Phil Ryken has written one of the most convicting books since Respectable Sins and Mortification of Sin. Why? Because I don’t love the way Jesus loves. Nor do most of us, I would assume. As a dear sweet man at our church says, “Every sin is a love sin.” After reading this book, I would agree with him.
Dr. Ryken’s take on 1 Corinthians 13 (the famous marriage love verse chapter) (note: even though the above mentioned man read it in our wedding, we know that it is correctly applied to the local church and not to a husband/wife relationship.) is not a strict commentary, but an applicable look intertwining with stories from the gospels that show us how Jesus perfectly lived out what Paul wrote. “As a reminder, we are not taking everything from the Love Chapter in order. As we study this portrait of love, we are connecting everything to the life of Christ.” (pg 47)
One of the most convicting chapters for me personally was the ‘Love is Not Irritable’. I would consider myself a person who generally gets along with most people. But, recently, probably since being married, I have come to find out that I am loving toward people who love me, work according to my plan, drive according to my mapped out route, consider me a friend, aren’t overly friendly to me in the cafe early in the morning, or has to repeat my order 3 times. Otherwise, I’m pretty irritable. Oh, sin…that it would lose its grip on me.
Ryken’s book on this love chapter is great for anyone: scholar, lay person, non-Christian exploring the gospels and the life of Christ, would be good for a small group of seekers or on a college campus.