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Christian Nonfiction. Religion & Spirituality. Sociology. Nonfiction. HTML: A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Abandon dead, dry, rule-keeping and embrace the promise of being truly known and deeply loved. Jefferson Bethke burst into the cultural conversation in 2012 with a passionate, provocative poem titled "Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus." The 4-minute video literally became an overnight sensation, with 7 million YouTube views in its first 48 hours (and 23+ million in a year). The message blew up on social-media, triggering an avalanche of responses running the gamut from encouraged to enraged. In Jesus > Religion, Bethke unpacks similar contrasts that he drew in the poem�??highlighting the difference between teeth gritting and grace, law and love, performance and peace, despair and hope. With refreshing candor he delves into the motivation behind his message, beginning with the unvarnished tale of his own plunge from the pinnacle of a works-based, fake-smile existence that sapped his strength and led him down a path of destructive behavior.Bethke is quick to acknowledge that he's not a pastor or theologian, but simply a regular, twenty-something who cried out for a life greater than the one for which he had settled. Along his journey, Bethke discovered the real Jesus, who beckoned him beyond the props of false religi… (more)
User reviews
He's got some things right, but we are all in different places in our lives and though he doesn't think there are Biblical scriptures on certain things there are he just needs to look
Just because someone finds something sinful/unclean, then to that person it is. As a person's walk with God becomes more holy the filter gets tighter and sin is more obvious. So where he may not find anything wrong with listening to certain movies or listening to certain music or whatever, to another person they may. The other seemed to be judging these people as being judgmental. And it is true sometimes the person that has the tighter filter needs to be reminded that someone else's filter is different, but all should abide by His word.
In some places the author comes across pretty opinionated and doesn't have all the facts, (even included a tall tale as factual), and I won't even get into the scripture part of the errors, but I think overall his heart is in the right place and it will probably attract young people that think anything to do with Jesus is about religion or things you "can't do", perhaps "Sunday/secular Christians".
I still recommend the book. It ends on a really good note.