A thought-provoking exploration of Jesus' teachings, challenging readers to consider the radical implications of his words for contemporary Christian life. It offers valuable insights and prompts deep reflection.

I would like to thank Moody Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I love the idea of devotionals but rarely get into them. I've bought many, by Keller and Spurgeon but even then I tend to drift off from reading them daily, and just dip into them when I feel compelled to.

This book was different, although I cannot say it is unique as there are others like it, but it had a focus. It was a brilliant was to look at Jesus's sermon on the mount. It put it into context, and also applied what Jesus was saying for today.

This book I think is suitable for those interested in the Christian faith, those new to it, and those who have been walking with the Lord for years. It's also a helpful resource for sermon preparation too.

The book challenges one to take what Jesus said seriously. Not to take his word as a cool soundbite, or to put onto a sticker, but to actually read it, think about it, and how it impacts you.

In a time of cancel culture, and trolling, this is an important reminder for Christians to love their enemies, to not judge others, and also to not worry. The last one here is challenging, especially as we are prone to worry, but this book helps one reflect on what Jesus says about these issues.

The only issue I had was how the book formatted on my kindle, but I have an old kindle so this may have been the problem.

I would recommend this book, and probably will suggest that my Church consider reading it.

I received an ARC from Moody Publishers via NetGalley, this review is my opinion.

What I like the most of this devotional book, is that confronts and uplift you at the same time. With a unique and peculiar in this 72 devotional, we find Jesus teaching from an in my opinion uncommon perspective. Skye Jethani demolishes many misunderstood bible verse and takes us in an eye open to see what they really mean and what is what God wants from us. I like that are short, well written, and also have bible verse to go a bit deeper. The only bad thing I will say is that I think that this book is for people who have some time being Christian, otherwise, it would be hard for them to understand and relate to what he said. But aside from that great book, I think this could also a great choice to shared with friends. I pray many could be blessed with this book.

This is a very well-written book on one of Jesus' most famous sermons, the Sermon on the Mount. I found this passage in Scripture coming alive to me in a new way. I especially liked the illustrations that began each short chapter. This is a great book to use as a daily devotional, as each chapter is short and to the point. Skye Jethani has a beautiful way of applying the ancient words of Jesus to this very time in our culture. If we as believers took Jesus' words seriously, I think we would see a great revival in our communities.

I know this is technically a devotional book, but it was so good, I read it all in less than a day. This book speaks Truth and holds nothing back!

This is a nice explainer on the sermon on the mount, but the illustration confuses me rather than helping so I tend to skip them. Really enjoyed the short devotional though.

This book is a delightful change from the standard Christian devotional book. Skye Jethani is a popular author and podcast maven, known for his quick wit, along with a willingness to address problems in the American church and society in a frank and hard-hitting manner. Jethani apparently likes to doodle and draw out his theological thoughts on coffee shop napkins and office post-it notes. These charming yet illuminating drawings are featured in each of the short devotions that are drawn from the Sermon on the Mount. While the devotions are short and the drawings are entertaining, Jethani's thoughts reflect a deep thinker who is not happy with the status quo, and wants to challenge other Christians to get more serious about their walk with Christ.

Highly recommended!

A really well written and well designed book. The visual elements really help the reader to think more deeply about the material covered. Highly recommended.

I know Skye Jethani from his podcast https://www.holypost.com/podcasts. He seems to be thoughtful and considered and generally quite orthodox in his views. But he is also modern and a realist and can often also be quite insightful and this book is full of insight.

I’m sure there are a thousand commentaries on ‘The Sermon on the Mount’ and in many ways this is simply another one. But what sets it apart is twofold – first, in its striking challenge to take the Sermon on the Mount and Jesus seriously. And secondly, in the structure and form that the book takes.

