Overwhelmed by a Relentless God
Author Francis Chan
Francis Chan is the pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, California and the founder of Eternity Bible College. He is also a board member for both Children’s Hunger Fund and World Impact. In this robust challenge to Christians to live the life Jesus called them to live, Francis speaks with urgency. His goal is to awaken a sleeping church, mired in the comfort of middle ground. He compares the profile of the lukewarm with the profile of the obsessed and then asks us to not assume we are not lukewarm. Chapter four begins with this quote, “It is not scientific doubt, not atheism, not pantheism, not agnosticism that in our day and in this land is likely to quench the light of the gospel. It is a proud, sensuous, selfish, luxurious, church-going, hollow-hearted prosperity.” (pg. 65)
Francis Chan is calling Christians to live as the Bible teaches us to live. Our lives should reflect the life that Jesus described for His followers. “But before we look at what is wrong and address it, we need to understand something. The core problem isn’t the fact that we’re lukewarm, half-hearted, or stagnant Christians. The crux of it all is why we are this way, and it is because we have an inaccurate view of God. We see Him as a benevolent being who is satisfied when people manage to fit Him into their lives in some small way. We forget that God never had an identity crisis; He knows that He’s great and deserves to be the center of our lives. Jesus came humbly as a servant, but He never begs us to give Him some small part of ourselves. He commands everything from His followers.” (pg. 22)
Are you hungry for more of what God has to offer? Do you believe that God loves you with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love? In this Book Mr. Chan challenges us to break free from the status quo. If you are hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with radical, tangible solutions then this book is for you. If you are satisfied with just going to church and giving God a small part of your life you will be very uncomfortable reading this book. “Chan writes with infectious exuberance, challenging Christians to take the Bible seriously.” [Publishers Weekly]
In a conversation with Francis Chan at the end of the book he is asked this question.
Q: The emergent movement calls for a change in the church. How is your message and approach different?
A: As a pastor I hear a lot of emergent leaders talk about what is wrong with the church. It comes across as someone who doesn’t love the church. I’m a pastor first and foremost, and I’m trying to offer a solution or a model of what the church should look like. I’m going back to Scripture and seeing what the church was in its simplest form and trying to re-create that in my own church. I’m not coming up with anything new. I’m calling people back to the way it was. I’m not bashing the church. I’m loving it. (pg. 180)
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