Radical Review- Chapter 9 (Conclusion)

I am concluding my review of David Platt’s new book Radical today with my review of the final chapter. The last chapter is entitled “The Radical Experiment”. One could make a good argument that the entire book is building the case for the final chapter. The experiment is summed up in five separate challenges.

The Radical Experiment

The first challenge is to pray for the entire world. This seems simple enough at first, but interestingly Dr. Platt chose a title for this section that does not really match with what he is suggesting. What he really wants is for you to pray that God will send workers to the harvest. This is not praying for the lost, but praying for the ones that are already saved to get out there and share the gospel. I found this to be a most effective challenge and who knows, the Lord of the harvest may even send me. Of course it would not hurt to pray for the lost as well, but let’s face it when the Word of God is preached people get saved. So what we really need is more people preaching the Word of God.

The second challenge is to read through the entire Bible in a year. I have done this challenge several times in the past and it is definitely a way to become more familiar with what the Bible actually teaches. Too many of us have substituted reading what others have written about the word for the actual word. As Dr. Platt notes, we are content for our Sunday sermon or a daily two minute devotional when we should be hungering to be filled with His word every day. Set time aside to do this. It will make a difference in your life and have an effect on those around you.

The third challenge is to sacrifice a portion of your income for a specific purpose. This is not simple giving but going beyond what you can part with into actual sacrifice. This is a hard one for Americans to swallow. We typically do not want to make any sacrifices and money may be the most difficult sacrifice for us to make. I am honest enough to say that I am not there yet on this one. I have specific needs that I give to with faces attached to them, so it means more than a deduction on my income tax statement, but it does not hurt. I do actually make sacrifices of my money that do hurt but they have only been for my family. Perhaps that tells me something.

The fourth challenge is to serve in another context. As Dr. Platt states, it is even more important for us to be radical in our going. I do not necessarily agree with him that we have to go somewhere far away in order for this to make a difference in our lives. I have been serving in downtown Atlanta recently and I can drive down there in 30 minutes and it has made a difference. The more important thing is to get off your chair and go. Serve in a different capacity than you have before. Feed the hungry, or help clothe the poor- and share the Gospel with them as you do. I had the great joy a couple of weeks ago of being invited into a young lady’s house to pray for her after I helped deliver food to her. I pray that Angela has trusted my savior and His grace. It can be uncomfortable at times but at the end of the day you have a good feeling inside that God maybe used you for something outside of taking up space for a day.

The fifth challenge is to commit your life to a multiplying community. The important thing here is to remember how this was defined earlier in the book. This is not just committing to attend some mega-church but instead finding a body of believers where disciples are being made. This is the fount from which the other four challenges will flow. If you are not currently plugged into a local church you will have a difficult time meeting the challenges alone. Find a place where you can serve and get yourself plugged in.

I enjoyed this chapter very much and I hope to complete all of the challenges within a year. Not because it is some new thing or because Dr. Platt says that I should but because these are all things that we as Christians should be doing already. I will also say that overall I enjoyed this book both the first time and the second. I am sorry it took me so long to write a review but I wanted to be thorough. I will say that I do not agree with everything Dr. Platt says in the book but I definitely found some things in it that were of benefit to me. I hope that you do the same if you read it. If anyone would like to read my copy, let me know and I will get it to you.

Blessings, Bruce

Radical Review- Chapter 8

I am slowly moving toward the conclusion of my review of David Platt’s new book Radical. Chapter 8 sees Dr. Platt attempting to motivate us to go to the nations. This was not my favorite chapter in the book but it did have some nice points in it.

Living When Dying is Gain

The first suggestion in this chapter is to go where there is need. This is an excellent suggestion and I could not agree more. A great example of this locally is in downtown Atlanta. There are many needs and there are not enough workers. So many times we overlook what we can do right where we in favor of something more exotic or appealing. Knocking on doors and passing out food in the projects does not sound quite as appealing as going on a mission trip overseas and yet the need is right there. We should be going, but we should also be looking for needs to be met where we are as well. I do not have to focus my entire year on a one week trip 3000 miles away when I can focus 40 weeks locally at 1/10 the cost.

