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Holy Subversion: Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals

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Ed Stetzer, in his Foreword to Trevin Wax's Holy Subversion, notes that "instead of being salt and light we have become unsalted and lite." Wax writes to enlighten us to six areas of bland liteness and to equip us in those same six life arenas to be salt and light once again.

When I first picked up the book, examined the table of contents, and pondered the relative youthfulness of the author, I cringed. My fear? Too often books like this are heavy on guilting Christians about worldliness, with little insight into joyfully being in the world but not of the world. Often you finish books like this and think to yourself, "I guess being a Christian means doing nothing and doing it mournfully."

Thankfully, nothing could be further from the truth regarding Holy Subversion. Oh, there's plenty of "true guilt" to go around--each of the six "middle" chapters artfully expose the subtle and not-so-subtle ways Western Christians have subverted holy living. However, those same six chapters never stop there. Wax has a unique way of seeing the good in what we've twisted into evil.

Rather than telling us to "do nothing and do it mournfully," Wax shows us how to do all to the glory of God and do it joyfully. This is vital for the spiritual life. God built us for joyful purpose (or purposeful joy). We must pursue something with energy and passion. Attempts to submerge all passion simply result in those passions emerging in non-God or anti-God ways.

Subversion Not Submersion

That's why Wax's title is so spot on. Subversion, as Wax uses it, does not mean pushing something down and forcefully trying to keep it there. It means pushing something back into its proper place.

Wax traces how we have warped six spheres of modern life: the self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power. He shows what happens when we take these good gifts from God and make them ultimate in our lives--we worship the gifts instead of the Giver, and the gifts become our master.

Then he shows us how to return these gifts back to their proper place of allegiance to Jesus as Master and King. This is where his concept of "holy subversion" enters the picture. When we live countercultural lives in these six areas, we subvert the dominant worldly narrative of our day. By changing our lifestyles to match the lifestyle of first-century Christians, we turn our world upside down; we become world-changers. That's a joyful purpose worth pursuing.

Wax summarizes it better than I can. "Therefore, our job as Christians is first to identify and unmask some of the more insidious `Caesars' that seek to muzzle our message and demand our allegiance. Then, we must think through specific ways in which the church can counter our culture by subverting its prevailing idolatries and pushing them back to their rightful place, under the feet of Jesus."

A Christ-Centered Foundation

Wax wisely begins by erecting a Christ-centered foundation. Before we can ever examine how to live the Christian life, we must think carefully about how one enters into the Christ life. Wax explains that when we invite people to Christ in self-focused, self-sufficient, and selfish ways, we should not be surprised that so many Christians live self-focused, self-sufficient, and selfish lives.

So Wax strikes out the worldly way of salvation.

*Strike One: The strike against self-focus--Salvation is about Christ, not about me.
*Strike Two: The strike against self-sufficiency--Salvation is by grace, not through works.
*Strike Three: The strike against selfishness--Salvation is in community for the world, not just for me. God has a wonderful plan for the world, for His glory, for His Bride; not just a wonderful plan for my life.

Do Not Be Conformed, but Be Transformed

At the risk of robbing any of the richness and depth of each "middle" chapter, we might encapsulate them as follows:

*Chapter 2: Subverting the Self--Life is all about Christ and us (community), not all about me, myself, and I.

*Chapter 3: Subverting Success--Success is comforting others not being comfortable, seeing ourselves as co-workers not competitors, and choosing suffering not ease.

*Chapter 4: Subverting Money--Money is for generosity not greed; for giving not hoarding.

*Chapter 5: Subverting Leisure--Free time is for involvement not entertainment, for people not things.

*Chapter 6: Subverting Sex--Single sexuality means purity and chastity not just abstinence, marital sexuality means mutual intimate celebration not simply individual personal satisfaction.

*Chapter 7: Subverting Power--Power is about empowering others not overpowering them, power is strength made perfect in weakness.

Salvation, Discipleship, and Evangelism

Wax begins (chapters 1 and 2) at the beginning--the nature of true salvation. It's about Christ, by grace, in community, for the world.

He continues (chapters 2-7) with discipleship--how to live the Christian life. It's about subversive holiness through biblical lifestyles related to self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power.

He concludes with evangelism (chapter 8). As he puts the question, "How does our understanding of the subversive nature of Christian discipleship transform our evangelism?"

His answer: "Subversive evangelism takes place whenever someone shares the gospel message faithfully and refuses to shy away from its harder truths." Three of the hardest truths that Wax highlights are the exclusivity of Jesus as the only way to salvation, the costliness of following Christ, and the Lordship of Jesus over all of life.

True evangelism occurs when discipled Christians, living in community, live lives of holy subversion. People take notice and ask the biblical question, "Tell me the reason for the hope I see within you."

In a mere 130 pages of text (excluding the front and back matter), Trevin Wax has walked us through a practical theology of salvation, discipleship/Christian living, and evangelism. In the spirit of the Puritans, he shows us the way of the world and loads our conscience with guilt. Also in the spirit of the Puritans, he clarifies the way of the Word and lightens our conscience with grace. He is a subversive--a holy subversive.

During grad school in New England I took a class with Tom Wright at Harvard Divinity School in which he explained how certain titles commonly used of Jesus, such as "Lord," "Son of God," "Savior of the world," etc., were first used of the Roman Emperor. Later that same week, in my exegesis of Revelation class, Greg Beale made the same point. It was then the light bulb went on: "This would make a great book! Line up the titles for Caesar and his empire, show how those conventions are relevant today, and explain how the kingdom of Christ directly subverts them."

Years have passed since that eureka moment and I have not thought much about the concept since them, that is, until today when I picked up a copy of the new book by Trevin Wax titled Holy Subversion: Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals. Trevin beat me to it, and I'm so glad he did because he has done a marvelous job.

In eight chapters Trevin explains how Jesus subverts self, success, money, leisure, sex, power, and a brilliant chapter called "subversive evangelism" in which he confronts the problems that emerge from tolerance and consumerism.

I can't adequately express how excited I am about this book. It's well written, substantive, and prophetic in its application. If you're looking for a clear, readable text on discipleship, one that will help you to search and destroy the idols in your soul, look no further.

When Christianity started under the shadow of the Roman Empire, one of the struggles for the early Christians was their allegiance to Christ against the Caesar worship that took place in that culture. In Acts 17, Luke describes the new church plant in Thessalonica and the trouble they faced with the city authorities because these Christians were accused of "acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus."

In our modern and sophisticated culture, we often do not see how there are other "Caesars" in our time demanding allegiance, but Trevin Wax has done us a favor by naming these idols in his book Holy Subversion. At 160 pages, Trevin's book is a good and helpful introduction to the temptations that face Christians in this particular culture. The principalities and powers at work in the first century are also behind the idols of our day, and Wax examines six "Caesars" we have to guard ourselves against: self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power.

In "Jesus and the Gospel of Caesar" (Chapter 1), Wax examines this connection between the actual Caesar of the first century and the modern "Caesars" we face as Christians. The central idea he uses to help us push back against these modern idols is the notion of subversion. In fact, he defines subversion as "pushing something back down into its proper place." These "Caesars" we must fight against are not necessarily bad things, but we make them idolatrous because they have rivaled Christ. We are to subvert these idols in common and creative ways to demonstrate our allegiance to Christ.

In chapters 2-7, Wax examines the particular idols we face, pointing out the problem with making the self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power central to our life. But he goes further. He not only names the idols, but he describe some creative ways to subvert each one. For example, in the chapter on "Subverting Leisure," Wax explains:

"There are three main ways that we as Christians can subvert leisure and entertainment. First, we must think seriously about the choices we make regarding our free time. Next, we must purposefully structure our free time in a way that glorifies God. Finally, we must turn our focus away from the things that entertain us to the people that God has entrusted to us."

Wax doesn't simplify the matter by just saying, "Turn off the TV." He provides a more comprehensive perspective on life. The same is true for each chapter: subvert the self by participating in community, subvert money by giving it away, etc.

Wax concludes his book with chapter 8: "Subversive Evangelism: Subverting Caesar by Sharing Christ." In this chapter he concludes with an encouragement to not be ashamed of the gospel in a culture that pushes against our message of exclusive salvation through Christ, but for us to be bold, trusting in the power of the gospel to save.

This is a good book to give to a new Christian because of its size and its topic. It provides a good structure for a new Christian to evaluate the issues that we face in this culture. But it is also a good book to give to a seasoned Christian who has not considered the way some of our modern luxuries have turned into idols. If you are interested in further thoughts, you can read an interview I conducted with Trevin Wax here: [...].

Trevin Wax's book "Holy Subversion: Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals" is small, short, and unassuming. Like a hand grenade.

And like a grenade, it packs quite a wallop. Trevin's book -- which covers the major idols of modern society -- tracks along the somewhat recently rediscovered approach to discipleship as repentance from idolatry and redirection of worship to the One True God by using the "gospel" language of the early church under the Roman Empire. If Jesus is Lord, N.T. Wright reminds us, then Caesar is not. So Trevin transports that key exchange into our modern context: there is nothing new under the sun except the endlessly innovative marketing employed by the gods of the age.

One by one, Trevin reveals to his readers the Caesars of self, power, success, money, sex, and leisure, and sets forth plainly and persuasively how the Christian life requires renouncing the abuse of good things as god things and the subverting of this idolatry with the worship of Jesus Christ.

This is the most helpful and powerful part of Trevin's effort, however: He roots out and reveals this idolatry in the active practice of Western evangelicalism. From sniffing out ambition and zeal for "success" in seminary student surveys to clearly rebuking the reverence of Self epidemic in modern churches, Holy Subversion gets very personal very quickly. But Trevin never writes high-handedly or bitterly. Indeed, I can think of few among the young-types, restless-types, and Calvinist-types who are as winsome -- on both the page and in person -- as Trevin Wax. And his book is not mere theorizing, reflective pontificating. From his experience in the mission field to his pastoral work in the Bible Belt, from his extensive research to his interviews with and access to many of the movers and shakers in evangelicalism, Trevin writes from a place of authenticity. He has had and does have skin in this game.

Like its close cousin "Counterfeit Gods" (by Tim Keller), "Holy Subversion" is a clarion call "against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places," but while Trevin's book may lack the artfulness of Keller's, it certainly makes up for it in practical application.

That would really be my only disappointment with the book, extremely minor and personal as it is. As anyone who has read his indispensable blog Kingdom People or any number of his published articles (in Christianity Today and elsewhere) already knows, Trevin is a capable, competent, even *strong* writer, but I would have liked a bit more music in the prose, especially as the subject is worship. The book is not boringly written; that's not at all what I meant. I just think our generation is still waiting for this sort of content -- doctrinal, truth-concerned, gospel-centered -- from a writer whose words sing. But that's, again, a minor note, and a very personal preference of mine. I have a weakness for purple prose; most others probably find it a distraction. Why write 20 words when 10 will do, right?

Grenades don't have to be pretty to work, of course, even to work mightily. And maybe this book isn't so much a grenade but a smart bomb, one that is Scripture-rich in such a way that is reads us, illuminates the Caesars we hail, and drives us to eliminate them. This book on subversion is a subtle sabotage in itself.

What you will find in "Holy Subversion" is a highly readable, highly practical, and highly prophetic encouragement against the idolatry of today's world and today's church. I highly recommend it.

-- Jared C. Wilson, author "Your Jesus is Too Safe"

Wax begins his book by identifying two definitions of the word "subversion". The first refers to "overthrowing", or plotting the downfall of a kingdom. The second, which is the definition he uses in this book, refers to "pushing something back down into its proper place." The early Christians, Wax says, were subversive in the way they lived their lives, because they refused to honor Caesar as king of kings and lord of lords. While they were submissive to their governing authorities, as required by the New Testament, they did not allow the government to assume ultimate authority. They believed that God had given authority to the rulers, and that government is a gift from God for our good (Romans 13:4). They also believed, however, that this delegated authority was only properly administered under submission to God. Thus, they subverted Caesar's authority to its rightful place under God, and were persecuted for it.

Wax then identifies what he calls the "Caesars of our day", which are the things which exercise lordship over our lives. This list is strikingly similar to Tim Keller's list of idols in "Counterfeit Gods"... which is to be expected when both books base their arguments off of the same source of Truth! Where Keller's book dealt primarily with identifying and understanding the idols we serve, Wax deals more practically with subverting the "Caesars" of self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power. Each of these things, when seen in its proper context through a Biblical worldview, is a gift from God. When we allow these gifts to occupy a position higher than the Giver, however, they become oppressive rulers that destroy our lives. We must live subversively like the early Christians, placing God on His throne where he belongs.

The best tool for subversive living is to be in close communion with the Body of Christ, living Biblically and evangelizing the world around us. When Christians proclaim that Jesus is Lord over ALL of life, and live according to that claim, we will turn the world upside down like the early believers (Acts 17:6). Our lives will be so counter-cultural that we will expose our culture's "myth of tolerance" for what it is: "a parody of the Christian understanding of love". Like the early Christians, though, we risk "unleashing waves of severe persecution" by doing this.

Subversive living is not easy, but it is our duty as Christians. It is impossible in our own strength, but God has sent us His Spirit, by whose power we are able to truly follow Christ.

Many of us who read widely and who study Biblical texts and theology have been down a road for some time seeing the gospel as something far bigger than a plan for life after death. Holy Subversion is a great book to share with friends who are attached to a simplistic idea of what it means to be "saved." It is also a good example for us of ways to explain simply what we mean by a holistic gospel. If you can't use an engaging metaphor or a simple story to explain what you believe to Christians stuck in the Four Spiritual Laws way of thinking, if you find yourself stumbling and hmming and ahhing when trying to explain, Holy Subversion will give you some easy metaphors and striking ways of describing why Jesus matters and how we are followers, not just believers.

Take for example, Wax's Ephesians Road, a clever midrash on the Romans Road so popular in older style evangelical Christianity. It is worth the price of the book to be able to engage people with this twist on an old idea.

Holy Subversion is one you may find yourself buying for people you'd like to see get the bigger picture of the uniting of all things in Christ.

Derek Leman

This review originally appeared on [...] on 2/5/10.

Special thanks to Connie of Crossway for a review copy of this book.

Trevin Wax is a popular blogger over at Kingdom People, and a pastor in Tennessee. While 99% of bloggers out there should never write a book, I was excited about this one since I've found his blog insightful and challenging. I appreciate his ability to step back and examine a situation, not without bias but not allowing his biases to rule everything. This ability serves him well in his first book, Holy Subversion.

Holy Subversion is appropriately subtitled, "Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals." In this book, Wax tackles modern day "Caesars" in our (Western, specifically American) society. Throughout the book he refers to his 5 years in Romania, which gave him an opportunity to examine American culture from afar (he refers to this in an interview here). By stepping back and looking at America, and more importantly, the American church, he saw 6 "Caesars" that plague the church and stood as a rival to the honor due Christ.

In his introduction he helpfully overviews how "Jesus is Lord" was a radical and subversive statement in the New Testament times. After all, Caesar was lord, the one to whom all people were to bow and profess loyalty. The earliest Christians stood against this and, thus, were deeply offensive to their neighbors, for whom allegiance to Caesar was an unquestioned part of their worldview. Caesar no longer exists in our culture but, as Wax notes, the "powers and principalities" that stood behind Caesar still do exist in a more subtle form. Those subtle Caesars, so ingrained to our worldview that we may easily overlook them, are given a place in our lives reserved only for the King of Kings.

I can appreciate Wax's use of "Caesars" rather than "idols." The reason is simply this: an idol is never good, Caesar can be good. There is never a good reason to own an image of another god (or the one true God, for that matter). But a Caesar is, at least theoretically, a good thing. Someone has to rule. Romans 13 tells us that the Roman Emperor (Caesar) was given power by God himself. It is what Caesar does with that power that may make him evil (and did, in the case of the actual Roman Caesars). When Caesar claims for himself, or more crucially for this book, is ascribed by those who serve him the authority that belongs to Jesus alone, he must be subverted. In the same way, sex, leisure, money, etc., are not inherently idols. They do not always serve an evil purpose. They are Caesars, gifts from God whose original purposes have been abused and distorted. They have been given the honor due to Christ and must be subverted by those who claim allegiance to him.

The 6 "Caesars" that Wax tackles are: Self, Success, Money, Leisure, Sex and Power. Not all of these will hit each reader with equal force, but if you feel no conviction at any point you're either perfect or obtuse. But not only does Wax diagnose the problem, he offers suggestions to cure our ailment. It should be pointed out that Wax is using the term "subvert" not in the sense of overthrowing, but putting in its proper place. Thus, being a failure is not the solution to the Caesar of Success, but having a proper understanding of the nature and purpose of success.

One major reason I like Wax's book so much is that he avoids easy reductionism. There are some who hear the cry "Christ, not Caesar, is King" and they merely politicize it. "Tell Caesar Obama (or Caesar Bush, or Caesar Whoever) that we aren't going to stand for his claims to power any more!", as if they can co-opt biblical truth to serve their political interests, and rarely look at their own lives to see if Jesus is truly King.

But Wax doesn't reduce "Christ vs Caesar" to "what's the Caesar in your life?" either. This book isn't simply a call for Christians to look inward (although there is that), as if spending less time watching TV or playing World of Warcraft will make Jesus Lord. Holy Subversion asks us, the community of Christ, not just the individuals, to consider our entire worldview and challenge those aspects of our culture than attempt to claim Christ's authority.

Wax's goal is to reclaim "the subversive nature of Christian discipleship." By stepping back to look at our culture, he helpfully reveals the subtly of these Caesars (e.g., "The Caesar of Power is most seductive when it appeals to our good instincts") and calls us to "subversive evangelism" (in his excellent last chapter). At a short, but power packed 150 pages, Holy Subversion will benefit all who read and hear its message.

It's easy and dangerous to forget that Christianity is subversive. Early Christians subverted the power of Caesar, believing that Jesus, not Caesar, is Lord. The Caesars of Rome are long gone, but other Caesars have taken their place, clamoring for the worship that should belong to Jesus. In Holy Subversion Trevin Wax asks:

"What would it look like today if we reclaimed the subversive nature of Christian discipleship? How would the royal announcement that Jesus is Lord change our mind-sets with regard to our churches, our families, our jobs? How can our allegiance to Jesus as King be subversive once again?"

Wax applies these questions to six areas: the Caesars of self, success, money, leisure, sex, and power. Each of the Caesars are good in themselves, but can become idolatrous. Wax examines each area to help us understand where we can go wrong, and how we can push these good gifts back to their rightful place under the feet of Jesus. He then explores how our understanding of the subversive nature of discipleship should transform our evangelism.

As I read each chapter, I found myself marking lots of pages. Wax has the ability to be simple and profound at the same time. This is my favorite type of writing: one that blends theological insight with sharp pastoral application. Wax reminds me of some of my favorite Puritan writers, not so much in his writing style as in his ability to apply the gospel to life. They called the Puritans "physicians of the soul" because they were good at diagnosing and remedying ailments of the soul. That's exactly what Wax does in this book.

We also benefit from the fact that Wax has lived and worked in Romania. This has given him an ability to identify cultural idols in North America that may not be as obvious to some of us.

I especially appreciate his insight into areas of idolatry that don't get enough attention. We've all probably heard about the dangers of the idols of success, money, and power - although Wax is worth reading here as well. But I haven't read a lot about the idol of leisure. I also appreciate that he deals with these issues at the individual and corporate levels. He pushes us to identify how these idols or Caesars can come to dominate our churches, and how we can subvert them before a watching world.

Holy Subversion a great book to read alone, but it would also be useful for groups to work through as well. It's a good compliment to Tim Keller's Counterfeit Gods. I highly recommend it.

The challenge of Jesus as Lord is nothing new nor fresh. Nearly 2000 years ago, the Caesar's began to view themselves as divine. They enjoyed the titles of Lord, God, etc. The worship of the Caesars spread throughout the Roman empire. The early Christians however gave their sole allegiance to Jesus as Lord of their life. The Christians of that day subverted the power of Caesar. In his book Holy Subversion: Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals Wax states: "The early Christians were persecuted and killed, not only because they had personal relationships with Jesus Christ, but also because they were proclaiming Jesus as Lord. They were applying Caesar's titles of honor to Jesus Christ. They were subverting the authority of Caesar by appealing to the lordship of Jesus."

In our society today, the lordship of Christ is still being challenged by the Caesars of our day. Trevin Wax seeks to expose these idols and subvert the idols back into their rightful place. Wax addresses, the self, success, money, leisure, sex, power and evangelism as idols that are claiming our allegiance.

There are two things that I really enjoyed about the book. First, I enjoyed how extremely practical Trevin Wax was in his writing. Not only did He address the idol but he gave practical ways to subvert the idol. Second, Wax addresses many modern day idols that don't get much attention. The Caesar of Leisure is plaguing our society today. Yet not much is written on the subject. However, Wax takes the idol and challenges Christians to put it back under the feet of Jesus.

Holy Subversion is biblical, practical, and timely. I often found myself pausing to reflect while keeping a pen in hand to underline. I would highly recommend this book to anyone seeking to live out the allegiance of Christ in a world of modern idols. Wax is calling for Christians to make a difference by subverting modern idols and putting their allegiance in Jesus alone as Lord. This book is great for both Mature and New Christians.

I'm a keen follower of Trevin's blog, I read it almost every day, so I was excited to read his first book.
I got onto Wax's blog mostly because of his interviews with N.T. Wright and his reviews of Pipers book "The Future of Justication." I liked this book because it took the complicated theory that Paul applied terms reserved for Caesar to Jesus as a way of subverting Caesar's authority. Those titles belonged to Jesus, and Caesar was at best a parody of the true saviour. The book was easy to read and I would reccomend it to someone who had never come accross the idea. My favouite chapter was the one called "Subverting Leisure" - in the west we are entertaining ourselves to death and we seem to be afraid of silence. This is especially true of the western Church where we don't seem to have much time for reflection or rely on media.

Trevin's strength is that he seeks to see all of life through the lens of Jesus' Lordship. This is fantastic and I think every Christian needs to live life this way. This kind of life is centred on the cross and resurrection, it is a life that follows a different master and marches to the beat of a different drum.

However there were 2 areas of the book I didn't like.

1. The book is written exclusively for an American audience. I live in New Zealand and this often presents a challenge. I have to filter a lot of what American (or British) writers say through the lens of my own culture to see how much is applicable. People in America are very different to New Zealanders, and often I found myself in disagreement with Trevin's application even though I agree with him that Jesus is Lord of all of life.

2. There were some really cringeworthy moments where Trevin showed himself to be a little naive. Saying that christian childcare centres who allow parents to drop their kids off have unwittingly helped those parents bow down to the Caesar of money and success is very naive. Those Christian day care workers do their jobs in good faith and should not be held responsible in anyway for the choices of the parents. Should all Christian day care workers question parents as to their reasons for dropping kids of at daycare? Should parents have to submit a balance sheet and meet a certain debt asset ratio before they are allowed to put kids in day care? In New Zealand parents drop kids off at day care not because they want to keep up with the Joneses (although I'm sure some do) but the extremely high cost of housing, and basic necessities e.g. Petrol, Food and Power consume the majority of most people's incomes. In terms of the cost of living Auckland is more expensive than New York. I am on a good salary myself (nearly $20k above the national average) and we struggle to break even with no debt, while car pooling, and having another person live in with us to cover the rent. Life in New Zealand is incredibly expensive. The only way most people can afford to exist (not live but exist) is to have both parents working. I would love to be able to buy a house or even just rent without my wife having to work. But in reality we would be bad stewards of our money if we did as we would put our family into financial difficulty. We would need to take on debt just to live.

To say that "While our friends are taking vactions in Europe we should be having children" strikes me a little naive as well. Again He did qualify it by saying birth control is ok for a limited time and our culture does have a habit of separating sex from procreation. But is it wrong then if Christians don't have children till they are 30? In my parents day one could easily survive on a single income and have 3 kids. Today that is simply impossible. We have to be careful about it in New Zealand because we could end up being bad stewards of the money God has given us. If we follow Trevin's advice then Christians should have children and not go to university. I agree that Children are not a burden, but a wonderful gift from God. But to say that we should be having children while people are buying houses or going on vactions says to me that he has not thought hard enough about the issue.