Tag: david Platt

Rediscovering Discipelship (REVIEW)

On By pastorjonathanIn booksLeave a comment

rediscovering discipleship

REDISCOVERING DISCIPLESHIP by Robby F. Gallaty is a brief (237 pages) and compelling book on discipleship. The book is full of keen insight and significant observations about the modern church and the state of discipleship. Gallaty is fluid writer and this work is very easy to read. I blew through the first 100 pages in one sitting.

This book comes highly recommended by lots of folks within the evangelical circle. The first two pages of the book are littered with endorsements. What is perhaps more telling is whose endorsement is NOT there. Robby refers to David Platt as his Pastor, mentor, and discipler a couple of places in this book. Gallaty even states that at one point he had a one on one discipleship relationship with David. Which begs the question… why is there no endorsement from Platt?

There are also a few places where the book seems in contradiction with itself. In one chapter the author quotes and seems to endorse a pastor in the Philippines who puts new believers to work discipling new believers. Then in another chapter he quotes and seems to endorse a pastor in the United States as leading someone to the Lord and sending him home from seminary to be discipled, stating that he needed to be discipled before he could disciple others. Perhaps this is a tension that can be resolved with explanation but on the surface it looks contradictory.

Overall I thought it was a good book with some relevant points about discipleship. I think the author is passionate but did not come across as authoritative.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: The opinions I have expressed are my own. Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. 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.”

Boring: Finding an Extrodinary God in an Ordinary Life (A review of a book that is anything but boring).

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boring  You want to read a down to earth and encouraging book? Read this one! In a market saturated with hype, this book is a breath of fresh air. Author Michael Kelley takes a reader on an adventure to discover deep joy and profound love for God in the everyday moments of life. He provides the biblical foundation to view routine and responsibility as avenues for worship.

Michael is like an expert tracker leading the reader on a journey through familiar terrain. What you once thought was just boring, frustrating or tedious parts of everyday life are reexamined with a trained eye and evidence of the activity and presence of God are made known all along the way. I couldn’t help but be humbled and encouraged as I read this book and I think you will be too.
Boring: Finding an Extraordinary God in an Ordinary Life is a great read for young married folks with kids. You’ll find tons of great application and you’ll really appreciate Michael’s sense of humor.

At the time of this post. Amazon.com has it on sale for $13.17 in paperback and $4.99 for the kindle.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. 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.”

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“Radical Together” by David Platt (A Review)

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Radical Together: Unleashing the People of God for the Purpose of God by David Platt is a much better book than his first book Radical.  You can catch my opinion of Radical Here.  Dr. Platt has matured as a writer.  He presents a much more solid case in this book for calling churches to reform and addresses questions that the first book raised.

Overall, I’m a huge fan of the book, but more importantly the message that He is proclaiming to the American Church.  I really appreciate his sincerity and honesty in addressing pastors and lay leaders in this book.  My initial concerns withe the first book have been set at ease though not tempered completely.

I still need to see a clearer line of reasoning behind his correlation between poverty in India and comfortableness of  churches (14-15).  He either needs to point out that radical poverty exists in these places because Christians have been actively exploiting the poor. Like when the purchase of sugar supported slavery because the sugar was purchased from plantations run on slave labor.  Or he needs to make a case for how social justice is connected to the gospel.  To do neither makes the comparison an unfair accusation.  Either the church causes the exploitation of these people, or it is God’s clear call for the church to relieve suffering. It would have been worth another chapter to see him make this clear.  Timothy Keller does an excellent job of making the second point in his book, Generous Justice.

I highly recommend Radical Together to anyone interested in examining the pieces of the gospel that Westerners tend to ignore.  I think you will find the book highly motivating and challenging.he retail price of Radical Together is $14.99 (Paperback), and is available around the web in places like Amazon.com for $9.09. I gave it four stars.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of this book free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group as part of their Blogging for Books Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. 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.”

A Review of David Platt’s book “Radical”

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To be honest I really have mixed reviews about David Platt’s book Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream. Maybe with all the hype, I was expecting more.  If you want my honest and straight forward opinion I think its weak, premature and largely borrows from the work of others without giving them fair credit: While at the same time, I sense that Dr. Platt is pointing us in the right direction.

First, I think Dr. Platt’s arguments are weak.  He is like a doctor who can find the pulse, but has no cure.  Yes, America is consumed with consumerism.  Yes, we are materialistic.  Yes, we are wealthy compared to three-quarters of the world. Yes,  a large portion of the world in need of the gospel and basic humanitarian aid.  Yes, we should change that.  If this book were just about that, it would be prophetic:  Find the issue, declare what God has said about it.  The weakness arises when Platt tries to usher a new way forward based on his limited experiences as the pastor of a mega-church.

That is why it may be a bit premature.  We are in no shortage of books touting short-term and even untried solutions.  Everyone sharing the gospel should have success stories to share.  The fact is that the Holy Spirit moves both in us and sometimes in spite of us as pastors, teachers, and leaders.  The real question is, will the “Radical Experiment” produce long-term results or will we have forgotten about it by next year?

I’m troubled that much of what Platt says appears to be patterned off of messages, books, and articles I’ve read by Dr. John Piper.  I guess I wouldn’t be as troubled if I saw that Platt recognized that he has been heavily influenced by Dr. Piper.  To me this just appears to be complete ignorance of the loudest voice and call to the “radical” lifestyle or intellectual dishonesty on Platt’s part.

That being said, I sense that Platt is on to something.  He is pointing in the right direction.  I heard enough of his voice in his writing to sense that he caries a genuine passion to revolutionize the world with the gospel.  I hope he does.  I pray that God uses him and his book to stir many more into awareness and action.   I really liked his 5 fold challenge to take up the ‘radical experiment’ at the end of the book.  I hope he writes another book or even revises “radical” in 10 years with more of what God has taught him.  He has a voice at the table of American evangelicalism, I pray he uses it well.

If you are looking for an emotional stirring to challenge you to take up the mantle of global missions to the poor,  this book is for you and I would recommend you to read it.  The retail price of Radical is $14.99 (Paperback), and is available around the web in places like Amazon.com for $5.50. I gave it three stars.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of this book free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group as part of their Blogging for Books Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. 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.”