If you want to follow Jesus on the incredible journey of sharing Him while sharing life with others, it's time to eat with sinners--people just like you . . . and me.
As long as people have been sharing their faith, there have been critics. Even Jesus dealt with naysayers as He spread His gospel: "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them" (Luke 15:2, NIV). Sometimes we worry about our reputation when we spend time with non-Christians. But more than that, we worry about the time we spend with non-Christians: Will we understand each other? Will I offend them? Will they offend me? How long will it take before this relationship falls apart?
Every meal Jesus ate, He ate with sinners. And over food and drink, through stories and insights and observations and conversations, people let their guards down, and sinners came to know the love of God and the hope of salvation. Now revised and updated, Eats with Sinners helps you to let your guard down so the love of God can get out across the table to your non-Christian friends.
Note: This book was originally published by Standard Publishing in November 2009 (ISBN 0784723184). The NavPress version does not include recipes!
Arron Chambers, author of Running on Empty: Life Lessons to Refuel Your Life (Life Journey, 2005), Scripture to Live By (Adams Media, 2007), and Remember Who You Are! (Standard Publishing, July 2007), Yendo Con El Tanque Vacío (Spanish Translation of Running on Empty--Zondervan, November 2007), Go! (Standard Publishing, July 2009), and Eats With Sinners (Standard, November 2009) is the Lead Minister of Journey Christian Church in Greeley, Colorado.
He is also an Adjunct Professor at Florida Christian College, Contributing Editor and Blogger for The Christian Standard, President & Founder of Tri Life, Inc., a triathlete, an inspirational speaker who speaks to thousands of people each year, husband of a lovely wife, and the father of 4 beautiful kids.
Arron is also the Executive Producer and on-air host of the prime-time TV program, Enjoy the Journey with Arron Chambers. Arron holds the following degrees: Master of Arts (Church History/Theology): Abilene Christian University, May 2000; Bachelor of Theology: Florida Christian College, May 1993; Bachelor of Arts (Major-Preaching; Minor-Counseling): Florida Christian College, May 1992.
I have to regard Arron Chambers, not just the author of Eats with Sinners, but also Running on Empty: Life Lessons to Refuel Your Faith, and Remember Who You are: Unleashing the Power of an Identity-Driven Life as being well-written, if not well-spoken. It seems, according to him, it has taken some time to get to a place to accepting people where they are at in this moment.
Eats with Sinners shows how we, as Chistians, can bring the gospel of Christ to others on their level. It is a going out of the way as the Samaritan did with the wounded man on the road to receiving help. It means if someone is hungry, feed them. If someone needs clothing, clothe them. All of this is to say Christians can uphold the commands Jesus gave. It is an easy thing altogether in sharing Jesus Christ's gospel with others. It's not this hard or vague thing to do. Yes, it requires going out of the way, but it's what Christ did for us; we're to do the same so God can reach the lost.
Arron Chambers is the lead minister of Journey Christian Church in Greeley, Colorado, author of four books (including "Devoted" [978-1-6129-1792-4] and "Go! "[978-0-7847-2282-4]), and contributing editor of Christian Standard. A competitive triathlete and popular speaker, Arron and his wife, Rhonda, are the parents of four children.
Note: I received a copy of Eats with Sinners from Tyndale for this review. Yet, my opinions expressed are my own.
“Here’s the bottom line: Jesus loves lost people. He wants us to love lost people too.
We worry about trying to build intentional relationships with non-Christians: Will we understand one another? Will we offend them? How uncomfortable will it be?
“Jesus regularly ate with sinners—people in need of God, just like you and me. Why? Because Jesus longed to eat with them in heaven.
The incredible journey of following Jesus involves sharing who he is while sharing our lives with others. Over food and drink, through conversations filled with stories and insights, people come to know the love of God and the hope of salvation.
Eats with Sinners shows you how to let down your guard so God’s love can flow through you and get across the table to your non-Christian friends. They’ll taste and see that the Lord is good as you invite them to one day feast with Jesus in heaven.”
The book Eats with Sinners by Arron Chambers is a story-based expository work in the genre of Christian Ministry and evangelism. It pursues the themes of the example of Jesus’ ministry, His outreach to the lost and lonely of the world, and of how He’s called Christians to follow in His footsteps today. Chambers addresses the pitfalls of modern Christianity, and seeks to highlight ways in which Christians can more wholeheartedly live a life of loving the lost.
A couple of things that made this book enjoyable for me as a reader:
The first thing is the message. The message of the book was, as per the synopsis, “Jesus loves lost people, and He wants us to love lost people too.” Chambers presented a very uncomplicated approach to loving the people who have not excepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and sought to challenge the reader to pursue this approach: invite hurting people into your life, and love them, and God will do the rest.
The second thing is the applicability. Chambers’ message made its way into my day-to-day thinking and applied to my immediate circumstances, and as I read I began to look for and find ways to be friends to the people in my life in desperate need of Christ. This has been very freeing, and has reminded me of how I am merely meant to be a conduit through which God works in the lives of others, and I am not God Himself.
And the final thing is the testimony of it all. Chambers bases much of his book off of stories of how people came to Christ, how God has used his life and the lives of those in his church to bring people to Christ, and illustrative stories from the news and from personal experience that provided both humor and relatability.
A couple of things that made this book difficult for me as a reader:
The first thing is the structure of it all. While the message was important, the purity of it felt hindered by the way the book was set up. Chambers included block quotes that often disrupted the flow of the book, and even the way the stories were inserted to prove his point sometimes made the point difficult to follow. Many people can read past a convoluted structure to see the true message, absolutely, but the book would’ve been all the more enhanced if the writing itself had been more organized.
The second thing is the delivery. This seemed like much more of a frustrated rant as opposed to a thought and pointed challenge. Chambers often pointed out how the church has failed in loving lost people, and he often seemed like he was puffing himself up and not showing the reader the personal ways he has failed on his journey to love people, which was certainly not the intention behind his writing the book, and he sought to make the disclaimer of not hating the church, etc. Unfortunately, I don’t think the disclaimers did anything to soften the tone, or to communicate humility. So, Chambers desired to challenge people to love lost people, but his tone and the way he said things as though they were obvious made it difficult not to judge or criticize his method and lose the message altogether.
The third thing is the range of depth. I feel like so many of the points made by Chambers could’ve been expounded upon so much more. I feel like he tried to communicate so many big things in such a small space, and yet I also felt like, after the first three chapters, he was saying the same thing, simply in different ways, and part of me felt like I’d understood the crux of the book halfway through it. That being said, the conclusion could have been stronger as well. I kind of felt like the book just ended, like it was getting too long and needed to end and didn’t have room to properly climax and then leave a strong impression on the reader in its descending points.
Despite the criticisms, the message is seriously important, and is something I don’t think Christians can hear enough, or, I certainly can’t hear it enough. I would recommend this book to you if you’re particularly desirous of changing how you follow Christ, getting outside of your comfort zones, and learning what it looks like to eat with sinners.
About the Author:
“ARRON CHAMBERS is the lead minister of Journey Christian Church in Greeley, Colorado. He is a contributing editor for Christian Standard, a coach, an inspirational speaker to thousands of people each year, the husband of a lovely wife, and the father of four beautiful kids.” (From the back of Eats with Sinners).
“Who is Arron Chambers? Lead Minister of Journey Christian Church in Greeley, Colorado, Author, Husband of a Lovely Wife, Father of Four Kids, Evangelism Champion, Leadership Consultant, Marriage Coach, and Blogger.”
Also, if you’d like to know more about Arron Chambers, behold, I present thee with the links to both his blog and his church website 🙂
There are very few times when I look at a book and cry, "Nailed it!"
There are even fewer books that, if lived out, would have the power to revolutionize society for the better. This is one of those books! (Though to be fair, this transformative power does not from Chambers' writing skill or original ideas, but from following the example of Christ. AS IT SHOULD!)
The title of the book comes from a passage in the fifteenth chapter of the Book of Luke. In the previous chapter, Jesus ate with Pharisees (a Jewish sect that prided themselves on their strict adherence to all of the religious rules of the day) and told them not to be too prideful as they picked their seats for this "dinner party". In Chapter 15, we come across this passage:
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.(NIV translation)
Jesus makes two points. The most obvious to the modern reader is the story. It is clear that he is saying that you have to reach out to the lost in order to find the lost. The shepherd does not find the lost sheep by sitting around wondering where it is - he seeks it out. He follows it up with two more stories with the same point, including the famed story of the Prodigal Son.