The second suggestion is that we should go into danger. I believe this is a bit misguided in its representation of scripture here. Dr. Platt is right to question that safety is exactly where God wants us, but suggesting that we intentionally seek out danger is flat out wrong. In fact later in the next section Dr. Platt quotes Jesus as saying “when you are persecuted in one place, flee to another”. Yet here he is suggesting that we intentionally seek out danger. Perhaps it could be better stated that our “going” could very well lead us into danger.

Dr. Platt is correct again in stating that we will not be loved for being radical followers of Christ. I have heard many people state that if more people were like Jesus then more people would come to Christ. Please remember that the 1st century Jews liked Jesus so much that they plotted to kill Him. There is a balance somewhere here and I am not sure where it is. The message of the cross is offensive but that does not mean that we must be as well. Truth in love requires tact that many of us are lacking and I am not immune to being tactless at times. Perhaps it is best stated that we should not be surprised to be persecuted but we should not intentionally be seeking out persecution either.

This chapter concludes with stories of heroes of the faith. People that have gone and paid heavy prices for their faith (Paton, Elliot, Studd) to make sure that some who had not heard of Christ would have the opportunity. Dr. Platt then relates the story of a modern martyr who died while she was in the mission field. This section is inspirational and leaves me questioning how much I would willingly lay down for Him. It is a good question to ask.

I have to be honest and say that I was a bit disappointed in this chapter overall although there were some high points that were worth reading. Most of this stemmed from the section “Go to Danger” and the reasons for this were mentioned above.

Radical Review- Chapter 6

Radical Review- Chapter 6

I am continuing my review of David Platt’s new book Radical. Today we turn our attention somewhat to the American dream and the pursuit of stuff.

How Much is Enough?

At the root of the chapter is the question that we must ask ourselves. How much material wealth is enough? This is a tricky question. Too many Christians today have been taught that material blessings follow faith. This is explicitly taught by many prosperity preachers but Dr. Platt is quick to point out that it may underlie our own faith as well. After all, if I am following Jesus and doing what I am supposed to do doesn’t He want to reward my obedience? This is simply bad theology at best and borderline heresy at worst.

The question becomes tricky in its application. Does every follower of Christ need to sell everything to follow Him? Maybe not, but how do we know? Unfortunately this question is not addressed as well as it could be.

For most of the chapter Dr. Platt focuses on the abundance that we have as Americans and the lack of basic needs that so many are suffering from. I must say that I agree with Dr. Platt that there are needs and that we can not simply sit on our hands while the world is starving. The danger here though is to act out of compassion for the physical needs and export the same theology that has led to the American church losing her way. The focus should not be on feeding and clothing the poor but on bringing them the Gospel. Of course we must also be addressing their physical needs as well, but this is secondary to the message of the cross.

I will add that I think that the church needs to lead the way in taking up this challenge. It is no wonder that we have churchgoers that are focused on their bottom line when they attend churches that are more concerned with how much you give than they are with meeting your spiritual needs. We want bigger buildings and better productions and I must ask myself the same question for the church that I do of myself- how much is enough? If our primary outreach teaches the community how to balance their checkbook and not how to follow Christ, then what have we accomplished? Certainly not making disciples.

The past two weeks I have been participating in an outreach in inner-city Atlanta that seems to be on the right track. We have been going into poor neighborhoods and delivering food to people that need it and also praying with them and offering them love without judgment. The idea is to make disciples. There are many approaches but if we are not striving toward that, then we will not have the multiplying community that was the focus of the previous chapter.

What I found to be most interesting about this chapter is that Dr. Platt seemed to focus on our emotions when making his appeal for us to ask ourselves how much is enough. This appeal seems to be rooted in our humanistic tendencies. However, when we get to how his church has applied this thinking to their ministry I see nothing but Biblical responses. They have adopted within their community and sponsored churches overseas out of their abundance. This is the Biblical picture of using our abundance to extend God’s glory. I am not sure how he could have made his argument better but it seems that he could have. Especially considering how his church applied it to the needs that they saw.

Radical Review- Chapter 4

Radical Review- Chapter 4


I am continuing my review of David Platt’s book Radical. As part of my review I am actually reading through the book a second time. The chapter I am reviewing today was not one of my favorites the first time I read the book. Perhaps there is a good reason for that.

