Tim Harlow

I'll be honest - I didn't think I'd like this when I first started it. Though it's a subject I'm interested in, my defenses were up from the start. Probably because I've been burned too many times in the past by those who wish to honestly discuss Christ and the Scriptures, but in the end throw away all of orthodoxy just for the sake of seeming "radical."

Thankfully, that is not the case here at all. While there may be some things on the margins to quibble with, Harlow makes a solid case for his main premise - that denying access to God made Jesus mad - and manages to not throw out the baby with the bathwater.

Unrelated note - his humor builds throughout, and is at its best in the conclusion.

Recommended for Christians of all walks and for those interested in the teachings of Christ.… (mer)

"I can't explain it, but it seems as though gravity works differently for Christians than it did for our Leader. Usually the longer we follow Jesus, the more likely we are to stand, instead of getting down in the dirt--even though we know the gravitational force for Jesus always pulled him down to the lowest possible place." And then he quotes Philippians 2:5-11.

"John said, 'For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen' (1 John 4:20). Paul said, '[Godly people] share freely and give generously to the poor' (2 Cor. 9:9 NLT). Psalm 82:3-4 says, 'Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute. Rescue the poor and helpless; deliver them from the grasp of evil people' (NLT). Jesus didn't mince words, either. He said, '[The King] will reply, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me." Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.' (Matt. 25:45-46) Philosopher Soren Kierkegaard described the tension so many of us feel between thought and action this way: 'The Bible is very easy to understand--but we pretend to be unable to understand it, because we know very well that the minute we do, we are obliged to act accordingly.'"

These are 2 of my favorite quotes from this book.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who has suffered spiritual abuse and also for anyone who would like to see a radically different interpretation of the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, the woman caught in adultery, the prodigal son, among others--I haven't seen the things he said about these stories anywhere else. His hermeneutics and understanding of ancient culture are very good!… (mer)