BE: Pure (2014 KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

In his sermon, Tim Stamper challenged the traditional notion of what it means to be “pure in heart.”  Purity is a popular topic, especially among Christians.  However, this is not just talking about sexual purity.  As NT scholar Robert Mounce notes, “The primary reference is not to sexual purity, although this is mentioned in 5:28, but to single-mindedness. . .”[1]  James talks about this.  He says that the person who is not pure in heart is “double-minded” and “unstable in every way” and should “not expect to receive anything from the Lord” (1:8).  It means that we have a singular focus in life—God.  Tim pointed to the criticism that Jesus leveled against the religious leaders a little later.  Jesus challenged his disciples to strive for righteousness that “exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees” (Matthew 5:20).  But shouldn’t religious leaders be emulated?  Yes, unless they are living hypocritically.  Just before his execution, Jesus slammed the religious leaders as “whitewashed tombs,” burial chambers that are beautifully ornate on the outside yet are full of rotting bones and the stench of death on the inside (23:27-28).  The religious leaders were notorious for calling attention to themselves when they prayed and mutilating their faces when they fasted (6:5, 16).  These displays of “religion,” Jesus says, receive their award in applause.  However, they “will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (5:20).  Only those who are “pure in heart. . .will see God” (5:8).

Articulate

So how do we become “pure in heart?”  Bonhoeffer says that the “pure in heart” are “those who have surrendered their hearts completely to Jesus.”[2]  In some ways, we have returned to that child-like innocence that Jesus talks about (Matthew 18:2-4).  We do not look for admiration from our fellow earth-walkers; we look for God in the hidden corners and in cloudy eyes.  As Tim mentioned, the reward of being able to see God is immediate.  Sure, the “pure in heart” will see God when time is no more.  However, when we live lives of spiritual purity, we will see God all around us because we live with a “kingdom perspective.”  We see the world as God sees it, and for that we are blessed.

Approach

1. Read Psalm 24.  Pray these words before you attend your next worship service.  How did this experience help prepare you for worship?
2. Think about all the stuff you see each day.  Bonhoeffer says that the “pure in heart” are not immune from seeing sin and evil in the world, yet they are “free” from the intoxicating effects of sin.  What is one area of your life that you need to develop a more attuned “kingdom perspective?”  Where do you need God to refine your spiritual vision so that you can become “pure in heart?”

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[1]Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, New International Biblical Commentary, New Testament Series 1 (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1991), 40.

[2]Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (Reprint: 1959.  New York: Touchstone Books/Simon and Schuster, 1995), 112. 

BE: Merciful (2014 KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

Describing the theological concept of mercy is difficult.  It is easy to demonstrate, as is its polar opposite—revenge.  Much like love, mercy and revenge are actions that are often confused as emotions.  I feel merciful when I help a hurting child; I feel vengeful when someone speaks evil of me.  However, one does not feel mercy as much as one demonstrates mercy.  For example, Dr. Durst referenced the story of Moses pleading for Israel following their sin at Mt. Sinai.  He stood between Israel and God, begging God not to release the righteous indignation that God felt against Israel against the people (Exodus 34).  Often “mercy” is demonstrated by tyrants in sparing the lives of those they oppress.  Here, however, Moses, a man who was shown mercy on numerous occasions in his life, demonstrates to God that he has learned the meaning of mercy and consistently practices mercy in spite of the selfishness of the Israelite people.  Moses, who was unjustly condemned to death as a boy and was justly condemned to death as a man in Egypt, was offered shelter by Pharaoh’s daughter and community by Jethro.  “Mercy is not giving people what they deserve,” writes Ron Allen, “but what they want or need.”[1]  In so doing, those who demonstrate mercy demonstrate the unfailing love of God. 

Articulate

Warren Carter notes, “One has to learn mercy to survive in a cultural context dominated by destructive and self-serving power.”[2]  This was a lesson that Jesus taught through the “Parable of the Unforgiving Servant” in Matthew 18.  In the first scene, a servant is brought before his master for reckoning.  The servant owes the master a vast, unfathomable amount of money.  There is no way the servant can repay the master.  When faced with slavery, he begs for more time.  The master, touched by this humiliating display, cancels the debt and restores the servant.  In the second scene, the servant finds a fellow servant who owes him some money.  The first servant assaults the second servant, threatening him with imprisonment if he does not pay.  The second servant—using the exact same words as the first servant did with the master—begs for more time.  However, the first servant does not do as his master had done with him.  In short, he had not learned his lesson in mercy.  When the master hears of this, the first servant is imprisoned until he can repay the money he initially owed his master.  While we receive mercy regularly, we are not deemed “merciful” until we demonstrate mercy to others.

