25 Reasons Why Jesus Was Born
Book Reviews aim to provide succinct, thoughtful summaries of books I have read. They contain quotes from the book, thoughts from others, and also some thoughts of my own. Typically they will be structured in the following order: author, introduction, message and purpose, remarkable chapter, and conclusion. This review will cover 25 Reasons Why Jesus Was Born, a book celebrating Advent and the miraculous story of Jesus.
Author
Scott Jackson
Introduction
25 Reasons Why Jesus Was Born is a primer on better understanding why Jesus came to earth and the extent of what He did for humanity. The book helps take our eyes off the usual hustle and bustle of the Christmas season and places them firmly on the greatest gift we could ever know: Jesus Christ.
Message and Purpose
25 Reasons Why Jesus Was Born is designed to be read leading up to Christmas. The intention is that the book will be started on December 1st and culminating with Reason Twenty-Five (see below) on Christmas Day. However, Jackson notes that reading the book at any point throughout the year is perfectly fine, as we could all be reminded of how worthy Christ is of our praise and adoration each and every day of the year.
The book is twenty-five chapters (or reasons) long. With Jackson's approval, I've been given permission to briefly outline them below:
Reason One: To Be the Last Sacrifice
Reason Two: To Live Out the Law Perfectly
Reason Three: To Establish a New Covenant
Reason Four: To Serve Others
Reason Five: To Establish Peace on Earth
Reason Six: To Train Men
Reason Seven: To Teach Us to Pray
Reason Eight: To Give Clarity on Religion
Reason Nine: To Resist Temptation
Reason Ten: To Condemn False Teachers
Reason Eleven: To Further the Holy Spirit's Work
Reason Twelve: To Break the Silence
Reason Thirteen: To Become Sin
Reason Fourteen: To Fulfill Prophesy
Reason Fifteen: To Show Us the Way
Reason Sixteen: To Claim the Throne
Reason Seventeen: To Gain Victory over Death
Reason Eighteen: To Rise from the Grave
Reason Nineteen: Because He Loves Us So
Reason Twenty: To Rescue Us
Reason Twenty-One: To Display God's Power
Reason Twenty-Two: To Heal Our Diseases
Reason Twenty-Three: To Be Prophet, Priest and King
Reason Twenty-Four: To Be Our Redeemer and Savior
Reason Twenty-Five: To Give God All the Glory
Although you now have the full twenty-five reasons, this is just a start. Each reason is expounded upon in greater detail in the book and it has blessed my soul in more ways than I can put in this review. The book is absolutely worth your purchase.
Remarkable Chapter
Each reason proved remarkable to read frankly, but I particularly enjoyed reason twenty entitled To Rescue Us. Jackson talks about how, before Christ came onto the scene, we were dead in our trespasses and sin:
"There is no partiality with God, he demands the same thing from everyone: perfect righteousness. Because no one is perfectly righteous, we all find ourselves in the same situation: drowning and in need of rescue."
Jackson continues with a great example of a lifeguard:
"If we, out of our own strengths and abilities, were able to save ourselves, then he would not have needed to rescue us. Indeed, no lifeguard would jump in to save another if the other person was capable of making it to shore on their own.
If I was every drowning in the sea and rescued by a lifeguard, I know there is one thing I would do the rest of my life: look for ways to thank him/her and honor him/her. This is how those who have been rescued by Jesus seek to live their lives: in gratitude for what he has done and wanting to do everything possible to honor him."
Conclusion
I'm so much better for having read this book. Not better in the sense of more righteous, but so much more knowledgeable, aware, and grateful for Jesus and what He's done for me. 25 Reasons Why Jesus Was Born is the perfect lead-in to the Christmas season and I'm so appreciative for its impact on my heart.