to embrace fully feel the impact of mystery, pain, and loss as expressed through Jesus experience of divine abandonment on the cross. I and the church need to be better at embracing these as experiences of God and not a lack of his presence.
2. His assertion that we really only believe something in so far as we act it. Intellectual assent is a meaningless exercise. It is not real belief but just an illusion that allows you to continue on in status quo without really believing and changing.
3. God is love, quite literally, and we need to stop always hoping for contact from a divine being to experience God but rather find we experience him as we love and are loved by those around us.
I found these things really helpful and challenging for me to embrace as a follower of Jesus and a leader in the church.
However he lost me when he went to so far as to say the Jesus experience on the cross shows there is no actual divine being in existence, that God only exists as the love between people not as a person himself, that the teachings of Jesus themselves are not original and as such not important, and that we should look to Paul to find out all ideas and beliefs and categories are relative and unimportant except for love. This isn't Christianity. This is humanistic atheism explained using Christian vernacular. I'm glad that I read the book as it challenged me in some areas and gave me language to explain some things I had been struggling through but was unable to verbalize. However, this is no answer for Christianity in a new generation, it's just rejection of God using Jesus as the excuse to do it. I think if Bonhoeffer, Mother Theresa, CS Lewis and even the apostle Paul knew their words and thoughts would be used to embrace the rejection of the person of God they'd probably be horrified, but that is in fact what happens here.(less)
You could have quite easily entitled this book "Frodo vs the Death Star". The series wrap-up was really predictable and really just borrowed...moreYou could have quite easily entitled this book "Frodo vs the Death Star". The series wrap-up was really predictable and really just borrowed endings from other epic to write this one. Disappointed.(less)
It was an alright book, although I think I would have liked it more if I hadn't have read his first book "Imaginary Jesus". See, I loved "...moreIt was an alright book, although I think I would have liked it more if I hadn't have read his first book "Imaginary Jesus". See, I loved "Imaginary Jesus" and this book just felt far too similar to it. Normally that might be a good thing except for the fact that as I was reading through the book I kind of felt like I was just rereading "Imaginary Jesus" with a few changes to character names instead of an actual new story. So by all means read and enjoy the book, I'd just pick one or the other and save half the money and time.(less)
It was a relatively short read but contained more depth of thought than some epics. The authors thoughts on the nature of relationships and human n...moreIt was a relatively short read but contained more depth of thought than some epics. The authors thoughts on the nature of relationships and human nature were good food for thought in a fantasy world of his creation. The only thing keeping me from a higher rating is that some of the metaphors and word pictures were painful to read (ie. a battle compared to Tinkerbell vs Megatron).(less)
I'm not going to try to fool anyone into thinking this was some timeless work of literary genius, but I did appreciate the fact that although it was a...moreI'm not going to try to fool anyone into thinking this was some timeless work of literary genius, but I did appreciate the fact that although it was a somewhat shameless rip-off of the Hunger Games genre the answer to the world's problems here came in bravery and selflessness - or as it often points out their being the same thing - as opposed to the idea that one person turning to their own desires can fix it all. It was a welcome change in the narrative direction from glorifying the self to glorifying self-giving.(less)
It was a great book, and although not completely original in thought was a great synopsis of the breadth of thought on making the gospel Jesus/discipl...moreIt was a great book, and although not completely original in thought was a great synopsis of the breadth of thought on making the gospel Jesus/disciple centred and not salvation centred. The strange part was I nodded my way through the first 90% of the book agreeing with most all his supporting arguments and then he got to his conclusion. It's funny how you can agree with all the points along the way and disagree pretty whole-heartedly with the summation. His final explanation of the gospel which made it all about power/control I think is far more of a product of his American world view than it is the actual content of the story of God which I think is far more about relationship/restoration.
It was a great book and will definitely influence my thinking and preaching, but please don't think you need to buy into his final definition of the story of the gospel to agree with the rest of what he has to say.(less)
Its a short easy read that gets to the point of things quickly in easy to understand terms. It got irritating reading paragraphs emplorung me to "...moreIts a short easy read that gets to the point of things quickly in easy to understand terms. It got irritating reading paragraphs emplorung me to "keep reading even though its boring or tough to understand" when I just wanted to hear his thoughts. I already bought and am reading it so why try to convince me? Beyond that though it was a well reasoned and faithful reading/interpreting of scripture even if I don't fully agree with all his conclusions. If you read Love Wins be fair to yourself and read this too.(less)
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