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The Sacred Overlap: Learning to Live Faithfully in the Space Between
The widening of political, racial, generational, and religious differences leads too often to an "us vs. them" mentality. The Sacred Overlap communicates a refreshing vision that embraces tension and shows us how to live in radical love and faithfulness between the extremes that isolate and divide people. The gospels display how Jesus was committed to crossing the either/or waters of the cultural and societal wars of his day. His miracles and parables often broke or ignored religious and political lines that seemed all important. He comforted the disturbed and disturbed the comfortable. Using Jesus' example, J. R. Briggs offers a fresh and relevant understanding of evangelism and discipleship in our present time of extreme polarization. Without sacrificing biblical integrity, The Sacred Overlap is a joyful exploration of the complexity of life in the peace of Christ. With careful discernment, The Sacred Overlap helps readers see how Christians are called to live with their feet firmly planted in two different worlds—in both heaven and earth—living naturally with both the sacred and the ordinary. Only then can a Christian be a faithful witness and disciple of Jesus.
288 pages, Paperback
Published September 8, 2020
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557 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 17, 2020
"How is it possible that a book specifically designed to acknowledge the tension-filled space of our faith could bring such a sense of affirmation and peace to the struggle we live in every day? J.R.'s work here is a true gift to those of us who have been trying to put our finger on what the kingdom is.He gives language to something that is often so hard to define that we shake it off as untrue. He says, 'No, look again. That is real.'"
This is the endorsement that I wrote for this book by Briggs and it still rings true as I write this review. One of the biggest frustrations about the world that we live in today is the reality that every significant topic seems to find a way to get bifurcated and than drastically polarized. Society demands that you pick a side and plant your flag.
Yet, this bifurcated and polarized duality is not where the power of truth typically is found. And not this this is true for every topic and category available, but so often there is a "sacred overlap" to be found in the principles of Kingdom living.
I should clarify that this is not a book on centrism or how the moderate middle is somehow the proper response to all tension. This is a book about how good theology and good spiritual practice is a deeper dive into the overlap of to truths that often seem to press against each other. This is not a pull BACKWARDS and AWAY from the tension, but a leaning TOWARDS and INTO.
Whether it is a look at the overlap between orthodoxy and orthopraxy, saints and sinners, residents or foreigners, this book was a fantastic read in affirming and pushing us into the tensions where the Kingdom of God can be found. Where we may want to stop and step back — this book gives us a gentle push forward.
This is the endorsement that I wrote for this book by Briggs and it still rings true as I write this review. One of the biggest frustrations about the world that we live in today is the reality that every significant topic seems to find a way to get bifurcated and than drastically polarized. Society demands that you pick a side and plant your flag.
Yet, this bifurcated and polarized duality is not where the power of truth typically is found. And not this this is true for every topic and category available, but so often there is a "sacred overlap" to be found in the principles of Kingdom living.
I should clarify that this is not a book on centrism or how the moderate middle is somehow the proper response to all tension. This is a book about how good theology and good spiritual practice is a deeper dive into the overlap of to truths that often seem to press against each other. This is not a pull BACKWARDS and AWAY from the tension, but a leaning TOWARDS and INTO.
Whether it is a look at the overlap between orthodoxy and orthopraxy, saints and sinners, residents or foreigners, this book was a fantastic read in affirming and pushing us into the tensions where the Kingdom of God can be found. Where we may want to stop and step back — this book gives us a gentle push forward.
October 31, 2020
3.5 stars, rounded down
This book challenges the tribal mindsets in our culture, helping Christians see the importance of being a "both/and" people, instead of grabbing hold of one particular idea and making it mutually exclusive. J.R. Briggs does not encourage a "mushy middle" where people refuse to take moral stands or pretend that wildly divergent views are equally correct, but he helps Christians recognize the ways that different church denominations and individuals tend to overemphasize one truth while dismissing truths that they ought to hold in tension with whatever they emphasize. Briggs shares personal examples from his own life and ministry and also writes a lot about Jesus, showing how Jesus held truths in tension and infuriated his contemporaries by holding to nuance and refusing to oversimplify issues according to tribal instincts.
