This old adage was never truer. When I first saw the cover and title of this
month’s book, it immediately conjured up vampires, teenage angst and undying
love – I think you can guess which teen saga I am thinking of.
Nevertheless, I was lured in by the
subtitle – ‘”How Christ’s final day changes your everyday”. In the opening line of his book, author Mike
McKinley poses a question to every Christian and would-be believer– What
difference does the cross of Jesus Christ make to the way you live?
McKinley says although Christians hold that
Jesus’ death on the cross is the central event in human history, we mostly
value it in terms of our future - that is it secures our eternal life with God
albeit no small thing. He likens it to a
ticket to a Cold Play concert (McKinley actually says football game) that we
carry around in our back pocket until we need it.
McKinley challenges that this is too small
a view of the cross. Adding to
McKinley’s metaphor in my own clumsy way, it’s like carrying Chris Martin
around in your back pocket.
“The
cross of Christ is the reality that gives shape to the way Christians should
think about every detail of our lives right now, from our marriages to our
money, from our suffering to our success.” (p.10)
“The
cross of Christ is all we will need, and all we will have, on the last day of
this life. But wonderfully, it’s also
all we need for today, and tomorrow, and every day up till that last one.”
(p.11)
I liked watching this promotional interview
with McKinley where he expresses what he hopes readers will get from his book.
The other thing that drew me to McKinley’s
book is that he uses Luke’s narrative.
Having read and re-read Luke’s gospel as preparation for EQUIP13, I have
come to appreciate the many details that Luke includes in his account of Jesus’
life and was eager to revisit what Luke recorded about Jesus’ last day on
earth.
About our
contributor:
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know
about Jesus (thanks mum and dad).
My story of faith is made up of every day
ordinary moments – week by week going to church and Sunday school, and later on
Youth group, praying at meals and bedtimes, reading Bible stories… plus a few significant
moments.
One such significant moment occurred in
1979 at a Billy Graham Crusade.
Listening to the talk, I realized for the first time that I had to
choose for myself to follow Jesus. It
wasn’t about whether my family trusted Jesus but did I. So, I walked down to the front and gave my
life to Jesus. Later on, I found out my
mother was in tears as she watched.
Now I’m a mum myself – I get teary thinking
about my own kids and whether I am doing all I can to make Christ known to
them. When I think about it, it’s all I
want for them – that they will humbly bow before the cross of Jesus.
I also can’t remember a time when I didn’t
love reading. My father had a study full
of bookshelves, every one overflowing with books. I went from Enid Blyton to Lucy Maud
Montgomery to Jane Austen to Alexander McCall Smith….
There are not many genres I don’t like
reading – my husband thinks it’s hilarious that I am just as much a fan of
Emily Bronte as I am of Tom Clancy. The
thing I’ve always liked about books is that ability to ‘walk in someone else’s
shoes’.
Theological books have always been a lot harder
to read but I have learned to value them and have acquired a taste for
them. So, pretty much there is always a
stack of them, half-read, next to my bed.
My faith was formed on classics like JI Packer’s ‘Knowing God’ and Don
Carson’s ‘How Long O Lord’.
I am really enjoying reading ‘Passion’ by
Mike McKinley and look forward to the challenge of trying to write about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment