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In the Gospel,

David Ketter

What you are about to read is a “vision” of sorts I had one spring day in 2007 as I was praying in the woods. My prayer is that it would give you a sense of the feeling that was experienced by the touch of the Master, and the depth of our guilt. -DK

I opened my eyes once more. Sand-colored stones and dirt were all I could see. Sweat dribbled down from my forehead to my nose and dripped to the ground. The sun was moving upward toward its high place in the sky. Already the heat was unbearable but that did not matter. I took another step. I had to. The heavy weight on my shoulder demanded it. I breathed heavily.

But it wasn’t my breathing I heard. No, what resounded in my ears was shouting. Mocking cries. Tzelav oto! Tzelav! Tzelav Yeshua! Foreign, halting tongues shouted too: Hinnei! Melekh haYehudim! Hinnei! One foreigner with confidence announced above the hubbub: Yeshua hazeh; Melekh haYehudim! And on it went. How I wished that I were deaf! To not hear the torments of this mob would be a blessing of the Holy One, Blessed be He. It…

The weight shifted. The burden increased. Flesh came against my side. Time slowed. I was released from my thoughts and could only know him who was against my side. Shuddering in the wind, this man leaned against me, increasing the burden of the cross. Yes, that’s what I was carrying: a cross. They had forced me to carry this curse, this shame, for a prisoner they had refused to treat properly.

This prisoner…no, this was wrong. He was the innocent one. It was these soldiers, this crowd, the voice with authority who should be carrying a cross to their deaths right now. It was I who should do the same. Every ounce of my being wanted to repudiate this cross. I didn’t want this man to die. I wanted to help him, though. Yet, as I helped him, I knew that every step I helped him make was another step closer to his death – I was as responsible for his death as this mob who cried out for it.

Tears joined the sweat. How could this go on? We began to ascend the hill. I had to focus more intentionally on my steps to make sure I didn’t fall. If I fell, it would be more pain…more suffering for the man. Oh that I could see the man on the other side of the crossbeam!  I looked down at my feet and watched as sweat and tears fell to the ground. But then there was something else: blood. Blood fell from beside me, from the man I was leading to death. It fell upon my feet. A voice cried out in my heart: “You are clean.” I would have fallen but for the call of that authoritative voice: Repha! I could stand still. Sali, Adoni, sali. Then all vision faded.

Hebrew: Tzelav oto! Tzelav! Tzelav Yeshua! Crucify him! Crucify! Crucify Jesus!
Hinnei! Melekh haYehudim! Hinnei! Behold! The king of the Jews! Behold!
Yeshua hazeh; melekh haYehudim! This is Jesus; the king of the Jews!
Sali, Adoni, sali. Forgive me, my lord, forgive me.

Legends, fables, and history blend together without any sense of direction in most discussions and writings about the 5th Century “Apostle to the Irish.” In this new book from the Christian Encounters series entitled Saint Patrick by Jonathan Rogers, however, there is a literary excellence accompanied by scholastic caution and a concern for spiritual edification. In other words, I’ve yet to run across any book about Patrick that does so well. Dr. Rogers begins with the hazards of researching writing on Patrick but launches into the biography with the things we do know about him, both certainly and questionably, with several “sidebars” in the realm of lore.

The work is as complete as it can be, insofar as things directly relate to a biographical sketch of Patrick, his life and ministry. Rogers’ concern for Patrick’s spirituality and sense of calling are clearly at the forefront of his orientation, and, it would seem, based on Patrick’s writings (contained in Appendices A & B), they were for Patrick as well. Representing this British Paul carefully and honorably is certainly accomplished by Rogers and anyone who is in the least intrigued by Patrick would benefit from reading this book in whatever format they may.

The Liberating King has come! Repent and receive and so enter His Kingdom and the renewal of all things! These are biblical teachings. They are at the core of the Gospel and yet we so often miss the urgency of this message. Many times, this is due to the familiarity we have with the typical style of English Bible translations. Those involved with The Voice, however, are seeking to be true to the text and reflect the inherent creativity of the Spirit of God and the diversity of His ordained human authors, through whom He communicated to us.

In reading The Voice New Testament (for the purpose of this review, the Gospel of Matthew), I found in it a tremendous supplement and devotional translation that is, in the main, faithful to the text (a functional translation somewhere between NIV and The Message). It has many unique features to commend it and while I wouldn’t use it as a primary translation for serious study, I am, thus far, convinced that it would be beneficial for use by Christians in every stage of spiritual development. So, for what it sets out to do, I would give it a five star rating.

In today’s churches, where there is a surge in the calls for music ministers and worship leaders and a number of pastors and churches dealing with questions of what worship is and what it should look like, Dr. Vernon Whaley’s Called to Worship: The Biblical Foundations of Our Response to God’s Call may come as an answer to prayer for some. Literally deriving principles for worship from the books of Scripture, Whaley attempts to provide a “full-Scripture” framework for understanding worship. Does he succeed?

Dr. Whaley’s desire is commendable. His concept of how it should be done is also good. My sense, is, however, that this book is more influenced by his Baptist roots than an informed exegesis and understanding of Hebrew or Greek (there are a number of “errors” in the language references) Scriptures. This is not to say that his principles for worship are wrong, but they are wrongly derived. It would be my hope that some would benefit from this book and others, seeing its weaknesses, would write a more sound, exegetically-responsible biblical theology of worship. If you’re looking for valuable reading on worship, Worship Matters by Bob Kauflin would be my recommendation.

I’d be willing to walk a far distance for A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life. In a stroke of writing genius, Donald Miller has given people a challenge far more imperative than The Purpose Driven Life and other similar books. While reflecting on the process of adapting one of his previously published books for the silver screen, Don discovered something about life: it’s really a story and it really needs to be a good one, and if we don’t have a good story in our lives, we’re profoundly (and rightly) dissatisfied. So, Don wants his readers to get a better story.

I enjoyed A Million Miles from the first page until the last page of the acknowledgments. The challenge is provocative and vital. The approach is transparent and humorous. The satisfaction from reading is high. A prayerful reader will benefit greatly from pondering and reflecting about the story that they are telling with their lives. Are you living a good story? Are you the character that God has called you to be? Don won’t answer those questions for you, but he does give you the chance to find out for yourself.

Stephen Covey is a well-known motivator and encourager. His books, speeches, and presentations have dominated the world of self-help resources. So what about Everyday Greatness? Covey remains in his traditional stream of thought, but presenting stories and pithy proverbs to demonstrate attributes that he believes are characteristic of great people (charity, integrity, patience, etc.). Yet, his approach is informed by a faulty understanding of people (that we are basically good) with a faulty ambition for life (be the greatest you can be) and will ultimately lead to a faulty end (failure and emptiness).

While aiming to help people, what Covey has written essentially provides a Book of Virtues for “happy-addicts.” In other words, he is telling the reader “You’re a good person who wants to be happy. These are some inspirations to take that goodness and make you great, so that you’ll be really happy!” That may be the logic of the world, but in the life of the Christian disciple, this sort of thinking lacks grace, Biblical standing, and will ultimately only produce bad fruit. The discerning reader would look, instead, to Jesus Christ and find true greatness (Philippians 2).

Fear defines much about us as human beings. We’re afraid of so many things: the consequences of sin; of ourselves; of what errors we might make; of finances, of catastrophe. It is a part of the human condition. It’s part of what Jesus came to defeat. That is precisely what Max Lucado sets out to confront in Fearless. Working through the nature of fear, and the different kinds of situations that we face fear as sinners, parents, people who aren’t in control, and victims of circumstance, Lucado points the reader again and again to Jesus and the power of this great Savior Who dealt with our sin – the very source of fear.

I very much admire the approach that Lucado takes in this book. This book is seasoned with grace, appropriate levels of humor and the ever-present reality of what our fallenness has done to us. He does well to tell the reader, certainly with a communicative charm, that if they are fearing, they are not giving Jesus His due and the attention and trust that He has shown conclusively and decisively that He deserves. This is a helpful resource for meditating on Jesus’ defeat of our fear.

How can I deal with sin that just sticks with me? How can I survive the tough times that come my direction? Why should I worry about my friend’s Christian walk? What’s the point of reading my Bible and praying regularly? Although these questions seem only loosely related, Mark Hall’s Your Own Jesus does a tremendous job of presenting the truth that everyone needs to be in a saving, enduring relationship with the God of the universe.

“God has no grandchildren” as the saying goes and Mark shows convincingly the need for believers to not depend on their parents, churches, friends, or books and music to be their source of experiencing Jesus. Believers need to be in their own intimate walk with the Savior Who bought them with His own blood and will bring good, lasting fruit into their lives. For anyone who considers themselves a disciple of Jesus, this book is highly recommended as a helpful resource as you pursue Christ and get to know the One and Only Jesus Christ.

“I know what I call you in Bemba” Vincent said, “Umuntu! It means you’re like me!” Those were words that were told me on a recent trip I made to Ndola, Zambia to assist in the building of a school. In writing The Hole in Our Gospel, Stearns notes that the Gospel we preach has often left out the command to seek justice for the poor and oppressed, to love our neighbor. Stearns is right that we, who have received the mercy of God in infinite abundance, have so often failed to show and share that mercy with our fellow men around the world, who lay dying. So Stearns issues a prophetic, God-honoring call to action…but misses a beat.

His vision is somewhat dampened, I think, by the sense that it is Christians who will put all wrong to right in the world. We are the agents of redemption, but this redemption will be realized and consummated by Christ. I would heartily recommend reading The Hole in Our Gospel to anyone, only exhorting them to trust in the sovereign work of God and not depend upon their own actions, but the Holy Spirit’s effective power.