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Why Would Anyone Follow Jesus?: 12 Reasons to Trust What the Bible Says about Jesus
Of all the gods, gurus, and good people out there, why Jesus? Why follow some ancient carpenter-turned-philosopher from a podunk town in the Middle East? A man whose own people didn't believe in him for the most part. It just doesn't make any sense.
Or does it?
With his signature insight and contagious enthusiasm, Ray Comfort walks you through twelve persuasive reasons to believe that Jesus of Nazareth was who he said he was, did the things the Bible records him doing, and explains why it matters to your life in the 21st century. He covers everything from the virgin birth to Jesus's miracles and teachings, including his hard sayings, his detractors, his exclusive claims, and his commands to his followers. Through it all, Comfort shines a light on how Jesus stands out and stands above every other teacher, prophet, or historical figure out there.
If you struggle to articulate why you follow Jesus to your friends and family, or if you are a skeptic looking for some way to make sense of the whole Jesus thing, this book is for you.
Or does it?
With his signature insight and contagious enthusiasm, Ray Comfort walks you through twelve persuasive reasons to believe that Jesus of Nazareth was who he said he was, did the things the Bible records him doing, and explains why it matters to your life in the 21st century. He covers everything from the virgin birth to Jesus's miracles and teachings, including his hard sayings, his detractors, his exclusive claims, and his commands to his followers. Through it all, Comfort shines a light on how Jesus stands out and stands above every other teacher, prophet, or historical figure out there.
If you struggle to articulate why you follow Jesus to your friends and family, or if you are a skeptic looking for some way to make sense of the whole Jesus thing, this book is for you.
208 pages, Paperback
Published March 1, 2022
36 people are currently reading
1404 people want to read
About the author
Ray Comfort
257 books404 followersRay is the Founder and CEO of Living Waters and the best–selling author of more than 80 books, including, Hell's Best Kept Secret, Scientific Facts in the Bible, and The Evidence Bible. He co–hosts (with actor Kirk Cameron) the award–winning television program "The Way of the Master," seen in 200 countries. He is also the Executive Producer on the movies "Audacity," "180," "Evolution vs. God," and others, which have been seen by millions. He and his wife, Sue, live in Bellflower, California, where they have three grown children.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 8, 2022
This is the first time I have read a book about Jesus. It was enlightening, it was personal, it was amazing. The book answered questions I've never had the thought of asking. I am thankful to have had the opportunity to read this book.
Thank you Ray Comfort.
Thank you Ray Comfort.
March 11, 2022
As I lay here with a cat laying on my left arm and a dog resting under my right, I have a renewed hope that I’ll finally go out and evangelize as I should. Not only have the 12 chapters (and “Final Word”) of Why Would Anyone Follow Jesus?: 12 Reasons to Trust What the Bible Says about Jesus given me additional tools to do so, but Ray’s openness near the end is inspiring and encouraging:
“At the best of times, I’m not excited to witness to the lost. In fact, I never have any joy when I’m about to share the gospel. Rather, I have a measure of controlled fear.”
If what has been holding me back hasn’t held him back for 40 years, I can do this, and so can you. (By the way, he then goes on, “But I never fail to bubble with joy afterward…”)
Who are the audiences for this book? Both the saved and the unsaved.
- If you aren’t saved, you’ll be given ample reason to reconsider while not insulting your intelligence.
- If you are a brother or sister in Christ, you’ll be reminded why you believe, be provided tools for reaching others, and get a kind, but pointed, reminder that if you truly believe what you claim, you have to stop ignoring the lost souls God is putting in your path.
It is a relatively short book, enjoyable, and easy to digest. Reading Ray’s words are like listening to a caring, wise uncle. Regardless of whether you are a Christian or not it is worth your time. At worst, you have “lost” some hours of your life, this side of eternity. However, if Ray is right (and he is), you could…instead…gain eternal life on the other side.
Final comment: I especially appreciated the Witness Encounters. At first, I thought they were “padding” the book, but quickly realized their tremendous value. If you don’t believe, they’ll help answer your objections. If you do, then they’ll provide invaluable insights on how to spread the gospel.
Thank you Ray. To God be the glory.
“At the best of times, I’m not excited to witness to the lost. In fact, I never have any joy when I’m about to share the gospel. Rather, I have a measure of controlled fear.”
If what has been holding me back hasn’t held him back for 40 years, I can do this, and so can you. (By the way, he then goes on, “But I never fail to bubble with joy afterward…”)
Who are the audiences for this book? Both the saved and the unsaved.
- If you aren’t saved, you’ll be given ample reason to reconsider while not insulting your intelligence.
- If you are a brother or sister in Christ, you’ll be reminded why you believe, be provided tools for reaching others, and get a kind, but pointed, reminder that if you truly believe what you claim, you have to stop ignoring the lost souls God is putting in your path.
It is a relatively short book, enjoyable, and easy to digest. Reading Ray’s words are like listening to a caring, wise uncle. Regardless of whether you are a Christian or not it is worth your time. At worst, you have “lost” some hours of your life, this side of eternity. However, if Ray is right (and he is), you could…instead…gain eternal life on the other side.
