Customer Reviews

Free Book: I am a fanatic about freedom. I'm tired of seeing people beaten down by the world's systems and by religion. God's offering real freedom. Get yours.

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(42)
3 star:		(26)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

After reading a few of these reviews, I honestly wondered if I read a different book. Growing up in the "church," I routinely remember obeying the Law as the prerequisite for God being pleased with me. Guilt and fear were the common emotions I felt whenever I was reminded of all the ways I was "falling short." What Brian talks about in Free stands in absolute contrast to that...that my striving is not what the Lord desires, but that as I receive more of Him, I can walk in greater and greater freedom, knowing that my Father loves me because I'm his son, not because I follow all the rules correctly.

I'd say this book will ABSOLUTELY ruffle the feathers of those who believe their following of the rules religion has laid before them will earn them special status before the Lord. My prayer is that the Spirit of the Lord, spurred by this book, will awaken a desire to reconnect with the Lord on the terms he's laid out for relationship, not what religion has mandated.

I liked this book and I am free to say so, too. First of all it's just a good read. Tome's style is easygoing, conversational, and makes you feel as though you and he are engaged in a conversation. Like some other reviewers, I think the first couple of chapters could use some help, but keep going. It gets better the farther in you get. He finds his stride in the latter half of the book, but the front half is worth you time as well.

It is so refreshing to read about our freedom in Christ in a non academic tone and by someone who seems to live it. Make no mistakes, this isn't about setting aside God's authority and making up our own. Not by a long shot. What this author has accomplished is explaining a lot of that in ways that remove the harsh legalistic tendencies and replacing them with the joy and abundant life promised by Jesus. Of course, along the way he ruffles feathers and rattles cages. That's the point.

His work on strongholds is especially complete. He discusses the relapses with skill and clarity. The range of strongholds goes much farther than the usual mention of drugs, alcohol and sex. It gets into your personal space and challenges attitudes and crutches we all cherish. He uses personal experiences that the reader can easily relate to in his or her own life. No details that don't move the example into the reader's life.

Some will object to mention of no helmet, beer, gay and some vernacular terms that you won't find in the more erudite books that address the same topic. Could we have done without them? Possibly, but then the opportunity for an attitude check related to those areas would have been missed.

This is one of those books that I'd like my friends to read. Good work, Brian!

Reviewed for BookSneeze

Right on the front cover Pastor Brian Tome reveals his agenda for Free Book*: "I am fanatical about freedom. And I'm fanatical about coming at you hard in this book." In an effort to come at the reader hard, Tome spends the first couple of chapters making lots of extreme statements just to let the reader know how fanatical he really is. Frankly, he got off on the wrong foot with me, coming across as rather proud of just how free he is. I kept finding myself asking, "Did he really mean that?" or "Did he really need to say that?" For instance, Tome likes beer. I have no problem with that. But that seems to be his favorite liberty to flaunt, so he brings it up on a number of occasions. (The second most mentioned freedom is riding his Harley without a helmet.) It's as if he has a particular group of people in mind whose skin he is trying to get under. This group he calls the "Bible Thumpers" and most of the time they are an easily spotted straw man. I'm not sure how many times he contrasts his freedom to the bondage of Bible Thumpers, but it's more than I could have counted on one hand. The statement that bothered me the most was his claim that "we don't need another book about the cross. But another book about freedom? Yes." I'm wondering how he thought he could write a book about freedom in Christ without the cross being a central theme. (See Colossians 1:22 and Hebrews 2:15 for starters.)

After the first couple of chapters Tome settles down and offers a few valuable chapters. In the chapter titled "Evicting the Squatters", Tome uses the imagery of letting squatters make themselves at home in your backyard as an effective metaphor for how Christians allow sin to make itself at home in our lives. The chapter "Blahs, Break, Blues and Blessing" was also quite insightful. In it Tome uses the Iraelites' progression from slavery in Egypt to victory in the Promised Land to show how believers can progress through these four B's. In "When Grace Meets Truth" Tome unpacks these twin attributes in the life of Jesus and shows the need for both in both abundance and balance in the Christian's life.

There were times when I really wanted to make this book a five-star recommendation. But there were simply too many one-star moments for me to be able to do this. I say this as one who could stand to experience some of the freedom Pastor Tome writes about, not as one who has gone further down the road of liberty than he has. I truly believe when he has walked down that road a little longer himself, Tome will be able to rewrite this book and be just as fanatical about freedom but a lot more wise in how he expresses it.

Have you ever come across a resource that makes your skin crawl? Not from the bad, but because it makes you see something in yourself that you wish was not there? That is what happened to me when I read this book by Brian Tome.
I have read many books about being free from strongholds in my life, but none have ever touched me and really got ahold of me like this book did. There were many times while reading this book that I wanted to throw it out the window. My flesh balked at the fact that I can be truly free!

There were some things in this book that were pretty rough to swallow, especially if you have ever grown up believing things a certain way only to realize that there is another way to view things. This book is not for everyone--I promise you. Even at times I was not sure I wanted to continue reading it, but I am glad I did.
I learned about freedom from people, freedom from man's religious beliefs, and freedom from myself--TRUE FREEDOM.

Are you living a life of freedom or one of fear? That's the question at the heart of pastor & author Brian Tome's latest, Free Book. Tome is "a fanatic about freedom" (p.3). He hates that people are beaten down by systems that prevent them from experiencing true freedom, "the kind of freedom that God offers" (p. 4). He wants to see people living in that freedom. And that is a good desire. How he expresses this desire, however, is lacking.

This book is a bit of a mixed bag. There are some really good and helpful things, but much of it is just noise. And sometimes it's a real challenge to see which is which.

Tome like far too many authors, tries too hard to be funny and edgy. He goes for the punchline, for the "shocking" statement in an attempt to show his freedom and it's incredibly unappealing as a reader. It actually made me want to not read the book. He talks about his hatred of wearing a motorcycle helmet and how, whenever he's in a state where it's not required, he'll ride without. This is one of the ways he exercises his freedom in Christ. The Spirit is a Spirit of freedom yes, but He's also the Spirit of wisdom. Freedom is not an excuse to be foolish.

Other points are contradictory or just plain silly. Defining freedom, Tome writes, "Freedom is being who God designed you to be. It's living free of condemnation and free of others' concern. It's developing a healthy conscience and not allowing things in your past that you've repented and been forgiven of to still taint your conscience. It's believing that if God is okay with you, then who gives a rip if someone else isn't?" (p. 19) Now, in a certain sense, this is true. We should rest in the assurance of God's favor, absolutely. "If God is for us, who can be against us?" wrote Paul in Romans 8:31. However, it doesn't excuse the valid concerns of others, something that Tome even acknowledges later in the book. "If your community says you have a blind spot, you probably do" (p. 193).

Further, early in the book Tome states that we don't need another book on the cross, but we do need a book on freedom. However, it's important to remember that the only thing that brings us true freedom, the kind the author desires us all to have, is the cross. We don't find freedom looking away from the cross, but we do find it when our eyes are firmly fixed upon it.

Unfortunately, this causes some of the really good things he has to say to be drowned out. Frankly, I think if 60 pages or so were cut, the book would be much more profitable. When Tome begins speaking of identifying and breaking free of the spiritual strongholds that prevent us from living in the freedom Christ offers us, he's very helpful, thoughtful and passionate. He reminds readers that authority is important because, "When you honor the authority God has put in your life, you are free of carrying burdens alone and can focus on other things" (p. 195). In other words, you don't need to feel like you have to control things that you've not been given authority over. Let it go. Regarding money he writes, "[P]art of freedom that comes from generosity is that when you give, money has less and less control over you" (p. 178). These are a couple of the bits of gold that can be mined from Free Book.

Free Book is not for everyone, but freedom is for all who are in Christ. You're free to read it; you're likewise free to not. While it contains some helpful advice, there are other books available that will likely be a better use of your time. I leave the choice to you.

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A complimentary copy of Free Book was provided for review by Thomas Nelson's Book Sneeze program

Free Book is the latest work by Brian Tome, pastor of Crossroads in Cincinnati. This book is about freedom. Freedom from fear, freedom from sin and freedom from the legalism that Christians often wrap themselves in. It is not a license to do whatever we want, but freedom to really live within the boundaries God has laid out for us.

I absolutely loved this book.

The review copy came at exactly the right time for me. I plowed through it as quick as I could and found myself writing notes and underlining quotes and searching the web to find out the background of some of the statements Brian makes. I don't often do that.

