Rediscovering Christian Realism: A Common-Sense Approach to Contemporary Christian Living

By James Haskell (Resource Publications)

Polarization isn’t just political; it’s religious, too. James Hassell, pastor of Westoak Woods Baptist Church in Austin, seeks a way past this division and toward bold Christian living in the church and the world. His proposed solution is to elevate Christian Realism.

Hassell introduces Christian Realism by defining reality as “what is,” contrary to Rene Descartes and Immanuel Kant, both of whose influential philosophies developed out of profound suspicion of reality. Hassell also differentiates between legalistic and relativistic branches of American Christianity, placing Southern conservatives in the former and Northern liberals in the latter.

Breaking free of this polarization may require a reorientation, Hassell contends. Reorientation is a two-phase process. The first phase is to reject henotheism, or what might be likened to an open marriage with God. The second phase involves “The Four Rs:” God’s revelation to us, relationships with unbelievers, the most responsible action in keeping with the commands to love God and love others, and a “robust Kingdom understanding”—seeking first the realm of God’s reign.

The remainder of the book suggests a rubric for putting the two phases into action, extracting oneself from the either/or polarity of legalism and humanism. Here, Hassell calls for a both/and, two-step “balanced approach” based on being in the world and also not of it.

Step one of the balanced approach involves humility, or coming to terms with one’s sin and limitations, as well as the necessity of God’s grace. Hassell leans on Reinhold Niebuhr and Emil Brunner for this discussion. The explanation of step two—removing oneself from conservative and liberal camps—comes off as theoretical, in large part because Hassell’s argument relies on Peter Berger, Paul Tillich, Neibuhr and Leslie Newbigin.

The theoretical nature of the argument is mitigated to some extent by the closing chapter, in which Hassell suggests how to enact the balanced approach, with focus on the local church. For those disenchanted with both legalist and humanist churches’ tendency to bend to culture, Hassell gives much to think about in differentiating them from a Christian Realist stance.

Hassell contends “Christian Realism is one of the most viable solutions” for overcoming the cultural divide between idealism and nihilism. Christian Realism is predicated on what H. Richard Niebuhr termed “radical monotheism”—complete loyalty to God and nothing else. Becoming a radical monotheist, however, is not for the faint of heart.

Rediscovering Christian Realism, though very short, is not a book for casual readers. Hassell’s explanation of “common sense” relies on the technical arguments of intellectuals not likely to show up on the average person’s reading list. His argument requires readers to have some background in fields the average person and quite a few pastors do not have. Even so, Hassell offers much food for thought.

Eric Black, executive director/publisher/editor
Baptist Standard

Signs and Wonder: The Miracles of God

By Pete Pawelek (Independently published)

Pete Pawelek, senior pastor of Cowboy Fellowship of Atascosa County, wanted a study of the miracles recorded in Scripture that takes the miracles seriously while also being simple and understandable to a general audience. So, he wrote one. Other studies he encountered were too dense or seemed to explain away supernatural causes of such occurrences.

Signs and Wonders is an eight-week curriculum designed with the whole church in mind. Alongside the book, Pawelek makes available a full set of resources for sermons and group studies, downloadable from his website—pastorpete.org. He also directs study participants to his daily devotional podcast and encourages them to connect with him on his various social media platforms.

The curriculum is intended for group, not independent, study. Each week begins with an icebreaker, a video and outline, and small group questions. By the conclusion of the study, participants will have considered 40 different miracles recorded in the Bible. At the end of the eight weeks, Pawelek encourages study groups to gather one more time to celebrate.

Each of the eight weeks contains five short studies, each focusing on one miracle and concluding with a succinct takeaway. Individual lessons are two to three pages apiece and end with a set of five questions: What did you hear God say today? What will you do with what you learned? What needs to change? What questions do you still have? What will you pray for?

Pawelek keeps to his word, writing easily understood lessons, devotional in nature without avoiding more substantive aspects such as contextual backgrounds and original languages. He ponders miracles from the Old and New Testaments—some well-trod in sermons and Bible studies, others less-known to the average Bible reader. Signs and Wonders  works as an introductory survey of some of the Bible’s miracles.

