book review: "radical" by david platt

“I could not help but think that somehow along the way we had missed what is radical about our faith and replaced it with what is comfortable. We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves.” David Platt is the pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama. He reached a point where he began wondering about the church as a whole and its people in pursuit of the American dream. How can having expensive cars and large homes really further the gospel? Platt isn’t against us having nice things but feels we need to shift our focus off of obtaining what the world deems as important instead of the things God has commanded us to do. We’re told in Mark 16:15 to “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” We ask God what He would have us do with our lives – what His calling for us is. “The answer is clear. The will of God is for you and me to give our lives urgently and recklessly to making the gospel and glory of God known among all peoples, particularly those who have never even heard of Jesus. The question, therefore, is not “Can we find God’s will?” The question is “Will we obey God’s will?” Will we refuse to sit back and wait for some tingly feeling to go down our spines before we rise up and do what we have already been commanded to do?”

This book has challenged me to do more with my faith. It’s one of those books that part of you doesn’t want to read because you know once you do, you can’t continue as you were before. Platt lists five things for us to do in order to live a more radical life for Christ. Pray for the entire world, read the Bible in a year, give not only when you’re able but when it’s a sacrifice, spend time in another context (be it a country or outreach), and commit your life to a “multiplying community). I think of how amazing it would be if we would all rise up to this challenge and strive to live lives that are truly radical for God.

I received a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah was not required to write a positive review.