A Conversation With Jesus… on Suffering

A Conversation with Jesus

by David R. Helm

He had been subject to a protracted and excruciating life of suffering. He was well aware of the unrelenting persistence of human misery. If anyone had a reason to feel betrayed by God, this man did.   But then he met Jesus.   At Jesus’ command, this man who hasn’t walked for 38 years is suddenly on his feet. But this healing brings many questions. Why this man and not another? Why was he suffering in the first place? And what would this man do now he could walk?

64 pages, Hardcover

Published May 10, 2019

About the author

David R. Helm, along with Arthur Jackson, serves as Lead Pastor of the Hyde Park Congregation of Holy Trinity Church Chicago. David is Chairman of The Charles Simeon Trust, a ministry devoted to equipping men in expository preaching.

A graduate of Wheaton College and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, David is ordained in the PCA and serves on the council of The Gospel Coalition. He authored I, II Peter and Jude in Crossway’s Preaching the Word series, and contributed to Preach the Word:Essays in Expository Preaching in Honor of Kent Hughes. In addition, David has written The Big Picture Story Bible, One to One Bible Reading and The Genesis Factor (the latter with Jon Dennis). His forthcoming book on preaching is titled Expositional Preaching: How we speak God's Word Today which will be released in April of 2014.

David and his wife, Lisa, have five children (Noah, Joanna, who is married to Ben Panner, Baxter, Silas and Mariah) and reside in the Hyde Park neighborhood.

Reviews

[Steve Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this brief book to be both insightful and challenging. People who are looking for a full-blown treatment of the topic of suffering may not find this book satisfying, but the brevity of the book itself and the author's own words indicate that this is not intended to be a full-blown discussion of the topic of suffering. In fact, I suspect that this is an expository sermon on John 5:1-15. With that in mind, one can see that the author intends for this to be a treatment of one aspect of suffering as it relates to this specific passage of scripture. As an exposition of John 5:1-15, this book is quite satisfying.

[David Dunlap · Rating 3 out of 5]

The man had been living paralyzed for 38 years, by the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem (noted for its healing powers). Then Jesus appears and asks him, Do you want to be healed? -- This encounter, found in John 5.1-15, forms the basis for this little book about suffering: its nature, its causes, and its solution. The author touches on issues of fault, fear, and finality in ways that are helpful and encouraging, but not, perhaps, ultimately altogether satisfying.