Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script [Hardcover]

Frank Viola (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2011

Revise Us Again calls us to revisit and return to God’s original script for living.

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the publisher of "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan comes a new book by bestselling author Frank Viola. In "Revise Us Again," Viola offers a deep and profound look at revising the Christian life in line with the script given by Jesus. Viola writes with captivating candor and infectious wit as he discusses the need for "rescripting" our spiritual lives. Serious Christians will find this compelling new book to be an eye-opener on many levels. It covers such things as the Christianeze of "Let me pray about it" and "The Lord told me," to the deeper meaning of suffering and the "dark night" in the Christian journey, to the different conversational styles that explain why Christians often disagree on theological issues. Viola delivers a powerful portrait of "the three gospels" comparing legalism, libertinism, with lordship and liberty and explores something he calls "being captured by the same spirit you oppose." "Revise Us Again" is a unique and profound contribution to the genre of books like "Radical" and "Crazy Love" which challenge Christians in light of biblical teaching. --Christian Book Reviews

About the Author

FRANK VIOLA is a frequent conference speaker and author of numerous books on the deeper Christian life and church restoration, including Jesus Manifesto, coauthored with Leonard Sweet, Reimagining Church, the best-selling From Eternity to Here, Finding Organic Church and Pagan Christianity (coauthored with George Barna).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: David C. Cook; New edition (April 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1434768651
• ISBN-13: 978-1434768650
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #162,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

FRANK VIOLA is a Christian author and speaker. He speaks and writes on the supremacy of Jesus Christ, the deeper Christian life, and missional organic church. Frank's blog, "Beyond Evangelical," is one of the most popular Christian blogs on the Internet today. On it, he discusses the changing shape of evangelical Christianity, spiritual formation, mission and missional church, writing, productivity, and creativity. Frank has written for or contributed interviews to TIME, Christianity Today, Charisma, Ministry Today, Relevant, CBN, Good News, Prism, Out of Ur, ReThink, Neue, The Christian Post, and other periodicals.

Visit his blog at www.frankviola.org
Visit his website at www.ptmin.org

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Revise Us Again" helps us to learn to live life together, April 10, 2011

By 

John S. Wilson III (Sugar Land, TX) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script (Hardcover)

I finished reading "Revise Us Again: Living From A Renewed Christian Script" by Frank Viola. What a great book! I highly recommend every Christian to read it! "Revises Us Again" is refreshing book that takes a thoughtful but candid look at and a fresh perspective of how brothers and sisters gather together, sharing life together. The problem is our "religious script" as Frank calls it. "As Christians, we can safely assume that some of the script we have been handed matches the heart and mind of our Master. But typically, much of it doesn't." So begins a very revealing look at how typically the body of Christ relates according to the each others "script" and how to view our life as one in Christ, and to be "revised and re-visioned to match His heart and mind."

As I read the book Frank comes across like a brother sitting in your house (over some coffee, :)) with a gathering of brothers and sisters and sharing his heart about living by Christ's life, reminiscent of the little book "Life Together" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. As stated in the back of the book "Frank Viola believes we need to revisit and revise what it means to live the Christian life." Dietrich Bonhoeffer finding himself amidst an institutional church that had become apostate determined to learn to live by Christ's life and to do so organically in community underground in Nazi Germany. Bonhoeffer's thoughts on the importance of living in community by the life of Christ, "our life together under the Word," is described in his excellent booklet "Life Together." I can sense Bonhoeffer sitting around with the brothers and sisters sharing many of these thoughts that were put together in his booklet so many years ago. I get the same feeling as I read Frank's book "Revise Us Again." Frank, himself a church planter, with an apostolic functioning, brings his hearts burden for the body of Christ, those things he has learned of Christ as he walks with brothers and sisters organically, to learn to live by the life of Christ, to live by the Spirit.

Below are some thoughts from each of the chapters from the book:

- Chapter 1 (God's Three-Fold Speaking) one word - wow! Frank keys in on recognizing the different ways God speaks through His people and the importance of seeking the mind of Christ together. Frank sees how God communicated with His people in three typical ways in the past to how He communicates with His people in the present. He describes them as "thinkers," "feelers," and "doers." "Three temperaments, three denominations, and three forms of God's speaking." The problem is we often view how God communicates through only one of His three ways.

