What If Jesus Was Serious about the Church?: A Visual Guide to Becoming the Community Jesus Intended

What If Jesus Was Serious Series

by Skye Jethani

Researchers have uncovered the following three First, distrust of institutions, including the church, is at an all-time high. Second, young people raised in the church are leaving at alarming rates and not returning. Third, loneliness and social isolation are at pandemic levels. What’s the connection? It appears that an entire generation is starving for the very thing the church is called to provide but has chosen to look for it elsewhere. Why is this happening? Following the model set by What If Jesus Was Serious? —short readings and engaging illustrations— What If Jesus Was Serious about the Church? looks at what the Bible really says about the church, its purpose, and the impact of its modern captivity to consumer values. Rather than an event, a building, or an institution, the New Testament calls the church to be a community living in communion with God and one another for the sake of the world.

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

240 pages, Paperback

Published July 19, 2022

About the author

SKYE JETHANI is an author, speaker, consultant and ordained pastor. He also serves as the co-host of the popular Phil Vischer Podcast, a weekly show that blends astute cultural and theological insights with comical conversation. He has been a sought after consultant for groups facing challenges at the intersection of faith and culture like The Lausanne Movement, The White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and the Interfaith Youth Core. Skye has authored three books, The Divine Commodity: Discovering a Faith Beyond Consumer Christianity, WITH: Reimagining the Way You Relate to God, and Futureville. Skye and his wife Amanda have three children: Zoe, Isaac, and Lucy and reside in Wheaton, IL.

Reviews

[Cover Lover Book Review · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love devotionals, and this one is super unique. It’s sort of a problem and solution guide concerning the church using Scripture as a foundation. This is an easy to read, easy to follow, easy to practice model. The chapters are quick reads but (most) hold a deep importance.

There are obviously problems in the church, and this book helps us see the cracks and gives solutions to how we can and should repair them. What If Jesus Was Serious About the Church is a community building and highly inspiring book. It brings a lot of things to the surface that you can’t unsee.

First Line: One of those days Jesus went out to pray and spent the night praying to God.
Genre: Christian Spiritual Growth
Page Count: 240

Disclosure: #CoverLoverBookReview received a complimentary copy of this book.

[JD Swedberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m going to be thinking about a lot of this book for a while. It’s challenging and compelling at the same time.

[Aris Slabaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really appreciate this book (and its author)! With bite sized chapters that cap off with Scripture recommendations, it was a really insightful and practical read that I have found useful as my husband and I are in a new place and looking for a new church home.

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

HIGHLY Recommend. The third in Skye Jethani's What If Jesus Was Serious serious, this book is packed with timely insights about the church, both Big C and little c. Because all three books in the series have short chapters of 2-3 pages each, I read a chapter a day or two on the weekends.

[Jacob Gaudaur · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been a useful resource in a season where I've felt the need to get back to the essentials of what the Church and churches should be about at their core.

Each chapter is a short bite-size topic about key aspects of church as well as a fun doodle and supplementary scripture passages. If you are trying to discern what role the church has in this broken world and how it should look, I believe this book will point you in the right direction. After all, what Jesus says about the Church should be the most prominent voice in the conversation.

[Sarah Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book to read if you are in the process of finding a church. Jethani does an excellent job of explaining some of the issues with the modern (Western) church and backs it all up with scripture. The additional reading notes at the end of each section really helped solidify each thought. So many good reminders 4.5 stars.

