Radical

If you are a follower of Jesus, then I highly recommend reading Radical by David Platt. I just finished this book and am still processing the weight of the challenges he poses through scripture and how I am supposed to respond to them. David is the lead pastor of The Church at Brooke Hills in Burmingham, Alabama and a really inspiring, gospel-centered, and missional pastor. Kit and I have enjoyed listening to his pod casts for some time now, so when we heard he had a book out, we knew we had to read it. Kit is also leading a group of men from our church through the corresponding bible study (which I'm a little jealous it's just for men!). But I must give a word of warning: Don't read this book if you don't want to be challenged, if you don't care about truly being obedient to the commands of Christ, and if you're perfectly satisfied with living out the "christian version" of the American Dream. That being said, here is a short description of the book and a link to learn more. If you go to this website, you can sign up to read the first chapter for free and watch a video of Platt explaining the premise of the book.

http://www.radicalthebook.com/

"Do you believe that Jesus is worth abandoning everything for?"

In Radical, David Platt invites you to encounter what Jesus actually said about being his disciple, and then obey what you have heard. He challenges you to consider with an open heart how we have manipulated a God-centered gospel to fit our human-centered preferences. With passionate storytelling and convicting biblical analysis, Platt calls into question a host of comfortable notions that are common among Christ's followers today. Then he proposes a radical response: live the gospel in ways that are true, filled with promise, and ultimately world changing.

What part of the Gospel is optional?

It’s easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily…

But who do you know who lives like that? Do you?