Final comment: I especially appreciated the Witness Encounters. At first, I thought they were “padding” the book, but quickly realized their tremendous value. If you don’t believe, they’ll help answer your objections. If you do, then they’ll provide invaluable insights on how to spread the gospel.
Thank you Ray. To God be the glory.
March 8, 2022
This book was very insightful and well thought out. I always appreciate Ray Comforts wit and genuinessas and his humility as he is witnessing to others. His knowledge is incredible and as a student in his College for Biblical Evangelism this has really helped me to gain courage to witness to the lost. I am just now finishing up my courses and have already witnessed to two people who received gospel tracts and listened and recieved my message and were edified by the good news. Thanks Ray for writing this great book!
March 22, 2023
This book was… bad. To answer the question on the cover, apparently people want to follow Jesus because they are sinners in the hands of an angry God and following Jesus is the way to avoid sucking. There is some truth to these ideas, but we really didn’t need an entire book talking about it when many, many people are trying to flee from this conception of God. As far as the subtitle “12 reasons”… it seems like all 12 reasons are that we’re dirty sinners. Now to be completely fair, I read chapters 1-4 thoroughly and then skimmed the rest because the first part was so repetitively bad. It is very possible that the author addresses my concerns later on in the text, but really, who is going to be able to read that far to find out?
I do want to say that the transcripts of conversations that the author had with non believers were really interesting, and it sounds like this man has a gift for evangelism and being attuned to the holy spirits promptings about who to talk to. I would absolutely read a book full of those transcripts if the commentary that makes up 90% of this text was taken out.
I do want to say that the transcripts of conversations that the author had with non believers were really interesting, and it sounds like this man has a gift for evangelism and being attuned to the holy spirits promptings about who to talk to. I would absolutely read a book full of those transcripts if the commentary that makes up 90% of this text was taken out.
December 30, 2022
An Adulterous, Lying, Blaspheming, Thief!
An excellent book!
I found this a great book on the reality of sin and how we will stand on judgement day if we don't shape up.
The conversations Ray had with people got repetitive, but they were great at reinforcing the power of living for God.
For example, he writes something like: I spoke to X, they said they are not a sinner. They had confidence they are without sin, and would go to heaven. I asked them if they ever lied. They said yes. I asked if they ever thought about lustful things, they said yes. I asked if they ever murdered anyone - no. But they did steal a chocolate from their friend.
Ray tells them. Okay, X. You are a lying, adulterous thief.
____
If you are paying attention to the books I read this year, another trend was theological books - specifically that of looking for proof of the existence of Jesus, the validity of the Bible, and why this is so important.
4.6/5
An excellent book!
I found this a great book on the reality of sin and how we will stand on judgement day if we don't shape up.
The conversations Ray had with people got repetitive, but they were great at reinforcing the power of living for God.
For example, he writes something like: I spoke to X, they said they are not a sinner. They had confidence they are without sin, and would go to heaven. I asked them if they ever lied. They said yes. I asked if they ever thought about lustful things, they said yes. I asked if they ever murdered anyone - no. But they did steal a chocolate from their friend.
Ray tells them. Okay, X. You are a lying, adulterous thief.
____
If you are paying attention to the books I read this year, another trend was theological books - specifically that of looking for proof of the existence of Jesus, the validity of the Bible, and why this is so important.
4.6/5
October 30, 2023
Don’t get me wrong, I love Ray Comfort, particularly for his way of witnessing. But this book wasn’t what I expected. It was mostly a compilation of witnessing encounters, which is fine, but I was expecting to be told how to answer common questions and arguments presented by unbelievers. About half of each chapter was a witness encounter transcript. The other half was Ray very loosely presenting a point. Maybe I’ve just gotten too used to reading more heady books by apologists and I just had the wrong expectation.
I would say this would be good for a newer Christian or someone who is curious/questioning the Christian faith.
If you’ve watched Ray’s witnessing videos then you’ve read this book.
I would say this would be good for a newer Christian or someone who is curious/questioning the Christian faith.
If you’ve watched Ray’s witnessing videos then you’ve read this book.
September 27, 2024
Ray Comfort is a master at evangelism. You can find his content on YouTube that is excellent. All that being said, this book is excellent, although a bit repetitive. I enjoyed the book itself but felt that not all the witnessing encounters were necessary. They were all good, but as I said, a bit repetitive and easy to gloss over. I love his way of using the 10 commandments to show sin, the law, and their need for redemption. I have used this method myself and it is quite effective. I thought this was a bit better than his other book I read. A worthwhile read and a great if you are looking for answers about Jesus or encouragement in your evangelism.
March 23, 2023
If you've seen Ray's YouTube channel, "Living Waters", this book is more of that - which is great. It is helpful as I work to become better at sharing the gospel. There was a fair bit of repetition and it includes transcripts from portions of his videos.
The book should be renamed, in my opinion, to something like: Why Does Everyone Need Jesus?: 12 Witnessing Encounters.
The book should be renamed, in my opinion, to something like: Why Does Everyone Need Jesus?: 12 Witnessing Encounters.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews