Jesus is ______________

Along with a cool title (and a cool book cover), Judah Smith’s latest book was a good read. While I don’t think he really said anything brand new, he does write about Jesus in a fresh way to remind us of not only of who Jesus is, but how He looks at us. I appreciated Smith’s transparency about his life and ministry, his humor throughout the book and the way he presents Jesus.

One of more compelling quotes from the book was this one: “If you want to know what God thinks of you, or what God would say about your sin, or how God would respond it he were face-to-face with you, just look at Jesus, and you’ll know.”

Judah Smith’s church launched the “Jesus is                       ” campaign in Seattle to get Jesus on the minds of people in the city.  In this book, Smith offers a look at Jesus that is far from what people might think about Him.  In one chapter he shares how Jesus is Grace.  Some people (especially church people) don’t want to go too crazy on the grace angle because people might start sinning.  I really like what Smith wrote next and it depicts his humor pretty well:  “News flash: they are already sinning.  People don’t need grace to sin.  They need grace to deal with the sin they already have.”  Jesus is not surprised or shocked by our sin; that’s why He came.

Smith gives us a picture of Jesus who knows us deeply, knows all about our sin and humanity, yet still invites us to relationship with Him.  He even loves us.  In the book, Smith shows Jesus as Friend, as Grace, as The Point, as Here and as Happy.

It is a good read for an individual seeking to know who Jesus is and for the person who is a follower of Jesus.  The book would also make a good study for a small group to really dig into the passages Smith presents to talk about who Jesus is.  If you get a chance, grab a copy of Jesus is                        .

(I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own)