Eric Black, executive director/publisher/editor
Baptist Standard

A Just Mission: Laying Down Power and Embracing Mutuality

By Mekdes Haddis (IVP)

Almost 20 years ago, a man from West Africa told me African Christians pray for American Christians because they consider us weak. I was surprised but couldn’t argue with his justification of the opinion. Mekdes Haddis describes in greater detail what that man told me.

Haddis grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and immigrated to the United States to attend college and pursue ministry. Alongside her Ethiopian and African roots, she was introduced to Western culture and Western Christianity at a young age. Short-term and paternalistic missions are a key feature of that Christianity.

Western mission efforts are grounded in the assumption that the purest form of Christianity resides in the West. Therefore, Western and predominantly white missionaries must take this pure form of Christianity elsewhere and conform other cultures to it, Haddis argues.

She also sees Western mission as centered on personal self-actualization and pursuing personal fulfilment, however well-intentioned, through using the poor and the least. Having participated in the kind of trips she critiques, it’s hard to argue against her point.

Western Christianity prioritizes dogmatic theology over the work and involvement of the Holy Spirit, even to excluding it or being suspicious of it, she contends. Meanwhile, charismatic and Pentecostal Christianity—with its emphasis on the Holy Spirit—is exploding throughout Africa, Asia and South America as Christianity continues to decline in Europe and North America.

Haddis loves spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ and is passionate about how that is done. Specifically, she calls for the end of transactional mission trips from the West. In their place, she advocates for the West taking a listening posture, and only engaging relationally with others through mutuality.

Missions is about character and discipleship, not institution building, avoiding guilt and feeling good, Haddis asserts. Those sent on mission should have at least the same depth of Christian character we expect of ministry leaders in the United States, but most short-term mission trip participants are not vetted for Christian character.

In A Just Mission, Haddis delivers an unsparing and searing indictment of Western missions. She pulls no punches. Every chapter lands at least one punch, each one true. She’s not trying to make friends; she’s telling the truth.

Despite her harsh critique, she also outlines a constructive and beautifully positive approach to mission that recognizes the work of God’s Spirit around the globe and the spiritual gifting of Christian leaders throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin and South America. She also praises what Western Christianity has contributed to world Christianity—such as translating the Bible into multiple languages and promoting biblical literacy.

Haddis’ perspective on Nehemiah is worth close study, especially for white evangelicals who use Nehemiah as a paradigm for leadership. Her discussion of diaspora communities, often overlooked by American Christians, will enlarge evangelical missions. Her counsel to American Christians to start missions at home in their own communities before going abroad is prophetic.

A Just Mission is must-reading for any church engaged in mission work outside the United States or with cultures other than their own within the United States. Mission committees and teams will gain immeasurably from Haddis’ experience, wisdom and spiritual gifts.

Eric Black, executive director/publisher/editor
Baptist Standard

Voices of Lament: Reflections on Brokenness and Hope in a World Longing for Justice

Edited by Natasha Sistrunk Robinson (Revell)

Lament is personal. So, it is fitting that this review will be, too.

The first page I saw when I opened Voices of Lament was the dedication page, a page usually flipped past without a second thought. Not this time. The page is labeled “In Memoriam,” and what follows are the names of nine people taken by COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021, nine family members of contributors to Voices of Lament.

Lament is personal, and the women who contributed to this work are too well-acquainted with it, living it afresh as they wrote.

Seeing that page was a sacred moment. I felt as though I was holding a holy thing in my hands. The only proper response: a holy silence.

…

Lament is not always silent, and the response to it cannot be silent always. Natasha Sistrunk Robinson makes that point powerfully clear in her introduction. She likens the more than two dozen writers—all women of color—to the “most skillful” of the “wailing women” the Lord called for through the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 9:17-18). These women know lament so thoroughly that they are instructed to teach the younger women “how to wail” and lament.

The women who contributed to Voices of Lament are among the “most skillful.” They are each a powerful voice—African American, Asian American, Indian American, Native American, Hispanic, Latina, Tejana, Haitian, Nigerian and Sudanese. They are each grounded deeply in Christian faith and practice. Each one is our teacher, and I hold this book as their student.