- Chapter 2 (The Lord Told Me). Frank notes the disturbing consequences of using "God told me" in the "vocabulary of a number of Christian traditions" and gives warning to those who "choose to use...hyperspiritual language." "I've routinely watched God get credit for things that He never authored and blamed for things He never imagined." Frank points out to speak with your own words what you believe God has said without having to punctuate it with "The Lord told me."

- Chapter 3 (Let Me Pray About It). Frank gives some real to life examples of instances where some of God's people were asked for help but never followed through and Christ's life was not increased. "In short, 'Let me pray about it' is Christian code language for 'No.'" How important it is to walk in wisdom and do what God has empowered us to do to help and serve others in love in the everyday moments of life. I am reminded of Proverbs 3:27-28, "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. Do not say to your neighbor, 'God and come back, and tomorrow I will give it,' when you have it with you." (NASB). May we learn to walk in wisdom.

- Chapter 4 (Spiritual Conversational Styles). Frank describes what he calls "spiritual conversational styles" or SCSs. SGS is the religious script of how we generally communicate with each other either charismatic, quoter, or pragmatic. By the way I tend to be a "quoter" if you haven't realized that by now, :). He makes a point that if we know each others SGS then we can "make progress in how we hear and understand one another." It sounds similar to Gary Chapman's "Five Love Languages," which is also a great book by the way, lol. Frank notes that most of our differences in opinion "over spiritual matters" are really over "differences in communication style" and describes the importance of being "better listeners" towards one another in order to better "understand each other."

- Chapter 5 (What's Wrong With Our Gospel?). Frank gives five "vital elements of the gospel" that are "neglected" in "a large portion of the Christian world." They are from brief scriptural phrases: "Christ in you, the hope of glory...who is our life;" Christ who is "head over all things;" God's "eternal purpose...in Christ Jesus our Lord;" "our old self was crucified with Him;" as as Job spoke "naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return." If Christ is not "at its center (it) is doomed to fail."

- Chapter 6 (The Felt-Presence of God). What a wonderful chapter! Frank writes with sensitivity and a conscious goal to help brothers and sisters to realize that "God is always present in the life of a believer - whether one actively feels His presence or not" and "to be conscious of His presence is to be 'intentionally aware' that He is with you and in you." This made a big impact on me. After having read this chapter and going to work the next day I realized how often I was not "intentionally aware" that Christ was with me and in me. How important to learn to set our minds on Him. Perhaps the same can be said of when we gather together with brothers and sisters, do we intentionally set our minds on Him or some thing or some one?

- Chapter 7 (Captured By The Same Spirit You Oppose). This chapter was like wow, deja vu, how many times have I seen and done the same thing. How many heartaches we give one another, how many loss of relationships occur because of this mindset. As Frank says: "we are all susceptible to this spirit...Each of us needs a steady dose of God's infinite grace to avoid falling sway to it."

- Chapter 8 (The God of Unseen Endings). This was an incredibly written chapter that looks at the mystery of Christ. Frank describes parallels in the Old and New Testament scriptures to show that "God takes away to establish, and what He establishes is always better than what He takes away" and "God's beginnings are our nights." Christ not the God of our expectations.

- Chapter 9 (Stripping Down to Christ Alone). I so appreciate Frank's candidness in this chapter. He describes what he is against, leery of, skeptical, opposed to, and critical of regarding the fleshly abuses in church gatherings. But how he is so much for "the centrality, supremacy, sovereignty, and exaltation of the Lord Jesus. Period."

- Chapter 10 (Your Christ Is Too Small). Frank describes his personal journey into the community of brothers and sisters in Christ. "I live by the Lord who lives in me, and I live by the Lord who lives in my fellow brethren (in whom Christ also dwells)." The body of Christ is a shared life. We know Christ through His body. Frank also gives warning about not moving forward in Christ together, not receiving Christ when he comes to us unexpected and the importance of diversity in the body of Christ.

