Essential Christianity

Rico Tice

My heart was skipping with excitement as I read this book. J.D. writes with simplicity and grip—he teaches clearly because he understands deeply. This book will show you a devastating critique of the human condition that will ring true to your experience of life; and then it will reveal to you the overwhelming wonder of God’s solution in Jesus Christ. Whether you are an honest seeker or a mature pilgrim, I cannot commend this book highly enough to you.

Rebecca McLaughlin

If you’re wondering what on earth to believe in a confusing and often disappointing world, Essential Christianity could be just the lifeline you need. In it, pastor J.D. Greear peels back the layers that can get piled on top of Christianity and helps us see the 1st-century original, which offers life-changing hope to billions around the world today—including you.

“Jesus on Marriage”

I'm here on this site, by way of listing to Pastor Greear's podcast about "Jesus on Marriage." I'm divorced for about 14 years now and I'm still single. However, I date every few years when I feel like it. Lol
I loved listing to this particular podcast, because it helped me to see that God's plan for my life may not be for me to get married again. I'm able to live the rest of my life in God's peace, even if that means being single for the rest of my life.
I find myself basking in his light. My new look on life is truly "God's Plan."

Thank you Pastor Greear!

“Good Introduction”

Pastor and author J.D. Greear explains the basic story of Christianity in this book, focusing on different foundational elements of faith in each chapter. Greear's writing style is conversational, honest, and humorous, and he writes about complex ideas in ways that people can connect to regardless of their existing background with faith or level of interest in theology or philosophy.

"Essential Christianity" will help and encourage Christians who want to better understand and articulate their beliefs, and it is accessible to skeptics who are curious about Christianity. However, I don't think that this book will be useful to many people who are deconstructing childhood faith. Greear writes in an understanding way about why many young adults are leaving the institutional church and questioning their faith, but the book doesn't say anything that lapsed or questioning evangelicals haven't heard before. It's best for people who already agree with Greear or have never heard or considered what he's saying.

On a related note, I didn't think that the intermission regarding same-sex sexuality was helpful. Greear needed to include it instead of skipping over controversial verses in his source material, but he didn't add anything new to a contentious conversation that is a hang-up for many people considering faith. This doesn't address current shifts in the debate and won't change anyone's mind, and Greear doesn't engage with any alternate interpretations of those verses in Romans, not even to argue against them.

Overall, I would recommend "Essential Christianity" to Christians, and to skeptics who are curious about the Christian faith and want to read a book that covers a wide variety of information in a highly readable way, instead of taking scholarly deep dives. This is a good introduction to foundational Christian beliefs, even though I think it could have been better.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

“Overall, a good baseline for covering the key points of Christianity”

In Essential Christianity, J.D. Grear endeavors to explore the key points of the Christian faith.

Using Paul’s letter to the Romans, he covers the “essentials” of the Christian life. He aims to answers hard questions that deal with religion, the struggle that comes with the Christian life, and overall truth.

I really appreciated the use of scripture in this book. Obviously, Grear is drawing from an entire book in the Bible. But he is careful to cite and use scripture as the base for his framework. He is able to take a seemingly complicated subject (the essentials of Christianity) and offer an easy to digest explanation.

I also appreciated how Grear is clear that true Christianity is only best understood through the power of the gospel.

“The gospel is not just the diving board off which we jump into the pool of Christianity; it’s the pool itself. The deeper you go into the gospel well, the sweeter and outer the water becomes.”

This book would be fitting for unbelievers, and particularly skeptics and those who have been “on the fence” about Christianity. It is also a great refresher for believers who are struggling to vocalize the tenants of their faith.

I received a free copy of this book from The Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review.

“A Great Introduction to the Christian Faith”

Often the books that are written for those who are seeking faith are quite short and simple, only presenting a very basic gospel outline without doing much of the cultural detail. This is the opposite of what Greear does, taking the time to walk through sections of Paul's letter to the Romans and showing the reader why the gospel is not only credible but also what we emotionally need and desire deep down. It would be a brilliant present for a friend who is starting to think about faith, especially if they have lots of questions that they want to be answered! This will give them something to really get their teeth into. But I also think this would be a perfect refresher for a new believer or someone who feels like God feels distant. This book helps to go back to basics, to see the core of the gospel and why this is what we need. A really refreshing read for the seeker and Christian alike!

“An essential read”

J. D. Greear sets a lofty goal in this book as the subtitle conveys. He seeks to communicate the heart of the gospel in ten words. In my humble opinion, he masterfully did exactly what he set out to do.

To accomplish this, he walks the reader through Paul’s epistle to the Romans. He states that his reason for doing so is that this letter is seen as “the clearest, purest, most in-depth explanation of Christian basics ever penned.” From this letter, Greear draws out the major emphases and gleans ten words that he expounds on in ten chapters. There are a few “intermissions” interspersed throughout these chapters that go in depth on some subjects to bring greater clarity to the reader.

Now, down to the nitty-gritty: this book is saturated in the gospel! There were so many things that I appreciated about reading it. I enjoyed some of the scientific stats that were used to point to the intelligent design of our world. (These alone led me to awe and worship!) I enjoyed being reminded of the good news in a systematic way. And I enjoyed how anyone could read this book and understand the essence of the gospel.

This book would be great for a seeker or someone new to the Christian faith, but quite honestly, it’s a book that every believer would benefit from! As Greear notes, “the gospel is not just the diving board off of which we jump into the pool of Christianity; it’s the pool itself.” We will never outgrow the gospel; Greear does a wonderful job of helping the reader to understand that as well as what it is and why it’s so important. Highly recommend!!

I received a copy of this book from The Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review.

“An apt apologetic work for our time”

Essential Christianity by J.D.Greear helpfully covers some of the basic tenets of Christianity. Each chapter is formulated around a keyword; and answers a common question about the faith. For example, Chapter seven ‘Inclusion’, engages with the suggestion that ‘all religions are basically the same’ – answering that Christianity stands alone as the only true revelation of God through Christ. Greear engages with this and other concepts through the guise of our postmodern culture, formulating an important apologetic work. The work is simple and straightforward. Greer uses accessible language and structure to outline key ideas, which will provoke thought and discussion in Christian circles and beyond.

The author has opted for a clear and straightforward approach. The book is designed to be read by a broad audience, and Greear has crafted a work which can be picked up by just about anyone, no matter their walk of life. Greear’s pastoral heart shines through in the book as he discusses issues sensitively and thoughtfully, looking to pull the reader into the true heart of Christianity. At times, the book introduces some terms that it does not expand on; for example, ‘irreducible complexity’. Whilst this may prompt the reader to further investigation, it can also have the effect of appearing to ‘overreach’ when it is not necessary.
Conclusively, this is an apt work for our cultural milieu, one that can assist newcomers to the faith, be a witness to the outside world, whilst also reminding older Christians about the blessedness of faith in God.

I received a free copy of this book from The Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review.