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The Very Good Gospel: How Everything Wrong Can Be Made Right
God once declared everything in the world “very good.”
Can you imagine it?
A Vision of Hope for a Broken World
Shalom is what God declared. Shalom is what the Kingdom of God looks like.
Shalom is when all people have enough.
It’s when families are healed.
It’s when churches, schools, and public policies protect human dignity.
Shalom is when the image of God is recognized in every single human.
Shalom is our calling as followers of Jesus’s gospel. It is the vision God set forth in the Garden and the restoration God desires for every relationship.
What can we do to bring shalom to our nations, our communities, and our souls? Through a careful exploration of biblical text, particularly the first three chapters of Genesis, Lisa Sharon Harper shows us what “very good” can look like today, even after the Fall.
Because despite our anxious minds, despite division and threats of violence, God’s vision Wholeness for a hurting world. Peace for a fearful soul. Shalom.
Can you imagine it?
A Vision of Hope for a Broken World
Shalom is what God declared. Shalom is what the Kingdom of God looks like.
Shalom is when all people have enough.
It’s when families are healed.
It’s when churches, schools, and public policies protect human dignity.
Shalom is when the image of God is recognized in every single human.
Shalom is our calling as followers of Jesus’s gospel. It is the vision God set forth in the Garden and the restoration God desires for every relationship.
What can we do to bring shalom to our nations, our communities, and our souls? Through a careful exploration of biblical text, particularly the first three chapters of Genesis, Lisa Sharon Harper shows us what “very good” can look like today, even after the Fall.
Because despite our anxious minds, despite division and threats of violence, God’s vision Wholeness for a hurting world. Peace for a fearful soul. Shalom.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published June 21, 2016
416 people are currently reading
3864 people want to read
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July 13, 2024
I was given this book by a dear friend of mine, and I am so grateful!
Harper helped me to understand my current "spiritual homelessness" as rooted in church history and gave me a clear path forward. She writes about how during the Industrial Revolution, poor workers (former farmers) were being exploited and had no route out of extreme poverty. A NYC Baptist minister named Walter Rauschenbusch called the church to return to scripture, which is not silent on systematic and structural sin, and fight for the rights of these poor workers. In response, the fundamentalist movement began to combat his ideas, worried he was muddying the gospel and claiming the gospel was only about one thing: individual salvation and reconciliation to God. A split in the white American church ensued during the 1908-1920s, with the Fundamentalists becoming evangelicals, and Rauschenbusch's followers (Modernists) becoming the liberal church we know today. She argues that within this split, both groups walked away with a "thinner" version of the gospel. She frames everything within the idea of Shalom, a word that appears in scripture over 550 times in some form. She writes, "To live in God's Kingdom, in the way of shalom, requires that we discard our thin understanding of the gospel." Shalom is a thick faith, one that requires reconciliation with self, gender, the rest of creation, within families, other ethnic groups, governing structures and other nations. She makes a biblically-grounded case for the need for reconciliation in all of these areas in the American church, providing staggering statistics on systematic injustice against women and minorities, and our lack of stewardship towards creation and the environment. Her writing is even more credible because she is not just writing from a distance but from the inside out, as a black women who has experienced many of the injustices she is calling for shalom around.
I have felt really "on the outs" within evangelicalism for some years now, and it has caused me to wonder if I am drifting away from Christianity. Yet, I have this vibrant relationship with God and his word, and a solid belief in Jesus as Lord. I think this book helped me to realize that the estrangement I feel is because I began to see the evangelical circles I have been a part of as a thin faith, one that is not actively involved in dismantling systems of oppression (patriarchy, white supremacy, etc.), in fact, is in many cases supporting these structures, even if subconsciously. I have wondered if I would need to sacrifice my love of the deep study of scripture for a church that has more social involvement, or if I would continue to attend churches that focused on the shalom of self/God while ignoring the all-encompassing peace, well-being, wholeness on earth that God's Kingdom brings about. My faith will be restored in the church as the hope of the world if both sides of the split can recapture the vision of shalom.
