Radical…A Review of Dr. David Platt's New Book
Most of us can quickly define the dichotomy between a “Christian” and “Secular” worldview, but what about the difference between “Christian” and “Christian?” What does it mean to live “counter-culturally” within the mainstream church today?
We as Christians have tried to define ourselves so as to be easily distinguished from the “world” and defend our faith. But while we were constructing walls, something was quietly taking place within those fortresses. Dr. David Platt turns the spotlight on the church within those walls exposing a “missional malfunction.”
This book IS NOT about making us feel comfortable. If you are committed to the status quo and prefer measuring personal spirituality via comparative analysis then Radical is not for you. However, if you desire to make a difference and be a counter-cultural Christian, then I highly suggest it. However, be aware that it will challenge your thinking and usher you to a point of decision!
Because the Millennial Generation responds to a challenge, this book will resonate with them. They are magnetically drawn to a cause that matters. They burn within to do something that affects this life and the next. Radical cuts right to the core issue and Biblically defines a life lived beyond “self.”
Perhaps one of the most difficult verses in all of Scripture for Christians is Matthew 16:24 where Jesus said, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” For most of us, self denial is the ultimate sacrifice. “We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves” (p. 7).
Radical is not designed to motivate by guilt. It is a book written to wake us up. It is a call to action. It is a book that defines a counter-cultural paradigm for today’s church. “God blesses his people with extravagant grace so they might extend his extravagant glory to all peoples on the earth” (p. 69).
A poignant illustration of the current condition of today’s church and its desired state is explained on pages 169-170. I am not going to recount the story (you should get the book and read it for yourself), but the bottom line is well worth repeating: “Things look radically different on a luxury liner than they do on a troop carrier . . . The church, like the SS United States, has been designed for battle. The purpose of the church is to mobilize people to accomplish a mission. Yet we seem to have turned the church as troop carrier into the church as luxury liner”(p. 169-170).
If you are tired of the status quo, if you want something beyond yourself that expands your world…Radical is a good place to start.