In my opinion, Briggs's treatment of the gospel narratives was the best part of this book. People often co-opt Jesus to make their particular religious or social points, but Briggs clearly represents who Jesus was as a historical person, and does justice to the complexity of what Jesus taught, instead of cherry-picking the sayings that support a worldview or social agenda. I found this very refreshing, and think that this book would be a great choice for people who have a hard time finding the real Jesus in the midst of tribal teachings that ignore the overlap he taught between truths in tension.
However, I wish that Briggs had written more about the intellectual and social challenges that come with thinking through every issue carefully instead of holding to a party line. He makes a convincing case for why this is so important, and he acknowledges that it is difficult at times, but he does not provide much practical advice for how to navigate relationship frustrations within a tribal, polarized world. I went into this book hoping that it would help me deal with the strain of trying to think deeply while others promote their specific ideological camps, but Briggs mainly just writes about all the different ways we can live a both/and life, without focusing on these practical, relational challenges.
The book is also longer than necessary, and doesn't stay focused. Every chapter ties back to the concept of living a nuanced life, but because the author did not narrow his focus to a core thesis and specific applications, the book covers so many different topics and involves so many different illustrations that it seems like multiple books pressed into one. Briggs addresses lots of different issues from society and Christian culture, but his focus is so broad that he can only go deeply into some of the subjects, and even though I know that different readers will connect with different parts of the book, it is somewhat of a mixed bag because of this.
This is a great book for someone who is wrestling with their tribal identity and wants a new approach to faith-related and cultural issues. This book provides a vivid picture of Jesus from the gospels, showing how he held truths in tension, lived out the overlap between them, and serves as the perfect example for how we should approach life. However, people who are already living nuanced lives and want advice about how to deal with others' tribalism will not get the help that they need here, and those who are looking for a deep dive may be turned off by the dizzying array of different topics and issues covered in this book. Still, people who want a general introduction into nuanced Christianity may find this helpful, and can focus on the parts that speak the most to them.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book challenges the tribal mindsets in our culture, helping Christians see the importance of being a "both/and" people, instead of grabbing hold of one particular idea and making it mutually exclusive. J.R. Briggs does not encourage a "mushy middle" where people refuse to take moral stands or pretend that wildly divergent views are equally correct, but he helps Christians recognize the ways that different church denominations and individuals tend to overemphasize one truth while dismissing truths that they ought to hold in tension with whatever they emphasize. Briggs shares personal examples from his own life and ministry and also writes a lot about Jesus, showing how Jesus held truths in tension and infuriated his contemporaries by holding to nuance and refusing to oversimplify issues according to tribal instincts.
In my opinion, Briggs's treatment of the gospel narratives was the best part of this book. People often co-opt Jesus to make their particular religious or social points, but Briggs clearly represents who Jesus was as a historical person, and does justice to the complexity of what Jesus taught, instead of cherry-picking the sayings that support a worldview or social agenda. I found this very refreshing, and think that this book would be a great choice for people who have a hard time finding the real Jesus in the midst of tribal teachings that ignore the overlap he taught between truths in tension.
However, I wish that Briggs had written more about the intellectual and social challenges that come with thinking through every issue carefully instead of holding to a party line. He makes a convincing case for why this is so important, and he acknowledges that it is difficult at times, but he does not provide much practical advice for how to navigate relationship frustrations within a tribal, polarized world. I went into this book hoping that it would help me deal with the strain of trying to think deeply while others promote their specific ideological camps, but Briggs mainly just writes about all the different ways we can live a both/and life, without focusing on these practical, relational challenges.
The book is also longer than necessary, and doesn't stay focused. Every chapter ties back to the concept of living a nuanced life, but because the author did not narrow his focus to a core thesis and specific applications, the book covers so many different topics and involves so many different illustrations that it seems like multiple books pressed into one. Briggs addresses lots of different issues from society and Christian culture, but his focus is so broad that he can only go deeply into some of the subjects, and even though I know that different readers will connect with different parts of the book, it is somewhat of a mixed bag because of this.
