By C. Baxter Kruger
I have felt let down by Christianity many times. And sometimes my faith has felt old and worn out. I’ve longed for something more. I’ve felt that there must be more to this following Jesus than what I’ve experienced so far. C. Baxter Kruger has been one of the influential authors who have helped me to reconnect with God in a whole new way. And he did it again in this latest book, Patmos.
I could identify with many things experienced by Aidan, the main character in Patmos. “He was determined but blind. He could not “see what is,” so he invented something that he could see in his own head and died of exhaustion, pursuing it to what he thought would be freedom.” In a dream or vision, Aidan is swept away to the island of Patmos, where he meets the Apostle John. Many things John shares with Aidan challenges him, as it does me. John shocks Aidan by telling him, “Either Jesus is in us or we are separated from him. If we are separated, then we must find a way to him, either through the mind with the Greeks or through the law with the Pharisees.” John then explains to him how believing we are separated from God and having to find our way back to him is our great darkness. He says, “Not one day, not one second in my life have I ever known rest. Now I could see why. I had spent my life trying to get ‘in.’”
Though some of the conversation in the book felt disconnected and difficult to follow, I caught a glimpse into a whole new way of thinking about God and salvation. Kruger pulled me into great truths in the simplest language he can use, truths difficult to put into words. He reminded me of things Western Christianity has lost in its desire to be popular and powerful and correct. Perhaps it has even lost sight of the deepest truth there is…God in us. He sums it up with this statement: “The gospel is not the news that we can receive Jesus into our lives. The gospel is the news that Jesus has received us into his.” That is good news! Patmos just might help you fall in love with God all over again…it did me.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. 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.
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