Unfashionable: Making a Difference in the World by Being Different

by Tullian Tchividjian, Timothy J. Keller (Foreword)

Tullian Tchividjian remembers the Sunday morning he woke up hung over, still dressed in the clothes he'd worn until passing out during a night of partying. After five-years of hard living, Tullian had come to the end of himself. He got up and went down the street to church. What he found there shocked him--a community of Christians who joyfully and radically lived out the Gospel in ways he’d never seen before. The encounter showed him a new way of living in the world–and he came to personal faith in Christ.

Tullian's experience convinced him that young Christians today don’t want a faith community that tries to come off as appealing and trendy. Christ followers are called to embrace a standard that’s “out of this world.” Why? Because the only way to make a difference in the world is by being different.

To help his readers re-imagine a radically “unfashionable” lifestyle, Tullian examines what Gospel-infused priorities would look like in relationships, community, work, finances and culture. Readers will come away with a clear picture of what it means to live subversively–and redemptively–for God.

Genres: Christian, Christian Living, Christianity, Theology, Nonfiction, Cultural, Religion

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Tchividjian is the grandchild of Reverend Billy Graham & Ruth Bell Graham & the son of Gigi Graham Tchividjian.


William Graham Tullian Tchividjian (pronounced cha-vi-jin) was the Senior Pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. A Florida native, he is a visiting professor of theology at Reformed Theological Seminary and a grandson of Billy and Ruth Graham. Tullian was the founding pastor of the former New City Church which merged with Coral Ridge in April of 2009.

Reviews

[Brent · Rating 1 out of 5]

The words, "forward by Timothy Keller" was very attractive on this book, which led me to pick this one up while on vacation last year; nevertheless, it proved to be quite a disappointment. More to the point, Tchividjian's theology proved to be a confusing mash of renegade theological points of truth, masked to dismiss other theological truths. He does a decent job at calling Christians back to an authentic lifestyle which would be considered "unfashionable," and to that he does an OK job, albeit is prose is much too light -as it seemed to be full of random fumbling thoughts and hot air. Even still, his theology revolves around the persistent belief that our sin has nothing to do with out suffering - necessarily - and that Christ's justification frees us up to do good works 'horizontally,' but not necessarily vertically - as if Christ got no pleasure in the good works of a saint, etc. Tullian also exhorts Christians to make the change they want to see in their community in a sort of 'reconstruction' of society without waiting around for the Heavenly Kingdom. This, too, was not a very convincing point, and is moot at best. I don't know Tullian personally - I'm sure he's a great guy, with a serious heart for the Lord - but as we all know, the library bookshelves are replete with books that should have never been written: this book is certainly one of them. -Brent M McCulley (10/8/13)

[Nathan Beers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just seemed to re-hash and quote from what a lot of others had said better.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a bit strange to rate a book like this a '5', I know. Tchividjian isn't a master craftsman with the pen nor is he a brilliant thinker. But it was one of those books that my jaw dropped lower with every page I read. "This is the book I should've written!" I kept thinking. So, maybe the '5' merely portrays the theological and ecclesiological kinship I feel with Tchividjian.

The book's premise is simple and profound and one I hope that this generation of church leaders will grab hold of and enculcate in their congregataions: Christians are called to make a difference in this world, but we make a difference by being different from the world. It's a thesis that cuts against so much of what both the mega/hipster churches are up to and what the aging/walled-up churches are up to.

He blasts both the impulse to comform and the impulse to retreat and doesn't just leave you there but very practically moves you forward. I bought 10 for Westerly's book table and hope they're all gone this Sunday.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book at a time in my life when I had no Gospel, only legalism in my life. Tchivijian points us to the true purpose of the church-to be unfashionable, but not isolationists. He points out both the flaws of the seeker sensitive movement (be everything to everyone) and the legalist/isolationist/fundamentalist movement in which I grew up. We are to be radically different, but not tribal in our thinking. I was both challenged and encouraged that the cross makes a difference. He reminds the reader that the Gospel is so much more than salvific; it is sanctifying. Thank you for redirecting my focus to the cross and the all encompassing Gospel of Jesus Christ!