This is a great book for someone who is wrestling with their tribal identity and wants a new approach to faith-related and cultural issues. This book provides a vivid picture of Jesus from the gospels, showing how he held truths in tension, lived out the overlap between them, and serves as the perfect example for how we should approach life. However, people who are already living nuanced lives and want advice about how to deal with others' tribalism will not get the help that they need here, and those who are looking for a deep dive may be turned off by the dizzying array of different topics and issues covered in this book. Still, people who want a general introduction into nuanced Christianity may find this helpful, and can focus on the parts that speak the most to them.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
September 7, 2021
Incredible book on the value of holding tension and the importance of "both/and" theology. As we grow older in our spirituality and mature in our faith, we tend to realize that some things in faith call for nuance and a shift in approach. This book shows the ways in which Jesus exemplifies both/and theology in His own ministry, and how to hold the tension of seemingly opposing ideas in our own walk with Him.
November 21, 2020
In the arc of scripture, we’re called into faith-filled both/and living with startling regularity.
The drop outs and burned outs. The broke and the broken. The druggies and the divorced. The barren and the pregnant too-many times or at the wrong time. The swindled, shoved aside, the replaced. The lonely, the incompetent, the stupid. The emotionally starved and emotionally dead. Jesus offers to all such people as these the present blessedness of the present kingdom regardless of circumstances. Even the murderers and child molesters. THe brutal and the bigoted. Drug lords and pornographers. War criminals and sadists. Terrorists. The perverted and filthy and the filthy rich….Dallas Willard
Kingdom justice is a restoration of humanity to both God and others, a return to shalom. It is making us whole. Revelation is not to make all new things, but to make all things new.
Jesus desires to establish his rule and reign from heaven to earth, and he’s chosen an instrument by which this is to happen: the church. His vision is to use faithful followers who long to see this heaven to earth right now reality occur. This is revolutionary.
Gabe Lyons: restorers (faithful witnesses): Provoked yet not offended. Living as creators, not critics. People who are called, not merely employed. Grounded but not distracted. In community and not alone. Those who remain civil, but are not divisive. People who are countercultural, but not relevant.
Before we can pray, Lord thy kingdom come. We must be willing to pray, My kingdom go. Alan Redpath
Mondays: our Father. Tues: holy is your name. Wed: your kingdom come your will be done. Thurs: daily bread; Fri: forgive us; Sat: lead us not into temptation; Sun: deliver us from evil one.
God’s kingdom shows up throughout scripture wherever his children gather together and submit to his authority.
Our Father in heaven, be lifted up today! Rule over us we pray and tear down our idols. Let your intention be realized completely, regardless of what it may cost. We look to you to feed us to provide what we need. Fort this day, do not worry about tomorrow. Forgive our sins; erase our debts. Teach us to do the same for others. We are weak and prone to wander. Oh have mercy dear Lord. Find us in our weakness; rescue us in our lostness. Protect us from the evil one. We confess you as King of the everlasting kingdom. The high and omnipotent God, all glorious one. This is how it is and how it will always be. Amen.
The purpose and function of Roman colonies was to bring the culture of Rome to the city of Philippi, not the other way around. (Paul’s message: bring the culture of heaven down to earth.
When we disobey, it’s like a low-budget film where the audio doesn’t quite sync up with the video. (Why do you ask Me to do what I promised when you are not doing what I commanded?)
Dear (brother/sister in Christ) please forgive me for any way I have sinned against you. I forgive you.
Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are, quite naturally, impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new, and yet is is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability - and that it may take a very long time…Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete. - Pierre Teilhadr De Chardin
Willard: If you don’t die tonight, what are you going to do tomorrow? I will wake up and live as best I can in the full trust, grace, and guidance of Christ as I submit to God’s kingdom (committed disciple response)
Perhaps the most damning of all misconceptions about discipleship is the belief that it is optional.
Martin Copenhaver: As I am about to leave, there is something I want to tell you. I want to tell you what Jesus means to me. I want to share my belief that everything depends upon him. I want to urge you to learn from him. I want to assure you that you can lean on him in times of trouble. I want to ask you to listen to his words of challenge. I want to tell you that i believe you can entrust your life to him. I want to affirm that he is Lord of this church and that in his name you are freed to love one another and empowered to share that love with a hurting world. I want to profess that though once people could not look at the face of God and live, now we are invited to look at the face fo God in him, in Jesus, and live as we have never lived before. He is Emmanuel, god with us, God with us all, whether we are together or apart. That’s what it’s all about. That’s all I know. Amen.
Adam and Eve’s mistake wasn’t that that touched, smelle or looked at the fruit. The damning effect of humanity is that they ate it. They swallowed sin. It became a part of them because they ingested it. So saving with Christ’s body and blood in Eucharist.
Advent is a mandorla of Christ’s birth and return.
Dorothy Sayers: To make the Easter story into something that neither startles, shocks, terrifies, nor excites is to crucify the son of God afresh
Lent: Sundays: temptation of Christ, call to deny sin, call to repentance, healing and conversion, foretaste of Easter, Palm Sunday.
Joy is the tattoo of heaven.
Josh Noem collects walk-off home run hitters rounding third base because they are a visceral portrayal of heaven.
Could we use less “Christian” words instead of bible church prayer discipleship gospel worship. Could we use Jesus community, talk with Jesus about the things we’re going to do together, following the way of Jesus. baptism as sacred pool party. It’s not cute or discarding traditional words, but to help us read our contexts better. To describe God and his mission in colorful, clear, creative, compelling, and curious ways.
Digital filter: What is my motive? Will this matter in a month? Is this wise? Is it worth it? Am I encouraging conversation or shutting it down? Am I making the world a better place by sharing this? Bringing shalom? Am I sharing what is honest and honoring?
We are in geographic, psychographic (like interest), family, relational, and digital neighborhoods.
Faithfully pursuing Jesus requires attention, intention, and tension. A tensionless church is a mission-less church. It’s both comfort in Christ’s presence and discomfort at new levels (etc). God is powerful and gentle, transcendent and imminent, demands faithfulness and freely forgives, etc.
The drop outs and burned outs. The broke and the broken. The druggies and the divorced. The barren and the pregnant too-many times or at the wrong time. The swindled, shoved aside, the replaced. The lonely, the incompetent, the stupid. The emotionally starved and emotionally dead. Jesus offers to all such people as these the present blessedness of the present kingdom regardless of circumstances. Even the murderers and child molesters. THe brutal and the bigoted. Drug lords and pornographers. War criminals and sadists. Terrorists. The perverted and filthy and the filthy rich….Dallas Willard
Kingdom justice is a restoration of humanity to both God and others, a return to shalom. It is making us whole. Revelation is not to make all new things, but to make all things new.
Jesus desires to establish his rule and reign from heaven to earth, and he’s chosen an instrument by which this is to happen: the church. His vision is to use faithful followers who long to see this heaven to earth right now reality occur. This is revolutionary.
Gabe Lyons: restorers (faithful witnesses): Provoked yet not offended. Living as creators, not critics. People who are called, not merely employed. Grounded but not distracted. In community and not alone. Those who remain civil, but are not divisive. People who are countercultural, but not relevant.
Before we can pray, Lord thy kingdom come. We must be willing to pray, My kingdom go. Alan Redpath
Mondays: our Father. Tues: holy is your name. Wed: your kingdom come your will be done. Thurs: daily bread; Fri: forgive us; Sat: lead us not into temptation; Sun: deliver us from evil one.
God’s kingdom shows up throughout scripture wherever his children gather together and submit to his authority.
Our Father in heaven, be lifted up today! Rule over us we pray and tear down our idols. Let your intention be realized completely, regardless of what it may cost. We look to you to feed us to provide what we need. Fort this day, do not worry about tomorrow. Forgive our sins; erase our debts. Teach us to do the same for others. We are weak and prone to wander. Oh have mercy dear Lord. Find us in our weakness; rescue us in our lostness. Protect us from the evil one. We confess you as King of the everlasting kingdom. The high and omnipotent God, all glorious one. This is how it is and how it will always be. Amen.