All in all, very powerful writing and possibly the most helpful Christian book I have read in the last 5 years. I am so glad to feel I am not alone and to be given this lense of Shalom with which to understand how God's kingdom should spread on earth. I also found my church, MetroHope, through this book! She attended this church while living in NYC and mentions it as encompassing this vision, especially around multiethnic community. We are small but mighty.
"...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all cared about an individual's reconciliation with God, self, and their communities. But the gospel writers also focused on systematic justice, peace between people groups, and freedom for the oppressed. The good news was both about the coming of the Kingdom of God and the character of that Kingdom. It was about what God's Kingdom looked like. It was about what citizenship in God's Kingdom requires. The
gospel writers' good news was about the restoration of shalom."(p.6)
Harper helped me to understand my current "spiritual homelessness" as rooted in church history and gave me a clear path forward. She writes about how during the Industrial Revolution, poor workers (former farmers) were being exploited and had no route out of extreme poverty. A NYC Baptist minister named Walter Rauschenbusch called the church to return to scripture, which is not silent on systematic and structural sin, and fight for the rights of these poor workers. In response, the fundamentalist movement began to combat his ideas, worried he was muddying the gospel and claiming the gospel was only about one thing: individual salvation and reconciliation to God. A split in the white American church ensued during the 1908-1920s, with the Fundamentalists becoming evangelicals, and Rauschenbusch's followers (Modernists) becoming the liberal church we know today. She argues that within this split, both groups walked away with a "thinner" version of the gospel. She frames everything within the idea of Shalom, a word that appears in scripture over 550 times in some form. She writes, "To live in God's Kingdom, in the way of shalom, requires that we discard our thin understanding of the gospel." Shalom is a thick faith, one that requires reconciliation with self, gender, the rest of creation, within families, other ethnic groups, governing structures and other nations. She makes a biblically-grounded case for the need for reconciliation in all of these areas in the American church, providing staggering statistics on systematic injustice against women and minorities, and our lack of stewardship towards creation and the environment. Her writing is even more credible because she is not just writing from a distance but from the inside out, as a black women who has experienced many of the injustices she is calling for shalom around.
I have felt really "on the outs" within evangelicalism for some years now, and it has caused me to wonder if I am drifting away from Christianity. Yet, I have this vibrant relationship with God and his word, and a solid belief in Jesus as Lord. I think this book helped me to realize that the estrangement I feel is because I began to see the evangelical circles I have been a part of as a thin faith, one that is not actively involved in dismantling systems of oppression (patriarchy, white supremacy, etc.), in fact, is in many cases supporting these structures, even if subconsciously. I have wondered if I would need to sacrifice my love of the deep study of scripture for a church that has more social involvement, or if I would continue to attend churches that focused on the shalom of self/God while ignoring the all-encompassing peace, well-being, wholeness on earth that God's Kingdom brings about. My faith will be restored in the church as the hope of the world if both sides of the split can recapture the vision of shalom.
All in all, very powerful writing and possibly the most helpful Christian book I have read in the last 5 years. I am so glad to feel I am not alone and to be given this lense of Shalom with which to understand how God's kingdom should spread on earth. I also found my church, MetroHope, through this book! She attended this church while living in NYC and mentions it as encompassing this vision, especially around multiethnic community. We are small but mighty.
"...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all cared about an individual's reconciliation with God, self, and their communities. But the gospel writers also focused on systematic justice, peace between people groups, and freedom for the oppressed. The good news was both about the coming of the Kingdom of God and the character of that Kingdom. It was about what God's Kingdom looked like. It was about what citizenship in God's Kingdom requires. The
gospel writers' good news was about the restoration of shalom."(p.6)
January 31, 2019
The Very Good Gospel is one of the most refreshing and important books I have read, especially coming from an evangelical background and being immersed in that world in my career as well. How Lisa Sharon Harper describes the gospel was such a relief for the cognitive dissonance I've experienced in wondering, like her, if our gospel is "good enough" if it fails to have an answer to remedy the areas of injustice and brokenness in society in the here-and-now, especially among those Jesus calls "the least of these," and let's Christians off the hook from addressing them.