[J. Alfred · Rating 4 out of 5]

The unquestionable leaders in Dudes You Won't Mention in Learned Society Because Their Names Are Unpronounceable are Sartre and Proust, and the leader in Dudes Whose Names You'll Never Be Able To Spell Eva is certainly Nietzsche (who gets bonus points for Zarathustra). Author and pastor Tullian Tchivdjian makes a strong case for both categories.
This book is a short, well articulated argument that Christians should be "against the world for the world" (one of the phrases one should take away from the reading), living in a way that is palpably different from the normal community of our day. The practical applications he makes are particularly well done: he specifically targets lying, stealing, gossip, and lust, among other things. And all these categories are wider than one typically believes: not stealing, for the author, means realizing that one's time and gifts belong to God and, sort of on loan, to the Church, meaning that the constant angling towards leisure which our culture idealizes is theft.
Very much a worthwhile read!

[Stephanie Willis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having a hard time finishing this one....

[Bryon · Rating 3 out of 5]

0

inShare
Pastor Tullian Tchividjian pushes back against the cult of cool in his new book, "Unfashionable," to be released this month.

Tchividjian (pronounced "Cha-vi-jin"), 36, says that living for God is uncool. Counter-culture. The way up is down; the way in is out.

"Seekers today aren't looking for something appealing and trendy. They're looking for something deeper than what's currently in fashion," Tchividjian says.

Tchividjian grew up in a Christian home but pursued everything but God. One Sunday morning he woke up dazed after a night of drunken carousing. With a hazy head and hungry heart, Tchividian staggered to his feet and out the door to church for the first time in years.

The rumpled clothes he slept in were his Sunday best. Although the church service that morning was not notable, he sensed the transcendent presence of God, and it changed him. The experience was the catalyst for "Unfashionable."

"Ironically, our culture's rejection of absolute truth is stoking an unprecedented hunger for truth," writes Tchividjian.

God's people are called to live lives that put God's truth on display.

God's people are not called to be popular; they're commanded to be faithful. That can mean that Christ's followers will be mocked, criticized or persecuted. They're unfashionable, because they're different.

"We transform this world by being God's unfashionable society," Tchividjian writes.

It takes courage to be different from the world, and even the Church has difficulty interfacing with culture. Often, it relies on conventional wisdom rather than biblical discernment when dealing with culture.

Christians usually choose one of three methods when responding to culture. They bunch up into groups or "cocoon," as Tchividjian puts it, keeping with their own kind. In contrast, other Christians clash with culture through "combat." The culture war is their battle cry. The other option Christians use is to merge with the culture and "conform." When this happens, the children of God are indistinguishable from the people of the world.

The bottom line, according to Tchividian, is we must make "contact" with the world. Salt and light, by design, make contact to preserve and illuminate. Without contact, neither have any value.

How is it then that Christians influence others? Should we focus only on political, social or economic avenues? Or is there a higher, perhaps less fashionable way to bring God's Kingdom to earth?

Tchividjian says that Christ followers need to practice "double listening." Christians must listen to the questions of the world while listening to the answers from God's Word. These will give the Christian discernment to initiate change that's transcendent rather than trendy.

"Because [God has] enlisted Christians to join him in this work, the difference we can make in this world is neither small nor insignificant; it's a cosmic difference," Tchividjian writes in "Unfashionable."

Tchividjian definitely has a talent for turning a phrase. His words have a tendency to stick in the memory like Velcro. "Unfashionable" helps sort it all out.

If the flash and marketing that's crept into the church has left you a little uneasy but you don't know why, "Unfashionable" will help make some sense of things. If Madison Avenue's influence on church practice and culture doesn't make a difference to you, give Tchividjian's book a read. It will help bring your perspective from the temporal back to the eternal.

After all, "[Jesus] calls on people to live for what is timeless and not trendy, to take up the cross and follow him, even when it means going against social norms," as Tchividjian writes in "Unfashionable."

http://goodnewsfl.org/christian-news/...

[Sarah Wessel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the first couple chapters, but then it got all bogged down in theology and never fully recovered. The last few chapters had glimmers of thought-provoking ideas, which somewhat parallel some of the Ten Commandments. What I did appreciate is the author's restraint to challenge Christians to be different from the world without his proscribing how to be different.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than I thought it would be. I think it was limited by its amillennial assumptions instead of going all the way to postmillennialism. The Amillenialist assumes what we see around us is what we have to work with. The Postmillennialist sees the world through the eyes of the Bible and thus believes the world we are looking at is the counter culture. Instead of trying to be unfashionable in a world gone nuts we should be assuming that when we act like Christians we are being fashionable and everyone else is unfashionable.