I am learning a “theology of suffering” about “a God who is with us when we suffer, not [an American] God who [keeps] us from suffering” (p. 51). I also am being spiritually formed by the biblical exegesis and theological insight of these God-fearing, Christ-following, Spirit-empowered women.

The book is a thorough meditation on Psalm 37, one of the psalms of lament. It is divided into seven parts, one for each strophe—or section—of the psalm. Each part includes an original poem, original artwork, and at least three reflections, each of which focuses on one to two verses of Psalm 37 and ends with prayer. Many of the reflections are followed by a remembrance of a woman or women of color who played a significant role in the life of the church or the broader community.

These reflections are no puff pieces or platitudes. They are not trite or condescending. They are gritty and real. Each contributor bears testimony to the direct experience of deep pain, whether resulting from injustice, disease, fraternal betrayal or other suffering. The writers express anger, sorrow, disappointment, and also trust and hope in God.

Lament is not only personal; it is communal. We are in dark days, and we need to agree with God—through lament—that creation is broken. These women help us do this, because lament also is embodied. Part of the power of the book is the inclusion of languages other than English. This is powerful because language is the vocalized embodiment of our thoughts and emotions imbued with our culture, ethnicity, heritage, community and history. When multiple languages are shared in one place, it re-enacts Pentecost and anticipates Revelation 7:9.

Voices of Lament needs to be read, and slowly; digested, and thoroughly. No holy thing should be rushed.

And then we must do the good work of Christ until voices lament no more.

Disclosure: Mariah Humphries is a contributor to Voices of Lament and is a member of the Baptist Standard board. No incentive was exchanged to review this book.

Eric Black, executive director/publisher/editor
Baptist Standard

The Creator in You

Written by Jordan Raynor, illustrated by Jonathan David (WaterBrook)

Best-selling Christian author Jordan Raynor and artist-illustrator Jonathan David collaborate to produce a wonderfully expansive but personal book about God and his creation. Written for ages 3 to 8, The Creator in You offers a fresh look at Genesis 1 and creating beyond the sixth day.

Beautiful illustrations span the inside covers and stretch to the edges of each two-page spread. Rhyming poetry delivers a gently powerful sermon-story that not only is God the creator in us, he made us to be creators with him. Bright colliding stars and lights accompany the words, “He grabbed a big brush and painted the stars and dressed up the sky with Saturn and Mars.” As two children look over buildings, water, birds and clouds, the message is clear. In six days, God “created a lot, there are so many things that He simply did not—like bridges and baseballs, sandcastles and s’mores.” So “God asked us to create and fill the planet with more.”

Throughout the narrative, the author and illustrator affirm the values of creating and working as boys and girls so one day they can produce “businesses, movies, medicine, and hope. Make laws or computers or a new telescope.” The volume closes with guidance that by showing “others the Creator in you, you bring joy to the world—and to your Father too.”

An ending “Note to Parents” helps families grasp the Bible truth of God’s creative work. Although targeted to children, the title also makes a great graduation or just-because gift to affirm the Father’s plan of “doing what God has made you to do,” no matter the age or stage in life.

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Texas WMU and Baptist General Convention of Texas

Waco

Biblical Reasoning: Christological and Trinitarian Rules for Exegesis

By R.B. Jamieson and Tyler R. Wittman

Authors R.B. Jamieson and Tyler R. Wittman focus on twin truths of Scripture—God is one in three, and Christ is fully divine and fully human—to develop a series of guiding principles and useful rules for proper biblical interpretation. In doing so, they provide a practical toolkit for rightly reading Scripture (which, incidentally, would have made a more approachable subtitle than the dry-as-dust one on the book cover).

As a foundational principle, Jamieson and Wittman begin with this statement: “Holy Scripture presupposes and fosters readers whose end is the vision of Christ’s glory, and therein eternal life. Biblical reasoning must be ordered to this same end” (p. 3). From that starting point, the authors identify six additional principles with which few—if any—historically orthodox Christians could disagree. Based on those seven principles, they present 10 helpful rules to guide the reading and interpretation of Scripture. Along the way, they illustrate the principles and rules as they exegete specific biblical passages.

