Summary: How the statements of Jesus’s enemies about him often proclaimed, in unintended ways, the very gospel truth about him.

We often start with the statements of Jesus himself, as well as those of the apostles, to understand his mission and message, indeed who this Jesus is in his person. Most of us would not turn to the enemies of Jesus for reliable testimony about Jesus and the good news we proclaim. David Randall offers a fascinating study that shows that, often unintentionally, Jesus’s enemies also proclaim gospel truth about him–sometimes as jests, sometimes as criticisms, sometimes as outright malicious statements. He shows how they spoke truer than they knew, in a book that is both devotionally rich and offers a line of apologetic reasoning for the gospel.

Here are some of the contentions of Jesus’s enemies that he deals with:

He welcomes sinners (thanks be to God!).

No one ever spoke like this man. (Soldiers sent to arrest Jesus)

It is better that one man should die for the people. (Caiaphas)

Behold, your king! (Pilate)

He saved others; he cannot save himself (chief priests and scribes mocking Jesus at the cross)

Jesus came into the world to save sinners (Paul, former persecutor of the church)

In Antioch, the disciples were first called Christians (a term, possibly of derision by outsiders)

They are turning the world upside down (Thessalonians in Acts 17:6 of Paul and his companions)

He’s a babbler (Acts 17:18-19, of Paul in Athens)

Randall devotes a chapter to each of these exploring both the contention of the enemies and then elaborating the gospel truth embedded in the criticisms. As you can see, Randall considers both direct attacks on Jesus and those against the church.

One of the richest chapters is the one in which Randall reflects on Jesus’s matchless words–that no man ever spoke like this man. He observes the distinctive note of authority in the teaching of Jesus and then notes how this is reflected in what he says about God, about human beings, about salvation, about morality, about contentment, and about values.

Randall examines scripture, uses stories from church history, quotes from other commentators, and verse and hymns woven together in accessible discussions of each point. He also offers two concluding chapters, one on the gospel of Jesus, and one on some contemporary attacks on Christianity, that he turns around in the same way;

Religion is the problem in the world, not the solution.

Christians are no better than anyone else.

Christianity is for simple people.

And conversely, Christianity is for intellectuals.

Christians are intolerant.

We just need more of Jesus’s teaching about loving one another.

Randall has a delightful way of turning each of these around that not only blunt the attack but actually turn it into an opportunity to bring good news. Jesus indeed welcomes sinners. He speaks like none other. He is the one who died for all, the one who saved others by not saving himself, and the King. It makes me wonder whether such a phenomenon is true of the body of Christ at this time.

Are the criticisms aimed at us by our most vigorous opponents just true, or do they proclaim the unintended truth of Jesus? It seems to me that such can be so only if we are living the servant life of Jesus, pursuing the mission of Jesus, and bringing the message of Jesus. Then we become the paradoxes in which what opponents say as harsh truths are actually unintended truths of the gospel. Would that were so of us as Randall shows it true of Jesus!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher. ( )