[Christian Salyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Skye does a nice job of giving little devotional-like insights into how the church has become far from what it was intended to be and how we can help re-orient ourselves to the kingdom of God each day! Great read!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Connie Maier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Short, bite-size mini-chapters, but deep in good theology and praxis. Highly recommend. Makes me want to read more in this series!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Damon Vinciguerra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Skye puts words to so many of the ideas I’ve been struggling with in my own community. Now that I have a language for it I can engage my community to try to help. But I’m definitely going to have to read it a 2nd time and aggregate some notes specific to us.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Church as family instead of corporate. (Except corporate in the sense of together rather than American hyper individual.)
My sum-ups or bits that stood out to me.
Part 1 The family reunion.
It shouldn’t all be comfy and homogenous. There should be challenges and people we don’t like or who aren’t “the right kind of people”.
Part 2 The family meal.
Which is the Lords supper being the only worship element that the current church still shares with the original early church.
10: Jewish food rules as keeping them distinct, not sharing table with outsiders.
19: Eucharist means thanksgiving and it’s celebrated.
20: Hospitality. Hospital = home for strangers, and is understood as a place for healing. Hospitality at the lord's table, a place for welcome and healing.
Part 3 The family gathering.
23: quoted Alec Guinness in his biography Blessings in Disguise. “An impulse compelled me to start running. With joy in my heart, and in a state of excitement, I ran until I reached the little church there which I had never entered before; I knelt; caught my breath, and for ten minutes was lost to the world…rather nonsensical gesture of love.”
Skye “there may have been no practical reason for Jesus to turn water into wine at a wedding, or for God to put “every beautiful tree” in the garden for Adam and Eve to enjoy, or for Him to adopt us into His family and lavish His love upon us. Maybe these were all simply expressions of His nonsensical love. And maybe that’s what worship is. It’s what happens when God’s delight in us inspires our delight in Him, sparking an endless loop of joy between Creator and creature, between Lover and beloved.”
28: Worship on Sunday because Jesus resurrection was the start of the new creation.
34: “In war, we see the ultimate expression of ungodly utilitarianism. War is supremely practical. It is the willingness to sacrifice literally everything to achieve a goal…Worship, however, is the opposite of war. It is an act of creation rather than destruction, of order rather than chaos, and beauty rather than ugliness. By playing his cello in the center of war-torn Sarajevo, Smajlović was planting a garden amid the battlefield. He was confronting the sinfulness of man seen in the horrible practicality of war, with the beauty of God seen in the extravagant impracticality of art. Art is more than a luxury, and beauty is more than an extravagance. When we create art and music, or when we gather to worship with expressions of splendor and adoration, as we do every Sunday, like Smajlović, we are performing an act of defiance. We are creating an oasis of beauty amid the dehumanizing ugliness of our world. We are declaring our refusal to succumb to the brutal practicality of the world, which crushes people in its pursuit of power, wealth, or fame.”
Part 4 The family business
37: “Our flippancy about church divisions is due, in part, to our cultural captivity to individualism. We fail to see the collective church as critical to God’s mission in the world. We think of mission as something undertaken by individuals, not whole communities. And, being far removed from the ancient world, we don’t recognize the role of temples…in the Old Testament the temple was the centerpiece of God’s mission and presence in the world. If the temple was destroyed, it was believed God’s redemptive mission could not unfold…Rather than a physical building, God’s true temple is now the people of Jesus Christ bound to Him and each other in a community of love.”
39: “Brain research shows that when a person is comfortable the more analytical functions of the brain required for learning shut off. Simply put, learning and transformation require discomfort…Psychologists refer to the brain as having a ”system one” and a “system two.” System one is the more intuitive “autopilot” of the brain that is engaged when relaxed…The other level of brain function, system two, is the analytical capacity of the mind that is necessary to examine assumptions, challenge beliefs, and assemble new behaviors and ideas. System two must be turned on, and the autopilot of system one turned off, in order to learn. The brain shifts gears from system one to system two when it is forced to work - when we are challenged, stretched, and made uncomfortable. Jesus understood this. He expected HIs disciples to work in order to understand His teaching. He asked questions, wrapped His messages in opaque parables, and often taught in distracting settings. And for most of history, comfort was not the driving value in church architecture or worship design. There was hidden wisdom behind the hard pews, elaborate rituals, unique music, and liturgies that required kneeling, standing, walking an aisle, or making the sign of the cross. Many find these movements unfamiliar or uncomfortable. The were not part of a Christian’s normal, everyday routine. But that was precisely the point. They shifted the brain into system two where engagement and formation occur.”
41: “The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes the cosmic scale of Jesus’s sacrifice. Paul said through the cross, God has “reconciled to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven” (Col, 1:20, emphasis added)…The cosmic scope of Paul’s gospel fits with the Jewish vision of God he inherited from the Hebrew Scriptures that declare, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen 1:1). The next verse does not say God then retired into full-time ministry…the problem is not that the church failed to accomplish its mission, but that it too narrowly defined its mission. When huge parts of our lives and world are seen as beyond Christ’s concern, we shouldn’t be surprised to discover false gods defiling those domains.”