Nine pages of biblical references in the index demonstrate the degree to which Biblical Reasoning is grounded in Holy Scripture. While the authors mention some modern theologians and biblical scholars, they lean heavily toward ancient and medieval sources such as Augustine, Athanasius, Cyril of Alexandria, Gregory of Nyssa, Tertullian and Thomas Aquinas, among others.

Jamieson is associate pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., and Wittman is assistant professor of theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. The book benefits from the complementary expertise the authors have in biblical studies and systematic theology, respectively.

Even so, readers are left to wonder if Biblical Reasoning might have been even stronger and more helpful if they had enlisted a co-author with a background in one other academic discipline—Christian ethics.

For example, one of the rules they cite is reading biblical depictions of God in a manner that is “fitting for God” or “worthy of God”—consistent with the overall biblical portrait of God. They properly apply the principle in understanding references to God that describe him in human terms. However, they neglect to tackle the thornier issue of troublesome Old Testament passages, such as God commanding the slaughter of the Canaanites—an action many find difficult to reconcile with the perfect picture of God revealed in Jesus Christ.

As carefully worded as their scholarly rules for biblical exegesis are, Jamieson and Wittman might have benefitted from citing one simple but profound sentence from the 1963 Baptist Faith & Message: “The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ.”

Ken Camp, managing editor

Baptist Standard

Fighting Words: 100 Days of Speaking Truth into the Darkness

By Ellie Holcomb (B&H Books)

Christian singer and songwriter Ellie Holcomb offers Fighting Words: 100 Days of Speaking Truth into the Darkness as a book for women in need of the daily light of Jesus. An Amazon No.1 Best Seller in Depression, No. 3 in Christian Devotionals and No. 8 in Anxiety Disorders, the volume provides sound biblical guidance for those suffering from loneliness, grief, isolation, overwork, loss, hurt, fatigue, fear of failure and a myriad of feelings that steal joy.

Clearly meant to be absorbed one at a time, each devotional begins with an encouraging Scripture before personal stories, illustrations, examples and reflections apply the passage to the daily world of women. Simple yet thought-provoking questions follow, and each two-page entry closes with a comforting prayer. In the narratives, the wife and mother of three honestly shares her own struggles and how God has given her “fighting words” from the Bible at every turn. Additionally, she recommends committing the verses to memory.

Beautiful art and space for writing personal thoughts make Fighting Words especially appealing and useful. With the disclaimer that the purpose of the devotional book isn’t to sell recordings, the Dove Award-winner recounts the circumstances for writing many of her songs and refers to her children’s books and their companion albums, Who Sang the First Song and Don’t Forget to Remember.

Ultimately, Fighting Words: 100 Days of Speaking Truth into the Darkness by Ellie Holcomb makes a thoughtful purchase or gift for the woman constantly living in life’s murky shadows, particularly if she listens to the audio or reads entries one day at a time.

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas and Baptist General Convention of Texas

Waco

The Religion of American Greatness: What’s Wrong With Christian Nationalism

By Paul D. Miller (InterVarsity Press)

While not a new phenomenon in American life, the recent resurgence of Christian nationalism in America creates a need for a reexamination, analysis and critique of the movement. Paul Miller’s thorough research and skilled writing produce a text that, while academic in nature and an excellent resource for university courses on the subject, is a necessary addition to the library and knowledge of anyone seeking faithfully to secure the separation of church and state, to remain committed to their religious beliefs, and to uphold the constitutional stability needed for a thriving body politic.

Miller lays out his intent with the book from the beginning: “This is a book about the historical development, key beliefs, and political, cultural, and theological implications of Christian nationalism.” His research, with excellent documentation, delves deeply into the various aspects of Christian nationalism. Miller approaches the topic fairly, by allowing the words and writings of those who support the concept of Christian nationalism to help define the meaning of the term and movement.

However, Miller utilizes their words and definitions to demonstrate Christian nationalism leads to a breakdown of democracy, an incoherence in theory, a diminished personal liberty, a lack of desire for racial equality and a dangerous foreign policy, all while making governmental power into an idol for those who practice Christian nationalism.