Brian speaks in clear language that is often humorous and self deprecating. He backs up his thesis through thorough biblical references that are not taken out of context (I looked them all up).

Throughout the book, Brian lays out practical steps for freeing you from bondage. I was often reminded of Neil T. Andersons book: The Bondage Breaker. This book will challenge you.

Not everyone will be ready to take a critical look at themselves and their beliefs. But I have been in a church that was more interested in pleasing the community than in pleasing God. I recommend you read this book with an open mind and I do recommend that you read it.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their [...] book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

I picked Free Book up on a Tuesday morning and finished it late that night. I love Tome's style and his straightforward language. It's refreshing to read a book that is written by a pastor who's the real deal. Reading the book is like listening to Tome's preaching. It's easy to understand, and really insightful.

I really like the way Tome integrates truths from Scripture and real life. I think Tome gives a great overview of the spiritual world and the strongholds that are holding us back from God's best. I especially like chapter 11, The Unbalanced Life. This chapter is ultimately about endurance, something that we Christians are unfamiliar with most of the time.

I recommend reading Free Book to those of you who are wrestling with what God has called you to do. I would also recommend it to those of you who want to break free from the religious strongholds that have robbed you from truly experiencing God's grace.

This is a revolutionary work -- it serves as a challenge to everyone regardless of where they are in their spiritual journey. It serves as a wake-up call to all religious institutions that place the list of do's and don'ts, the crossed T's and the dotted i's above the grace, truth, and love that God offers through Jesus Christ.
The challenge -- set forth through the author's personal reveal-- is to simply get free--really free. Simple and desirous in concept but often difficult to do in real life. Why? Because we are usually blind and ignorant to what it is that steals our freedom. Brian exposes the areas in our day to day existence that we allow (many times unknowingly) to bind us and keep us trapped.
The wake-up call -- written between the lines-- to religious institutions is to trash the do's and don'ts, the expectations, and the judgements -- and re-focus on the often forgotten fact -- that grace always wins. Thanks to BT for stating what is sometimes the obvious -- & what is almost always the unspoken thoughts in everyone's minds. Chains & shackles get pretty heavy -- through this read, I have recently lost weight! I am less ignorant and more free.

Prepare to be surprised - maybe even offended.

It's not really bad offense, just one of those books that makes you realize things you didn't really want to realize.

Free Book* is incredible. Brian Tome makes the reader realize that a balanced and organized life will not make us happy and that our relationship with God does NOT have to be full of rules and restrictions. We have freedom in Christ.

About halfway through the book, Tome does something very important: he blatantly explains what our problems are - what things are holding us back.

Now, I am usually very open to books like this and they make me smile, because I TOTALLY agree with them. However, in this book, I was actually hit between the eyes by several things. There were quite a few things that make me feel like doing one of those big, cartoon-eyeball double blinks.

I would recommend this to anyone - with a disclaimer. Be prepared to want to get up and take risks and live the fullest life in Christ.

"Free Book" by Brian Tome is a gritty, gutsy, in-your-face book about freedom. Tome leaves no holds barred in trying to convince the reader that he has found a special kind of freedom in Christ, and he wants to share it with anyone who will listen.
One might think that everyone would jump at the opportunity to be as free as Tome, but the truth is that there are a lot of Christians today that are not ready to read this book; they would only blow it off as the ravings of a "liberal" Christian who had somehow lost sight of what the faith was really about.
But let me tell you that this was the greatest breath of fresh air I have read in Christian literature in some time. Tome shoots straight with you - there is no pretense, no self-righteousness, no sense that he is holding some great spiritual rite of passage over your head. All he does is show, over and over again, how faith in Jesus Christ should be about being free - free from fear, free from pointless rules, free from bondage to the sin that bogs us down every day.
Tome has and will continue to receive criticism for his views. He doesn't put his faith in the teachings of bigoted, long-dead theologians and church leaders. He puts his faith in the freeing power of Jesus Christ and his gospel, and that is a powerful thing.
Tome has written something truly special here, and one should not let the shock of his candid manner and sometimes-gruff (yet always honest) manner of speaking dissuade them from reading this book and putting to heart the things he says, for everything he says is backed up by the Scripture and the words of Christ himself.