Book Reviews -- By: Anonymous

Journal: Journal for Baptist Theology & Ministry
Volume: JBTM 09:1 (Spring 2012)
Article: Book Reviews
Author: Anonymous


Book Reviews

Jesus and Money: A Guide for Times of Financial Crisis. By Ben Witherington III. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2010. 192 Pages. Hardcover, $18.99.

In his recent book, Jesus and Money, Ben Witherington aims to help Christians guard against attacks on the wallet and move toward faithful stewardship and radical self-sacrifice for the good of others and the honor of Christ. The author senses that both the recent downturn in the worldwide economy and the “persistence of a distorted prosperity gospel” (57) make the times right for a book of this sort.

Books aiming to help Christians face financial challenges generally fit one of two patterns: either practical advice for implementing budgeting and stewardship habits or general principles derived from the Bible. Witherington’s work fits the second category, though his expertise as a New Testament scholar helps him avoid the trap of offering proof-texts, contrived sound bites, or overly generalized wisdom that could have come from any number of spiritual sources. Instead, Witherington offers a book that is comprised of historical-grammatical hermeneutics, New Testament theology, and ethics. The result is a balanced approach to the Bible that takes seriously the counter-cultural stance of Jesus and the early church, while incorporating a wide variety of witnesses within the canon.

Jesus and Money begins with a prequel that establishes the purpose, framework, and guiding principles for Witherington’s argument. The subsequent eight chapters provide a (roughly) diachronic survey of biblical texts and themes pertinent to money and possessions. Chapter 9 summarizes how one should develop a New Testament theology of money, stewardship, and giving; chapter 10 offers practical advice for moving beyond a lifestyle consumed by materialism and greed. Witherington also provides two appendices: one represents his attempt to dispel ten common myths about Christianity and money, and the second is an edited sermon from John Wesley titled “The Use of Money.” Finally, endnotes are available for those wanting to trace Witherington’s main lines of research. Unfortunately, the book does not contain an index of Scriptures, which would have been very helpful.

Each core chapter is organized according to general introduction, exegesis of pertinent passages, and a concluding “And So?” section devoted to the hermeneutical task of bringing the biblical text to bear on issues (both practical and theological) facing Christians and the church. Chapter 1 (Genesis/Old Testament in general) lays the foundation for Witherington’s argument by focusing on a creation theology exemplified by Ps 24:1. In chapter 2 Witherington draws heavily from ...

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