The purpose and function of Roman colonies was to bring the culture of Rome to the city of Philippi, not the other way around. (Paul’s message: bring the culture of heaven down to earth.
When we disobey, it’s like a low-budget film where the audio doesn’t quite sync up with the video. (Why do you ask Me to do what I promised when you are not doing what I commanded?)
Dear (brother/sister in Christ) please forgive me for any way I have sinned against you. I forgive you.
Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are, quite naturally, impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new, and yet is is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability - and that it may take a very long time…Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete. - Pierre Teilhadr De Chardin
Willard: If you don’t die tonight, what are you going to do tomorrow? I will wake up and live as best I can in the full trust, grace, and guidance of Christ as I submit to God’s kingdom (committed disciple response)
Perhaps the most damning of all misconceptions about discipleship is the belief that it is optional.
Martin Copenhaver: As I am about to leave, there is something I want to tell you. I want to tell you what Jesus means to me. I want to share my belief that everything depends upon him. I want to urge you to learn from him. I want to assure you that you can lean on him in times of trouble. I want to ask you to listen to his words of challenge. I want to tell you that i believe you can entrust your life to him. I want to affirm that he is Lord of this church and that in his name you are freed to love one another and empowered to share that love with a hurting world. I want to profess that though once people could not look at the face of God and live, now we are invited to look at the face fo God in him, in Jesus, and live as we have never lived before. He is Emmanuel, god with us, God with us all, whether we are together or apart. That’s what it’s all about. That’s all I know. Amen.
Adam and Eve’s mistake wasn’t that that touched, smelle or looked at the fruit. The damning effect of humanity is that they ate it. They swallowed sin. It became a part of them because they ingested it. So saving with Christ’s body and blood in Eucharist.
Advent is a mandorla of Christ’s birth and return.
Dorothy Sayers: To make the Easter story into something that neither startles, shocks, terrifies, nor excites is to crucify the son of God afresh
Lent: Sundays: temptation of Christ, call to deny sin, call to repentance, healing and conversion, foretaste of Easter, Palm Sunday.
Joy is the tattoo of heaven.
Josh Noem collects walk-off home run hitters rounding third base because they are a visceral portrayal of heaven.
Could we use less “Christian” words instead of bible church prayer discipleship gospel worship. Could we use Jesus community, talk with Jesus about the things we’re going to do together, following the way of Jesus. baptism as sacred pool party. It’s not cute or discarding traditional words, but to help us read our contexts better. To describe God and his mission in colorful, clear, creative, compelling, and curious ways.
Digital filter: What is my motive? Will this matter in a month? Is this wise? Is it worth it? Am I encouraging conversation or shutting it down? Am I making the world a better place by sharing this? Bringing shalom? Am I sharing what is honest and honoring?
We are in geographic, psychographic (like interest), family, relational, and digital neighborhoods.
Faithfully pursuing Jesus requires attention, intention, and tension. A tensionless church is a mission-less church. It’s both comfort in Christ’s presence and discomfort at new levels (etc). God is powerful and gentle, transcendent and imminent, demands faithfulness and freely forgives, etc.
February 4, 2025
“The more I studied Jesus, the more he broke my mold.
Jesus was-and still is-fascinating and also attractive and also irresistible. I love him, and I'm loved by him, even if he still frightens me. He wrecks my tight and carefully constructed box. I've slapped packaging tape across the top and scribbled "the Divine" on the lid with a Sharpie.
And yet somehow, in my attempt to box him up, I'd forgotten that this same Jesus can walk through walls.”
“Kingdom justice, then, is the restoration of humanity to both God and others, a return to shalom. It is making us whole by putting all the broken pieces back together once again.”
“The Lord’s Prayer expresses the yearning for overlapping worlds.”
Jesus was-and still is-fascinating and also attractive and also irresistible. I love him, and I'm loved by him, even if he still frightens me. He wrecks my tight and carefully constructed box. I've slapped packaging tape across the top and scribbled "the Divine" on the lid with a Sharpie.
And yet somehow, in my attempt to box him up, I'd forgotten that this same Jesus can walk through walls.”