For those who are tired, confused and discouraged from Christians dismissing addressing social concerns as “a distraction from the gospel” or “not a gospel issue”, this is a book for you (and hopefully those who see social justice as not part of or central to God’s kingdom work will be curious and read this book too).
With poetic beauty and biblical acumen, Harper unpacks the true meaning of the biblical theme of Shalom, how the gospel is not just about getting to heaven when we die (and not less than that), but more holistically it's about how everything was broken in The Fall of Genesis 3, and how God's mission is to restore wholeness from what was broken in relationships with Himself, others, ourselves, families, races, genders, nations, and even creation. She calls for a more "thick" reading of scripture (term coined by Miroslav Volf) and an understanding of the gospel that could never be so truncated as to be concerned about souls but not bodies as has happened in far too much of the Western church's history. I have been won over by this narrative of the gospel so much that I gave several copies away to other Christians to enjoy and be inspired by the good news in a new and more far reaching way.
This quote sums up main thrust of the book pretty well:
"If one's 'gospel' falls mute when facing people who need good news the most - the impoverished, the oppressed, and the broken - then it's no gospel at all."
In addition to the other chapters, I found the chapter on shalom and shame, which focuses on your relationship with yourself, to be very personally touching and impactful.
If I ever meet Lisa Sharon Harper in person, I want to personally thank her for this masterpiece.
For those who are tired, confused and discouraged from Christians dismissing addressing social concerns as “a distraction from the gospel” or “not a gospel issue”, this is a book for you (and hopefully those who see social justice as not part of or central to God’s kingdom work will be curious and read this book too).
With poetic beauty and biblical acumen, Harper unpacks the true meaning of the biblical theme of Shalom, how the gospel is not just about getting to heaven when we die (and not less than that), but more holistically it's about how everything was broken in The Fall of Genesis 3, and how God's mission is to restore wholeness from what was broken in relationships with Himself, others, ourselves, families, races, genders, nations, and even creation. She calls for a more "thick" reading of scripture (term coined by Miroslav Volf) and an understanding of the gospel that could never be so truncated as to be concerned about souls but not bodies as has happened in far too much of the Western church's history. I have been won over by this narrative of the gospel so much that I gave several copies away to other Christians to enjoy and be inspired by the good news in a new and more far reaching way.
This quote sums up main thrust of the book pretty well:
"If one's 'gospel' falls mute when facing people who need good news the most - the impoverished, the oppressed, and the broken - then it's no gospel at all."
In addition to the other chapters, I found the chapter on shalom and shame, which focuses on your relationship with yourself, to be very personally touching and impactful.
If I ever meet Lisa Sharon Harper in person, I want to personally thank her for this masterpiece.
November 9, 2024
I feel like I just spent the evening in CHURCH as I finished this. This is a phenomenal, hopeful book; especially for someone like me who has been disillusioned by the church's response to the pandemic and racism of the last year. Harper is a wonderful writer, who does an excellent job of exploring Biblical topics through the lens of social justice.
This quote from chapter 12 especially stood out to me, "How can we experience life without its Author? Shame, eating disorders, gender-based violence, climate change, shattered families, racism, oppression, war, and death itself are natural consequences of humanity's small and monumental choices to reach for peace in their own way."
I'm so glad I've started reading theology books by non-white authors, because I've thoroughly enjoyed both READING WHILE BLACK and THE VERY GOOD GOSPEL. If anyone has more recommendations in this vein, please let me know!
This quote from chapter 12 especially stood out to me, "How can we experience life without its Author? Shame, eating disorders, gender-based violence, climate change, shattered families, racism, oppression, war, and death itself are natural consequences of humanity's small and monumental choices to reach for peace in their own way."
I'm so glad I've started reading theology books by non-white authors, because I've thoroughly enjoyed both READING WHILE BLACK and THE VERY GOOD GOSPEL. If anyone has more recommendations in this vein, please let me know!
