Gospel by J. D. Greear

I sure appreciate Greear's reminder to live a gospel-saturated life. He “rediscovered” the gospel and it gave him a joy he had never known in all his years of religion. He wants us to experience that too.

He reacquaints us with the gospel and encourages us to experience grace as the driving force behind every moment of our lives. He wants us to see how the gospel makes us passionate for God, frees us from the captivity of sin and moves us to sacrifice for others.

The first part of his book is about the gospel. Then he gives us the tool, a four-part prayer, to saturate our lives with the gospel. The first two parts help renew our minds to God's acceptance of us and its value. The third part of the prayer helps us understand what responding to the gospel looks like. The fourth part helps us see the world through the gospel and moves us to “audacious” faith.

He has great insights. Want the approval of others? The gospel shows us God's approval is more valuable than anyone else's. Forget who you are in Christ? “Preach the gospel to yourself.” (54) Need to change? The power comes from the gospel. He also helps us understand what a gospel-centered church looks like.

Being “gospel-centered” is not moving beyond the gospel, but continually going deeper into it. “It's about realizing that the gospel is the final answer to every issue and problem in life and about seeing the whole world through the lens of the cross.” (191)

No matter the diagnosis, Greear writes,”Faith in the gospel is the prognosis.” (245) “Make the gospel the center of your life.” (247) I am looking forward to using Greear's prayer. It's an inspiration.

J. D. Greear is lead pastor of The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. He has a Ph.D. In Systematic Theology from the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also lived and worked among Muslins in Southeast Asia for two years. He and his wife have four children. See more at www.jdgreeargospel.com.

B & H Publishing Group, 272 pages.