“Kingdom justice, then, is the restoration of humanity to both God and others, a return to shalom. It is making us whole by putting all the broken pieces back together once again.”
“The Lord’s Prayer expresses the yearning for overlapping worlds.”
January 16, 2021
Important Book For Our Moment
A book that helps wade us through the division and polarization in the American Church right now. A book that sees the need for us to have a both/and not either/or theology in ministry.
A book that helps wade us through the division and polarization in the American Church right now. A book that sees the need for us to have a both/and not either/or theology in ministry.
April 30, 2021
Needed for such a time as this
Exactly what we need to hear in this space and time of turbulence, divisiveness, and uncertainty. As we live in the overlap, let it be sacred, holy and entirely human.
Exactly what we need to hear in this space and time of turbulence, divisiveness, and uncertainty. As we live in the overlap, let it be sacred, holy and entirely human.
January 1, 2021
Premise: Awesome. Content: Valuable. Focus: Shaky.
I love J.R.'s heart, feel the topic is culturally relevant (and needed), and strongly agree with 90% of the content. This book had the potential to be a 5-star book! That being said, I think it lost it's focus at times and if it could have been shortened just a touch it would have helped. In the middle of some chapters, I would find myself thinking, "What two concepts are we discussing the overlap of right now? And how does that relate to the overall thesis?" Even with this shortcoming, the book is worth your time, and a few powerful chapters and many takeaways justify the price of admission. Pick it up!
I love J.R.'s heart, feel the topic is culturally relevant (and needed), and strongly agree with 90% of the content. This book had the potential to be a 5-star book! That being said, I think it lost it's focus at times and if it could have been shortened just a touch it would have helped. In the middle of some chapters, I would find myself thinking, "What two concepts are we discussing the overlap of right now? And how does that relate to the overall thesis?" Even with this shortcoming, the book is worth your time, and a few powerful chapters and many takeaways justify the price of admission. Pick it up!
September 30, 2021
Life and faith is especially so often lived in binaries. But Briggs gives us the gift of the Venn Diagram to broaden our conversations and perspectives by not discussing in the either/or but the both/and. This space feels messy like faith a conversation and view that elevates the divisiveness that can divide and searches for the bond that holds us together in the sticky middle. An easy and enlightening read on the blend between nearly 40 overlaps that we experience with regularity in faith conversations.
June 5, 2024
This book started off strong, but it's like he had one really good idea and squeezed 250 pages out of it. I was also reading a book similar in nature to this one, so they may have 'overlapped' (pun intended) in my mind. I actually really enjoyed an interview I heard with J.R. Briggs discussing the book more than the book itself, so the thought is certainly worth communicating, but perhaps a podcast would have been a better platform.
June 11, 2024
“Too Christian for pagans and too pagan for Christians” Briggs does a masterful job of inviting to the narrow way, giving clear direction on what often feels like unattractive polar choices. The tension of living with the promise of heaven and the reality of what has been done by Christ happens in the now. This book is not mystical, yet shows the mystery of practically choosing a both/and approach to life. I will be rereading. And then hopefully living it out!
April 23, 2021
This really is an extraordinarily thought-provoking book. It's clear much of the writing took place on the other side of all we've been through in 2020, especially the election cycle, civic unrest, and COVID-19. I found the book to start pretty slow as it didn't seem like anything new. However, about halfway in the content was inspiring and thought-provoking.
January 1, 2021
Excellent book for those of us who call ourselves Christ-followers, but live in the tension between the extremes. One of the best non-fiction books I listened to this polarizing year. In fact, I am probably going to gift it to a pastor friend.
April 7, 2024
Great book and perfect for a time where we think in extremes! Brings us back to the center of what Jesus was really about and what he came for. I love the overlap concept in this book and the academic nature in the writing mixed with the personal stories.
November 3, 2020
Review forthcoming on the Englewood Review of Books
January 4, 2021
Overall very thought-provoking. I feel like it ran out of steam, however, toward the end. Still very worthwhile read which will influence my thoughts for a long time to come.
February 7, 2022
really good
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews