Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus Author: Kyle Idleman | Language: English | ISBN:
B004DCAUYM | Format: PDF
Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus Description
Are you a follower of Jesus? Don't answer too quickly. In fact, you may want to read this book before you answer at all. Consider it a 'Define the Relationship' conversation to determine exactly where you stand. You may indeed be a passionate, fully devoted follower of Jesus. Or, you may be just a fan who admires Jesus but isn't ready to let him cramp your style. Then again, maybe you're not into Jesus, period. In any case, don't take the question---Are you a follower of Jesus?---lightly. Some people don't know what they've said yes to and other people don't realize what they've said no to, says Pastor Kyle Idleman. But Jesus is ready to clearly define the relationship he wants with his followers. Not a Fan calls you to consider the demands and rewards of being a true disciple. With frankness sprinkled with humor, Idleman invites you to live the way Jesus lived, love the way he loved, pray the way he prayed, and never give up living for the One who gave his all for you.
- File Size: 1432 KB
- Print Length: 225 pages
- Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0310331935
- Simultaneous Device Usage: Up to 5 simultaneous devices, per publisher limits
- Publisher: Zondervan (June 7, 2011)
- Sold by: HarperCollins Publishing
- Language: English
- ASIN: B004DCAUYM
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,125 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #2
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Evangelism - #4
in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Ministry & Evangelism > Evangelism - #16
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Christian Living > Spiritual Growth
- #2
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Evangelism - #4
in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Ministry & Evangelism > Evangelism - #16
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Christian Living > Spiritual Growth
If you are looking for a book that preaches a comfortable, easy, complacent version of Christianity, then this isn't the book for you. This book will hit you between the eyes. Kyle Idleman pulls no punches. If you are open to it, this book is like a giant mirror. It will help you take an honest look at yourself and realize what is truly in your heart. Jesus was never interested in drawing a crowd. He was interesting in gaining followers. Not of religion or legalism, but followers of Him. Idleman goes to great lengths to help the reader understand what it means to truly follow Christ. We live in an age where the Gospel and cost of following Christ are often softened and watered down. I think there are many people in American churches who have chosen to "follow Christ" with little or no consideration of the cost. Following Christ is about much more than just a "Get Out of Hell Free" card. It involves sacrifice, dying to self, and surrendering everything to Him. He may not ask us to give up everything, but a true follower is willing to do so if He does ask.
I think we all know someone who is obsessed with a particular celebrity. For example, say someone is obsessed with Britney Spears. A true fan probably is a fan on Facebook, has every CD she has ever made, and possibly even a scrape book of every magazine article ever written about her. If something new comes out, they will go to great lengths to attain it. But Jesus has never been interesting in having a fan club. He wants all of us. If you read this book with an open heart and mind, and are willing to be honest with yourself, this book will help you know if you are really a follower of Christ or if you are merely a fan of His.
Our Bible study group was looking for another book we could go through together. Our study group is comprised of parents of teens and the intent of the group is to find ways to raise more Godly young men and women and become more adept Christian parents. We decided to take a break from overt parental study and go through a book that would develop us each spiritually. Since our church youth pastor highly recommended this book, we each bought one and got started.
When I downloaded the Kindle version of "Not a Fan," I quickly scanned through the Amazon reviews and noted the preponderance of positive reviews. Even the less enthusiastic reviews were positive. One 3-star reviewer's only criticism of the work was that the author did not advocate a more radical approach to Christianity.
I was raised in a very legalistic Christian denomination and now have a finely tuned antenna for calls to legalism. As I read through the book and we discussed it, I understood and resonated to the call for a deeper commitment to Christ. But I became more and more concerned with the underlying message of the book. For about the first 8 chapters or so, I kept hoping that the author was simply calling the Body of Christ to a deeper commitment. But the author finally clarified that when he is talking about his definition of "follower" or "fan" he is really talking about "saved" or "lost." From my reading of his book, the author believes and attempts to make the case that while there may be a large population of people who have accepted Jesus as their Savior, only the most radical and extreme are truly "Christian" and are therefore saved. Throughout the book, he gives examples of people who fit his definition of extreme Christianity, though to me some of the examples were fairly prosaic.
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