Dan B. Allender, Sabbath: The Ancient Practices (Nashville, Thomas Nelson, 2009), 208 pages, ISBN 9780849901072.

Dan Allender, one of the founders and former president of the Mars Hill Graduate School in Seattle, Washington, is a prolific writer and speaker. Currently, he serves as professor of counseling along with his private practice. His recent monograph, Sabbath is a challenge to our postmodern culture to rediscover the master’s intent of the Sabbath rest.

The Sabbath has been interpreted in various ways by the three monotheistic faith traditions. Allender’s thesis confronts western societies’ ideology regarding what it means to celebrate the Sabbath. He encourages the reader with the essence of delight as a premise for framing the idea and experience of the Sabbath. His theological assumptions include this holy day as a commandment which celebrates creation and remembers Eden with anticipation towards the new heavens (5). Whether or not one ascribes to the Sabbath as an observance on a particular day or a frame of mind, readers are encouraged to see it as a time to celebrate the beauty of God through many inspired ways. It is evident through Allender’s’ understanding of time, that he has been influenced by Abraham Heschel’s idea of the meaning of eternity within time (49─53).

The author writes in poetic style which enhances the reader’s imagination and the ideas which are illuminated.  Interwoven in this text is a collection of proverbial wisdom articulated in such ways which stimulate the creative mind to explore beyond the mundane and enter into the realm of possibilities of expecting the divine to show up in awe and splendor. If only the reader can glimpse into the imaginative mind of this writer long enough to experience the richness of his intent. He provides due discourse to the historical and biblical traditions of the Sabbath. He points out the Sabbath is one of several religious rituals that is a commandment within the Torah. It is apparent that Allender is not only invested in the idea of the Sabbath rest, but he has been transformed through the experience of celebrating God in the Sabbath.

P. W. Baker, Doomed Edifice: The Eclipse of the Prophetic Ministry and the Spiritual Captivity of the Church (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2010), 137 pages, ISBN 9781608990405.

Doomed Edifice is a brief historical survey of the first three centuries of ecclesial organizational and worship practices which seek to trace the development of the institutionalization of the early Christian church. P. W. Baker compares and contrasts several elements of early Christian ecclesial practices and doctrines with that of the early first century church. After an examination of these doctrines and organizational developments, Baker compares the contemporary Western church to his findings to make bold statements regarding institutional Christianity. As the title denotes, Baker’s argument is based upon his presupposition that, “the institutional church is an edifice built upon man’s wisdom and was doomed to failure” (xvi). Specifically, Baker attempts to synthesize this historical account in hopes of identifying how the prophetic ministry functioned within these churches. According to Baker, the organizational development of the episcopy and the institutionalization of these structures caused the prophetic ministries to wane and ultimately cease within this time period.

Baker argues successfully for the twofold prophetic ministry and the distinctions between their operations within the first century ecclesial bodies. He clearly identifies some predominant doctrinal beliefs that influenced early Christian life and how they related to their society. Chapters six and seven are particularly interesting in that Baker introduces the premise that the rise of the episcopacy was a result of the believing community’s confrontation with heresy and persecution. He also correlates this historical development with the displaced authority of the apostles and prophets. Baker develops this argument to conclude that the idea of apostolic succession and ultimately the papacy was a human endeavor to obtain power and authority in the position of a single man. For Baker the development of the hierarchical structures and institutionalization of the church is not the same church that Jesus established. As a student of the Hebrew Bible, it is refreshing to note how Baker incorporates the concept of a fluid community as depicted within the symbolism of the tabernacle and God’s presence in its midst.

Through this restorationist ideology, Baker seeks to correct what he identifies as a marginalization of the prophetic ministries. Although, there are many variations of the usage and application of restorationism, it is apparent that Baker‘s treatise is influenced by his beliefs that a return to this primitive church model of ecclesiology will resurrect the life and vitality of the Western contemporary church. Baker drives hard to equate spiritual decay with the institutionalization of the church. However, this ideology is not new. The Radical Reformers were strong advocates for ecclesiastical primitivism. One recent expression of the primitivist urge has emerged as an apostolic-prophetic movement which has included proponents such as C. Peter Wagner, Rick Joyner and Mike Bickle.

