PATMOS BY C. BAXTER KRUGER

Dr C. Baxter Kruger is a theologian, but he’s not one of those stuffy, hard to understand ones. He’s the theologian that takes pains to make the works of the stuffy ones a little easier to understand. In addition to his own academic endeavours too. He is someone I admire and have learnt a lot from, especially about the cosmic and all pervasive nature of Jesus and the influence he has over the universe. He has written several books and essays, and given lectures all over the world on the Trinitarian life. And now he has added a novel to his list of accomplishments

The story of Patmos follows a Theologian, Dr Aidan, who is taken back in time by the Holy Spirit to the Island of Patmos during the time St. John the Apostle was exiled there. In the span of three days, the Apostle helps Aidan straighten out some wrinkles in his thoughts about God and brings him to begin to experience the living relationship open to us all by the power of the Holy Spirit. During these three days a friendship ensues that will affect both men for the rest of their lives

Dr Kruger uses the book to explore themes he has always covered in his books and teachings. The Trinity, union, inclusion and several others. It also gives us a glimpse at how he reached (or is reaching) the point where his knowledge is going beyond his head and becoming real and actually effecting changes in his life. The novel is no great work of fiction like Tolkein or C.S lewis at their finest but it holds its own and gives great insight about the life we live in the The Son, beholding the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit

Overall it’s a great read, full of humur and insight. I highly recommend it.

Disclosure of Material Connection:

I received this book free of charge from the publisher and writer via the Speakeasy network, I'm not under any obligation to write a positive review and the views I have expressed are entirely my own. I'm writing this disclosure in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

CONFESSIONS OF AN ANGRY PREACHER

By the Grace of God, I’ve been privileged to be in a leadership position in the Church. Men who were better than me realized the call of God on my life and gave me opportunities to preach to the people. It seems to me that while it is true that I was called at the time, I had not been sent. I wasn’t ready to lead, I wasn’t prepared by God enough. I knew very little about God and most of what I knew were lies and half truths.

God is love and I don’t believe any minister is ready until he gets that into his head; that all that God does is motivated by his being Love. Of course, we grow into this, but it must have settled well enough before we presume to lead our brothers and sisters. I remember many sermons I preached and many times I got an opportunity to speak and it was horrible. I was always pointing out how unsatisfied God was with people. Which is really how unsatisfied I was with them. I disqualified them from God’s blessings. I berated people for not praying loudly enough, praising vigorously enough, or giving largely enough. Ultimately, this was all a reflection of how i felt God was unsatisfied with me.

Even when the grace of God began to unfold to me, I became a Grace Pharisee. I lost my patience with anyone who refused to see things my way and got into many arguments and fights with my brothers. I look back at some of my encounters with certain people and realize how those meetings could have ended in a more peaceful and friendly way.

I was an angry preacher because I believed that God was angry with me. I have since repented from that error. I no longer feel condemned for my wrong doings, not even for the ones I just pointed out. However, I do want to apologise. To all that have felt condemnation, unworthiness, or disqualification by my words or actions, I sincerely apologise. I knew not what I was doing. And I want you to know that God loves you with an unquenchable love. He does not need you to move an inch, give a cent, or pray a decibel louder before he blesses you. In fact, he has blessed you in the Lord Jesus and he doesn’t take back what he gives.

May the Grace of our Lord continually be with you.

THE SEED A TRUE MYTH BY ERIK GUZMAN

The story of the Bible and the Gospel can be summarized this way:. God creates all things and it is good, man believes a lie and seperates himself from God plunging himself along with all of creation into utter darkness; and God becomes man in order to rescues him and all of creation from the darkness.

In “The Seed-the True Myth” Erik Guzman uses that backdrop and creates a story of eternal love and the triumph of Love over every darkness. The book portrays how in our brokenness and helplessness, we see the hand of God extended to us in Love with suspicion and fear. We are so lost that we saw the light of God’s love and viewed it as utter darkness. While we worshipped Satan and his principle of self-centeredness and fleshly indulgence. In the book he portrays how we view God as the taskmaster who expects us to work to the bone and who is never satisfied. He also portrays how many of us are so willing to serve this god and our feeble attempts at pleasing this god, in spite of the constant voice in our heads telling us we are not doing enough. We build bigger and bigger temples, doing more and more acts of service, offer bigger and bigger sacrifices and pray longer and longer but it is never enough. In reality, this “god” is Satan, using the madness we fell into at the fall to superimpose himself as God. In other words, he is filling the vacuum of the false impressions we have about God and gaining great power from it. Satan is the first and ultimate being that fell into the madness of flesh, and by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we joined him in his madness

But it’s not all gloomy, because Erik also shows how God who is Love came and shattered the power of Satan in a way he never expected or even understood, because it was through Love and Divine sacrifice and self-giving; A way Satan had abandoned eons ago. And God calls us to join him in that way again, his Holy Spirit is like a river flowing over the whole world beckoning on all mankind to drink of him and fill themselves with the light of his love. Halleluiah

This is a wonderful novel that wraps the Gospel in a beautiful fantasy story, much like C.S Lewis and portrays its beauty so wonderfully. I don’t agree with a few ideas in the book, but so what, he doesn’t agree with me too. In the grand scheme of things, the story is compelling and can be enjoyed just as a novel. But it is also a great portrayal of the Gospel.

Disclosure of Material Connection:

Now I have to say this (seriously, I do): I received this book free of charge from the publisher and writer via the Speakeasy network, I'm not under any obligation to write a positive review and the views I have expressed are entirely my own. I'm writing this disclosure in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255