Approach

1. One of Jesus’ favorite OT passages to quote was Hosea 6:6.  Read this passage.  Do you ever focus more on “doing religion” than “being merciful”?  Do you ever let your piety get in the way of showing mercy to those around you?
2. On Thursday, you have an opportunity to demonstrate mercy by participating in End It Movement’s campaign to bring an end to global slavery.  You can read more about their mission here.  Find a way to be involved in demonstrating mercy to both those affected by slavery and those who enslave others.

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[1]Ronald J. Allen, “The Surprising Blessing of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-9), in Preaching the Sermon on the Mount: The World It Imagines, ed. David Fleer and Dave Bland (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2007), 89.   

[2]Warren Carter, “Powers and Identities: The Contexts of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount,” in Preaching the Sermon on the Mount: The World It Imagines, ed. David Fleer and Dave Bland (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2007), 19. 

BE: Hungry (2014 KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

Righteousness is a central theme throughout all of scripture.  And as Dr. Ford noted in the opening of his sermon, it is something that we are naturally drawn to.  Those who speak of the term outside of theology equate goodness with righteousness.  Heroes are deemed righteous because they do “good” things to help others, although their lives may be wrought with violence, adultery and unethical behavior.  However this is not how “righteousness” is understood in the Bible.  While the word “righteousness” is closely connected with “justice” in the Bible, these terms find their definitions in the grace of God.  We do not become righteous through any action of our own; we are made righteous through the work of the Spirit bestowed upon us by God.[1]  As a result, righteousness has two levels of meaning, especially in Matthew’s gospel.  On one hand, there is the individual desire for righteousness, to live a life that is framed by God’s will.  On the other hand, there is the communal desire for God’s justice against the wicked.[2]  Both are possible because both desire intention on the part of the believer in order to be realized.  Again, Jesus is describing those who live in the kingdom of God.  Those who desire righteousness, Jesus says, will be satisfied by God (cf., Psalm 17:15, 107:9, 132:25, 146:7).

Articulate

When I was backpacking across Europe, I spent a couple of days in Paris.  No, it was not as romantic as it sounds.  I found myself quite hungry and I roamed the streets for something to eat.  My problem was that I do not speak or read French and I was in a place where nothing was familiar.  I finally found a snack cart that sold Snickers bars and Coca-Colas.  Neither had every tasted so good.  I needed to be satisfied (see what I did there), therefore I went on an intentional journey to find something.  Mike Cope refers to this intentional desire for righteousness as developing a “craving for transcendence.”[3]  In short, we must crave to become righteous.

Approach

1. Read Psalm 42:1-4.  How does your current spiritual journey reflect this prayer, especially in light of Matthew 5:6 and Dr. Ford’s sermon?
2. Think of an area of your spiritual life that you are not intentional about.  Prayer for commitment and conviction to strengthen that aspect of your spiritual life.

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[1]Van A. Harvey, A Handbook of Theological Terms (New York: Touchstone Books/Simon and Schuster, 1964), 210-211.

[2]Larry Chouinard, Matthew, College Press NIV Commentary (Joplin, MO: College Press Publishing Co., 1997), 98.

[3]Mike Cope, Righteousness Inside Out: The Heart of the Problem and the Problem of the Heart (Nashville: Christian Communications, 1988), 17.

BE: Meek (2014 KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

Dr. Baldwin opened his message by saying, “The meek will inherit the earth, but they will never get the ball.”  The meek are those who do not stand out in a crowd.  The meek are those who do not attack problems or develop solutions to problems.  The meek are those who do not pose a threat to the powerful.  The meek are those who do not simply lack confidence in themselves but are those who have had their confidence forcibly taken from them.  The meek are those who are subject to abuse and marginalization for no other reason than they are not powerful enough to fight back.  Although some scholars like Robert Mounce claim that meekness is demonstrated in living “a life of humble and sacrificial service to God and [our] fellow human being,”[1] Dr. Baldwin indicated that those who are meek have not chosen to meek.  They have been made meek by forces outside their control.