The book had a lot of good things and other than this inverted perspective of the world and the Kingdom of God, was very good.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rarely hit the 5th star on my reviews, but I have to say that though this book is not as much a piece of original literature as a well-edited compilation of wisdom and exhortation, it hits on so many of the topics I've been thinking about and working through, that it was worth more than the 4 star "really liked it" setting. (I don't know how I will ever progress through my "to read" list when I keep reading books I want to re-read!)
He steps into the current state of the church and culture and lines us all up with the tried and true ways of the "unfashionable" gospel--- and it is truly GOOD NEWS!

[Adam Shields · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review at http://bookwi.se/unfashionable-by-tul... and http://bookwi.se/unfashionable/

Short review: I think this is a good discussion of how the church should be interacting in the world. I did not agree with the theology behind some of his positions, but almost all of the illustrations of how the church should be acting I did think were appropriate and good. This is a book that I really recommend, not because it is new and original but because it is concise and lays out the argument for the church reaching the world but not being dominated by the world.

[CJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main point is that Christians need to be different in thinking (theology) than the world so that people know there is a difference and have something to be attracted to if they have that inclination. That living Biblically is necessarily unfashionable and should be so. This stands against the idea that the church should be the same as the world so that people are attracted to it. There is also a lot about the view that God wants to renew the present world, as opposed to making a totally new one.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO GOOD! One of those great great wake up call books. Up there on my shelf with Crazy love by Francis Chan, The Harbinger by Johnathan Cahn and Now they call me Infidel by i forget.....Nona Darwish! Right!

This is a great book for ALL Christians. Have you ever wondered why you don't feel like you are making any difference in this world? This book is a GREAT place to get started. RECOMMEND RECOMMEND RECOMMEND!

[Frode · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear and well organized, the author says some accurate things about the church in the world today as well as giving some practical directions for it. He is a thoughtful and thought provoking writer.

I enjoyed his quote from C.S.Lewis, "The best way to read is with book in lap, pen in hand, and pipe in teeth."

[Billy Schiel · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book Tchividjian calls for the church to stick to heralding the message of the great Gospel rather than falling into pragmatism or post modern relativism. The church makes it's biggest impact not by becoming like the world, but by being "unfashionable" and preaching the Gospel message that only the church has been called to preach!

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tchividjian has written a masterful prophetic word to the modern American church here. His message is clear, biblical and powerful: we followers of Jesus make the most difference in this world by being different from this world.

[Lee Peck · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book. Tchividjian makes the point that Christians make a difference in this world by being different from this world; they don't make a difference by being the same. Really thought provoking and what Christians need to hear and heed.

[Bauer Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tullian is a wonderful pastor and effective communicator. His winsome writing style is complemented by a breadth of research without coming across as dry. I look forward to reading more by this author.

[Tim Sheppard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book that I've finished by this author. He does a great job communicating the truth from God's word. I love that his dedication page has a quote from Angels and Airwaves. That explains Tullian. He can bring culture and truth together. Read this book.

[Kevin Hughlett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing really new in the book, but the author does n excellent job of reiterating key points that ALL followers of Jesus should live by in an easy to read and understand way. I recommend for both new and experienced Christians.

[Linda Douglas]

This is a reminder that Christians don't need to fit in. We should be different from our culture. Not finished with it yet.

[Allison]

Thought provoking

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought I would appreciate this book more than I did. Still, I would recommend it to my more conservative Christian friends.

[Andrew Canavan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great introduction to Christianity and culture and a compelling vision of living differently: against the world, for the world.

[Judson Marvel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent. The Church is called to be the Church, a new community, a new creation, a new culture against the world for the world.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful!

[bookme4life · Rating 2 out of 5]

Put down.

[Arlen]

"Unfashionable" by Tullian Tchividjian says what "Radical" by David Platt should have said.

[Brian Tanner Tanner · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was better than I expected!

[Carrie Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book and how clearly he talks about living in the world, but not of it. Great book!