As the title suggests, it isn’t simply a discussion on the Sermon on the Mount but it is a challenge to take it seriously, to see that Jesus wasn’t setting up some unattainable icon to allow us to consider how we might live a better life. This book points out that the Sermon on the Mount is a challenge to all of us in modern times who call ourselves Christians to do what Jesus actually taught – to love our enemies, to not judge others, to not worry – tough things to accomplish in any age, but understanding that these are commands and not suggestions raises quite a challenge.

In this book the author divides the Sermon on the Mount into nine distinct areas or subjects that it relates to. These parts are further divided into 72 short, manageable sections, with suggested, equally short, ‘further readings’. But what sets this book apart from many others is that each section commences with its own graphic or diagram that visually represents the area or idea that we are considering and illuminates the point of that section.

The unusual (or possibly exceptional) structure of this book allows us to progress through the Sermon on the Mount at whatever speed works for us – from a 72 day ‘devotional’ to a two hour review of the Sermon on the Mount whilst gaining in a new way, insight and understanding of what Jesus said.

When I receive an arc of this book, I started reading straight away on my kindle but because it was an arc copy, some text and images were out of alignment with no table of content. It was very hard to read so I stopped.
Just last week I picked it up again and started reading because I owe negalley and the publisher a review.

This book is amazing and thought-provoking in the way it was written. The writing was fantastic, and easy to understand and provided much info about the famous biblical figure Jesus, his teachings, and the insights and opinions of his teachings from the viewpoint of Skye, the author. It opened my eyes to what is true discipleship and what it means to obey God that I have never considered before with a fresh spin. I love the part pertaining to the Sermon on the Mount which pushes me to think out of the box and open my mind to the fact that my existing beliefs of it might be not entirely correct.

I also like that this book touches on social media and the cons of it in relation to what we believe and how we project ourselves to others which were spot on from the viewpoint of the author. And the wrong perception that if we are rich, healthy, and educated with a high flying career it means we are blessed by God. Likewise, if we are none of those things it doesn't mean that God had overlooked us and didn't bless us. Reading this portion at the beginning of the book led and reinforced me to keep in mind that we need to count our blessings no matter how small they are. And if we are faithful to God our blessings will bound to come one day in unexpected ways.

The illustrations are cute which lighten the intensity of this book making it more enjoyable to read.

A series of devotions on Jesus's sermon on the mount. But not the kind of devotions you're thinking. These daily reads will rock your boat (see Jesus walking on water up ahead). They'll leave you thinking. I thought this book was excellent.

This book was requested as an advanced-review copy from NetGalley. I’ve not read anything by this author before, so I had no idea what to expect, but the cover and the title instantly drew me in.

The book is written as a series of devotions based around the sermon on the mount, and although I read this book in a few sittings, I think it would probably have benefited from being read more slowly to give me more time to absorb and ponder on what I was reading, so perhaps one in the morning and one in the evening would have been a good pattern to follow.

As I started reading, I started to highlight passages of the book that I wanted to remember, but as I got a few chapters in I realised I was highlighting probably around 70% of the book, so I quickly had to revise that plan, but the truth is that so much of what was written just hit the nail right on the head.

We Christians have probably all read the Sermon on the Mount before, but have we ever really stopped to consider “What if Jesus was serious?”?. In this book, the author breaks the sermon down into bitesize pieces and reflects on what those meant in the time that Jesus preached them, but also what they mean for us now in our modern context which looks nothing like the same.

And as a modern Christian, it may or may not be a shock to find that everything that Jesus said back then sure stands up now too, and if we could just think about what Jesus said and try to live it out, we could make a mighty change to our world.

"We who claim to be Jesus’ followers and seek a life shaped by his Kingdom hold the antidote to the division and anger that is poisoning our culture."

The format of the book was excellent, as mentioned before it’s broken down into small chapters that wouldn’t take too long to read (although will definitely give you lots to ponder), and each chapter is started with a drawing designed to illustrate the authors point neatly and succinctly.

"While the world says the strong, powerful, and happy are “well off”, Jesus turns our expectations upside down by saying it’s the weak, sad, and overlooked who are well off in God’s kingdom."