Articulate

Another way of translating the word for “meek” is “humble.”  The Greek term is praus, a term that is used only four times in the NT (three times in Matthew and once in 1 Peter) and it is generally translated “humble.”  We still, however, do not get the full sense of what Jesus is describing when he pronounces this blessing.  For that, we must look to the Latin root of humble, the term humilitas.  Here we see the extreme meaning of our term—humiliation.  As John Dickson has noted, the difference between being humbled and being humiliation is the intent.  I was humbled recently to have a well-known scholar reference some of my doctoral work in an academic presentation.  We are humbled when we are in the presence of others who are greater than us.  Our accomplishments are noteworthy, yet we are disciplined or instructed in order to become greater than what we are.  To be humiliated, however, is to be unable to withstand a violent assault against our personhood.[2]  These are the folks who embody the poetic words of Psalm 37, those who are encouraged to “not fret because of the wicked” but “trust in the LORD” because God “will give you the desires of your heart” (37:1-4).  The meek do not have power in themselves, yet they trust in God and in God’s power.  And, as a result, they will inherit everything.

Approach

1. Read the “Parable of the Gracious Landowner” in Matthew 20:1-16.  Does Dr. Baldwin’s take on meekness shed any new understanding on this meaning of this parable?
2. Pray the words of Psalm 37 for once a day for a week.  If you are not a “meek” person, what was your experience in praying these words?  If you are a “meek” person, how did you find comfort and encouragement in these words?

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[1]Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, New International Biblical Commentary, New Testament Series 1 (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson/Paternoster Press, 1991), 39.  

[2]John Dickson, Humilitas: A Lost Key to Life, Love, and Leadership (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), 22-25. 

BE: Mourn (2014 KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

Dr. Girdwood opened his sermon by focusing on the paragraph directly preceding Matthew 5.  In Matthew 4:23-25, the crowds gravitate around Jesus because they saw that he could heal them from their afflictions, illnesses and diseases.  Some were paralyzed, some were blind, and some were demon-possessed.  And in each case, Jesus demonstrated the amazing power that God had given him.  Every person was healed!  As a result, the crowds following Jesus grew and grew.  However, as Dr. Girdwood reminded us, healing people of their bumps and bruises was not why Jesus stepped down out of heaven.  Jesus came to demonstrate how we live in God’s kingdom!  Therefore, he takes a seat and begins to talk about those who are blessed, those who are citizens.  Ron Allen challenges the traditional notion that “blessed” means “happy” when he writes that those who are blessed “live in the confidence that God is at work to bring about a realm of peace and love and joy and abundance.”[1]  That is certainly “good news” for people who have experienced a great deal of suffering. 

Articulate

What does it mean to mourn?  Dr. Girdwood really challenged the common notion regarding prayer.  Too often our prayers are weak.  We focus solely on ourselves and our problems instead of looking to the larger concerns of the world.  When I teach on this passage, I focus on both the micro-meaning and the macro-meaning of this passage.  On one hand, we do need to mourn the problems that we personally face, such as chronic sin or being rejected from a job because of the color of our skin.  On the other hand, however, we cannot be full citizens of the kingdom unless we are mourning the state of the world.  As Randy Harris challenges, we must mourn for children who die from disease and for those succumb to their own mental anguish by taking their own lives.[2]  And, as Dr. Girdwood challenged, we must mourn for political injustice and social oppression.  We mourn for these ills when we turn to God in prayer and ask for God to intervene.  In doing so, we will be comforted.  In doing so, we will be blessed.

Approach

1.      Find the article entitled "Experiences in Need of Ritual" by Herbert Anderson and Edward Foley (in the 5 November 1997 issue of Christian Century).  How can you personally mourn for (minister to) those who have lost family members in a way that points them to God?  How can we remind them that God loves them even in the midst of tragedy?

2.  Visit the Church of England’s website and click on “Topical Prayers” (www.churchofengland.org/prayer-worship/topical-prayers.aspx).  Dedicate seven days to praying for the concerns listed there.  Record your prayers in a journal so that you can see how God honors your prayers in the future.

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[1]Ronald J. Allen, “The Surprising Blessing of the Beatitudes,” in Preaching the Sermon on the Mount: The World It Imagines, ed. David Fleer and Dave Bland (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2007), 88.