August 3, 2016
Harper invites the reader to view current issues of social injustice through the lens of Scripture as interpreted by liberal Evangelical Christians. She argues that “shalom”, harmony and right relationship between individuals and groups with God, is at the heart of the Bible. Therefore, fidelity to God necessitates each person to work for political, economic and social structures that promotes the dignity of each person, equality between all groups and reverence for creation. Harper employs a tone of intimacy with the reader, sharing personal experiences of exploitation and violation. Each chapter ends with suggestions for personal reflection. I suspect I would have appreciated this more had I not been engaged extensively in Christian social justice movements for decades. This was too introductory, too superficial for my current needs. The way she developed her points, the way she employed Scripture has been done by numerous presenters previously.
February 11, 2021
The best part of this book was the exploration of what the "very goodness" of creation actually is and means in the creation narrative of Genesis. I love the way she builds the understanding of how creation is at it best when we as humans see that our connectedness to each other and the world we live in is where the "very goodness" is at that Creator God is talking about. The connectedness is the goodness. It is not in the person or thing but, in their connection to each other.
September 15, 2023
Does it get get much better than this? A book that helps the reader, rediscover what the gospel really meant. But not only what it meant for the early church but for what it means now, in the modern world and all its fears, sin and failures.
The gospel speaks truth and love and grace to those crying and suffering. The gospel is for them...
But the gospel is also for the rich and wealthy, for those that cause much pain, if they just come to know Jesus and his ways, they to can find the Way.
Brilliant book.
The gospel speaks truth and love and grace to those crying and suffering. The gospel is for them...
But the gospel is also for the rich and wealthy, for those that cause much pain, if they just come to know Jesus and his ways, they to can find the Way.
Brilliant book.
August 15, 2024
Der Hype um das Buch war mir (wie so häufig) zu heftig. Harper sagt eigentlich nichts Neues, sondern fasst zusammen. Ich schätze für viele us-amerikanische Evangelicals recht hilfreich, um sich aus manchen Engführungen zu befreien. Ansonsten ist das Besondere an dem Buch, dass Harper viele Ideen mit ihrer eigenen Lebensgeschichte verknüpft.
June 16, 2020
Such an open exploration of the gospel, things I've never thought of, lots to unlearn from growing up in the church. So fresh!
November 12, 2017
This should be required reading for every Christian.
June 11, 2020
I love how the author unpacked Shalom and its use in the bible and also how the bible is not just about personal salvation rather it is also about "systemic justice, peace between people groups and freedom for the oppressed." The good news being about "the coming of the kingdom of God and the character of the kingdom of God." Even though there were some things I didn't agree with theologically (like how the creation narrative came about), I gleaned a lot and found the book challenging and it made me think through things more and that's always a good thing.
February 8, 2021
Easily a top read. Harper gives a readable yet deep overview of God's design for shalom and breaks it into chapters ranging from gender, creation, race, self and more. Each chapter also includes really helpful reflection exercises that are worth doing. A rare find that validates the depths of brokenness experienced in this world and yet simultaneously brings hope and strengthens my faith in a good God.
September 26, 2025
5 stars is not enough..What I gleaned from this book is profound. I will re-read this multiple times
The last chapter and conclusion left me on my knees.
Humility.
There is hope in this chaotic world and Harper brings you to it.
A gift.
The last chapter and conclusion left me on my knees.
Humility.
There is hope in this chaotic world and Harper brings you to it.
A gift.
May 3, 2019
Compelling even when we don’t agree
Lisa Sharon Harper and I find agreement in quite a bit of this book, but we do not agree about everything. However, what I appreciated more than being in lockstep on every point is that so much of what she writes, and how she writes it, is powerfully compelling even when it runs counter to my own opinions and views.
She has a remarkable way of saying things with grace. She is passionate without being divisive, and has the gift of exchanging aggression and anger for energy and optimism.
This work will be too “liberal” for some conservatives, and too “biblical” for some liberals...which is precisely why I recommend it to everyone. We need the kind of challenge Harper provides, as well as the unity she offers. The Gospel, in her explanation, is lived out in our lives by reaching for the beautiful implications of the life and work of Jesus, and bringing them into full sight I. This present world. Finding ways to bring heavenly shalom into the earthly brokenness we find ourselves in day by day.
Well done.