The Great Why of God

The beginning of chapter 4 is somewhat shocking to me. The first time I read it I was appalled. Dr. Platt relates how while meeting with some church leaders and sharing some of his mission work, they related that they wished God would just annihilate the people. Surely there can not be people in the church that have such an attitude? A second reading of this chapter forced me to examine my own attitude concerning the lost (especially later in the chapter). Perhaps being appalled is the appropriate first step that leads to conviction.

Dr. Platt attempts in this chapter to explain why God has created us. He believes that there is a two fold purpose and that is to enjoy His grace and to extend His glory. He then goes on to examine what most Americans believe and contrast it with what we should believe. This is brought home by transforming the sentence “God loves me.” into “God loves me so that I might make Him known.” By doing so, we have changed the focus of the Gospel from ourselves to God. I would also add that focusing only on “God loves me” would be only enjoying God’s grace and not extending His glory.

The next section of the chapter focuses on the excuses people make to not take the Gospel to the nations. This ranges from “I’m not called to missions” to “I only feel called to local missions.” I have to admit that a second reading here led me to reexamine myself a bit. I have used the excuse that I have never felt God calling me to foreign missions before and yet His word plainly and clearly calls me. I am sure that I am not the only one who has been waiting for a special invitation and who has felt that missions in the US was more than adequate (a prideful I am doing more than most perhaps?), but the clear message is that we are to make His name known to all the nations. Local stuff is great- don’t stop doing that. Supporting those who are going is great as well- don’t’ stop doing that either. But still I am left with “How will they know unless someone tells them?” Perhaps it would be wise to join the list of someones.

Enjoy His grace. Extend His glory. I would be cautious to affirm that these are the sole reasons that God has created us, but I can certainly affirm that there is overwhelming Biblical support that these are at least among the reasons that He did. A second reading of this chapter convicted me more than the first time that my lack of action is no better than the words of the people the people that appalled me. Call it virtual atheism if you will. Perhaps this is why I did not like this chapter the first time around. It is easy to sit back and attempt to defend your actions. I love God; see how my actions here (locally) demonstrate my trust in Him? This is all well and good but our lack of action elsewhere shows us to be no better than the church leaders Dr. Platt met with. Perhaps we are even in a worse position for these leaders at least were honest about how they felt. It is something to think about.

This chapter also included (IMO) two of my friend Canyon’s objections. The first is the semi-appeal to a sort of social Gospel by working on our emotions and perhaps even guilting us into action. The reference to a poor woman in Honduras who was 8 months pregnant and living in a dump does tend to make us think about her physical needs. However, Platt clearly states that our purpose is to enjoy God’s grace and extend His glory. Our primary goal should be to make Him known to this woman but if we neglect her physical needs then what good is our faith?

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
(James 2:15-17)

The second objection is the appeals found in this chapter to “God told me to do this”. I have to question whether the mentions of this type of scenario are actual verbal communications with God or merely a way of communicating the conviction of the Holy Spirit that a person feels. I would also state that any conviction one feels should be weighed against scripture to see if it is Biblical. I must say that when reading this the first time, I took these references to mean the latter. A second reading has not convinced me otherwise. I certainly agree that one must be careful in telling others that God has told you to do something. Perhaps better phrasing could have been chosen that would have left little doubt in the reader’s mind. For example “When confronted with this abject poverty and in light of James 2:15-17 I could not help but feel convicted that I could be doing more with what God has given me.”

Overall I felt more convicted by this chapter when I read it again.

Radical Review- Chapter 2

Radical Review- Chapter 2

I am continuing my review of David Platt’s new book Radical subtitled “Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream”. In chapter 2 Dr. Platt turns his attention to the Gospel message.

Discovering the Truth and Beauty of the Gospel

Dr. Platt begins chapter 2 by explaining how he first came up with the idea for Secret Church. It arose from the desire of members of a real underground house church to have a better understanding of the Bible. This led to almost non-stop teaching by Dr. Platt through the Old Testament and eventually through the New Testament as well. Platt then relates how he has incorporated this practice into his own church. Six hours of no flash Bible study on a Friday night may seem like it would not go over well, but these events sell out well in advance.

The next sections of this chapter focus on who God is, who we are, and how we should respond. Platt does not dwell as long on who God is as I would like but he does a nice job of summarizing how we have minimized some of God’s attributes that may cause us discomfort. If you have never read Your God is too Small by J. B. Phillips, I would suggest that it does a more thorough treatment of the subject.

Dr. Platt is solid in his description of who we are and how we have fallen short although this is also briefer than it might have been. I will add that his story of the preaching professor that would take his students to the cemetery and implore them to try to raise the dead was a sober reminder that only the words of God can bring a man back to life. All of us need God to bring us to life and it is only through His words that this can be accomplished.

How should we respond to the news that God both loves us and is angry because we have offended Him? Dr. Platt takes the time to hammer home the warning in Matthew 7- not everyone who professes to be saved will be saved. This is a sobering passage. I agree that we should examine ourselves and make our calling and election sure, but I am a bit unsure of Dr. Platt’s recommendations after this.

Overall, I enjoyed chapter 2. However, there were a couple of sticking points for me that I would like to point out. I am afraid that in our rush to rid our church of “Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your lives” that we will actually stop telling people that God does love them and focus only on His wrath. Clearly this would be wrong and if you need an example just Google Fred Phelps. The second is one that I found prevalent throughout the book and I will touch on more later. Dr. Platt seems to want to apply a Great Commission hermeneutic to scripture and I do not take exception to this. The problem is that Dr. Platt struggles with it and you end up with a mixed message. This is highlighted in the section on how we should respond (subtitled Radical Revelation to be Radically Received). The message seems to be that the Gospel requires a radical response and we are incapable of making that response but we better do it.

Radical Review- Chapter 1

Radical Review- Chapter 1

My good friend Canyon posted a review of David Platt’s book Radical on his blog and asked for my comments. Rather than responding to each of his points, I am simply going to provide a summary of each chapter and my brief thoughts on Dr. Platt’s work. Be warned ahead of time that I will be providing a summary that may spoil some of the book for you if you have not read it. I am not as eloquent a speaker or writer as Dr. Platt though, so I am sure that I will not ruin it too much.

What Radical Abandonment to Jesus Really Means

Dr. Platt spends much of the first chapter contrasting the call of Jesus during His ministry with our commitment to Him today. To emphasize his point, Dr. Platt appeals to some of the more outrageous statements that Jesus made during His ministry.

And he said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
(Luke 9:23)

So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
(John 6:53-54)

As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." And Jesus said to him, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Yet another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."
(Luke 9:57-62)

Each of these statements stands in stark contrast with the modern message that Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Take up your instrument of torture and follow me. Drink my blood and feed off of my flesh. Abandon your life and let the dead bury their own. If nothing else, Dr. Platt does a good job of getting our attention in the first chapter. However he does not stop there.

Dr. Platt also gives several examples of churches in other countries where people have given up everything to follow Christ. He is quick to point out that these people have done so gladly. They take joy in their persecution and consider themselves blessed just to be able to hear the Gospel. When one contrasts this with the church in America it is not too difficult to see that our idea of persecution and suffering is not the same as the rest of the world.

There are two contrasting points that I took out of the first chapter. The first is quite simple: am I really ready to abandon my own desires and pursuits to follow Christ? Or as the first chapter is aptly titled (slightly paraphrased) is Jesus someone worth losing everything for? While it is quite easy to answer this question yes, it is far more difficult to show by our actions that we believe what we are affirming.

The second point is how do I respond to this call to follow Christ without tying myself to some sort of legalistic obligation? Am I being radical enough? Dr. Platt addresses this some in an online conversation with Kevin DeYoung. We should not be responding to the call out of fear or obligation but out of our love to Christ and His call to obedience. The trick is to figure out if you are really following Jesus or merely paying Him lip service.

What I see in the first chapter is a simple call. Jesus said “Follow me.” Are you following Him? Are you really ready to give up anything to follow Him? I can certainly understand why this chapter was chosen to be the booklet entitled “The Radical Question”. It gets your attention and challenges you (the reader) to examine yourself. The call to examine yourself is Biblical and we should constantly be on guard against becoming complacent. I will leave you today with Paul’s words:

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
(2Corinthians 13:5)