Real Love

     BOOK REVIEW:   The love that the world sees reflected by Christians is often a conditional one drifting to one of two extremes---compromising on truth or condemning those who disagree. But Jesus, despite having enemies on all sides, somehow managed to speak the truth in love. He calls us to do the same.
     "Many of the tensions we feel when we try to live out our faith," says Rick Bezet, "would disappear if we learned to navigate them with wisdom, grace, and common courtesy." Rick shows you how to speak the truth in love by spending time with Jesus, the one who did it best. For anyone unsure if they are doing more harm than good when they talk (or don't talk) about matters of faith, this book offers compassionate and inspirational guidance.

     MY REVIEW:   I wasn't sure what to expect when I got this book,  as so many books today can veer off into troubling waters. This book, however, seems to be on track. Rick bases his book on the two greatest commandments given by Jesus in Matthew: Love God and Love Others as Yourself.
     One of the topics Rick expounds on is not condemning those who have sinned. If they have repented and want to be accepted back in the church, etc, why do we feel like we can condemn them and push them away? Isn't this when they most need our love and support? Isn't this a prime opportunity to practice real love, the love of Christ? How many people do we push away from Christ simply because we treat them with condemnation?
     Then he says this:  "People are the most important thing God values. Are they important to you?"  If I had to answer honestly, I'd say I never really thought of it that way. But it's true. People are the only thing that will last forever, so why don't we focus more energy on giving them the good news of Jesus? If they are all that we can take with us to eternity, why are we so worried  about amassing money, praise, and positions, which matter nothing in eternity?
     Another thing I liked is that the person of authority set in place over you is not chance of fate, but rather is ordained or allowed by God. We have no way of seeing what is going to happen in the future because of a particular person being in authority, or what would have happened if our choice person had been chosen. If we do our part in obeying and praying for our authority, we can trust that God is in control and looking out for us.
     I enjoyed reading this book, and would recommend it. Rick has also written Real Love, and you can find more about him at RickBezet.com.

     I received a copy of this book from BAKER BOOKS per their blogger program, and was only asked to write an honest review.