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The Divine Yes
E. Stanley Jones with the help of his dauther Eunice Jones Mathews.
"A resounding spiritual "yes!" to the human "no" of personal tragedy."
"A resounding spiritual "yes!" to the human "no" of personal tragedy."
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 22, 2020
Review
E. Stanley Jones wrote his final book, The Divine Yes, in the midst of a shattering Stroke. His call was “Now I must say this Divine Yes through the shattering “No” of a stroke. I must apply what I have been preaching through the years- …The Divine Yes in the fact of the bad news that life often offers…To accept a commission such as the Divine Yes, the greatest problem lies in the one who accepts it. He must be convinced not only is the Divine Yes possible, but that the Divine Yes will sustain one and supply his or her every need… My own sickness had to be seen in such broad perspectives. I found that I was not merely a witness impaired, but a witness empowered. Jesus is the Divine Yes to all of God’s promises, and has he not promised “You shall receive power” (E. Stanley Jones, The Divine Yes. Abingdon Press, 197, pp. 32,33,35)?
When I get to heaven as a Christian, Stanley Jones is one of the first people I want to meet. His teaching and methods of ministry shaped our own cross-cultural ministry in Chicago. So I returned to this book for review after we had patterned our work on it in the early 1990’s. The book is written post-humously from his innumerable sermons, teachings and previous books so it is often choppy in segments. But his passionate experience and wise global proclamation of Jesus Christ still rings clearly throughout. 3 stars M.L. Codman-Wilson, Ph.D., 6 21 20
Excerpts:
“The Divine Yes is not a system or a party or an organization of any kind. It is a relationship with a Person, a universal Person who is universally relevant. For Jesus is the same, yesterday today and forever... He is relevant today and will be forever relevant. Heaven is heaven because he is there, to be universally loved and obeyed… Wherever Jesus is, there is Home” (pp. 144,145).
“An Indian lawyer who has visited several Hindu ashrams said, ‘I have sat at the feet of many gurus, worshiping them and lauding them., but I came back unchanged. They did not know how to redeem human nature. I came to Christ and everything is different.’ Jesus Christ is the true guru, a Sanskrit word which means the “dispeller of darkness.” And who is this but the Divine Yes and the Light of the World” (p. 88)?
“At our Round Table Conferences in India there we gathered together the best representatives of every religious community. We did so for over fifty years. We asked them not to argue or try to make a case, but rather tell what they had actually found in religious experience… Every Round Table Conference for half a century ended up in the same place: everything has been pushed to the edges except Jesus Christ. Where he has been emphasized as the Way, a satisfying experience of God is almost universal. On the philosophical side, Eastern religions are wonderful. On the experimental and the experiential side, they are close to nil, except for those who had come into contact with Jesus Christ. This isn’t dogmatism, but a proven fact by countless experiences of interreligious dialogue in India, the world’s greatest laboratory of living religions… The Divine Yes is a Yes that we can be changed and changed now in this birth, in this life” (pp.56,57).
“Jesus came that I may have life and life more abundantly. HE is not only life but is life with a Yes in it, a Divine Yes… I’m finding by experiment and demonstration that one can have more life within one self if I keep my eyes on Jesus” (p.136).
E. Stanley Jones wrote his final book, The Divine Yes, in the midst of a shattering Stroke. His call was “Now I must say this Divine Yes through the shattering “No” of a stroke. I must apply what I have been preaching through the years- …The Divine Yes in the fact of the bad news that life often offers…To accept a commission such as the Divine Yes, the greatest problem lies in the one who accepts it. He must be convinced not only is the Divine Yes possible, but that the Divine Yes will sustain one and supply his or her every need… My own sickness had to be seen in such broad perspectives. I found that I was not merely a witness impaired, but a witness empowered. Jesus is the Divine Yes to all of God’s promises, and has he not promised “You shall receive power” (E. Stanley Jones, The Divine Yes. Abingdon Press, 197, pp. 32,33,35)?
When I get to heaven as a Christian, Stanley Jones is one of the first people I want to meet. His teaching and methods of ministry shaped our own cross-cultural ministry in Chicago. So I returned to this book for review after we had patterned our work on it in the early 1990’s. The book is written post-humously from his innumerable sermons, teachings and previous books so it is often choppy in segments. But his passionate experience and wise global proclamation of Jesus Christ still rings clearly throughout. 3 stars M.L. Codman-Wilson, Ph.D., 6 21 20
Excerpts:
“The Divine Yes is not a system or a party or an organization of any kind. It is a relationship with a Person, a universal Person who is universally relevant. For Jesus is the same, yesterday today and forever... He is relevant today and will be forever relevant. Heaven is heaven because he is there, to be universally loved and obeyed… Wherever Jesus is, there is Home” (pp. 144,145).
“An Indian lawyer who has visited several Hindu ashrams said, ‘I have sat at the feet of many gurus, worshiping them and lauding them., but I came back unchanged. They did not know how to redeem human nature. I came to Christ and everything is different.’ Jesus Christ is the true guru, a Sanskrit word which means the “dispeller of darkness.” And who is this but the Divine Yes and the Light of the World” (p. 88)?