[Joneen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book may be for you if you missed the "Emergent Church" movement in the 90's/00's, or if you're looking for a general philosophizing/re-imagining/"thinking-out-loud" kind of book on church. However, if you're wanting a "SERIOUS" book that really wrestles more tangibly with how to make biblical understanding of church become reality, this is not the book for you. I had three key problems with this book:

1) Basically what I already iterated above: I expected it to be a "SERIOUS," thoughtful, and insightful deep dive/analysis of HOW to re-develop modern church experiences to foster community and fellowship. However, it turned out to be more of a light "devotional" type pontification: a bunch of short readings (51 total) that were all basically mini-essays on "If Jesus was serious, church should be [like this]"... While a short format can still be thoughtful and profound (like Seth Godin), these were not that. They were basically what you'd get if John Lennon, instead of writing Imagine, wrote on what church life should look like. And I'm not saying the author was wrong in what he wrote - just that none of it was tangible, hands-on ideas about HOW to do church like this; just a lot of ways of repeating that "things should be this way." Not all that helpful if you're, say, in leadership at a church and are looking for serious, thoughtful, hands-on suggestions/solutions of how to bring about this kind of transformation.

2) Maybe all these short writings on "things should be this way" could have been helpful - in order to institute change we need why/what as well as how - but for someone who's been around the block of church ministry for a more than a couple decades, all of his ideas/ponderings were unoriginal. Again, I'm not saying he's wrong or that what he writes is unimportant; just that this is the same stuff we've been hearing since the 90's and the days of the "Emerging Church" movement. Which again, I'm ALL FOR: but HOW do we make it reality? Jethani doesn't even try to answer this question - which was the very question I bought the book for, hoping it would answer it (or make a beginning at answering it, anyway).

3) While most of the readings are addressing mindset/perspective issues, with scripture references to further ponder on these truths, some were interpretations of specific scripture passages ...and were completely fanciful and unfounded. Again, not necessarily wrong, just that the interpretation was not actually the result of scriptural analysis. For example, he is 100% correct when he points out that Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 11 against "drinking judgment on yourself" when you take communion has nothing to do with individually examining yourself and any recent sins you've committed. So far, so good. However, Jethani then says that it's about social unity instead - no class division, racial division, Jew/Gentile division, etc. And while this is obviously a good virtue to promote (of course we need to have unity of all kinds in the body!), and one which Paul wrote about many times elsewhere, it is not what Paul was addressing in THIS SPECIFIC passage. So Jethani just swapped out one inaccurate interpretation for another. Albeit, his interpretation is not as harmful as the original one, which heaps shame and condemnation on you, so his is definitely an improvement - but that doesn't change the fact that it's inaccurate. Paul was talking about honoring one another and waiting for everyone to eat BEFORE coming together to have communion, so they wouldn't have people super hungry, or getting drunk from having wine on an empty stomach, etc.... by not doing this, they reduced communion to a natural meal for the body, and missed "discerning the body and blood of the Lord," and were not doing it "in remembrance of Him," but rather to literally feed their natural appetites. Paul makes this completely clear at the end of the passage when he says: "So, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you come together it will not result in judgment." Simple as that, plain as day. Yet Jethani completely misses it. Again, the conclusion he was advocating was by no means a bad thing or theologically unsound, but it was not ACCURATE to the SPECIFIC PASSAGE of scripture he was dealing with. So while his interpretation is "harmless," it shows an attitude of being careless with scripture and not valuing really going after truth, but being satisfied with an interpretation which seems pleasing to you. That kind of interaction with scripture can be harmful in the long run.

