JESUS JOURNEY, by Trent Sheppard

This is a Christ-centered work of non-fiction. The subject is the Humanity of the Person of Christ, the Son of God. The author, Trent Sheppard, is a pastor. He helps to pastor an urban house church, which is called EKKLESIA. He oversees Alpha's work with college students in New England. Sheppard is the author of GOD ON CAMPUS. He has traveled to 50 countries with his teachings. He starts his book with an Introduction and prefaces his chapters with a Note. Every chapter begins with a cover page containing a Bible verse. And each chapter begins with a Bible verse. He splits his 40 chapters in five parts. He ends with an Epilogue, Acknowledgements, and Notes for sources he used.

This book is pretty much what I expected. Trent Sheppard highlights the humanity of Jesus, God the Son. But he never undermines His deity, His perfection, His uniqueness, or His sinlessness. In this book, Trent shows that there is nothing wrong with humanity itself, only with SINFUL HUMANITY. And every one of us, with the exception of Jesus, has been steeped in our sinful humanity. Sheppard's theology is good and accurate. And his book is so comforting and encouraging as he shows that we can't fathom all that Jesus suffering for us. But, because of all He has suffered, Jesus can understand us and "feel our pain." I bring this up not because I prefer to but because the Bible would would say something else. On page 199 of this book, Sheppard discusses all that Jesus suffered on the cross. And he gets to the part where Jesus cries on the cross, calling on HIs Father. Sheppard seems to deny that God experiences wrath at sin, or that God literally forsook His Son at the cross. In fact, he seems to deny the teaching of JUSTIFICATION-the teaching that God treated Jesus as if He lived our sinful lives--so He could treat us as if we had lived Jesus' perfect life. He denies that this transaction took place. This is troubling, as the Bible teaches this so clearly. Read the book of Romans.

I recommend this book for anyone who is interested in learning about the Person of Jesus. It will give them great insight into Who He is. But with the seeming denial of the teaching of justification, what certain readers find on page 199 may confuses or mislead them. I'm thinking of new Christians and non-Christians. This book is for those who are afflicted and need to be comforted or encouraged. It seems not to be for those who are comfortable or impenitent.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Book Look Bloggers, in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to give a positive review of this book.