But, lost to most modern readers is the complaint: "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." Should "good" church people hang out with people that aren't "good" church people? What was Jesus doing hanging out with the unrighteous? Why was this rabbi eating with them like they were his equals?
Jesus' answer? He told three stories that make it clear that you have to seek the lost and welcome them when they come back to the fold. That means go out and engage the world where it is. And, those that would be righteous have to remember that they aren't so perfect, either.
Arron has written a wonderful book that is a wake-up call for Christians and the Church when it comes to ministry and reaching out to sinners (unbelievers). We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God. And there are so many lost people in the world today that need Christ followers to actually be Christians and meet with them and engage with them and be friends with them and EAT with them and show them God's love and grace and that He died for them (they might not know it though).
Arron examines Jesus' evangelistic strategy in the Gospel of Luke and outlines the "the ingredients that went into His perfect recipe for reaching lost people." The chapters are divided up into these "ingredients" like "Grace", "Tolerance", "Mercy", "Humility" and "Joy" among others. He shares the book of Luke throughout his book, and offers guidance and real world examples of how Christians can be more effective at reaching out and "eating with sinners". For example, in the chapter on "Intimacy", you will learn three barriers to eating with sinners: Exceptance, Exparteance and Extirpatience! (what are those? Read and find out!). Also added are brief testimonies and examples of friends of Arron that reached out to those hurting, searching, angry and lost and bringing them to Christ.
This is a great book and a great "action guide" for ministering to non-believers. Also, church leaders and lay ministers would be wise to read as well and break out from the walls of your own church to be the Church in this fallen world!
There has been a lot produced on living like Jesus. From bracelets, to wristbands, t-shirts, and DVD seminars, many things have been made so that Christians can be reminded and challenged to live like Jesus. This is not bad but it is possible to miss a key element of what Jesus did; Jesus ate with sinners.
In his book, Eats with Sinners, Arron Chambers takes an approach that is becoming lost in American Christianity. That approach is to eat, fellowship, with sinners. Invite them to eat with you and spend time with you. Go to where they are and interact with them. There is something powerful about eating together that building relationships. It is probably why Jesus did it and we should as well.
I have to admit that this was something that when I first read it seemed odd. However, after reading the reasonings of Chambers it made sense to imitate Jesus. Too often Christians try to get a non-Christian into a more formal setting like a church service. This may lead to uncomfortably. However, being invited into a home is less formal and can be more relaxed. This could lead to great conversation and relationship building and Chambers makes a great argument for this style of outreach.
*I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
I was given the chance to read an advance copy of Arron's book, "Eats With Sinners" and I will tell you first hand the book did not disappoint. I've been an Associate Pastor for over 10 years and every year there's always a wave of new "strategies" and "tools" to reach those far from Jesus.
Eats with Sinners is more then a strategy or a tool, it is a movement to bring back the simplest way to do evangelism, to do what Jesus did. Arron reminds us that all Jesus did was love people into a relationship with him and his father and most of the time he used food to do that. This is a must read for every Church leader, lay leader, or Christian. Arron doesn't mix his words, he gets to the heart of the matter, that those who follow Jesus today, must be more like Jesus now, more then ever, we must Eat With Sinners! He relates to the read with stories and examples and shares his insight of being a leader and Pastor. I would encourage Church leaders to pick up copies for their entire leadership team and read this book together and then live it out. It will be a book I'll read over and over again.
Eats With Sinners challenges Christians to view sinners as Jesus does. Chambers clearly demonstrates how using judgement tactics to convey the gospel is not only ineffective, but goes against the entire message of Jesus’ teachings. Instead, Eats With Sinners challenges believers to approach unbelievers with humility, love, and sacrifice using Jesus’ interactions found in scripture as a model for putting faith into action. Chambers’ writing style is easy to read and incorporates real life stories to bring home the principles discussed in each chapter. Thought-provoking discussion questions are also included at the end of each chapter that can easily be used in a small group session or for personal reflection.
This review contains my own thoughts and opinions. I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
- What did you like about the book and why? It brings down barriers that some strict religious people might face in their belief.
- What did you not like about the book and why? I could not find any fault with the book, it is faith based and has the author's opinions over fact in most parts.
- What did you learn? If you apply yourself to your own ways and not that of others you may have a more positive life.
- To whom would you recommend this book and why? If you are closed hearted. If you feel better then others or more superior, this book may help to keep you a bit more modest.