by Skye Jethani editor of Leadership Journal has provided for the church an accessible vision to what it means to be the body of Christ.
The text follows a straightforward format where Jethani evaluates four postures that most people have before God. The first is "Life Under God". This perspective emphasises God's holiness. To please God the believer must follow his rule and regulations and come under his authority.
The second posture is that of "Life Over God". This posture is basic unbelief where God is something that is either ignored or used for personal gain.
The third posture is "Life From God". Here the belief is that if we do the right things and live the right way God will bless us. This is the common posture in the "health and wealth" or "word of faith" movements.
The fourth posture is "Life For God". The desire within this system is to give one's life for ultimate meaning and purpose. People who hold this view elevate the faith of the missionary or pastor who have "given everything" for God.
These four postures are all found wanting in some way. So what is the Christian life supposed to look like in its posture?
Jethani argues for a fifth way, "Life With God". In this posture we discover what it means to live life alongside God. We join him in his mission and community. This posture takes seriously the incarnation of the Holy Spirit within the lives of every believer. Grace, mercy, and walking with God are the central factors. In this posture it is argued that we find an attractive and passionate relationship with God.
I think that this is a very helpful book and strongly recommend it. The weakness is that there is lack of contemporary examples for this posture (which might be because there aren't any!). I appreciate that there are three chapters of application, however, they are still somewhat ethereal and maybe not as applicable as they could be. I found myself still asking the "so what" question. I think this text is ripe for a follow up "workbook" whereby someone could process through their postures before God and then develop an understanding of what it means to do life "with" God.
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