Monday, May 14, 2012

1,000 Days The Ministry of Christ By Jonathan Falwell


1,000 Days The Ministry of Christ By Jonathan Falwell is a new book that focuses on Jesus' last three years- or more dramatically, his last 1,000 days here on earth. The author purports to give a fresh look at Jesus' last days.     In otherwords, as the title itself indicates, whereas 1,00 days is simply a new way of writing three years, the author is intent on finding a new interpretation of the age old scriptures.  While there is nothing in of itself wrong with seeking out a fresh meaning for familiar scripture passages- in doing so, there is the danger of reinterpreting scripture to finding a  new meaning which was never intended. The concept  of gleaning life lessons from Jesus' last days is a good idea for the creation of a new book.  It is a new perspective that would be welcome by newer and more experienced believers, alike.  The problem is that Falwell at times, uses the opportunity to either oversimply the bible text or to redefine the meaning in an attempt to make it adapt to worldy views.   In a noble attempt to simplify scripture and relate it to down to earth terminology, Falwell takes liberties in reinterpretation- such as with the meaning behind the sermon on the mount and the temptations in the desert. For those readers unfamiliar with scripture, they will be left with the author's personal impressions of Jesus miracles and parables and words.  Rather than being directed by the Holy Spirit, they will find themselves imbedded with Falwell's intrepretations when reading scripture. 
My opinion of this book is mixed- the format and presentation makes Jesus last years of ministry accessable to any reader.  The author's simple and persuasive writing style draws the reader in.  For those with absolutely no exposure to scripture, this makes a good springboard to generate interest in the bible- if one can set aside the author's interpretation.  This book and its individual topics would make an excellent starting point of a study in the scripture as long as the reader was well grounded in the bible itself as the ultimate authority. In fact, the author's ideas could be a catalyst for an indepth discussion about the intended meaning of scripture in contrast to the relative or liberal interpreation styles.  As a blogger for booksneeze I received this book for the purpose of writing this review. 

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