Jesus Unleashed: A New Vision of the Bold Confrontations of Christ and Why They Matter

by John F. MacArthur Jr.

Walk through the gospel records of the “bold confrontations” of Jesus and discover how to use your newfound knowledge of the person of Jesus to defend the biblical truth of the Christian faith. Do you have any idea who Jesus really is? “What you think of Jesus Christ will thoroughly color how you think about everything else,” writes John MacArthur. This is a critical truth in the life of every believer. Your view of Jesus affects the way you view God, the world, and every one of your decisions. These days, Jesus is often portrayed as a pacifist, a philanthropist, or a docile teacher. He strikes a plastic—and sometimes pathetic—pose in the minds of many. Some prefer the meek and mild Jesus who heals the sick, calms fears, and speaks of peace and goodwill. These things do represent a portion of the Messiah. But tragically, too many have never been exposed to the rest of him. They have never seen a full 360-degree view of the Savior. His boldness in the face of confrontation and why that matters. Until now. Abridged from his classic bestseller, The Jesus You Can’t Ignore , Jesus Unleashed takes a revealing walk through the gospel records. Like an investigative journalist on a mission, author and teacher John MacArthur shows you a remarkable and compelling picture of Jesus unleashed.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Theology

160 pages, Hardcover

Published July 13, 2021

About the author

John F. MacArthur, Jr. was a United States Calvinistic evangelical writer and minister, noted for his radio program entitled Grace to You and as the editor of the Gold Medallion Book Award-winning MacArthur Study Bible. MacArthur was a fifth-generation pastor, a popular author and conference speaker, and served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California beginning in 1969, as well as President of The Master’s College (and the related Master’s Seminary) in Santa Clarita, California.

Reviews

[Destiny · Rating 5 out of 5]

John MacArthur never disappoints. He breaks down scripture so well always leaving you learning more than you had anticipated. This book is easily a 10/10.

[Susan Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Safe?" said Mr Beaver ..."Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you." - C.S. Lewis (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)

It's amazing and wonderful to see an elderly teacher put on the boxing gloves, as it were, and step bravely into the ring of verbal battles as well as written battles, over the truth of Jesus. And for this reader, I've been waiting for this one for 50 years.

About that long ago, I actually attacked an Episcopal Priest after Sunday morning service for having stated from the pulpit that "Jesus is not Lord". And I wasn't even saved.

But just having passed my first decade on the earth, I wasn't a fool either. I knew that sign out in front claimed our church to believe in Christ as the Son of God, the Savior and Lord. To have the leaders of this same place who took money from even someone as young as me to feed their salaries stand there and deny the very Christ they got their whole show from was just too much for me.

The amazing part, looking back, is that when I collected myself, realizing the priest I had pummeled with my little fists had not a word to say, I turned only to see a frozen crowd of church goers, staring at me, like-wise dumbfounded.

I found that to be just beyond toleration. I still find it intolerable. And I'm glad to have such a nice, short and to the point book to pass around to whomever might have ears to hear the Truth, should they have any love for the truth left in them.

[Tom Hawkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many like to frame Jesus only as merciful, gracious, sympathetic, compassionate and loving Savior. It's clear if you read the bible that Jesus was also provocative, confrontational, authoritative and even harsh...especially with hypocritical false teachers...IN THE CHURCH! This book explains well the importance of Jesus' ministry and how we need to follow His lead in our quest to protect the gospel and make sure our loved ones know the truth. Everyone's salvation depends on it.

[Barbara Keigher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many people ( believers and unbelievers) frame Jesus only as a compassionate, merciful, and loving Savior.

However it becomes clear when you read the Bible,
that Jesus was also:
confrontational, authoritative, honest, truthful, straight forward , and harsh...
with hypocritical false teachers, in church! Pastor Dr. John MacArthur, gives tons of scriptures proving this fact.

[James Ramelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Key verse: Note then the kindness AND severity of God - Rom 11:22. Jesus doesn't back away from saying hard things. In today's Christianity, he might even be labeled as not 'Christ-like' for intentionally causing strife and going after the doctrines and hypocrisies of the Pharisees. MacArthur is a master at story-telling, and his writing remains at his best even at his old age. 5 stars!

[Alana Amunrud-Sharp · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to get a broad perspective as I studied the Gospel of John, so I read this book that was available at my library from MacArthur. This book purposefully ignored the passages that talk about Jesus as "meek and mild" and emphasized passages that talk about Jesus as bold and passionate. As a result, it seemed to be an attempt to show Jesus in a certain light to push a specific agenda. If we can't deal with Jesus as both meek and mild and bold and passionate, perhaps there are issues.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Bit Disappointed

Having read most of MacArthur's books, including his NT Commentary Set; and being in complete agreement with Jesus Unleashed, it didn't seem to quite reach the MacArthur level of excellence I've found in his other books.

[Dawn Weaver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is as much a portrait of the Pharisees of Jesus' time as it is of Jesus. It offers a detailed look at his interactions with the religious leaders of his day, explaining why he had to be so seemingly harsh with them.

[Christoph Yeung · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you think, "duh, it's just another book about Jesus...", then I can assure you, this book is gonna defy your expectations.
MacArthur takes you through the scriptures to discover Jesus' seldom discussed yet undeniable character- boldness.

[Sergiu S. Dobre · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very good book, typically MacArthurian! I have read it in Romanian, excellently translated by Dinu Moga! Kudos!

I do recommend it!

[Adam Cain · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of good information about Jesus and the Pharisees. Enjoyed it

[TonyWS · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re decently familiar with MacArthur at all, you probably won’t learn anything new from this book. If you’re not, you might.

[Mercurialgem · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very helpful book. Highly recommend it.

[Brody Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very close to a 5 star book.
In this book, MacArthur taught me so much about Jesus’s life and his character, specifically through his encounters with the members of the Sanhedrin. It really helped me connect links in Jesus’s life, ultimately revealing the bigger picture of His mission and ministry.