The Prodigal God

It read more like a sermon than a book. In my opinion Tim spends a lot of time, too much time, rehashing and restating what it means to be an older brother and what an “older brother” looks like today instead of who the Father is and what He does. The book would have been more appropriately titled, “The Elder Brother Today”.

From beginning to end it challenged me to look to Christ. So many things in this life pull our attention away from the Father, but he is waiting for us in the end at the feast. The writing was easy to read and very challenging.

I thought the book was an excellent explanation of Jesus parable of the Prodigal Son, but leaves me with the feeling that I have never really seen true Christianity. I have always felt like I represented the elder brother of this parable, but that was just the way it was and was certainly a lot better than being the bad son that was the “Prodigal “. I’ve always been a little put out by wild living people that get, “saved” and then have this “glowing” testimony of how bad they were and now how much God is,”blessing and using” them to minister to the “lost”. Yet they eventually become the “spiritually elite” within the church and are as “legalistic” in there ministry as the Pharisees. In the many decades I’ve been in fundamentalist/pentecostal churches and as a pastor myself at one time in my life, I really would be hard pressed to really see anyone that stood out as an example of Christ I would want to be like. Not one measures up to what I would consider a true and authentic example of true Christianity. This book only serves to validate that feeling. I feel the only hope Mankind has is the fact that eventually ALL will be saved. “As in Adam, ALL die, so in Christ, shall ALL be made alive”. If that’s not the Gospel, “good news”, then where’s the hope that all of us deeply flawed people, from Adam to the newest baby born, have any hope at all.

What a great book! Shined light on dark corners of my heart. Areas I couldn’t see before but now am able to. Thank you.

Disclosure: I'm partial to teachings that challenge the norm or introduce new aspects to old stories. The thing I love about this book is that Mr Keller reveals aspects about the culture of the time we wouldn't necessarily know in a modern western society. He opens up our eyes to see as a New Testament Jew would have seen, to hear the message Jesus was presenting to the Pharisees and teachers of the law. We typically see this parable as a nice story about a wayward son forgiven and restored by his loving father after wasting his inheritance away. What Keller presents to us is the self-sacrificial attitude of the father in the story and the lostness of the second older son. Also, Jesus' audience is part of the understanding of the story. There was a purpose to the way he framed this story that caused his listeners to react and begin thinking about their understanding of God. I recommend this book to absolutely every Christian and any other reader wanting a glimpse into the true character of our Creator. You will be encouraged and challenged to see and understand God the way Jesus knows him. You will not be disappointed, I think.

This book brought light to a story I have know since early childhood.

It was easy to understand that I have flip-flopped between the two mindsets described by Ps. Keller and find out how many times I have been the elder brother condemning others because of my bitterness. Thankfully, God loves us and accepts us through His Son, and that will make the difference in my life.

Great! Hit home in so many ways. Life changing category of a book.

Although I have listened to Tim Keller speak and have watched him in interviews, The Prodigal God is the first book I have read from the Presbyterian pastor. It was a gift from from my place of employment - something they do for the teachers at the start of every year. Once I complete a few other books on my reading list, I hope to borrow Keller's The Reason for God from a colleague later in the school year. The Prodigal God is a small book that helped me see the Parable of the Lost Son in a new light. Although I recommend reading this gospel-centered book, I suggest saving $12 by finding a comfy chair at a nearby bookstore or library and reading the book in a couple of hours.

This is by far one of the best books I have read in a long time. It challenges our faith and all the whole sets us free!