So-Called Christian:
Healing Spiritual Wounds Left by the Church by Jim Turner
There is self-destructive spirit within the church today
that is doing untold damage to believers of every stripe. Pastor Jim Turner in his new book, So-Called
Christian seeks to explore these wounds that the church has caused its members
and move toward a more healing approach to church. What did Jim miss on his journey as a
Christian about the church, namely that, “The most basic truth: that real,
Spirit-begotten Love produces Unity among brothers and sisters, and that
Christian Unity is the burning passion of Christ (16).”
Jim places the weight of the disease that is destroying the
church not at the hands of liberal education, socialistic governments or
Hollywood culture but in the heart of the church itself. It is suffering from an autoimmune disease
(23). How does this take place? Jim locates Man’s Sinfulness as primary at
the root deterioration of the Church, but also proposes solutions that ‘overcome
the effects of the disease,’ and that the gospel gives us hope for a powerful
and healthy church (25). In the appeal
for doctrinal purity, some members of the body of Christ have willingly thrown
down flaming verbal arrows at other believers, in turn, deeming other believers
as the enemy. The carelessness of our
words often causes division among brothers in Christ, therefore, when to speak
and what words we use are very important for the purpose of Christian unity
(30-31). One of the bold sections in the
chapter Just Ignore It: It Will Go Away points to the perilous road of aligning
ourselves to much on one person. The
sections reads, “When we invest too much confidence in a single teacher, we
risk clouding our judgment and creating divisions in the body(36).” I would submit that when we also put too much
confidence in one specific doctrine or doctrinal system we run the risk of
creating divisions in the body of Christ.
Far more than just our words, our attitudes about these issues create
tension, anger, and disillusionment with other believers.
What I really enjoyed about this book is the way Jim brought
us around face to face with Jesus concerning unity. He writes, “The unity of the Church is THE
PROOF to the world that God the Father sent God the Son and God the Father
loves the world….A unified Church shouts sacrificial love to the world (46-47).” Later on Jim writes, “To be accepted in the
beloved is our undisputed position in Christ (see Eph. 1:1-14). Living out this practically is our calling
(101).” Our union with Christ pushes us
into unity with other believers because we have a kind of hope that does not
disappoint, and secondly, our genuine relationship with believers is built on
that eternal hope that can never fade or perish.
Worth mentioning, Jim includes Dr. Norman Geisler’s article
in an Appendix, “The Essential Doctrines of the Christian Faith,” (Christian
Research Journal, volume 28, number 5 (2005).
Thanks to Ambassador International for the copy of this book
in exchange for an honest review.
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