So for all those reasons, I give this book 2 stars - I originally gave it 1 star, but I felt that did not give it enough credit for the valuable things he does say in the book, which truly are deeply good - so I changed it to 2 stars. But as I said, while his ideas about what church should be like are good, they are neither new insights nor tangible ways to put the ideas into practice, so I do not find the book meaningfully helpful. Maybe if you're young, or new to church life, and/or missed the 90's "Emerging Church" movement, you'll appreciate this book. And if it gets you thinking about church on a deeper level, and thinking about having a more authentic, genuine community life with whatever church you're a part of, wonderful! However, for anyone "seriously" looking to grapple with HOW to do church differently, I cannot recommend this book.

[Cindy Davis- Cindy's Book Corner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skye Jethani has become an "auto" read author. I have read the first two in this series, and when I learned What If Jesus Was Serious About the Church? was out, I immediately went looking for it.

In America the church has become a corporate enterprise.

Each section is between 2-3 pages with Scripture verses at the end of each section to enforce the points that the author was making in that particular section. The book is divided into five sections, with multiple subsections related to the heading of that part. Each of the five sections is related to specific passages of Scripture. It is easy to read and understand.

I want to remind us all, regardless of our Christian heritage, what Jesus intended for His Church to be. That means looking behind the layers of history to the essential qualities and practices of the church outlined by Jesus Himself, and then reapplying these to whatever context we find ourselves in.

One of the reasons I love these books by Jethani is because he gives us much to ponder. He lays out his points, backed with scripture. They are relevant and true. The church needs a major overhaul and in many cases, it is not representing Jesus well. Jethani is not telling us how to fix the issues, but he is highlighting them. We are responsible for our own responses, especially when we know the Truth, we can't ignore what we know to be true.

Just as it is possible to attend school and not be educated, it is entirely possible to be churched and not be living in communion with Christ-especially when church is defined institutionally rather than communally.

Thank you to Moody Publishers for the opportunity to read this book. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not know whether to give this a 3 or a 4, due to my confusion. My confusion was not from the material's presentation. The material was straight forward and easy to understand, but connecting it to my life was hard, if near impossible. While the author was referring to Christians as a whole, it seemed like he was talking about a section of Christianity, but not the section of Christianity that I come from which is Catholicism. For example, the part about Christian churches not having Jesus' Table as the focus is not something we are missing in the Catholic Church. The Eucharist is what the Mass is leading up to. There was also the part about logistics and other Christian churches cannot figure it out, which is also foreign for every Sunday/Saturday and weekly Masses you can have Communion (as long as your soul is not in a state of mortal sin). Now we do have more Masses on regular Saturdays/Sundays in my Parish, which may help with spreading out people.

Now Skye Jethani did talk about how some sacramental churches get things not exactly right/wrong, but he didn't define sacramental churches. Does that include Catholicism? Who are the sacramental churches? With that said, Skye Jethani did make me think and reassess about how I think and live out my faith. Also, a lot of what he said about what we should do as the Church matches what I believe as a Catholic even though I am not sure how much I believe is canonical to Catholicism. Yet, he does not seem to have a Catholic background.

Verdict: If you come from a non-Catholic background then this might be more illuminating for you.

[David S Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep thoughts on Church hidden behind an easy read.

Jethani continues the style from the previous two “What if…” books. These books appear simple and even shallow (there are cartoons for every chapter). But this is their appeal, because the content is far from simple or shallow. Rather he cleverly uses his disarming style to explore some significant issues.

