+ Christian Book Reviews +

Book Review: For a Target Audience

April 5th, 2009 at 06:47pm Albert McIlhenny

His Name is Jesus: The Promise of God’s Love Fulfilled – Max Lucado Thomas Nelson (March 2009) Topic: Prayer and Devotion Summary: Meditations upon the life of Jesus Rating:

Max Lucado has over the last decade established himself as a bankable item in Christian publishing. With his easily accessible meditations on the Gospel message, he has won a large following who relate well to his down home presentations that on occasion border on the saccharine.

I have to admit that I have never been drawn to Lucado’s books. Generally speaking, they are not my cup of tea. However, as popular devotionals go, he does keep thing well focused and never engages in fruitless and problematic speculation – a common practice in much of popular Evangelical writing. The message he preaches as the Gospel in his books actually is the Gospel.

In His Name Is Jesus, Lucado has drawn upon earlier works to give a series of meditations upon the key events of Christ’s life. Published in a coffee table style book, it is beautifully packaged and fully illustrated with glossy pages. The message itself is, of course, pure Lucado: an engaging and often breezy presentation of the Gospel that will enthrall his many fans but perhaps seem superficial to others.

For those Christians who appreciate devotionals and certainly for Lucado regulars, it would make a wonderful gift. Others might be a harder sell but even with those who are not fans there would be little present to which any Christian is likely to raise objections. Lucado’s books, while not controversial, do appeal to a certain segment of the Church. Although it may not have universal appeal, His Name Is Jesus it comes highly recommended for its target audience.

Entry Filed under: Miscellaneous