Miller engages with Scripture to demonstrate further the incompatibility of Christian nationalism with both Christian faith and liberal democracy. He disposes of erroneous but popular Christian nationalist concepts, such as America as the new Israel and various Scripture passages taken out of context by Christian nationalists, while also showing how these myths indirectly influence much of American Christianity.

As is often the case when the lines are blurred between church and state, Christian nationalism, in its coopting of Christian terminology and religious practices, does not strengthen the Christian witness but diminishes it, while placing misguided hopes in political power and success. Miller deftly examines this predicament through a brief but thorough history of the Religious Right in American politics.

As most books on politics written today, Miller also connects the resurgence of Christian nationalism to the recent white Christian support of Donald Trump and his political use of Christian nationalism for his own political advantage. Miller examines how the nationalistic leanings of Trump voters, not republican principles and values, led to Trump support among American Christians. However, Miller differentiates the enthusiastic support for nationalism found among those “in the pews” with the quiet nervousness or pushback of the former president found among evangelical leadership, who saw Trump as a threat to their faith’s professed values.

Miller desires for American Christians, along with all Americans, to embrace again the principles of classical liberalism, republicanism, limited government and human rights. He concludes the misguided past decades of the Religious Right failed to produce these values, but he hopes the Christian witness in America can reject the driving forces of Christian nationalism—this is, fear and power—to reembrace the connection with society, striving for a message of hope: one that recognizes the dignity and value of all human beings, and one that desires for religion to inform our politics in a healthy way, through community connection and a healthy view of government and politics.

Jack Goodyear, dean

Cook School of Leadership, Dallas Baptist University

The Good and Beautiful You

By James Bryan Smith (InterVarsity Press)

You are God’s beloved in Jesus Christ. You dwell in an unshakeable kingdom. These two truths are foundational for the Christian life.

In The Good and Beautiful You: Discovering the Person Jesus Created You to Be, James Bryan Smith helps us to see how these two truths shape our self-understanding.

Smith invites us to consider our “theological anthropology,” or our beliefs about God and human beings. These beliefs are shaped by our understanding of God, what it means to be made in God’s image, the nature of sin, and how we can be renewed by grace through the salvation extended to us in Jesus.

The Good and Beautiful You examines toxic self-narratives that prevent us from flourishing in our life with God.

Smith invites us to consider Christian teaching on the soul and the body, as well as how we are desired, loved and made for God, what it means to be forgiven, made alive, and made holy by the Spirit’s power. Smith also examines the notion that each of us has a sacred story, calling, and a wonderful future as a glorified human being in God’s eternal kingdom. In each of these areas, Smith identifies a false idea commonly present, and he counters these false ideas with true alternatives found in the biblical witness and through sound theological reflection.

Smith observes that we live from our deepest convictions about ourselves. When we live according to falsehood, we suffer. But when we embrace and enter a life that is built upon the truth about reality, we flourish. Faith in Christ helps us to see the truth about God and ourselves.

Our identity is discovered through our relationship to God through Jesus.

Smith not only explores biblical and theological ideas to help us embrace our identity in Christ. Each chapter is followed by a Christian spiritual discipline that displaces old ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving and helps establish new patterns that free us to live according to the way of Christ.

God changes us from the inside, out. As we grow in grace, we exhibit a more faithful witness to the “great salvation” the cross of Jesus has achieved and that we, by faith, receive.

As Smith writes: “You are no mere mortal. You are a divinely designed, deeply loved, fully forgiven, fully alive, sacred person, with a sacred story of grace, a sacred body, and a holy longing for God. You were perfectly designed before the foundation of this world, to do great works that give glory to God. And you are an unceasing spiritual being with an eternal destiny in God’s great universe.” (p.211)

These truths reflect who God has made us to be, calls us to be, and redeemed us to be, thanks to the wonderous, complete, perfect and finished work of Jesus Christ.

Ben Simpson

Associate director of spiritual formation

Truett Theological Seminary, Waco

A Field Guide to Christian Nonviolence

By David C. Cramer and Myles Werntz (Baker Academic)

Readers who consider pacifism the exclusive property of historic peace churches—Quakers, Mennonites and Brethren—may be surprised to discover multiple streams of Christian nonviolence that span a variety of traditions.