In this book he considers the church in five parts, all of which are encapsulated by the notion of family. He considers what the church is, how it should reflect Jesus’ kingdom, the place of communion, the gathering, Leadership, and also the need to resist certain cultural tendencies of the North American CEO approach to church and mission.

Pastors should take note of this book because he also points out certain trends that need attention (such as the volume of spiritually mature people who are leaving churches). Congregants should read too because it’s not just the leaders who are getting church “wrong”, sometimes the problems we’re seeing at leadership level are connected to the church congregations want. Essentially what Jethani does is invites you into some biblical reflection on church.

Each of the five chapters are divided into short lessons, each of which has a cartoon, an idea statement, a reflection on this and then some further biblical texts which support the idea.

[Jonathan Brooker · Rating 3 out of 5]

When a book is designed like this with such brief chapters and so many of them, it tends to indicate that the basic offering of the book will be to give the reader a variety of "nuggets" around that particular topic. And that's what Jethani does a good job of delivering here in this book.

That's probably part of my personal reason for liking it more than loving it. I think most all of his points were good points that were well-stated. They just didn't delve to any particularly profound depths for me.

That being said, I do think that this particular book would be a pretty strong consideration as a sort of primer for a new believer who's new to the church or perhaps for all new church members at a church to read as required reading. There were so many sentient points when it comes to common (and precarious) misunderstandings when it comes to the church, that I couldn't help but think that so many problems that so many church goers have could be remedied if they were taught these things that come from the actual Scriptures rather than just their own experiences and preexisting expectations.

[Reggie Byrum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly Good, Challenging Information.

The book has a lot of gold nuggets regarding “the church” and reevaluating its goals and values. There is a lot of “good” to take away, which is why I would recommend it. I disagreed on a few issues, one of those being the extreme importance the author places on “leaders” in the church. Perhaps, that comes from my understanding of Matthew 23:10 where Jesus said, “Do not be called leaders, for One is your Leader, that is, Christ”. Funny how the author fails to mention this Scripture. Also, I just finished an excellent book by Jon Zens “Don’t Be Called Leaders” that places “leadership” in the New Testament in proper perspective. The author still seems to cling to an “institutional” model of “church”, which in my mind, is also a flaw.

However, he made many valid points, most of which I highlighted and shared on social media. Overall, I’d recommend the book. Just read with discernment.

[Cherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so needed right now at this point in Christian history. The church has become like the world in its anger, hatred, and fearmongering. We have conformed to the world's standards and look no different from those who profess no faith. Skye speaks prophetically into this space showing us a better way. He confronts us with our political idols. He urges us to mend social divisions rather than fan their flames. He reminds us that we are to pray for our enemies rather than wage war against them. This book will challenge and encourage you that the church is part of God's plan for us, even in all its messiness. I highly recommend praying before you read it that you will be open to what the Lord has to say to you in this book and that you will be willing to take steps toward loving God and your neighbor wholeheartedly.

[Robbie Mackenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Skye's critique here in systems of attraction and ideas stemming from the corporate world. He does a good job, I think, of helping us keep things simple to the mission of God. Obviously his resume speaks for itself and he brings the breadth of church experience into helping us understand what churches might need to focus on. If there was one critique I would have it would be that I could sense a little frustration (perhaps rightly so) in churches incorporating components of business models into churches. I get it. Been there. I just do not think it has to be either/or and I got a little whiff of some unnecessary dichotomies I inferred from his conclusions. However, I would definitely put this book into the hands of all leaders in the church who are rethinking their identities in how they approach kingdom work.

[Zach Hacker · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who’s been involved in a local church for years I found this book extremely refreshing. Regardless of whether you agree from a biblical interpretation standpoint with the author on a few of his stances, the questions he raises about the way church is often done in our culture as compared to what scripture actually says are extremely important. Reading this felt almost like a step back out of the busy, just keep doing things because this is what we’ve always done, type of rhythm and actually allowed me to think, read, and meditate on scripture as to what the Father seeks for His Church.