I will say that unlike most devotionals that I’ve read in the past, this one isn’t designed to give you warm fuzzy feelings and set you up for a day of feeling like you’re the model Christian. This book will challenge you and make you think seriously about how you’re living and where you might be falling short.

I would whole-heartedly recommend this book to every Christian I know, with the caveat that it should not be rushed. Now I’ve finished and can see the immense value in the contents of these pages, I’ll be starting from the beginning and taking a slower journey.

I was going to add some more of my favourite quotes from the book here, but like I said earlier, there were just too many, so all I’ll say is go pick up this book when it’s released, you definitely won’t regret it!

I’m not the biggest fan of devotional but I have many in my life that are. I’m always looking for resources to encourage others. This book looked to be promising with a focus on illustrations but it had less illustrations than I had hoped. I like the topics covered and it provided some great content and wasn’t all fluff like most devotionals. It’s one I will keep in mind when recommending to others.

Whether you are familiar with Skye's work or reading him for the first time, you will not be disappointed with "What If Jesus Was Serious?" This book consists of 72 short essays (chapters) on the Sermon on the Mount, one of Jesus' greatest discourses detailed in the gospel of Matthew. The brevity of each chapter lends the book to being read as a daily devotional. The visual component at the beginning of each chapter, the additional scripture references at the end of each chapter, and the compelling background information and thought-provoking questions Skye includes throughout the book make for a robust deep-dive into these particular teachings of Jesus. Your faith will be stretched, your life choices challenged, and your mind opened to look at the Sermon on the Mount in new ways. Just like mine was.
I received an e-arc from NetGalley in return for my honest opinion of this book.

What is Jesus was serious but skye Jethani is an awesome thought provoking read. This book will leave you encouraged and help you grow in faith.
The books description says:
Let’s face it. A lot of Christian resources can feel cheesy, out-of-touch, and a little boring. But when Skye Jethani started doodling and writing up some of his thoughts about God, his Twitter and email list blew up. What If Jesus Was Serious? is a compilation of all-new reflections (and hand-drawn doodles) from Skye. He takes a look at some of Jesus’ most demanding teachings in the Sermon on the Mount and pushes us to ask whether we’re really hearing what Christ is saying. The visual component of the book makes it memorable and enjoyable to read, and Skye’s incisive reflections make it worthwhile for any Christian. If you’ve traditionally been dissatisfied with Christian devotional resources but love to learn about Jesus and think deeply, this book was written for you.

What if Jesus was serious is a fantastic an easy read. It was divided into several sections that were easy to read and also gave you reference points to go back to in the Bible. It questions current ideologies of modern Christianity.

Skye Jethani gives readers plenty of food for thought in What If Jesus Was Serious? A Visual Guide to the Teachings of Jesus We Love to Ignore. Each chapter begins with a visual image that depicts that particular teaching, helping readers to grasp the main idea--and giving them something to teach to others what they themselves are learning. Plus, we all like visual images, don't we?

After presenting a visual image in each chapter, Jethani then purports, "If Jesus was serious, then. . . " and proceeds to help readers dig into God's Word and discover what Jesus really meant. More often than not, Jethani ends up helping readers do some positive deconstruction and positive reconstruction. For example, when Jethani addresses the beatitudes in Matthew 5, Jethani asks, "Who is really blessed?" and then purports that "If Jesus was serious. . . then we will focus more on his Good News and less on religious to-do's." Jethani goes on to describe how the beatitudes are not so much a prescription for behavior as much as they are a description of how Jesus followers behave because of the power of God at work changing their hearts.

This book is not for the faint of heart, but it is for those who don't mind being challenged or pushed to see things differently -- or to see things they may not have noticed before. For me it was a refreshing read by an author unafraid to get people to really think about what they believe and why. For me, What If Jesus Was Serious? included some familiar things, some new things, and some interesting things. If nothing else, I was challenged to dig deeper into God's Word, and I have a feeling that was part of Jethani's intention anyway!

Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for this honest review. However, the opinions expressed are my own.

The Sermon on the Mount is often read and preached from. People have gleaned direction and correction from it for years. But what if there’s more to it that what we are used to seeing? What if it isn’t some lofty ideal to reach for when we can? What if Jesus expects more out of us?

Skye Jethani delves into this passage in What If Jesus Was Serious? and digs out how we should be looking at. Once we hear something so many times, we have a tendency to gloss over it the next time we hear it. This book strips away that gloss, and gives a different outlook on what Jesus is saying. Using plain language and descriptive illustrations, Jethani shares the passage in small chunks that let you see what is being said, and can help you explain it to others.

I came away with several things that I am going to have to think about, and places I am going to have to check how my life actually compares with what the Bible says.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed a lot of things about this book. The focus on the Sermon on the Mount was great and the set up of the book in smallish sections easy for devotional reading was nice. I enjoyed the drawings and thought they added some visual interest to the book. However, the subtitle is "A Visual Guide to the Teachings of Jesus...." and I didn't think they number of illustrations was enough to merit that subtitle. I would have liked a lot more, I think. Overall a good book, perhaps not quite as advertised

First sentence: FOLLOWING JESUS HAS never been easy, but some believe it’s becoming even more difficult as Western cultures become increasingly post-Christian.

True or false: We live in a culture where we often pick and choose what texts to take seriously from the Bible.
True or false: We live in a culture where we often pick and choose which teachings of Christ himself to take seriously.
True or false: Every culture since Jesus' ministry has struggled with this--what to make of Jesus' teachings, his life, his work, his death and resurrection.

I can't answer the third question objectively. But the first two, sadly, are definitely true--in my opinion.

The premise of Skye Jethani's book, What If Jesus Was Serious, is simple: WHAT WOULD THE CHRISTIAN LIFE BE LIKE IF PEOPLE TOOK JESUS' SERMON ON THE MOUNT SERIOUSLY. If you don't find that a scary thought, perhaps you haven't read the Sermon on the Mount lately.

The book consists of nine parts:

Who is Really Blessed?
Christians and Culture
Inside Out Righteousness
Love In Action
A Prayer for Losers
Freedom from Fear
Judging, Asking, Blessing
Good and Bad Fruit
Be Smart

Each part has several chapters...each beginning with the refrain: If Jesus Was Serious...


Then We Will Focus More On His Good News and Less on Religious To-Dos
Then No One is Beyond God's Blessing
Then Heaven Is Already Here
Then We Will Make Room To Cry
Then We Will Trust God More and Politics Less
Then a Desire for Justice Should be Affirmed
Then We Cannot Separate Our Relationship with God From Our Relationship With Others
Then Our Image Isn't Everything
Then Peace is Costly But Worth the Price

Those were just from part one, "Who Is Really Blessed?"

The book is methodically laid out, straight-forward, concise. The author assumes that Jesus MEANT or intended his words, his teachings to be taken seriously. And likewise assumes that some of these chapters might step on a few toes and challenge readers.

Each chapter has a visual illustration that goes with it. I am not a visual learner, so these didn't particular speak to me or resonate with me. But perhaps for some readers these illustrations will be thought-provoking and give the book a little something extra.

My favorite quote:

"EVERY CHRISTIAN HAS at least two Bibles. First, there is the actual Bible—all sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments. Then there is the Bible we read. This is what some call our functional Bible and it includes the sections we regularly engage and seek to apply to our lives. This functional Bible is different for each person, but it contains some familiar gospel stories and parables, some of Paul’s letters, and a handful of Psalms. He declared that He came not to abolish the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfill them. Fulfillment doesn’t mean to finish and throw away, but to bring to completion. In other words, Jesus identifies Himself as what the Old Testament has been pointing toward, and to understand Jesus we must see Him through the lens of the writings of the Law and the Prophets. Likewise, to understand the Law and the Prophets, we must read them through the lens of Jesus. He is the key to the whole Bible, and we need the whole Bible to engage Jesus."