Against The Flow – Book Review
One of my favorite books in the Old Testament – no, make that the entire Bible – is the book of Daniel. For those of you who might be unfamiliar with the book, the biblical book of Daniel is the story of four courageous Jewish teenagers who live in Babylon under the rule of an evil king – but maintain their faithful witness to God even in the face of death.
It’s one of those books that you can never learn enough about – so, when I heard that the highly acclaimed University of Oxford professor John C. Lennox had just released Against The Flow – The Inspiration Of Daniel In An Age Of Relativism – I could hardly wait to get my hands on a copy!
Unlike many books that primarily focus on the prophetic aspects of the book of Daniel, Against The Flow delves into all aspects of the book, looking at Daniel from a historical, cultural and theological perspective.
One of the author’s primary purpose for writing Against The Flow, however, is to highlight the similarities between our modern culture and the ancient Babylonian culture in terms of antagonism towards people of faith – and to provide insight and inspiration into how God empowers His people to go against the flow – to stand up for what they believe in – to cling to what is right, even when there is a high cost.
As John C. Lennox writes:
What makes the story of their faith remarkable is that they did not simply continue their private devotion to God that they had developed in their homeland; they maintained a high-public profile witness in a pluralistic society that became increasingly antagonistic to their faith. That is why their story has such a powerful message for us today.
The story of Daniel and his friends is a clarion call to our generation to be courageous; not to lose our nerve and allow the expression of our faith to be diluted and squeezed out of the public space and thus rendered spineless and ineffective.
The initial response to Against The Flow has been staggering. Released on March 27, 2015, demand for this book has outstripped supply – the publisher has already completed three printing runs to keep up with demand!
Against The Flow is a book that belongs on every Christian bookshelf. It’s not a book for the faint of heart – but if you enjoy biblically-based books that are theologically rich and intellectually stimulating, you will appreciate this author!
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.
John Lennox Video: Daniel – Standing Strong For God In A Secular Society (Part 1)
About John C. Lennox
John C. Lennox is Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Fellow in Mathematics and Philosophy of Science at Green Templeton College. He lectures on Faith and Science for the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics. He is author of a number of books on the relations of science, religion and ethics. He and his wife, Sally, live near Oxford.
Resources
For More Information
- Visit John’s Website.
- Connect with John on Twitter.
- Visit the Against The Flow Blog Tour Page.
- Against The Flow is available on Amazon.
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Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
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Great review! And a great resource list too.
I love this book too. John Lennox is such a wise man and this book is so inspiring. I’ll be posting my review next week, but I want to encourage all your Christian readers to read this book. I want to give it a 4.5/5, but GoodReads won’t accept that so I have to decide whether to go up or down.
Twitter: CreateWithJoy1
says:
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts on this book, Annie Kate!
I also wish that Amazon and GoodReads allowed .5 incremental ratings – I would use that on my blog but since I ultimately have to decide when I list on those sites, I feel I might as well do it here as well…
Anyway, be sure to share your review at The Book Nook and leave a comment when you do so I can stop by and read your thoughts as well!
Have a lovely day!