I would highly recommend anyone who is either a believer, a non believer, or someone who’s just burnt out to read this book. It’s an extremely easy but thought provoking read! 🤘

[Mike Doel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A drop off from its predecessors

I really enjoyed the first two entries in this series. But this one didn’t strike me in quite the same way. There are some thoughtful points made to be sure, but there are quite a few essays where it felt like straw men were being built so that they could be torn down. For example, there is much made in here about how a church mission statement can distract from what Christ asks of us. And I suppose that is true to a degree. But there is no allowance made for how these mission statements are typically ignored by most of the congregation or how they can help remind parishioners of the dimensions of faith in a way similar to a creed. This mountain making from mole hills diminishes the promise of this book compared to the earlier entries.

[Bridgette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m making my way through all of Skye’s devotionals and his first “What if Jesus was Serious?” book and this one are my 2 favorites. The amount of content in each devotional is perfect for my morning read. The content always has me thinking in a deeper way and the scripture verses at the end give me a much richer interpretation than what I had before. I also love the pictures. This is great for all ages- teenagers to adults. It can be a great discussion prompt for families. I sent a copy to my kids in college and they enjoy discussing them with their roommates. It’s the perfect devotional. I highly recommend.

[Ryan George · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book continues Skye Jethani’s uncanny ability to challenge assumptions that have been unbiblically baked into American evangelicalism. This book, like the previous books in this fantastic series, uses Scripture to prove thoroughly how the Bible has been abused and misapplied. I revisited many lines I highlighted and dog-eared multiple chapters to try to burn their truths into my memory. Don’t let the short chapters fool you into thinking Jethani isn’t making robust arguments for subversive pathways to a healthier church. His skill at succinct arguments is a greater asset to this book than even the doodles that make it approachable.

[Melanie Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great book. Easy to read and follow! So many things I’ve never thought about the way the author explains…. I love how he brings clarity to so many scripture and stories in the Bible that we tend to take at face value or just in ways we’ve as a society have been conditioned to think about them. Can’t wait to read the rest of the books in this serious! I already feel my strength and relationship with Christ and His truths being strengthened, and a much deeper appreciation and love for my church family 🙏🏻💜

[Lori Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always love Skye Jethani and he always makes me think in new ways about concepts I thought I understood. This book is no different. He covers issues with candor and humor and yet he doesn't pull any punches. The book is a great reminder of what Jesus said and likely what Jesus intended. However, compared to titles like The Divine Commodity or (my personal favorite) With, it felt not as insightful or revolutionary. That's the only reason I gave it four stars instead of five.

[Staci · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third of these "What If Jesus Was Serious About....?" books that we have finished as a family. While I thought a couple topics (eg. Communion) were a little longer than necessary, nonetheless Jethani again challenges us to see what is at the heart of our practices and to rethink what God really means when he talks about his Church. (I liked the introduction so much that we immediately bought 2 copies to share with friends.)

[Colton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am always a bit skeptical of "reading of the day" devotionals, but Skye Jethani does good work here in providing a thoughtful reflection each day. As expected, it was hit or miss depending on the day, but for the most part, it posed some important questions, especially for those leading in the church. Also, I know the doodles are one of the selling points for this series, but they were not for me.

[Daunavan Buyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty Good

I really like Skye and have been impacted by his books (especially With) but I found this to be quite cynical. I realize that this book exists in some ways as a critique but I found it to make some generalizations about church leaders and churches that were not always fair. Yes I believe Jesus was serious about the church and there are a lot of good points in here but too cynical.

[Kanyanta Bwalya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Provoking

I thank God for the gift that Skye Jethani. I owe a lot to him and Phil Vischer for getting out of a very spiritually disillusioned state 4 years ago. This book has challenged me to think differently about church and has expanded my understanding of the kingdom of God. Thank you Skye and Moody publishers.