“At our Round Table Conferences in India there we gathered together the best representatives of every religious community. We did so for over fifty years. We asked them not to argue or try to make a case, but rather tell what they had actually found in religious experience… Every Round Table Conference for half a century ended up in the same place: everything has been pushed to the edges except Jesus Christ. Where he has been emphasized as the Way, a satisfying experience of God is almost universal. On the philosophical side, Eastern religions are wonderful. On the experimental and the experiential side, they are close to nil, except for those who had come into contact with Jesus Christ. This isn’t dogmatism, but a proven fact by countless experiences of interreligious dialogue in India, the world’s greatest laboratory of living religions… The Divine Yes is a Yes that we can be changed and changed now in this birth, in this life” (pp.56,57).
“Jesus came that I may have life and life more abundantly. HE is not only life but is life with a Yes in it, a Divine Yes… I’m finding by experiment and demonstration that one can have more life within one self if I keep my eyes on Jesus” (p.136).
September 30, 2022
At around 87 years old, Jones had a stroke which left him without the use of his left side, little vision, and the loss of much of his speech. Most people would give up at that point and wait for their life's end, but not Stanley Jones. This book was his final will and testimony - that in Christ all the promises are yes and amen!
Most people slowly dim out as they get older until they completely fade away, but Jones shone brightest at his end (and that's saying something considering his accomplished life). He sought to use even a debilitating stroke to push him further into the arms of God.
Considering the above circumstances, this book is powerful. However because Jones didn't live long enough to complete and organize it, it is a bit "choppier" than his other works. That being said, in a world where we frequently hear about Christian leaders not ending well, this book is about a man who stayed the course, glowing brighter and brighter as he went.
Most people slowly dim out as they get older until they completely fade away, but Jones shone brightest at his end (and that's saying something considering his accomplished life). He sought to use even a debilitating stroke to push him further into the arms of God.
Considering the above circumstances, this book is powerful. However because Jones didn't live long enough to complete and organize it, it is a bit "choppier" than his other works. That being said, in a world where we frequently hear about Christian leaders not ending well, this book is about a man who stayed the course, glowing brighter and brighter as he went.
July 23, 2019
E. Stanley Jones makes a thorough argument in a beautiful way the Jesus is the Divine “Yes” to any of the human problems or challenges. His passion for Christ rings throughout the book. He not only preaches the “Divine Yes” in Christ, but thanks the LORD for the opportunity to live out the “Divine Yes” through a stroke that speaks “no”. I’m better for having read the book. For those that are facing trials, it gives hope and a picture of what it looks like to be grateful in all circumstances and turn difficult circumstances into opportunities to rely on the power of Jesus to live abundantly .
December 13, 2020
This book was written after the author's stroke. It is an affirmation that Christians need to continually point out the positives of their religion instead of the negatives. Timeless wisdom.
November 13, 2014
Jones, a friend and contemporary of Mahatma Gandhi, was a Methodist missionary in India for many years. This was his last book, written after a debilitating stroke. In spite of the fact that he could barely walk or talk, he praised God for sparing him.
Jones continually reminds the reader that nothing that happens in a Christian’s life is for nothing. He writes, Pagans waste their pain. They don’t come out to anything, no dividend. But when it is divine pain, like the pain of the Cross, it is not wasted pain, but contributive pain – like the pains of a mother in childbirth. (p. 132)
Much of The Divine Yes was an encouragement to my heart so it’s hard to limit quotes, but here is just one more treasure:
Some people think if you come to Christ you surrender to being cancelled out. Cancelled? All you think and act and are become heightened by the heightened contact… It is the same surrender that ink makes to the author… It is the same surrender that a wire makes to a dynamo. Unattached, it has no light or power, but surrendered to the dynamo, it throbs with light and power . When you surrender to Jesus Christ, a plus is added to all you do and think and are. You do the things you can’t do and are a person you couldn’t be otherwise. (p. 61)
Jones continually reminds the reader that nothing that happens in a Christian’s life is for nothing. He writes, Pagans waste their pain. They don’t come out to anything, no dividend. But when it is divine pain, like the pain of the Cross, it is not wasted pain, but contributive pain – like the pains of a mother in childbirth. (p. 132)
Much of The Divine Yes was an encouragement to my heart so it’s hard to limit quotes, but here is just one more treasure:
Some people think if you come to Christ you surrender to being cancelled out. Cancelled? All you think and act and are become heightened by the heightened contact… It is the same surrender that ink makes to the author… It is the same surrender that a wire makes to a dynamo. Unattached, it has no light or power, but surrendered to the dynamo, it throbs with light and power . When you surrender to Jesus Christ, a plus is added to all you do and think and are. You do the things you can’t do and are a person you couldn’t be otherwise. (p. 61)
November 1, 2014
This book is a collection of writings after Mr. Jones had suffered a stroke at eighty eight. The writings are around themes and pieced together by his son in law. It contains some interesting material but is not his finest or a final statement. I would recommend you rather read his spiritual autobiography A Song of Ascents.
December 23, 2014
When you read anything by E. Stanley Jones, you may find that you don't agree with his point of view on everything; however, you are convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that he knows Jesus. This book is encouraging, challenging, inspiring, and transformational. A must-read for any serious disciple of the Lord.
September 11, 2010
This amazing Christian man touches so many areas of our lives. He had wonderful/great/unbelievable insight into what God wants us to do to know him.
September 26, 2007
This book reveals faithfulness during suffering by a supreme Christian missionary.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews