J.D. Greear

Essential Christianity
The Good Book Company, 2023
By J.D. Greear

WHO: J.D. Greear, pastor of The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. 

HE SAYS: “The gospel is not just the diving board off of which we jump into the pool of Christianity; it’s the pool itself.”

THE BIG IDEA: This book uses the major talking points of Paul’s letter to the Romans to construct a framework of Christian essentials.

THE PROGRESSION: In each of the book’s 10 chapters, the author focuses on one of 10 words that present the heart of the gospel: announcement, undeniable, refusal, religion (crossed out intentionally), rescue, faith, inclusion, struggle, spirit and therefore.

“In the gospel, God offers a different kind of change—not a correction of behavior but a transformation of the heart.”