Lisa Sharon Harper and I find agreement in quite a bit of this book, but we do not agree about everything. However, what I appreciated more than being in lockstep on every point is that so much of what she writes, and how she writes it, is powerfully compelling even when it runs counter to my own opinions and views.
She has a remarkable way of saying things with grace. She is passionate without being divisive, and has the gift of exchanging aggression and anger for energy and optimism.
This work will be too “liberal” for some conservatives, and too “biblical” for some liberals...which is precisely why I recommend it to everyone. We need the kind of challenge Harper provides, as well as the unity she offers. The Gospel, in her explanation, is lived out in our lives by reaching for the beautiful implications of the life and work of Jesus, and bringing them into full sight I. This present world. Finding ways to bring heavenly shalom into the earthly brokenness we find ourselves in day by day.
Well done.
February 11, 2021
Thoughtful and broad in its survey of a deeper gospel for the follower of Jesus. Lisa Sharon Harper offers a more comprehensive picture of what God is working toward in Christ and the community of Jesus; namely, the restoration of shalom that was God's intention from the beginning.
I really appreciated the in-depth look at Genesis and the more faithful understanding of sin/justice as relating to the interconnectedness of things. This book would be beneficial for anyone sensing that there is more to the story of the Bible and the way of Jesus than just personal, individual salvation. Most of the chapters look at the idea of shalom through the lens of what is currently broken. For example, 'Shalom Between Genders' looks at the stifling of women in the church. 'Shalom Between Nations' looks at the history of war and genocide, particularly examining Harper's experience in Dachau, Germany. This is the pattern, which then ties these issues to biblical examples, primarily early in the Genesis narrative, as well as the author's personal history. It's a really hopeful, inspiring read.
I really appreciated the in-depth look at Genesis and the more faithful understanding of sin/justice as relating to the interconnectedness of things. This book would be beneficial for anyone sensing that there is more to the story of the Bible and the way of Jesus than just personal, individual salvation. Most of the chapters look at the idea of shalom through the lens of what is currently broken. For example, 'Shalom Between Genders' looks at the stifling of women in the church. 'Shalom Between Nations' looks at the history of war and genocide, particularly examining Harper's experience in Dachau, Germany. This is the pattern, which then ties these issues to biblical examples, primarily early in the Genesis narrative, as well as the author's personal history. It's a really hopeful, inspiring read.
September 1, 2016
The Very Good Gospel is very good indeed! A refreshing examination of the fact that the Gospel doesn't start in the New Testament, but at the outset of creation. Lisa's commentary on the first 2 chapters of Genesis alone is the best I've read on the subject. A hopeful book that wrongs can be righted.
January 20, 2021
A wonderful and helpful perspective on a God who created a world that he loves, and the responsibility that humans have to creation and its inhabitants. The book got a bit repetitive and as it covers a wide range of topics it couldn't go extremely deep, but it is definitely worth the read.
January 7, 2025
Please read this book. Probably the best thing I've read for ages.
December 26, 2021
The “Very Good” in the title of Lisa Sharon Harper’s book comes from the conclusion of the creation story in Genesis 1. In verse 31, we read that “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” Harper explains that God’s evaluation of the creation as “very good” is not saying that each individual part of creation is inherently good on its own. Rather, it means that everything is in proper relationship with everything else. Everything is good or bad depending on the state of its relationships with all other things. At that moment in the creation narrative, before humans chose to trust in their own way forward rather than God’s, everything was in the right relationship, and it was “very good.”
Obviously we are now some distance from that perfection of relationships. It’s easy for me to feel overwhelmed at the oppression, inequality, conflict, hopelessness, and despair that I see all over the world. How do we ever return to the way the world was meant to be? Harper guides us and reinspires us by focusing on image of God and shalom as two pathways that work together to bring us back to “very good.” If we take time to remember that everyone we see is an image-bearer of God, then it ought to become harder to enslave, oppress, use, and abuse other people. When we make that space to build respect and relationship, we will move closer to the biblical ideal of shalom: wholeness, peace, joy.
