Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions (Relit Theology)

Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions (Relit Theology) | Gerry Breshears, Mark Driscoll | Great book by a great pastor

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Vintage Jesus: Tim...

	Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions (Relit Theology) Gerry Breshears, Mark Driscoll Crossway Books, 2008 - 256 pages average customer review:based on 28 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Jesus Rules.

I love Jesus. Mark Driscoll helps me love Jesus more. Nothin' but love here. That about sums it up for me.

Great book by a great pastor

I really enjoyed this book by my pastor Mark Driscoll. Compared to his other books, which I recently read, this book was by far the best. Vintage Jesus talked about more theology and answers about Jesus then any other books written by pastor Mark. I'm really blessed that I've gotten to hear his sermons live and by buying this book your basically buying what pastor Mark talks about in his sermons. It's amazing how honest and how passionate Mark is when he talks about Jesus, and it makes me excited as well. If your a non-christian, new christian and have answers, or somebody interested in theology this book is a great start. Keep up the good work Mark and we will see you Sunday..

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Great theology, engaging style, some inappropriate humor

Vintage Jesus is intended to be the first in a series introducing core Christian doctrines to the postmodern crowd. If this volume is any indication, the series should be great.

The book is written with younger people in mind, especially people with little church background who are interested in the answer to the question "who is Jesus?" Each chapter asks and answers a related question, things like "Is Jesus the only god? How human was Jesus? What did Jesus accomplish on the cross? Why should we worship Jesus?" There are 12 chapters total, each of which is followed by a brief "Answers to Common Questions" section.

There are two things I especially appreciate about this book: First, it is thoroughly biblical. Not just in the sense of not containing things that contradict the Bible--I mean that the book itself is saturated with Scripture. Nearly every fact Driscoll puts forward about Jesus is backed up with a Scripture reference (although I wish this weren't just done with footnotes), and he is always appealing to the Bible as the basis for the book's arguments. The authority here is clearly with the Bible, not with Driscoll-the-author and certainly not with Driscoll-the-celebrity-Christian. Second, the book is theologically solid. Again, I don't just mean the lack of bad theology, but good, careful explanation of important truths. Driscoll explains why it's significant that Jesus calls himself the Son of Man (and it wasn't to emphasize his humanity!), what it does and doesn't mean that Jesus "emptied himself" (Phil 2:7), and why the Virgin Birth really is vital to true Christianity. This is a good book on Christology that's written in an easy style--not one that's dumbed down its content.

There's been a lot of chatter about some of the content of this book, specifically the use of humor. The first thing to say is that Driscoll is a great writer. He's engaging and entertaining without being silly. In fact, I laughed out loud several times while reading Vintage Jesus. It's also true that sometimes his humor pushes the line, and sometimes jogs nonchalantly right over it. So there were a few times I raised my eyebrows reading this book, and two or three times when I just flat-out thought something was inappropriate. It's not a question of whether Driscoll takes Jesus seriously; the book really proves that he does. It's a matter of "filthiness and crude joking" (Eph 5:4), which we are told to avoid. I'm not saying I avoid this any better than Driscoll--I'm convicted even as I write this--but I'm saying those things are most definitely out of place in a book about our Lord.

But again, this was only a very small part of my reaction to the book. All the theology and most of the humor is great. Driscoll is an equal-opportunity offender as he challenges our culture's images of Jesus. He puts Jesus in his rightful place, the place God the Father gives him, the place the Bible gives him: the very highest place, worthy of all honor and glory and worship. And he does this in a style that's not only readable, but gripping and appealing as well.

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Simply, what the Bible says about Jesus.

In Vintage Jesus, Mark Driscoll presents a flyover of the Biblical accounts, prophesies, and teachings about Jesus. By answering several common questions about Jesus, Driscoll and Dr. Gerry Breshears have put together a book that allows you to see the whole Jesus - the infant in a manger who grew up to care for and love others and teach people to do the same, who was also the carpenters son who started whipping people in the temple because He didn't like them selling stuff in God's house, who was crucified for the sins of the world, rose from death, and now sits at the right hand of the Father as Lord of Heaven and Earth, ready to become a peacemaker to the world by killing everyone that gets in the way of peace.

If you've got questions about Jesus, read this book. If you know and love Jesus but want to be able to explain Him better to your friends, read this book (particularly if Keller's "The Reason For God" might be over their heads - Keller wrote a great book, but I'm from rural Colorado and no one out here would get past the Dostoevsky references, for example). If you hate Jesus, Christians, the Church, and all religion, read this book - at very worst, you'll better understand your adversary (who loves you).

BUT if you're from the camp that believes only listening to Christian music makes you more holy, that rated "R" movies are a sin, and that dancing will always lead to adultery, then don't read this book. And then don't say nasty things about it. I understand and respect people who hold to those values, the Bible gives us a lot of freedom with regards to culture, and some people have drawn the line a lot closer than I would. To those people: it's not written for you... so don't expect it to be.

To the rest of us: read a Bible. Then read Vintage Jesus.

T

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reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, page 5, 6

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