Ever
since President Jimmy Carter said he was “born again,” the term
has been used a great deal. But just what does it mean?
Barringer
lays a good foundation, establishing why we are no longer who God
created us to be, and why Jesus said (to Nicodemus) we must be born
again. I like his ideas on identity. Apart from God, we will never be
who we were intended to be as our identity comes from Him.
Barringer's thoughts on God's jealousy were enlightening. I am glad
he confronted the myth of people being born good. He also writes
about sins but, oddly enough, defines sins well after he has written
much about them. I did, however, really like his discussion as it
gave me a new understanding of sin.
The
rest of the book is about the process of living out being born again,
loving God and loving our neighbor. His thoughts on loving God and
how to love Him more were great. His thoughts on loving my neighbor
were very convicting and insightful.
This
would be a good book for new Christians or for people who have been
Christians for a while but long for a new understanding of what it
all means. It would also be a good book for use in an evangelism type
of group, introducing nonChristians to the idea of being born again
and what it all means. The Bible is used quite a bit so the leader of
an evangelistic might first want to lay the groundwork for believing
the Bible is actually the Word of God first.
I,
as a Christian for over 50 years, also found some really good
material in this book that was convicting. Barringer's definition of
sin was new to me and made me much more aware of sin in my own life.
I would recommend every Christian read this book just for that
section alone. He has a section on gay marriage that really made me
think a while. I'm not sure I like what he said but it was certainly
thought provoking. He also speculates a little about eternity, saying
God “will celebrate our diversity by letting us retain our
languages, but meld us into one by allowing us to understand every
language.” That and much more is food for discussion.
There
are very good discussion questions at the end of each chapter so this
book would be a good choice for a group study. It's a thought
provoking book and Christians, new and old, would benefit from
reading it.
Jim
Barringer is a worship leader, teacher, author, traveler, and speaker,
serving at The Church of Life in Orlando, Florida. He has a Masters
degree from South Western Seminary. He and his wife have one
daughter. You can find out more on Facebook and follow his blog here.
CreateSpace
Independent Publishing Platform, 288 pages.
I
received a complimentary digital copy of the book from the author for
the purpose of an independent and honest review.
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