Jesus Manifesto

“Jesus Manifesto” by Leonard Sweet & Frank Viola published by Thomas Nelson

This book is about Jesus, not his life while on earth, but his life lived through you. The authors contend that we must get back to Jesus. “If the church does not reorient and become Christological at its core, any steps taken will be backwards.”

The beginning of the book began slow, the authors seemed to want to be devotional and inspirational, but failed on both counts.

With the chapter titled, “A Ditch on Either Side” the book became more interesting and practical. That believing the right things or doing the right things is not what being a Christian is all about-it is about following Jesus. The way, the truth and the life.

From there, they say, that following Jesus is not a cause. But it is a life lived beyond ourselves, stressing the point that it is not about us but about Him.
That in our desire for justice, it is not justice per se that we need or want but the Just One who is Jesus.
The authors state that Jesus was rejected everywhere except at Bethany. Then they give some ways that he was accepted and relates that to how we should accept Him.

I liked this quote, “While Jesus wasn’t political in the modern sense of the word, He was political in this sense; Christ was the beginning of the change of the world. He inaugurated a new creation. And he showed us how prayer might set us on the right road to peace before politics.” p. 119

Another quote, “The earth awaits a body of Christians in every city who will receive Jesus utterly and completely.” p.158

I give this book 3 stars. It was to propositional (something you would not expect from Sweet) and clichéd. It would have been better with some real life examples of people who are allowing Jesus to live through them today.