Get it. Read it. Heed it. Reread it. Live it.

 Gods at War by Kyle Idleman, in my opinion, is his best work thus far.  He is known for the bestseller Not a Fan, which was an okay book.  It took too much of a “tongue in cheek” approach; however, that is not the case with Gods at War.  This manuscript shoots straight from the hip and hits the mark.  It will point out the “gods” in your life that you often overlook.  

You can tell my thoughts from the title of the review, and that read, heed, and reread is stated for a very specific reason.  As we go through our seasons of life, we may be struggling in one of the four “temples” that he identifies – pleasure (food, sex, entertainment); power (success, money, achievement); and love (romance, family, me) – but that struggle may shift into another area over time.  We need to be vigilant in protecting our hearts from the lures of these “gods.”  These “gods” act similarly to a pack of wolves:  where you find one, you can know for sure that others are close at hand.

Idleman sets up his work by discussing topics in each of the three mentioned “temples.”  Prior to doing so, he sets the stage through his first section (comprised of four chapters) entitled  “gods at war.”  The beauty of this section is his slow, deliberate, but detailed examination of the problems in modern Christianity.  He says that idolatry “isn’t just one of many sins; rather it’s the one great sin that all others come from” (page 22).  He proves his point rather easily by using the Israelites at Mt, Sinai as an example; yet, he does not let the reader off so easily.  Quickly and adeptly, the attention shifts to modern times as he declares that we have not learned from the mistakes of history but are dooming ourselves by repeating them – trading “the Creator God for a god of their own creation” (page 25).  

The third chapter is one of the clearest explanations of the phrase “jealous God” that can be found in Scripture.  In hearing that term used in the sentence with God, people will posit the following syllogism:  God cannot sin but can be jealous, so either God can sin or God cannot be jealous.  That’s a flawed understanding because we view jealousy as a negative trait, which often is in human hands.  Idleman shows that the words jealous and zealous are nearly synonymous in Scripture (same Hebrew term in the original).  Stop and think about that for a moment – “you can’t understand His jealousy without some understanding of his relentless, powerful love [zealous] for you, because they are intertwined” (page 49).  Simply, God wants all of us and will not be satisfied with just a part of us. 

When you read Idleman’s Gods at War, be sure to read this with a companion work by John Piper – Don’t Waste Your Life.  While Idleman astutely points out the problem of modern idolatry, Piper will counter by depicting what our modern lives must become.  Sir Francis Bacon is credited with saying:  “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”  I believe that the above-mentioned books meet the latter criteria in that they should be enjoyed rather than sampled.  As you revisit them, allow them to drive you to Scripture to get your life right.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth

Rice Broocks fully fits the title in his book God’s Not Dead:  Evidence for God in an Age of Uncertainty.  He adopts an interesting approach to meet this thesis by offering an exposition on some atheistic beliefs based in science before turning to the truth that is God’s Word.   Ultimately, he hammers home three significant points – (1) evidence-based faith is not blind, (2) life has a purpose and a meaning, and (3) God does exist and has revealed Himself to all of humanity through Jesus Christ His Son.

If you are looking for a detailed philosophical work that will chip away at the atheistic foundations based upon blind assumptions, debate tricks, ridicule of Christians, and blatant deception, this is not the work for you.  Try out Mitch Stokes recent work entitled A Shot of Faith to the Head.  On the other hand, if you see an intellectual honest and accessible work that can be ready by Christians at various stages in their maturity, then by all means get this book.

The first six chapters of Broocks’ manuscript tackle the issues of faith and science.  He moves from a definitive statement that God is not dead through the relevance of faith to a purposeful existence in life.  He extensively quotes both sides of the argument and lands squarely upon the side of God.  He shows convincingly how atheists want to ridicule and mock Christians by orchestrating a lie that you cannot believe in science and God.  Multiple scientists have come forward to show that is not true.  Broocks has the ability to make some complex issues rather simple.  He succinctly summarizes one chapter with this statement:  “a pointless beginning points to a pointless existence.”  Thus, if we believe that we do have a purpose, as atheists will admit, then we must have a purposeful beginning which means the current scientific explanation (big bang theory) does not fit.  That, in and of itself, lends credence to a Creator.

The last 4 chapters shift to the historicity of Jesus and evidence found in the Bible and Christians who have been changed by God’s grace.  I did not expect the merger of these two topics in this book, but they are quite effective and lead to a wonderful conclusion – (1) God did, in fact, make the world; (2) God lives in the hearts of humans that bend to His will; (3) God, as Creator, is the only author of life; (4) God is in total control of the world, and (5) God did all of the above so that we would seek Him and thus fulfill the void in our hearts and souls.  

One interesting part that I will further investigate is Broocks’ mentioning of Antony Flew.  He was an avowed atheist that changed his mind in 2004 by stating that, without a doubt, God did exist.  Very little was said by Broocks other than Flew wrote a book to outline his rationale for changing his mind.  I will probably peruse that very soon.  Interestingly, I visited with Wikipedia page and note this statement:  “This book (and Flew's conversion itself) has been the subject of controversy, following an article in The New York Times Magazine alleging that Flew had mentally declined.”  That simple line seems to offer further proof that Broocks mentioned – rather than offer a true debate on the issues, atheists are more comfortable flinging barbs in the court of public opinion.  The assertion is that an intellectual atheist could only change their mind due to the debilitation of their mind due to age.  Strange is it not?

I do consider this book worthy of a read for anyone on either side of this debate.  I do not believe it will change an atheist’s mind because that can only occur through the power of God.  It can, however, bolster a Christian’s faith by providing evidence that God is fully alive and working in this world.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”