Chapter by chapter, Harper considers how to build shalom in different kinds of relationships in our lives: with God, with ourselves, between genders, with creation, in broken families, between races, between nations, in witnessing for peace, and in contemplating life and death. Many of these are topics I’ve read whole books about, and so these brief chapters sometimes felt a little slim to me—but that only means the content is so fascinating and worth discussing that I wish it would go even deeper. For me, the great thing about this retelling of “the old, old story” is that the author comes from such a different background from me: a Black woman who has survived a broken family, sexual abuse, and struggles in adulthood different from what has been difficult for me. I found it encouraging and interesting to listen to Harper tell her story with honesty and vulnerability, and to celebrate with her the possibility of “very good” in our world, across people who share a lot in common and people who would seem to be quite different.
Obviously we are now some distance from that perfection of relationships. It’s easy for me to feel overwhelmed at the oppression, inequality, conflict, hopelessness, and despair that I see all over the world. How do we ever return to the way the world was meant to be? Harper guides us and reinspires us by focusing on image of God and shalom as two pathways that work together to bring us back to “very good.” If we take time to remember that everyone we see is an image-bearer of God, then it ought to become harder to enslave, oppress, use, and abuse other people. When we make that space to build respect and relationship, we will move closer to the biblical ideal of shalom: wholeness, peace, joy.
Chapter by chapter, Harper considers how to build shalom in different kinds of relationships in our lives: with God, with ourselves, between genders, with creation, in broken families, between races, between nations, in witnessing for peace, and in contemplating life and death. Many of these are topics I’ve read whole books about, and so these brief chapters sometimes felt a little slim to me—but that only means the content is so fascinating and worth discussing that I wish it would go even deeper. For me, the great thing about this retelling of “the old, old story” is that the author comes from such a different background from me: a Black woman who has survived a broken family, sexual abuse, and struggles in adulthood different from what has been difficult for me. I found it encouraging and interesting to listen to Harper tell her story with honesty and vulnerability, and to celebrate with her the possibility of “very good” in our world, across people who share a lot in common and people who would seem to be quite different.
February 26, 2022
Easy to read, but deep in its implications.
Building from the idea that the biblical writers understood the Gospel to be something that restored the “shalom” of God to the world, she introduces us to what Shalom is (wholeness and restoration of relationship between all creation) and how it might impact our lives.
Opening chapters consider ideas of the gospel and God’s vision for the world from Genesis 1 onwards. Having established that God intends us to live in relationship and commitment to each other (something damaged in the fall), Harper then looks at ways the gospel can repair this.
With a well spread engagement with Bible, contemporary culture, uncomfortable history, and her own personal lived experience “The Very Good Gospel” looks at how Shalom might impact gender divides, families, divided nations, racism, evangelism in the church, and even our spiritual lives.
I’d recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the vision of Scripture for Shalom but who might find some of the scholarly surveys of this (eg. Brueggemann’s excellent but still quite academic work) a little out of reach. Pastors should use and share this book frequently. I know I will.
Building from the idea that the biblical writers understood the Gospel to be something that restored the “shalom” of God to the world, she introduces us to what Shalom is (wholeness and restoration of relationship between all creation) and how it might impact our lives.
Opening chapters consider ideas of the gospel and God’s vision for the world from Genesis 1 onwards. Having established that God intends us to live in relationship and commitment to each other (something damaged in the fall), Harper then looks at ways the gospel can repair this.
With a well spread engagement with Bible, contemporary culture, uncomfortable history, and her own personal lived experience “The Very Good Gospel” looks at how Shalom might impact gender divides, families, divided nations, racism, evangelism in the church, and even our spiritual lives.
I’d recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the vision of Scripture for Shalom but who might find some of the scholarly surveys of this (eg. Brueggemann’s excellent but still quite academic work) a little out of reach. Pastors should use and share this book frequently. I know I will.
July 1, 2022
few parts were a bit evangelical-y for me, but I really really love how she approaches the idea of restoring shalom on earth through examining power dynamics and all things which sever our relationships to self, other, God, and the earth, i.e. racism, sexism, nationalism, over consumption, etc. Also, moment for the Biblical evidence for the importance of the regulation of big business? How bout them apples!