[2]Randy Harris, Living Jesus: Doing What Jesus Says in the Sermon on the Mount (Abilene, TX: Leafwood Publishers, 2012), 30. 

BE: Poor (KCU Faculty Sermon Series)

Listen

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.  Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:1-12, NRSV).

Discern

As I opened my sermon, I asked what the kingdom of heaven is.  What is the kingdom of heaven?  We are often taught that it is something far off, something that we will not discover until an appointed day in the future when God reveals it to us.  Yet, Jesus, in the opening of Matthew 5, seems to indicate that the kingdom of heaven is something already present.  Did you notice the reward for those in vv. 3 and 10?  The poor and persecuted are blessed because “theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  As Tom Long writes, “What the Christian community possesses in the present is the promise of the coming kingdom of heaven.  What will be for the whole of creation in the future is theirs now in the present.”[1]  Heaven, then, is not just some far-off celestial nation; it is a present and active force coursing the terrain of this planet right now.

Articulate

The question then is how do we enter the kingdom of heaven?  This was my second question, the question that hopefully plunged us deeper down the theological rabbit hole.  Yet it is not only how do we enter into the kingdom of heaven.  I enter Disneyland on a yearly basis, however I do not live there (as cool of an idea as that sounds).  It is also how do we stay in the kingdom of heaven, how do we pledge our allegiance to the kingdom of heaven.  What Jesus offers us in Matthew 5 are descriptions of the type of citizens that live in the kingdom of heaven.  And he begins with those who are poor, those who are completely dependent on God.  As Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it, “For his sake they have lost all. . . .And in that very poverty they are heirs of the kingdom.”[2]  Citizenship in the kingdom means renouncing all other allegiances.  It means to embrace worldly poverty in order to attain spiritual wealth.

Approach

1. In the film Kingdom of Heaven, those wishing to become knights were admonished to follow this oath: “Be without fear in the face of your enemies.  Be brave and upright that God may love thee.  Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death.  Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong.  This is your oath.”  What is at least one way that you can live out this oath each day?
2. In light of Matthew 5:3, what is something that you are clinging to that is preventing you from swearing complete allegiance to God?  Pray and ask God for the strength to break that bond.

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[1]Thomas G. Long, Matthew, Westminster Bible Companion (Louisville/London: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1997), 48.

[2]Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Cost of Discipleship (Reprint: 1959.  New York: Touchstone Books/Simon and Schuster, 1995), 107-108. 

Study Resources: Sermon on the Mount

Note: Beginning tomorrow, the Bible faculty at KCU will present a series of sermons from Matthew 5:1-12 entitled "Be."  During the duration of this series, I will offer a follow-up devotional study as a way of keeping the conversation going.  To start, I offer this resource list to guide those of you interested in studying more.

Commentaries

Hans Dieter Betz, The Sermon on the Mount: A Commentary, Hermeneia (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995).

D. A. Carson, The Sermon on the Mount: An Evangelical Exposition of Matthew 5-7 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1982).

Sinclair B. Ferguson, The Sermon on the Mount (Edinburgh, Scotland: Banner of Truth, 1988).

Robert A. Guelich, Sermon on the Mount: Foundation for Understanding (Waco, TX: Word, 1982).

Scot McKnight, The Sermon on the Mount, The Story of God Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2013).

John R. W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount, The Bible Speaks Today (Downers Grove, IL/Leicester, England: InterVarsity Press, 1985).

Charles Quarles, Sermon on the Mount: Restoring Christ’s Message to the Modern Church, NAC Studies in Bible and Theology (Nashville: B&H Academic, 2011).

Theological/Ethical Studies

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (London: SCM Press, 1959).

R. W. Glenn, Crucifying Morality: The Gospel of the Beatitudes (Wapwallopen, PA: Shepherd Press, 2013).

Bible Studies/Spiritual Growth Studies

Mike Cope, Righteousness Inside-Out: The Heart of the Problem and the Problem of the Heart (Nashville: Gospel Advocate Co., 1988).

Daniel M. Doriani, The Sermon on the Mount: The Character of a Disciple (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2006).

Randy Harris, Living Jesus: Doing What Jesus Says in the Sermon on the Mount (Abilene, TX: Leafwood Publishers, 2012).

James C. Howell, The Beatitudes for Today, For Today Series (Louisville: Westminster/ John Knox Press, 2005).