David C. Cramer, managing editor at the Institute of Mennonite Studies, and Myles Werntz, director of Baptist studies at Abilene Christian University, identify eight approaches to Christian nonviolence, along with various writers and activists who have exemplified them.

The authors—both of whom earned their doctorates in theology and ethics from Baylor University—treat each stream of Christian nonviolence with respect, while also acknowledging critiques of the varied perspectives. They do not shy away from difficult topics, such as the dramatic inconsistency between influential ethicist John Howard Yoder’s promotion of Christian pacifism and his documented history of sexual violence against women.

Cramer and Werntz acknowledge the points of commonality between some of the eight streams of Christian nonviolence, while also recognizing the unique qualities of each and the cultural contexts in which they have grown. Readers who find they resonate with a particular stream of nonviolence—or who want to learn more about one to which they have just been introduced—will benefit from the book’s extensive bibliography.

A Field Guide to Christian Nonviolence provides a concise but broad-based look at the varied way Christians respond to the biblical call to “seek peace and pursue it.”

Ken Camp, managing editor

Baptist Standard 

Becoming God’s Epic: Fulfilling Your Purpose in Christ

By Billy M. Murchison Jr. (Westbow Press)

God has a plan and purpose for everyone who claims the name of Christ. And God gives faithful followers biblically grounded dreams and visions—an awareness of needs, the aspiration to meet needs, and the desire to step out by faith in response to needs, Billy M. Murchison Jr. asserts.

First-time author Murchison provides a simple but profound Bible study about the dreams and visions promised when God poured out his Holy Spirit on the church. The dreams and visions he describes are not esoteric experiences for a handful of mystics. Rather, they are unselfish goals that stretch the faith of Christ’s followers but do not strain the Holy Spirit’s ability to turn hope into something tangible that will bring honor and glory to God.

Murchison is a layman writing for other laymen. For the most part, his approach is refreshing and genuine. On rare occasions, he ventures into areas that risk causing distraction. For example, one might wish he had not spent several pages detailing his particular views on eschatology. The important points he made could have been equally convincing and less contentious had he simply referred to generally agreed-upon doctrines such as the Second Coming of Christ, resurrection and judgment without speculating about the details.

Don’t allow differences of opinion on a few matters to take attention away from Murchison’s main points. And don’t stop reading. The final chapter includes a testimony-in-progress that could be worth a second book by the author.

Ken Camp, managing editor

Baptist Standard 

Geared-Up Faith for Classic Car Buffs: Devotions to Help You Reflect, Recharge and Restore

By Ace Collins (Tyndall House)

Ace Collins combines his zeal for nurturing Christians in practicing their faith and his passion for vintage automobiles in Geared-Up Faith for Classic Car Buffs: Devotions to Help You Reflect, Recharge, and Restore. Although an ideal gift for Father’s Day, the book appeals to men and women of all ages who simply love history or who feel nostalgic when hearing stories of great-great-grandad’s first car or watching movies like Bullitt and Steve McQueen’s Ford Mustang car-chase or viewing photographs of early World War II Jeeps. Collins covers them all, adding exquisite color images and a twist of faith.

The researcher-author arranges 31 short chapters in chronological order with the first a nod to Charles Goodyear and those who made automotive transportation possible by developing the processes to convert raw rubber into tires. The book continues from the 1901 Oldsmobile with a curved dash and the Ford Model T through Packards, Cadillacs, Mack trucks, Chevrolets and Lincolns to more modern Corvettes, Thunderbirds and Mustangs. Each classic car segment begins with a Scripture, provides specific automobile history, shifts gears into fun facts, and closes with a relatable “spiritual tune-up” that calls for action. Most touching is the chapter on the Willys Jeep and its impact on World War II.

Geared-Up Faith for Classic Car Buffs would be perfect as a month-long personal, family or small-group devotional book. The “spiritual tune-ups” offer springboards for discussion. Many of the topics also lend themselves to family activities, such as watching movies featuring the vehicles, visiting museums and car shows, or seeking out a classic car owner. Give this volume a try even if you’re not a “classic car buff.” You’ll be glad you did as you steer ahead to “reflect, recharge and restore.”

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Texas WMU and Baptist General Convention of Texas

Waco