Customer Reviews

The Divine Conspiracy CD

5 star:		(125)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

During my apologetics class, professor J.P. Moreland said that we (his students) MUST check out this book. Richard Foster (author of Celebration of Discipline) calls it "the book I have been searching for all my life" (makes it sound like the "silver bullet book"). I found Divine Conspiracy to definitely live up to this hype.

The title refers to God's conspiracy to undermine evil with good. Among other things, Willard discusses the fundamental problem of nondiscipleship in the church, what it looks like to be Christlike (with an excellent exposition of the beatitudes and sermon on the mount), what it looks like to be a disciple of Christ, how to become disciples of Jesus and how to make disciples of Jesus.

Prior to reading the book, I thought I was well on my way towards becoming a mature disciple of Christ. After reading it, I've discovered that I'm nowhere close to where I thought I was. I realized that I have a real long way to go to becoming the kind of person who is so secure that I don't seek to find faults and weaknesses with people.

I also have gained tremendous new insight into how I can more effectively make disciples and how local churches could do the same.

The Divine Conspiracy is a comprehensive, practical, meaty, challenging, and extremely helpful book which I pray will be widely read.

I had heard the name of this book dropped here and there, always seemingly with some special excitement that stuck in my mind. So when I saw it in the store I decided for some reason I needed it. Just one of those things where the Spirit leads and you don't know what's happened until later.

Dallas Willard's grasp of the Christian life as exposited by Christ himself, particularly in the Sermon on the Mount, is absolutely compelling. Willard mildly castigates both the theological Right and Left for, respectively, emphasizing saving faith alone in the Christian life as though how we live our lives on earth doesn't really make a difference, and preaching a 'social gospel' bereft of the spiritual or eternal significance that gives it its meaning or moral impetus. He then goes on to put forward a very vivid picture, using a wonderfully consistent and contextual view of Jesus' teachings, of what God intends for our lives here on earth. The author's treatment of the subject seems entirely original and unfettered by the various passing trends of thought that seem to color so many Christian books, and as such also sounds almost radical. But read it for what it is, and you'll find it to be as clear and natural an interpretation of Kingdom living as you'll ever hear.

I can hardly imagine a more welcome book for my own spiritual life, and expect it may be so for others too. I would put this book on a par with C.S. Lewis; perhaps even higher since Dallas Willard has crafted a work of not only intellect, but great applicability. This book seems like a life's work, and if so, then I'd have to say it certainly seems to have been worth it. It can be difficult, out of the deluge of Christian books out there, to pick one out as absolutely essential, but as far as I'm concerned this would definitely be such a one, and I ardently hope others find it too.

This is, without doubt, one of the most powerful books on Spiritual Formation that has ever been written. Dallas Willard tackles issues of discipleship and discipline in a fresh and invigorating way. Willard is rightly convinced that "the practical irrelevance of actual obedience to Christ" has weakened the effectiveness of Christianity in today's culture. "Discipleship or apprenticeship to Jesus is, in our day, no longer thought of as in any way essential to faith in him," Willard says. "It is regarded as a costly option, a spiritual luxury, or possibly even an evasion." This concern led Willard to write the third book in his trilogy on the spiritual life (along with In Search of Guidance and The Spirit of the Disciplines) which "presents discipleship to Jesus as the very heart of the gospel."

Willard's path is a well-traveled one, though he views some of the familiar sights a bit differently than most of us are accustomed to. The Kingdom of the Heavens is seen primarily as the realm of God's rule (kingdom) which is as near to us as the atmosphere around us (the heavens). A new thought for me, and one I'm still mulling over. Eternal Life is mainly a quality of life - an eternal kind of life. Willard's reading of the Sermon on the Mount is certainly unique. Frankly, his understanding of the Beattitudes is one of the more novel and unbelievable parts of the book. But his analysis of Matthew chapters 6 and 7 is very helpful.

The heart of the book, found in chapters eight and nine, tackles what it means to be a student, or disciple, of Jesus, along with developing a curriculum for Christlikeness. Those two chapters alone are worth their weight in gold. I found them immensely helpful. Willard stresses the necessity of intention in our pursuit of the disciple's life and the importance of changing beliefs in order to shape behavior. Regarding a curriculum for Christlikeness, Willard helpfully shows that the objective is NOT "external conformity to the wording of Jesus' teachings about actions in specific contexts" or "profession of perfectly correct doctrine." Not that these things are unimportant - but they are not the goal. The goal is not faithfulness to activities in church or special religious experiences, either. The goal, very simply, is coming to "dearly love and constantly delight in" the Father and removing the "automatic responses againt the kingdom of God" so that we are free from the dominion and enslavement of "old habitual patterns of thought, feeling, and action." The goal is to develop automatic, reflex responses to life that mirror those of Christ. Willard's exposition of this is very good and will be eye-opening for many young disciples.

The strategies which help us develop this Christlike character are the spiritual disciplines. The disciplines, which Willard groups into two catagories (disciplines of abstinence and disciplines of engagement) are designed to help us enthrall the mind with God and aquire new habits of goodness, as we interact with both the work of the Holy Spirit and the testings and trials of life in our pursuit of Christlikeness. Willard fleshes this out briefly with a discussion about the disciplines of solitude, silence, study, and worship. The final chapter is a glorious discussion on the Restoration of All Things, as Willard describes where this whole Christian thing is headed.

Now, my brief caveats. I do have a couple of qualms about this book, but I tack them on the end and really do not want to overplay them, because they are really peripheral to Willard's message. My concerns are these: 1) In the helpful chapter "Gospels of Sin Management," I think Willard overreacts to Evangelicals (the Right, as he calls us) in his discussion of the atonement and "Lordship Salvation." In particular, the criticisms of John MacArthur seem completely unwarranted to me. I wondered if Willard had really read or heard anything by MacArthur apart from this one issue. 2) In chapter four on the Beattitudes, Willard is just out to lunch. I think he totally missed it on this point. 3) Willard's discussion (very brief) on the relationship of God's sovereignty and human responsibility reflects a very Arminian perspective. "God has paid an awful price to arrange for human determination," says Willard. Other statements hint at a sympathetic view of Open Theism. Disappointing. In Willard's zeal to preserve the truth that prayer does change things, he has gone to the unhelpful and unbiblical extreme of elevating human autonomy too high. 4) In the midst of a very good discussion on the "elephant in the church" which everyone tries to ignore (namely, the lack of discipleship) Willard strongly states that he does not believe that only true disciples make it to heaven after death. In light of the overall message of Willard's book, it is hard to see how he can say this. It certainly doesn't comply with Jesus own words in John 8. So, those four things give me a little pause concerning this book. But not much. Just enough to make it a four star instead of a five star recommendation. The material I balk at could be contained in less than thirty pages of the book (out of 400!). So, I still say "read it." Just be careful on the finer points of Willard's theology.

"The Divine Conspiracy" is one of the more unusual Christian books I have ever read, as it attempts to deliver a contemporary, systematic theology that won't overwhelm non-theologians. The author, Dallas Willard, does a very good job of capturing a topic that eludes many Christians: "What does it mean to truly live in the Kingdom of God?"

The primary source of Willard's theology is the Sermon on the Mount. By examining this sermon of Jesus' in light of Jesus' own perspective of the Kingdom of Heaven, Willard posits a fresh thinking about Jesus' commands and His reasoning behind the carefully chosen words of the Sermon, particularly The Beatitudes.

The conclusion of this examination is not so much that Jesus is adding to the expansive set of Mosaic laws, but that the Lord is merely showing how a person who dwells in the Kingdom of God acts and believes. Legalism brings no life, in short, and Jesus already knew that. He is instead saying that as we come to live more in God's Kingdom and less in the world's corrupted kingdom, what we see in the Sermon is how our lives will be.

The exegesis of the passages Willard covers is not traditional by any means, but as he develops his ideas and looks at them within the context of the Kingdom, his explanations make perfect sense. For instance, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven" does not mean that we need to become spiritually bankrupt in order to get into Heaven. Willard instead turns this around and says that Jesus is telling those who are already in that state of bankruptcy that now the Kingdom of Heaven has come in Him, and for those that are willing to receive it, it can be theirs. This shift in perspective is then used to examine the rest of the Sermon.

Touching on all the major themes of Christian discipleship contained within Matthew chapters five through seven, "The Divine Conspiracy" is very complete and would serve anyone who is trying to better understand some of the difficult statements of Jesus. Willard's continual reinforcement of Jesus' Kingdom ideals truly does force a shift in thinking and I would recommend this book to anyone, no matter their level of Christian maturity.

Are there sticking points? Yes - not everything works. Some of that may be the intractability of this reviewer, but perhaps not. The author's insistence that Matthew 7:7-8 ("Ask and it will be given....") applies not to prayer but to how we should conduct our interpersonal relationships with fellow humans falls flat. Also, the illustrations used in the book are usually well-suited for Willard's points, but occasionally they have unintended, secondary meanings that don't serve to help their cause.

And while this book is written well and simply, the ideas espoused here are not always easily grasped the first time around. You'll find yourself reading sections more than once in order to catch the subtlety of Willard's arguments. At four hundred pages in length, this is not a breezy, afternoon read, either.

My biggest complaint lies, though, not in Willard's words, but how they are set. I have excellent vision, but found the choice of type and its size to only compound the difficulties in reading this book. Even in its hardback form, the book's format is trade-sized, so you don't have many options. Willard liberally sprinkles the book with italicized text and the font used here has an italic format that further hindered my reading. Pages seemed to contain paragraphs that were scrunched or justified strangely, all due to italicized text. One of the slowest reading books I have ever seen.

Even if you don't buy into Willard's arguments, "The Divine Conspiracy" is still a truly thought-provoking book that will challenge you to break out of your theological molds. Well recommended.

It is seldom that a book has triggered such energetic discussion among both college students and faculty. In our senior-level course on Christianity and culture, a required course taken by all of our students, Willard is not just read, but digested and discussed all over campus. Morever, faculty from every discipline read this book and talked about it with energy and enthusiasm.

Yes, folks can certainly find things to disagree with, particularly if they come to the book hoping for a narrowly defined perspective on a particular biblical text or theological issue. Because Willard has not presented a systematic theology or a comprehensive commentary, knowledgable readers may find themselves saying "Maybe, but..." and even "You can't do that." But then, we do that with systematic theologies and comprehensive commentaries. And other readers will certainly be disappointed if, as one reviewer, they expect to find devotional readings in the style of Lucado.

Instead everyone will find solid meat that will stay with them for awhile. Sometimes the meat is difficult to chew, and sometimes it is hard to swallow, and sometimes it does not suit our palate. But for those of us who have been living on spiritual milk, that is to be expected.

Why does it take the most brilliant theologians to point out the simplest truths?

Willard's main point is that if we really believe Jesus is God, why don't we believe he's smart enough to teach us a thing or two? He encourages us to enlist in an advanced course on Life and the Living Of It taught by the Son of God himself.

How simple is that?

The middle of the book is an excellent exposition of the Sermon on the Mount (here called the Discourse on the Hill) with that goal in mind. Some of it I don't buy, but most of it is truly profound, well thought-out and presented.

The end of this book is a treatise on discipleship. It divides the gospel -- and in such, the ends of discipleship, into two parts: 1. Believe that God is good, loving, and not messing up your life, and 2. Give up your old habits and learn some new ones. Basically, though he never says so, an exposition of "Repent and believe, for the Kingdom of God is near."

Who should read this book?
1. Those tired of religious fluff and warmed over sermons put in writing and published. (Willard is so much meatier. The bibliography alone is a treasure chest.)

2. Those who are studying, have studied, or want to study the Sermon on the Mount. I was leading a summer study on that passage as I was reading this, and it was immensely helpful.

3. Those who are thinking about discipling others in one form or another, but aren't sure how to go about it. The last third, while not terribly practical, lays down excellent guidelines for discipleship that will give you direction and purpose.

One more note: Willard seems to translate the Bible himself for use in his scriptural examples. The results are fantastic, strong and direct quotes. I know nothing about greek or translation, so I can't comment on their reliability, but they certainly make me wish Mr. Willard would take on a full translation. It would be fantastic.

The Divine Conspiracy has to be the best book I have ever read of its kind. I so appreciate the uncluttered view of Christ and His claims, the deconstruction of so many widely-held assumptions about people, God, eternity and the precious nature of every individual. I find myself giving the book as a gift to many of my dearest friends. Try it!

This is my second attempt to read a Dallas Willard book. This is my first successful completion of a Dallas Willard book! He has a dense, dry reading style that is difficult to plow through. But I could see as I was reading this book that there were spiritual gems to be found throughout, so I plugged away through it. It took me about six months to finish this 400-page book, but I'm glad I made the effort. (Six months because I had to find times where I was in the right alert, diligent state of mind to read it.)

What got me into starting reading it was that it was one of three books our church, a Vineyard congregation, did as part of a Lenten book study with an Episcopalian church in town. Our pastor introduced the books to our congregation in this way: "'The Divine Conspiracy' by Dallas Willard goes right to the heart of our beliefs at this Vineyard church; 'The Heart Of Christianity' by Marcus Borg is something that our friends at the Episcopal church would feel at home with, and 'A Generous Orthodoxy' by Brian McLaren is somewhere inbetween the two." Others in the book study had similar views as mine toward this book: it was difficult reading, but valuable. Of the three books, I got the most out of this book by far.

Willard takes two well-known New Testament writings, the Beatitudes and the Lord's Prayer, and dissects them at length. But these two pieces are not what the book is about; they are merely two prime starting points for developing his thoughts. The author's goal is to stir his readers into pursuing Christian growth, discipleship of Jesus, rather than just "living a Christian life" and approaching such a life as "sin management." It is a book of instruction on how to quit trying to do the right things, and instead become an apprentice of Jesus--become like him from the inside out, rather than from the outside in.

