Jesus, The Life and Ministry of God the Son – Collected insights from A.W. Tozer. Moody Publishers, 2017.
In case you are not aware, Moody has a recent series of books where they have grouped together writings from Tozer on various topics. There is much source material – articles, essays, books, sermon transcripts. Tozer was prolific. This book is about Jesus. I won it as a goodreads giveaway, and writing a review is encouraged. I enter giveaways for Christian non-fiction books regularly – not only on goodreads but through other Christian blogs or ministries. If you keep your eyes open, there are many out there, and I am honestly surprised how often I win.
As with just about anything by Tozer, this book is challenging, convicting, inspiring, and informative – and ultimately Christ exalting in every way. It has 17 chapters in 162 pages, so none are too lengthy, and some as brief as 4-6 pages. While not marketed as a devotional, I think it would make an exceptional devotional, especially since so many of the devotionals out there are sadly fluffy and superficial. The end of each chapter has several questions for personal reflection and life application.
This book covers Christology very well, addressing the core and critical theological aspects of Christ. Chapter titles include: The Self-Existent God, The Mystery of the Incarnation, The Center of All, The People’s Savior, The Remedy, Our Mediator, The Resurrection, The Second Coming, The Head of the New Creation.
Earlier this year, I taught a Bible study on Colossians, and if I have opportunity to teach Colossians again, the chapter entitled “The Center of All” would be exceptional for the class to read.
I recommend this book, and I’ll end with a few excerpts:
“Bible-believing Christians stand together on this [the deity of Christ]. They may have differing opinions about the mode of baptism, church polity, or the return of the Lord. But they agree on the deity of the eternal Son. Jesus Christ is of one substance with the Father – begotten, not created (Nicene Creed). In our defense of this truth we must be very careful and bold – belligerent if need be.” page 23
“All that Moses could do was to command righteousness. In contrast, only Jesus Christ produces righteousness. All that Moses could do was to forbid us to sin. In contrast, Jesus Christ came to save us from sin. Moses could not save, but Jesus Christ is both Lord and Savior.” page 33
On the Incarnation… “How is it possible that God could join the Creator to the creature? If you do not engage in deep thinking, it may not seem so amazing, but if you have given yourself to frequent thoughtful consideration, you are astonished at the bridging of the great gulf between God and not God.” page 48
“Do you see it, my friend? Resurrection is not a day of celebration – it is an obligation understood and accepted! Because Jesus Christ is alive, there is something for us to do for Him every day. We cannot just sit down, settling back in religious apathy.” page 108
I read and reviewed the Jesus book recently, and, now, I am reading a long lost book that Tozer wrote on wisdom. Both are good. The Jesus one was probably my favorite of his that I have read so far. He’s really good at illustration.
James, out of curiosity, of all the books you read, how many do you review? I am lame – and only review a small percent (10-20%?). I should review more. And out of curiosity, about how many books do you read a year? I’m usually in the 40-60 range. But at my rate this year, I may barely make 40. However, there are some lengthier books – one I am working on would be the equivalent of 3 average length books!
I used to read 100 pages a day. Now, since I’m committing more time to my dissertation, I only read 50 pages a day. I review the vast majority of the books that I read. I’ve just found that it helps me in terms of reading: I used to be bad at focusing on what I was reading, and I would forget what I read, so blogging about books helps me to focus and preserves a record of what I read. There are occasionally times when I do not review a book that I read. I read Chesterton’s Heresy, and I did not write a review because I read it over a long period of time and thus may have forgotten parts, and there were parts that I did not entirely understand; and the parts that I did appreciate delved into pretty sensitive territory and I did not want to offend people!
By the way, what you say about lengthier books is one reason I probably won’t participate in any Goodreads reading challenges, and why I did not participate in those library contests when I was a kid: what if you read long books? They should reward people by number of pages, not the number of books.
Yes, number of pages!! Someone could read “only” 10 books – but they were 500-1,000 pages. While another could read 25 books in the 100-200 page range. And content too- some books require much thought and mental effort, and others are easy reading. And what about magazines? I’ve been reading more magazines, and that is one reason my book tally is down.