The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers
This is a book about the heart of Christ. Who is he? Who is he really? What is most natural to him? What ignites within him most immediately as he moves toward sinners and sufferers? What flows out most freely, most instinctively? Who is he? (a direct quote from the introduction)
The author seeks to give us a work not about what Jesus has done, but about who Jesus is based on how Jesus describes himself. The primary text is Matthew 11:28-30 which is the only self-description Jesus gives. After that the author develops many texts of Scripture and Puritan writings that describe both the incarnate Son of God as well as the Godhead in general. The first 12 chapters focus solely on the Son before turning to examine the Spirit and the Father in 13-19 before closing with a return to focus on Jesus.
Regarding the Spirit he writes, “The Spirit simply causes our apprehension of Christ’s heartful love to soar closer to what it actually is.”
Regarding the Father the author teaches that, “Your gentlest treatment of yourself is less gentle than the way your heavenly Father handles you. His tenderness toward you outstrips what you are even capable of toward yourself.” And, “His anger requires provocation; his mercy is pent up, ready to gush forth.” Finally, “Out of his heart flows mercy; out of ours, reluctance to receive it.”
A key theme throughout this book is that in our sinful, fallen state our default idea of who Jesus is is completely wrong. Upside down. We must have God’s revelation in Scripture to correct our wrong thinking.
Another prominent theme is that our sinfulness, falleness, impurity, and weakness is not an impediment to Jesus loving us. It does not cause him to recoil but, because of who He is, it actually draws him to us! Even in the midst of the mess.
The author labors to harmonize this gentle and lowly, affectionate heart of Christ with other actions and attributes that seem, on the surface, to be contradictory. He succeeds in explaining these truths from Scripture. Chapter 15 is a great example of this.
It is this lovely, magnanimous heart that is to draw us to Jesus, in times of our sinfulness as well as times of worship. We are encouraged to dwell, to meditate, to deeply ponder the amazing heart of Jesus for sinners and sufferers.
He closes the book with a few chapters that really zero in on the law versus Gospel approach to living and how the heart of Jesus plays a significant part in that distinction. He writes about Jesus, “His deepest disappointment is with your tepid thoughts of his heart.” And, “The creation of the world was to give vent to the gracious heart of Christ. And the joy of heaven is that we will enjoy that unfettered and undiluted heart forevermore.” He also says that when we live to glorify God, we step into the only truly humanizing way of living.
He closes the book beautifully in the epilogue by answering the ‘now what?’ question. We all want the application, the big action step. Jesus says, COME TO ME!