J. Ellsworth Kalas, Beatitudes from the Back Side: A Different Take On It Means to be Blessed (Nashville: Abingdon, 2008).

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1984).

Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God (New York: HarperCollins, 1998).

Preaching/Teaching Resources

David Buttrick, Speaking Jesus: Homiletic Theology and the Sermon on the Mount (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 2002).

Dave Fleer and David Bland, eds., Preaching the Sermon on the Mount: The World It Imagines (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2007).

R. Kent Hughes, The Sermon on the Mount: The Message of the Kingdom, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001).

Book Review: Anchored in Light by Carl Prude Jr.

Carl Edwin Prude, Jr.  Anchored in Light: Understanding and Overcoming the Five Deadliest Threats to Your Faith.  Abilene, TX: Leafwood Publishers, 2013.  240 pp.  $14.99.

In the world of religious writing, spiritual formation and “Christian living” are terms that can encompass a broad range of material.  On one end of the pendulum, there is writing that is so sweet and syrupy that it makes your teeth hurt.  On the other end of the pendulum, there is writing so dense and profound that you get a headache reading the table of contents.  Most of what is released under the title of “Christian Living” is beneficial for spiritual formation and theological maturity, although not all.  The trick, then, is not finding what will sell but what will be helpful to seekers as they travel along their spiritual journey.  In his volume Anchored in Light, Carl Edwin Prude, Jr., seeks to offer something to substance to the spiritual formation conversation.

The premise for his argument is simple enough: there are five “furies” (based on the ancient Greek concept of natural forces that seek to disrupt our lives) that seek to our spiritual journeys.  These furies are mindsets that develop when we “respond to situations in a worldly manner” and cause us to lose our spiritual moorings (p. 25).  They include “processing without progressing” (we don’t learn from our actions and continue in a dysfunctional cycle), “entrenched in stench” (we succumb to unhealthy emotional responses) and “are we there yet” (we live with unreal expectations).  On their own, each of these furies can ruin us spiritually if we allow them a foothold into our lives.  However, Prude offers five spiritual “anchors” that can help us overcome these furies and grow spiritually.  These anchors are “space yourself” (focus on trusting God in all circumstances), “pace yourself” (focus on discerning God’s timetable), “waste yourself” (focus on embracing God’s grace), “place yourself” (focus on accepting God’s personal design) and “grace yourself” (focus on following God’s leading).  The bulk of Prude’s book focuses on these anchors, identifying scriptural underpinnings and explaining practical applications for each.  The book ends with a call to discipleship that embraces the five anchors.  The book also includes an appendix that outlines his “10 Functions” of the spirit, soul and body.

Overall, I found Prude’s book to rather easy to read.  He has a pleasant conversational tone that reminded me of John Ortberg’s style of writing books with incredibly long titles.  Like Ortberg, the book is full of stories (both from the Bible and from his own life) that play out the concepts that Prude is discussing.  This gives a tangible feel to his argument, something that is often missing from “Christian Living” books that mostly focus on discerning “principles” for growth.

However, there are some issues with this volume that make me hesitant to recommend it as heartily as I would like to.  First, Prude takes more of a pop-psychology approach to his subject matter, taking a common self-help principle and attaching some Bible to it in order to spiritualize it.  For example, in chapter 7 (“Place Yourself”), he builds his entire argument for spiritual identity on Hippocratic concepts.  Although Tim LaHaye popularized this concept in his book Spirit Controlled Temperatments, it has been largely rejected by pastoral care scholars and spiritual writers.  Additionally, some of his material is difficult to wade through.  Chapters 7 and 8 are specifically susceptible to this as Prude seems to circle around an idea yet it never quite able to land his thoughts.  Finally, I question some of his research for the book.  I will honestly admit that this is the academic in me coming out.  However, when an author quotes another, it is good form to reference where the quote came from.  Prude only does this for about half of his sources.  Also, he relies on Wikipedia for some of his more technical research in psychology, a research trick that would receive a failing grade in most introductory composition courses.  All in all, however, this is not a bad book.  It does have some useful things to say.  Yet it should be read within the company of other books on spiritual formation and pastoral psychology.

Rob O’Lynn, MDiv

Assistant Professor of Preaching and Ministry

Kentucky Christian University

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from ACU Press/Leafwood Publishers as part of their ACU Press Bookclub Program.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”