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Grace of God and Flaws of Men
Grace of God and the Flaws of Men is a deep exploration of the truth and power of the Gospel through the failures of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
These three men have always been celebrated as heroes of faith, and rightly so too. But before they emerged as true heroes, each of them also had several moments of weakness along their respective journeys in faith.
This book is a delightfully counter-intuitive narrative of the flaws, failures and frustration of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But as we uncover each flaw of these three men, it is not the ugliness of their sin, but the beauty of God's grace that will be more obvious. Each chapter dives into the abominable depths of the sins of men, only to come back up with the dazzling riches of the Gospel of grace.
This is the central theme of this when sin reigns darkest, grace shines brightest. And this grace is not just the mercy of God for our forgiveness; it is also the power of God for our transformation.
These three men have always been celebrated as heroes of faith, and rightly so too. But before they emerged as true heroes, each of them also had several moments of weakness along their respective journeys in faith.
This book is a delightfully counter-intuitive narrative of the flaws, failures and frustration of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But as we uncover each flaw of these three men, it is not the ugliness of their sin, but the beauty of God's grace that will be more obvious. Each chapter dives into the abominable depths of the sins of men, only to come back up with the dazzling riches of the Gospel of grace.
This is the central theme of this when sin reigns darkest, grace shines brightest. And this grace is not just the mercy of God for our forgiveness; it is also the power of God for our transformation.
128 pages, Paperback
Published April 1, 2018
27 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 6, 2023
Grace that abandons us in our worst moments of sinfulness is no grace at all. It is in our sinful worst that we most desperately need grace... In both, it's forgiving and transforming expressions.
I've delayed writing this review, primarily due to the book's complexity. At one end, the author is lucid and articulates his words deliberately and precisely. On the other end, the book offers so much that it's hard to summarise everything, but I'll try my best!
About the book
The book follows the lives of 3 individuals primarily- Abraham, Issac and Jacob; there were other characters like Sarah, Rachel, Leah, Joseph and Judah however the main discourse doesn't follow them.
Anand Mahadevan talks about how the Bible isn't a collection of stories of extraordinarily good men who were perfect and faithful to God.
It's a story of flawed and fallen men, all of whom desperately needed Christ to save them .
How I started reading the book
My pastor was giving away his old book so others could benefit from them and among them this one caught my eye. I had seen a copy of this at my home and even my workplace so I figure it must be good!
Things I liked about the book
Apart from his language and writing style, I enjoyed the chapter division spread across the book. It felt purposeful and each new chapter helped strengthen his theme of, "Where sin reigns darkest, grace shines brightest."
The book felt real and sincere in its delivery. Each character was fleshed out as they truly were viz Human and deeply flawed.
I could relate to an Abraham who lied to protect himself, to a Sarah who was bitter and cynical about her barrenness. To an Issac who was partial in his affection towards his sons. To a Jacob, who pursued money, power, sex and romance.
None of these satisfied them, each was deeply flawed and Anand Mahadevan encapsulates this brilliantly through the book.
Things I'm going to take back
A renewed understanding of the Grace of God.
Through the book, Anand Mahadevan challenges you to think critically about grace. Grace doesn't just forgive us, it also transforms us.
God will not merely forgive us without transforming us. That would leave grace incomplete.
If God had merely forgiven Abraham, and not transformed him, what good would it have been?
So the work of grace is complete only when God also brings about transformation in our lives.
Another thing is how the grace of God doesn't abandon us in our sins. Often, we believe that God abandons us in our moments of abasing sinfulness.
Grace that abandons us in our worst moments of sinfulness is no grace at all. It is in our sinful worst that we most desperately need grace... In both, it's forgiving and transforming expressions.
Grace and Mission
The author talks about how God saved us and forgave us not just to transform us. But also to enable us to serve others, mission work.
Experiencing mere forgiveness without also experiencing transformation will turn us into hurtful, frustrated and self-loathing creatures.
Without transformation, mere forgiveness would be a curse on us and those around us.
Grace compels us to mission
Grace is not mere forgiveness. Grace is not mere transformation.
Grace is complete only when the forgiveness and the transformation we experience also compel us to mission.
*******************************
Idols of the heart
There's a section in Chapter 12: Elusive idols, which is a beautiful exposition of Jacob and his pursuit of money, power, romance and sex. One can hear Anand Mahadevan echoing truths from Timothy Keller's Counterfeits Gods.
This was a beautiful section and it touched me deeply as I'm sure it would You as well.
***Lessons from the book
The lessons from this book are varied but I'll restrain myself to Chp 12 Elusive Idols since I've already covered grace in an earlier section.
1.The elusive nature of Idols
When the idol of power eluded him, Jacob turned to romance. And when his romance and marriage went through a rough patch, he invested his entire being into his career as a shepherd and gave himself fully to the pursuit of success and wealth.
Jacob pursued money, power, romance and sex. All of these are good things.
But if our pursuit of any of these things becomes more intense than our pursuit of God, we are setting ourselves up for a big disappointment.
2. Lessons from Sarah
This second lesson comes from Chapter 6: Beauty & Barrenness from Sarah, whose barrenness made her deeply cynical and bitter towards the world and God.
We want the world to acknowledge that we are successful and beautiful. But an obsessive pursuit of our own beauty will only lead us to spiritual Barrenness.