All three books we read in the book study had a focus on The Kingdom Of God. Reading these books helped me get a new understanding on the whole essence of Jesus' frequent descriptions of The Kingdom Of God. Willard criticizes the view that being born again is about nothing more than getting a ticket to heaven, and points out the fruitless and empty lives of those who take such a view. If God's kingdom is among us, and we are to strengthen his kingdom, doing so is not merely a matter of getting other people to accept their tickets to heaven; it is fully living as Christ did when he was among us in the flesh.

Willard confronts our attitudes about Jesus, attitudes that we are generally not aware we have until he carefully exposes them and their implications. This can be painful to read at times. At other times, seeing God in a new way, a much better way than previously understanding him, is where the treasure comes in this book. This is not "new" theology, not catchy new illustrations of God's nature, or anything trendy like that. It is merely exposing where Christianity has gone wrong, where it has let cultural and traditional ideas infect Christians' views of what Jesus was saying, and thus what he expects of us.

Throughout this book, Willard tears down traditional understandings of the Bible and what Christianity is about that don't ring true, and views in the American culture that Christians have bought into that distort our understanding of God. Then he reconstructs the theology, followed by a very specific "how-to" section on what you need to do to become an apprentice or disciple of Jesus. Thus, the book covers both the understanding of the Kingdom, and also the guidance on how to respond to that understanding.

As I stated at the beginning, this is not a quick, easy read. However, I consider it to be important material, and worthwhile for wading through. You have to dig for the hidden gems, but they are gems indeed. And it's not like you could just get the gems by themselves, as in a Reader's Digest version or featured quotes -- digging for them (reading the entire book) is what makes you even realize what it is you have found.

Dr. Dallas Willard has peered into the glorious canyon of the heart and mind of God - and in his book he tells us not what he has read about, but what he has personally seen. Thus, this book was not written by a scribe but by a prophet. It smacks of another dimension that is all around us, also known as the kingdom of the heavens. We learn we're made for this "other" world, that our souls long for it, and that we're never at rest until we're fully oriented in this invisible, but real, dimension. This explains why most people live lives of "quiet desperation". The whole point of the book is that humans were made for a superiour hidden reality and that Jesus uniquely stands as both the Gatekeeper and Guide because, as a fact, only Jesus has experienced this hidden country. In his role as Sacrificial Lamb he lets us in the Gate, but in his role as Master Teacher, he is our Guide to living life - here and now. We learn that for years we've ignored Jesus' role as our Life Teacher. Is it any wonder we don't really know how to live? Is it any wonder our world is so messed up? And, in Jesus' absense as Life Teacher, we had to learn from someone - our blind world - on how to live, its principles, its habits, its lifestyle...and we have paid dearly. Dr. Willard eloquently pleads that we start learning how to truly live and that only Jesus has demonstrated standing in history to teach us. Fortunately, Jesus is still taking students, also known as disciples. We learn the call to make disciples in the Great Commission is in essence simply an invitation to learn how to live right - how to live in God's invisible country which is already here - and which is our true home. After reading it for the third time (something I've never done before), I realized how homesick I am (my own life of 'quiet desperation' - though I have good family and job, etc.) for my true home, the one which I was given a soul for -- yet the home I've been ignorant of even though I've been "located" in my home all the time...I was just blind to it as a reality. THIS is why Jesus said to "repent": as to WHAT constitutes ultimate reality: is it this world as we know it through our five senses or is it a multidimensional world, a kingdom of heavens as Jesus called it, and its corresponding rule and power. Jesus knew, then and now, that humans died to God and his kingdom in the Fall. Humans have been shut off from understanding and entering into this ultimate reality. For those who've had enough of a world that is dead to God - a world humans were never designed for, then the Divine Conspiracy can help shed the scales...maybe for the first time. Thanks be to God that His Son Jesus is still calling...calling us to himself, calling us home today. This is a call that can be fulfilled before we physically die too. This was precisely Jesus' intent. This is truly Good News. Thank you Dr. Willard for sharing with us what you've seen.

When I began to read this book, I assumed that Richard Foster was simply being extravagant and indulgent in the forward- lining up this book with the writings of Wesley, Luther & Augustine. He was NOT! The treatment of the texts, in both grammatical and contextual examination (the centerpiece of systematic theology), is astounding. But what is most amazing is the incredibly common-sense attack he makes on application of the "kingdom among us", the "heavens" and the beatitudes. Even great writing can rarely change a persons beliefs- this book will! "Divine Conspiracy" will not only force you to examine your own prejudices on many texts, it will call you to action. The absolute best book, outside the Bible, I've read!