Perfect Sinners

by Matt Fuller

How am I meant to feel as a Christian?

You can go to an evangelical church on a Sunday and be told: "Christian, you are loved by God, no matter what you've done. God could not love you more than he does." You can go to another evangelical church and be told: "You're a wretched sinner." The emphasis can feel very different, and yet both churches are teaching truth.

Holding both truths together in balance can be tricky but it's essential for healthy Christian living. Overemphasizing one at the expense of the other causes all sorts of problems.

Perfect Sinners will help us keep the balance, as we distinguish between our "status" before God and our "walk" with him.

Genres: Christian, Christian Living, Faith, Theology

144 pages, Perfect Paperback

Published May 1, 2017

About the author

Matt Fuller is the Senior Minister at Christ Church, Mayfair, in central London.

Reviews

[Isabella Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful for the assurance-queasy among us, with consistent recaps to clarify every time you feel about to stress or object.

[James Brixey · Rating 5 out of 5]

In many ways this reads like a easier to understand more practical version of 'the whole Christ'.

I highly recommend every Christian read this. It is really wonderful.

[Mrs N Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really clear, really helpful book. An easy read, well written which explains the basic truths of Christianity in a straightforward way, showing how they all hang together. It helped me to make sense of stuff I thought I had understood but had actually misunderstood. Worth reading if you are a follower of Christ, and helpful to those who aren't sure but want to know more

[Priscilla Previl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fuller just simply falls short of answering the question he attacks.

The age-old question about once-saved-always-saved vs. "falling away," is the center of this book. And while the author does a good job in some instances, such as understanding God's love, he does not effectively answer whether Christians can and do fall away. He simply uses the weak response that if they do, they were never saved. But this opens a whole other can of worms . . . Then how can we KNOW?

It would have been more effective had he not even attempted to address that question, because as is, his feeble attempt weakened his overall writing.

The book is also on the buoyant side . . . Full of air where there would have been an opportunity for a "protein heavy" discussion. It might work for new questions except that it then creates more unanswered questions than it answers in the end.

[Kira Huiqi Ho · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good attempt to explain key concepts in a question and answer format. The author differentiates between our status with God, which is unchanging, and our walk with God, which is variable.

I liked the content but wasn’t a fan of the writing style. Examples weren’t apples to apples earlier in the first few chapters of the book, and too many random examples made the writing messy, the flow disjointed and reading generally disruptive. The last chapter summed up some key concepts and added some last thoughts pretty well.

Overall, Fuller made a good attempt to address the issue of our earthly conflict: being perfect in Christ and sinners in carnality.

[Phil Butcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This really helpful & readable book helps us distinguish between our secure status before God as Christians and the ups and downs of our continuing struggle with our sinfulness. It's full of great illustrations and clear Bible teaching.

[Kimberly Van Diepen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Enjoyed reading this! His points are driven throughout the book. Great for both new and older Christians. Excellent scripture reference along with realistic examples of the life of a Christian.

[Adam Bloch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book for a discussion on the seemingly different perspectives in Scripture between Christians called “saints” and the constant calling out of their sin (at least within the epistles). I liked the framework of differentiating between “status” and “walk.”

[Victor Feitosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our status before God in Christ doesn’t change, that’s what this book is all about.

[Keziah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book - a soul warmer. Simple language but deep, Gospel truths. Definitely one I’ll be recommending / lending out to others👌🏼

[Hugh Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear, compelling, distilled truth. So helpful to better understand what God has fixed and is unchanging, versus that which can vary day by day. Definitely would recommend.

[Rebekah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I wouldn't go to Fuller's church, because I'd probably end up in one of his books under another name as one of his examples, and it wouldn't be complimentary. I understand that pastors are going to draw from their experience in ministry, but I felt for every one of the folk who have gone to his church that he used as negative examples. There was a lot of them. I know people who are at his church or who have been, and each example I was thinking, 'I hope that's not about so and so, because that feels very personal'.
I think I struggle with this in general. At my last church, the pastor would make reference to conversations and situations from his ministry and particularly from the current churches themselves. So you never wanted to talk to him about anything because you might end up as an illustration, and feel completely vulnerable and targeted. And it did happen.
So this is my issue here with Fuller. His examples are quite direct and not very kind or generous and ended up feeling quite like finger-pointing.
I don't know what the solution is. But maybe more humility and own self-refection and examination in the place of some of the descriptions of others would have balanced the examples better. Or to have made the point without referring to a particular person or situation or conversation. Because to be honest, this is all I've taken away from this book, and that's not good.

I also did not like his rewards-centred teaching around godliness:
'Your life now can secure a greater reward then.' I know the Bible does teach rewards, which I myself don't understand well enough to comment on. But I do know that Fuller here left me feeling quite guilty or tempted to rely on my good works and not the Gospel.
But he does elsewhere uphold the Gospel and is Christ-centred in his delivery.

I think this one just left a bad taste in my mouth, because of the excess of pastoral examples that felt like they should have been private.