"Jesus identified with the least among us, and unless we are actively loving the one with the least access to food and water, the least access to health care, the least access to good housing and education, the least access to justice within the justice system, the least access to a welcome in the immigration system--unless we are actively loving the least-deserving among these, then we are not loving Jesus. Jesus shunned the politics of respectability when he aligned with the least of these."
"Jesus identified with the least among us, and unless we are actively loving the one with the least access to food and water, the least access to health care, the least access to good housing and education, the least access to justice within the justice system, the least access to a welcome in the immigration system--unless we are actively loving the least-deserving among these, then we are not loving Jesus. Jesus shunned the politics of respectability when he aligned with the least of these."
March 18, 2019
This quote pretty much sums up the book: “If one’s gospel falls mute when facing people who need good news the most-the impoverished, the oppressed, and the broken-then it’s no gospel at all.” Harper focuses on the central concept of shalom and the healing, transformative vision of God for all relationships. She addresses shame and our relationship with self, and also our relationships with family, the environment, our community, and globally. Great book.
April 8, 2024
3.5 ⭐️!
I enjoyed this one. Her challenges around how the gospel applies to specific tangible justice oriented topics in our lives is so important, and a good reminder that a Very Good Gospel is one that pushes outward and grows us inwardly.
I enjoyed this one. Her challenges around how the gospel applies to specific tangible justice oriented topics in our lives is so important, and a good reminder that a Very Good Gospel is one that pushes outward and grows us inwardly.
June 11, 2020
Very good.
May 27, 2021
I enjoyed this. Challenged by Lisa Sharon Harper to love and proclaim a thicker gospel where the shalom peace Jesus brings is allowed to touch the complex problems of our own day.
July 2, 2022
This book gets you to think about facets of brokenness that are not readily apparent in the traditional four points of the Gospel simplification.
October 10, 2021
The gospel framed by the creation stories of Genesis.Simple yet powerful statements in here that I’ll be chewing on for a while.
May 19, 2022
Had to read this for a religion class
April 24, 2021
Oh I just loved this. . . Especially as an audiobook!!!!
December 15, 2016
Summary. Through a study of the early chapters of Genesis with application to contemporary life, Harper explores the theme of shalom and how this enlarges our understanding of the good news.
Have you ever felt that there must be more to the gospel? This is a question that Lisa Sharon Harper has struggled with in her own life and for which she found profound answers as she explored the biblical theme of shalom as well as the early the early chapters of Genesis, that begin with a vision of shalom, explore how shalom was broken, and the effects of that brokenness on our relationships with God, ourselves, between genders, in the creation, in families, around issues of race, and relations between nations.
In each chapter, Harper explores the Genesis text, develops the idea of shalom, and through this weaves in other biblical material from both testaments. In the process, she weaves in her own life as a black woman, from a flawed family, experiencing issues with her own self-image, with relationships, and in the journey to pursue racial reconciliation and justice. As she does so, she develops a vision of the gospel that is so much larger than just me and my sin and Jesus rescuing me from hell so I can spend eternity with Him. It is a gospel that explains both God's incredibly wonderful intention for the world, and how our choice to love something more than God and believe a lie damaged the fabric of relationships, broke shalom. From the sacrifice of an animal in Genesis 3 to the sacrifice of Christ, she explores how God has restored shalom, which is indeed very good news.
The final chapter was the most moving. She talks about death, and her own struggle with dealing with death, including her silence when a close friend lost her father. And she movingly describes the breakthrough she experienced when Richard Twiss, a Lakota Indian ministry leader was dying and she had a vision of anointing his feet with oil, confirmed by a friend who had a similar vision.
"On the way to the hospital, I read the story of Lazarus and the grave (see John 11:1-44) and felt called to read it over Richard. When I arrived, I learned during the day, Richard's kidneys had failed. I shared the two visions--mine and my friend's--with Katherine, Richard's wife and cofounder of Wiconi. She gave me permission to read the passage over Richard and to anoint his feet. As I read, we all wept. I never noticed this before, but the passage begins with an explanation that Lazarus was the brother of Mary, the woman who anointed Jesus feet for burial. I anointed Richard's feet and prayed.