We become spiritually barren when our lives are not a blessing to others.
We will become bitter because the pursuit of our own beauty will never deeply fulfil us.
This last one was a tough pill to swallow, especially considering how both success and beauty are so valued in our society.
Overall
5 stars For me, not only did he brilliantly present a case for grace but his treatment in displaying the flaws of men, chapter by chapter sold the book for me. One of the better Christian books out there!
SO cheers and I'll catch you guys later! This has been one long book review.
October 7, 2018
Being a coffee lover, I'm the happiest when someone newly discovers the joy of having a cuppa! It is my pleasure to tell them about the coffee joints that serve the finest brews.
I could go on but let me cut to the point. Anand, in his first book, has made it simple and accessible to enjoy the sweet aroma of Jesus. His zeal for others to share in the fullness of God's love, to bite into the bread of life, to taste and see how good God is, is evident in Grace Of God And Flaws Of Men. He has delved deep into the stories of three men from the Bible - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - men who are greatly flawed, with legacies that are not the cleanest, to explain how grace works; how grace works the mightiest miracles, when we stoop with sin to our lowliest selves.
The book is delightfully delicious, and just like a twelve-course meal, is to be relished with patience, taking in the texture, smell, colour and flavour of each morsel - the story, and the unpacking, of God's eternal plan for each of these flawed men - in its completeness.
The chapters truly help satiate the subliminal thirst of our souls. Reading this book has been one of the most refreshing experiences of my life!
Feasting on Jesus is a joyful experience and this book is nothing less than a royal buffet. Everyone's invited!
I could go on but let me cut to the point. Anand, in his first book, has made it simple and accessible to enjoy the sweet aroma of Jesus. His zeal for others to share in the fullness of God's love, to bite into the bread of life, to taste and see how good God is, is evident in Grace Of God And Flaws Of Men. He has delved deep into the stories of three men from the Bible - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - men who are greatly flawed, with legacies that are not the cleanest, to explain how grace works; how grace works the mightiest miracles, when we stoop with sin to our lowliest selves.
The book is delightfully delicious, and just like a twelve-course meal, is to be relished with patience, taking in the texture, smell, colour and flavour of each morsel - the story, and the unpacking, of God's eternal plan for each of these flawed men - in its completeness.
The chapters truly help satiate the subliminal thirst of our souls. Reading this book has been one of the most refreshing experiences of my life!
Feasting on Jesus is a joyful experience and this book is nothing less than a royal buffet. Everyone's invited!
November 8, 2020
Such an awesome book. The insights from the lives of Abraham, Issac and Jacob are just mind blowing.
Anand Mahadevan Sir did a masterful job in explaining the truth 'When Sin Reigns Darkest, Grace Shines Brightest'. The lives of Abraham, Issac and Jacob are studied under microscope just to come to the conclusion that Grace of God never left them but triumphed over the judgments they ought to face.
A very wisdom-filled book to know the power of Grace which transforms us into His Glorious Image.
Anand Mahadevan Sir- Thank you. You inspired me.
Anand Mahadevan Sir did a masterful job in explaining the truth 'When Sin Reigns Darkest, Grace Shines Brightest'. The lives of Abraham, Issac and Jacob are studied under microscope just to come to the conclusion that Grace of God never left them but triumphed over the judgments they ought to face.
A very wisdom-filled book to know the power of Grace which transforms us into His Glorious Image.
Anand Mahadevan Sir- Thank you. You inspired me.
November 19, 2019
"When sin reigns darkest, grace shines brightest."
Anand Mahadevan does a masterful job of explaining the simple title the Hebrew Scriptures use to identify God -- "the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob." Using these cycles of stories in the book of Genesis, Mahadevan (a business journalist turned church planter in Mumbai) shows how the grace of God breaks into sinful lives and pain-filled circumstances. Highly recommended!
Anand Mahadevan does a masterful job of explaining the simple title the Hebrew Scriptures use to identify God -- "the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob." Using these cycles of stories in the book of Genesis, Mahadevan (a business journalist turned church planter in Mumbai) shows how the grace of God breaks into sinful lives and pain-filled circumstances. Highly recommended!
December 14, 2020
This book was amazing, and I felt like strong, important spiritual truths were reminded as I journeyed through it. It is crucial that we examine our own hearts and motives as we re-experience God's grace and mercy in the lives of these people, and remind ourselves that we, too, are prone to failure and need His grace to keep us going.
March 18, 2019
Encouraging,
Great resource for being reminded of God's great grace to us.
Even though we are flawed sinners God's grace is so powerful to justify, sancify and eventually being us to glory.
Praise God.
Great resource for being reminded of God's great grace to us.
Even though we are flawed sinners God's grace is so powerful to justify, sancify and eventually being us to glory.
Praise God.
April 2, 2019
One of those books you will keep going back again as Anand uncovers the amazing grace of God in the life of the patriarchs..What an exposition !
May 20, 2019
Grace=forgiveness+transformation+empowerment to missions
This book really drives home the impact God’s grace has on us. Our son can be so deep but God’s grace is deeper.
This book really drives home the impact God’s grace has on us. Our son can be so deep but God’s grace is deeper.
June 21, 2019
Well done, and easy to read. He pulls out an interesting and encouraging theme from Genesis.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews