Owen Strachan doesn’t want us stuck.
In his new book, Risky Gospel: Abandon Fear and Build Something Awesome, that’s what he’s up against—the debilitating uncertainties in our lives that keep us puttering around on the field of two-hand tag Christianity. Anesthetized faith, as he calls it, with its strong recruiting strategy, follows us everywhere we go. It knocks on our door everyday. And occasionally we all give it a hearing.
We’ve each met the fear-fueled mentality that tells us, “Better to stay in a neutral zone, keep expectations low, and not have to do anything drastic” (3). We know God has called us to more—that his gospel propels us to more—but we’ve stalled on where to go next.
Strachan, assistant professor of Christian theology and church history at Boyce College, has written this book to help. But actually, let’s say Owen, because reading this book feels more like a conversation with a friend than listening to an author. He comes alongside us, looking at the gospel, this world, and our lives, and counseling us in how to put the pieces together for the long haul.
Hunkered-Down Life
Chapters 1 and 2 ground the book by first introducing the problem of a hunkered-down life led more by fear than faith, and then by expounding Jesus’ parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14–30. This parable is the organizing principle of the book. Jesus denounces the wicked servant because he played it safe. More than calling us to good stewardship, Jesus is “giving us divine insight into the best way to live in this world” (29). Owen continues, “Believers are supposed to find incredible, world-shaking confidence in God . . . [which is] not supposed to paralyze us. It is supposed to create a life of boldness and faith and action and risk” (29).
Risky Gospel: Abandon Fear and Build Something Awesome
Owen Strachan
What does this life look like? The answer to this question is the concern of the rest of the book. And it’s important that we see what Owen is doing. His call to gospel action and risk is not about bottle-rocket faith. He writes, “Living the life of gospel risk doesn’t meaning running like a dog chasing a cat, ears flattened against your skull, after the first half-sane spiritual idea that pops into your mind” (30). He doesn’t want us to start on frenzy and end on a fizzle. He wants us to build something—“to strategize, and plan, and then to act” (31). And that is chapters 3–10.
Chapter 3 anchors gospel risk in the identity of the Christian. This is the chapter I was hoping for—the one that puts the gospel front and center and makes the book less about what we do and more about the One behind and in and at the end of all our doing. Owen writes, “A Christian is a person who sees that Jesus Christ and his righteousness are the needs of our heart and the apex of our satisfaction” (49). Owen then walks through the New Testament making clear who we are in Christ. Chapter 4 is about how we grow in our faith, laid out in practical, helpful advice. From there he gets into family (chapter 5), vocation (chapter 6), church (chapter 7), evangelism (chapter 8), public witness (chapter 9), and a mobilizing conclusion (chapter 10).
Key Takeaways
I got to read this book a couple times, jotting down several sentences along the way. I’ll mention them here as the way to interact with the book’s distinguishing features.
This book is primarily written for English speakers today. This is important. Don’t wait 10 years to read it. While every book has its historical context, this one is especially clear. Some cultural references would most likely be unintelligible to folks outside the English-speaking world. This isn’t necessarily negative. It just means the tip of the arrow is sharp—really sharp—and it’s targeting the bull’s eye of a certain demographic.
That demographic seems to be Christians and non-Christians, post-college and graduate school, mainly 20-somethings, including young families. There is something in this book for everyone, but it’s especially strategic for post-college 20-somethings, whether Christians who need a fresh perspective on God’s calling or non-Christians interested in learning more about Jesus.
It really feels like a conversation. The book is chock-full of illustrations and asides, which stretch out the word count. But Owen identifies with readers and wins our trust early on, which makes the book a pleasant read. His honesty also appeals. Owen sugarcoats nothing, cutting through our potential excuses and coming across like a guy who understands.
You will have ideas for what’s next. This book is practical. He shows us what it looks like to “build something awesome” in chapters 3–10 and backs it up with several lists and tips to get us started. I found myself sketching out my daily routine in chapter 4 and scribbling down ideas for neighborhood events by chapter 9.
We don’t have to be so cool. Chapter 8 stands out to me. Owen begins by profiling Blandina, a young Christian martyr in second-century France. His point: she didn’t really fit in, and that’s okay. “There’s considerable energy proposed . . . for the purpose of Christian acceptability,” he writes. “Many Christians, and especially young Christians want to fit in” (162-63). I think he’s on to something here. We all just want to be so cool, so respected by the world. We don’t want funny memes of us floating around the web. We don’t want progressives to think we’re irrelevant. Sure, that’s great and whatever, but it’s not our mission. Owen commissions us to structure our lives around gospel witness winsomely, patiently, and for an enduring influence.
Good Book
This book is a horse in the stable beside others like Radical, Crazy Love, and Don’t Waste Your Life. But Risky Gospel makes its unique contribution, rooted in and flowing from God’s work, not ours. He writes, “On the cross, Jesus bore our sin; through the cross, we gained his righteous standing. This is what his reconciliation means for us. We’re no longer outcasts. We’re reconciled to God. This is our fundamental identity” (54).
Owen’s vision of God is so glorious, and his grasp of the practical so relevant, that I believe readers will genuinely be compelled to invest their lives for the glory of Jesus. I suspect, and hope, that this book will lead to a lot of building.