Loren Sandford, senior pastor of New Song Fellowship, is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary and a widely recognized leader within the charismatic renewal. He has authored several books, and written, produced, and recorded several music CDs. This monograph, The Prophetic Church, comes at the heels of a transition in the prophetic streams of the renewal movements. As the prophetic outpouring revivals of the nineties waned, new prophetic ministries have come to the fore. As his title begs the question, Sandford’s thesis argues that intimacy with God is the power and primary mark of the prophetic church to be a light in this generation (18). He argues that “a season of the emergence of lighthouse churches and ministries is now upon us” (16). Sandford’s symbolic writing style, combined with numerous biblical examples provides the reader with vivid images to conceptualize the major thrusts of his proposal. The author’s themes build together to communicate his thesis.

Sandford opens by making bold proclamations regarding an ensuing revival in the church of the Western world. However, he conveys with sadness that the revival will stop short of creating a cultural change or lasting impact on secular society. He supports this premise based upon a hermeneutic in which he utilizes biblical narrative to support end time events and then applies these interpretations to the current state of affairs. He records a few of the historical outpouring events of the nineties by giving account of the Toronto Blessing, Brownsville, Smithton, and Pasadena revivals. Sandford argues that the subsequent rejection of these outpourings by the church, degradation of morality as it relates to God in society and liberal views regarding doctrine and authority of Scripture within the church, have caused an irreversible judgment or course within society that will prevent revival from pervading the current culture (13─16).

Sandford highlights the destiny of the prophetic church in part three. He describes this destiny through a Daniel-Joseph anointing motif and the characteristics of the life of Moses as “force multipliers” (101). He defines this concept of force multipliers as factors which seek to “dramatically increase the effectiveness” of something which already exists (187). The writer’s use of exhortation is befitting to build up the ideas of a bold and faithful community, ready to serve, and shining as the light in the darkness as a result of the their participation with these force multipliers. Part four transitions the reader into a counter-cultural theme of the meanings and biblical importance of honor. He links this culture of honor with the release of God’s power and provides several biblical narratives to demonstrate the correlation. After a short excerpt on the importance of faith, Sandford writes to the issues of prophetic prayer and praise. In this chapter, a prophetic church is described as one who knows its identity, position, and prays and praises with declarative statements which builds an atmosphere of faith. The latter theological concepts are familiar to the various streams within the Word of Faith Movement. However, they may seem somewhat foreign for the evangelical reader.

John Goldingay, Genesis for Everyone Part One: Chapters 1−16 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 197 pages.

John Goldingay, Genesis for Everyone Part Two: Chapters 17−50 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 186 pages.

Genesis for Everyone lives up to its name. This two volume contemporary commentary of the book of Genesis is a refreshing and straightforward read of the creation account and the Genesis stories. John Goldingay is a prominent Old Testament scholar and theologian whose wealth of knowledge and insight contributes greatly to the understanding of these narratives. He writes in such a way as to inspire readers to engage in the spiritual and theological concepts of the book of Genesis in a modern context. Goldingay has written extensively on Genesis and Old Testament theology. However, this two volume commentary is worlds apart from his trilogy, Old Testament Theology that represents his magnum opus. Both works do give readers an appreciation for an Old Testament theologian whose rigorous readings of the final form of the text produce significant insights for both the church and the academy. Goldingay has benefited from the resurgence of Brevard Child’s canonical approach and from the possibilities of contextualized interpretation influenced by postmodern epistemologies. His long and prestigious career is marked by a keen methodological reflection and creative insights of the text with a commitment to the academy, as well as the contemporary church.

This two volume work is specifically targeted for the lay church audience. This commentary is not concerned with textual or critical methodological approaches. The author’s purpose is to highlight the importance of what he prefers to name “The First Testament” and the depth of understanding God’s ways through these Scriptures. Its aim is to provide the historical and theological implications to assist lay readers with the interpretative process for the book of Genesis. Goldingay’s respect for the Jewish sources is apparent within his interpretations of various texts; although, not explicitly cited. However, Goldingay treats the Hebrew canon from a Christian canonical context and incorporates the New Testament into his reading. The volumes are user friendly with key historical and theological terms in bold corresponding to a glossary at the end of each volume. Goldingay divides the volumes by chapters instead of by content for a practical split.