- Afterword (The Three Gospels). Frank has mentioned these before but think the are still so relevant to be brought up as reminders and that is the gospel of libertinism and the gospel of legalism which are in reality not gospels, or good news, at all, they only "tether you to the flesh." Only Paul's gospel that he preached, the same as that of Christ Jesus is real, "the gospel of the new creation." This is perhaps one section above all others a must read, as institutionalism, whether in a house or a 'church" building, no matter the form, corrupts Christ to either libertinism or legalism.

So Frank ends his little book. I feel like I have sat around some brothers and sisters, those whom I love, those whom I have offended, and realize how dead the flesh is and how alive Christ wants to be expressed in me, in us, and I cry "Christ you are our life, may we so live by your life, come quickly, may it be so." How we need to remember these words about the Christian life: "For Paul, the Christian life is becoming what you already are." "Revise us Again" helps us to learn to live life together.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very good read!, April 12, 2011

By 

Michael Freeman "wordhaver" (Boise, ID) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script (Hardcover)

Taking a break from a heavier theological work, I picked up Frank Viola's most recent book, Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script.

It was like turning aside from the steak to the potatoes and gravy.

Revise Us Again is a relatively light and quick read: ten chapters, just over 160 pages, smaller hardback - but no pictures (darn!). I was actually just intending to sample, but Viola drew me into his musings about various aspect of the "Christian script" we in our Christian culture tend to work from. His observations range from what was for me more humorous poking at ourselves to some very helpful thoughts on deeper levels.

An example of the former is our common tendency to answer queries for help from others with the "I'll have to pray about that" response. In case you were wondering, that always means "no" (just as when parents say to their kids "I'll have to think about that"). At least that's Viola's experience without fail. Not only do we not take responsibility for a yes or no answer, we put it "on the Lord" and then dismiss the person and then (again, according to Viola) never get back to them with a final answer even if we said we would. Reading this chapter I realized that I had just done this myself within the past month.

Thanks, Frank.

Among the "meatier" (for me) observations and musings was one concerning Christians' "spiritual conversation styles" (SCS). Viola outlines three SCS Christians frequently employ that essentially amount to different languages, each style connecting with the form of divine revelation most valued by the user/speaker. There's the "quoter SCS" that is immersed in the written word. "God says it, that settles it, so I believe it - so what's your problem?" Text and proof-texts abound - just quoting the text should be enough - no need for discussion, right, it's right there in black and white! I'm personally very familiar with this SCS - and with what happens when you match up a "quoter" with a "charismatic SCS." The "charismatic" uses phrases like "the Lord told me" and tends to regard the "quoter" as a bit legalistic and out of touch with what God is currently saying or doing. The "quoter," of course, thinks the "charismatic" simply has no real respect for God and his Word (otherwise he would certainly listen to his texts!). And watching the whole exchange is the "pragmatic" who has her own "SCS" as she looks at the bigger picture and marvels at how both "quoter" and "charismatic" just don't seem to get it.

Watching Viola unfold his thoughts about these "conversation styles" and his emphasis on the importance of the body of Christ embracing and recognizing all three of them was a wonderful "connect-the-dots" moment for me. How easy it is to talk right past each other and then to write you off because you obviously aren't getting it. And how this is compounded by our impersonal emailing, facebooking and blogging ways.

I found myself wishing for more chapters by the time I finished - but Viola had accomplished his purpose: he has me looking again with fresh eyes at my own "script" and asking just where it might need to be revised, for only the script of fools never needs changing.

Take and read.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another book every Christian should read..., April 4, 2011

By 

Stephen E. Rigg - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script (Hardcover)

Obviously, Christians should be reading the Word of God, however, I believe God speaks to us through other believers as well, and He spoke to me through Frank Viola in this book. I am quite sure that "Revise Us Again" has something for just about any believer. Frank thoughtfully but plainly lays out some simple truths- some correctional, some informational and all spiritual. It is obvious that these are truths that he has gathered through many years and many experiences in his walk with the Lord.

I feel "revised" after reading the book. He touched on areas that I have had questions about and some that I had not really given much thought to previously. It is a fairly quick read but one that you will probably want to read again, I know I plan to. I also plan to buy some extra copies to share with some brothers and sisters in the Lord.