. . .
"I can't help but think back to the moment when I anointed Richard's feet. It is clear now. We were anointing our brother's feet for burial. As I moved the oil over his feet, I repeated the words that Richard's editor had said to me when we talked earlier that night: "Beautiful are the feet of the one who brings good news."
I think there are many like Lisa who have feared death, who never have been alongside someone as they were dying in the hope of Christ, the hope of Jesus' resurrection, whose body with anointed feet was laid in a grave, only to walk out on those feet when the stone was rolled away. Lisa described this moment as "devastating and sweet." She describes how we both grieve and yet hope because of this very good news.
This is a book for the believing person who is wondering, "is that all there is?" when they think of the gospel, particularly if they wonder about the relevance of the gospel to the brokenness they see around them. This is a book for new believers to help them understand the fullness of what they have believed. And it is a book that the person considering faith might also read, both because of its exposition of this "very good gospel" and for the honest yet winsome account Harper gives of her own growing understanding of that gospel.
_______________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via Blogging for Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
Have you ever felt that there must be more to the gospel? This is a question that Lisa Sharon Harper has struggled with in her own life and for which she found profound answers as she explored the biblical theme of shalom as well as the early the early chapters of Genesis, that begin with a vision of shalom, explore how shalom was broken, and the effects of that brokenness on our relationships with God, ourselves, between genders, in the creation, in families, around issues of race, and relations between nations.
In each chapter, Harper explores the Genesis text, develops the idea of shalom, and through this weaves in other biblical material from both testaments. In the process, she weaves in her own life as a black woman, from a flawed family, experiencing issues with her own self-image, with relationships, and in the journey to pursue racial reconciliation and justice. As she does so, she develops a vision of the gospel that is so much larger than just me and my sin and Jesus rescuing me from hell so I can spend eternity with Him. It is a gospel that explains both God's incredibly wonderful intention for the world, and how our choice to love something more than God and believe a lie damaged the fabric of relationships, broke shalom. From the sacrifice of an animal in Genesis 3 to the sacrifice of Christ, she explores how God has restored shalom, which is indeed very good news.
The final chapter was the most moving. She talks about death, and her own struggle with dealing with death, including her silence when a close friend lost her father. And she movingly describes the breakthrough she experienced when Richard Twiss, a Lakota Indian ministry leader was dying and she had a vision of anointing his feet with oil, confirmed by a friend who had a similar vision.
"On the way to the hospital, I read the story of Lazarus and the grave (see John 11:1-44) and felt called to read it over Richard. When I arrived, I learned during the day, Richard's kidneys had failed. I shared the two visions--mine and my friend's--with Katherine, Richard's wife and cofounder of Wiconi. She gave me permission to read the passage over Richard and to anoint his feet. As I read, we all wept. I never noticed this before, but the passage begins with an explanation that Lazarus was the brother of Mary, the woman who anointed Jesus feet for burial. I anointed Richard's feet and prayed.
. . .
"I can't help but think back to the moment when I anointed Richard's feet. It is clear now. We were anointing our brother's feet for burial. As I moved the oil over his feet, I repeated the words that Richard's editor had said to me when we talked earlier that night: "Beautiful are the feet of the one who brings good news."
I think there are many like Lisa who have feared death, who never have been alongside someone as they were dying in the hope of Christ, the hope of Jesus' resurrection, whose body with anointed feet was laid in a grave, only to walk out on those feet when the stone was rolled away. Lisa described this moment as "devastating and sweet." She describes how we both grieve and yet hope because of this very good news.
This is a book for the believing person who is wondering, "is that all there is?" when they think of the gospel, particularly if they wonder about the relevance of the gospel to the brokenness they see around them. This is a book for new believers to help them understand the fullness of what they have believed. And it is a book that the person considering faith might also read, both because of its exposition of this "very good gospel" and for the honest yet winsome account Harper gives of her own growing understanding of that gospel.
_______________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via Blogging for Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
November 16, 2020
Probably 3.5 stars. This book may not have had a lot of new info for me, but it felt full of hope & good news in an incredibly anxious time in the world, so I rounded up.
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