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Three Free Sins: God's Not Mad at You [Paperback]

Steve Brown
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)

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Book Description

February 7, 2012
This book is about the misguided obsession with the management of sin that cripples too many Christians. It’s about the view that religion is all about sin…about how to hide side sin or how to stop sinning all together.

In the Introduction, the author toys good-naturedly with an agitated caller on his radio program, teasing him in a segment where he offers three free sins. The offer is real. Not that Steve has the power to forgive sins, but he wants to make the point that Jesus has made the offer to cover all of our sins – not just three.

Chapter one, titled “Teaching Frogs to Fly,” is even better. The gist of this chapter is that you can’t teach frogs to fly, just like you can’t teach people not to sin. Steve tells a story about a guy who has a frog, and he’s convinced he can teach the frog how to fly. The man keeps throwing the frog up in the air or up against walls – all to the poor frog’s demise. The message is that even though people can be better, they can never not sin—just like a frog can never learn to fly, no matter how much pressure is put on it.

Steve continues through the book to show readers that while they can never manage sin, they can relax in knowing that they are completely forgiven—not just of three, but of all.


Frequently Bought Together

Three Free Sins: God's Not Mad at You + A Scandalous Freedom: The Radical Nature of the Gospel + What Was I Thinking?: Things I've Learned Since I Knew It All
Price for all three: $39.14

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“My stepfather, Jack, once said, ‘We don't need more people writing Christian books, what we need is more Christians writing good books,’ and I agree with him. Steve has written a good book that is also Christian. I have both learned from it and enjoyed it. You can't get better than that.” (Douglas Gresham, C.S. Lewis’ stepson and producer of the Narnia movies)

“If you are looking for a book that’s fun to read and, at the same time, able to lead you into deep reflection on how the grace of God lifts the burdens of sin and guilt, you’re going to love Steve Brown’s book. I give it four stars!” (Tony Campolo, Ph.D., Eastern University)

"Like me, Steve wholeheartedly believes that the gospel of grace is way more drastic, way more offensive, way more liberating, way more shocking, and way more counterintuitive than any of us realize. Everything here is vintage Steve Brown--the 'ole white guy at his best. Enjoy!" (Tullian Tchividjian, Pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and author of Jesus + Nothing = Everything)

“After reading Steve Brown's Three Free Sins, this rotten girl redeemed put on a pair of red stilettos and did a happy dance. Three Free Sins is like an old Three Dog Night tune—it'll make you sing along, crazy and loud, happy as all get-out. Steve Brown isn't the old bald guy he claims to be—he's all heart, graceful and true, and his message is indeed Joy to the World.” (Karen Spears Zacharias, author of Will Jesus Buy Me a Double-Wide?)

“Once again Steve Brown has done what he does best. He’s pushed the grace envelope. He’s inviting us, no, forcing us to think through the radical implications of the gospel. As I read Three Free Sins, I got the clear impression that Steve wants us to take the command in 1 John 3:1 very seriously: ‘See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!’ ‘Look, see, behold! God loves you so outrageously more than all you could ask or imagine, all because of what Jesus has done for you!’ This book isn’t about how the gospel gives us a grace card to live like moral morons, but as those who are radically transformed by the only love that will never let us go.” (Scott Smith, founding pastor of Christ Community Church, author of Objects of His Affection and Everyday Prayers)

“If Mark Twain had ever gotten over his cynicism long enough to believe the Gospel, he probably would have written a book like this. This is the kind of book that helps cynics like myself to actually hear the Gospel in the midst of all the social, religious, and political clap-trap that surrounds me. Thank God for friends and audacious preachers like Steve Brown. I am elated that he's still at it, to wit, upsetting the religious gatekeepers by throwing open the Gospel door so that all the riff-raff like me can actually see inside. Wow, there's a party going on! Who woulda thought?” (Buddy Greene, singer/songwriter, entertainer, recording artist)

"Steve Brown hates self-help books. Thank God. Three Free Sins is hilarious, honest, and full of the hard-won wisdom only an old guy knows. At its core is this truth: real change only happens when we realize God loves us whether we change or not. Do you know that in your knower? Read this book. It won’t self-help you into frustration. It will change your game. And if you are like me, you’ll laugh out loud, cry a little, and shout, 'Amen! Preach it, Old White Guy!'" (Susan E. Isaacs, author of Angry Conversations With God)

"While the title may appear brash, its underlying concept is certainly orthodox Protestant Christian teaching. Brown asserts that all sins are 'free' for Christian believers because Jesus paid the price for them at his crucifixion. Brown proposes that, instead of trying to be holy, Christians admit and embrace what they really are: forgiven. The book is peppered with humorous tales and personal testimonies that Brown has collected over more than 25 years as a Christian pastor, radio host, and seminary professor, to prove his point. The result is a refreshingly candid view of how Brown sees humans and their relationship with God." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

About the Author

Steve Brown is a radio broadcaster, seminary professor, and author. He previously served as a pastor for twenty-five years and now serves as professor of preaching at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida, and sits on the board of National Religious Broadcasters and Harvest USA. He is the author of numerous books, including Approaching God, Scandalous Freedom, and When Your Rope Breaks. Steve and his wife, Anna, live in Florida.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Howard Books; Original edition (February 7, 2012)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1451612265
  • ISBN-13: 978-1451612264
  • Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.6 x 8.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Once again, I was struck by God's amazing grace to save a wretch like me. David P. Craig  |  9 reviewers made a similar statement
One, God loves you, the good you, the bad you and the ugly you. Bob Fridleu  |  7 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
41 of 44 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Why It's Bad Trying So Hard To Be Good February 8, 2012
Format:Paperback
I'm pretty sure I've read every book that Steve Brown has written and I love them all. So I was anxiously anticipating this new book with the "scandalous" title. Steve Brown is NOT a proponent of "cheap grace." He understands justification by faith alone as well, or perhaps better than most theologians out there do. Steve Brown writes with his characteristic blend of humor and authentic seriousness about living the abundant life that Jesus came to bring us by helping the reader understand and apply two important truths related to the gospel stated by the late Jack Miller as follows:

"(1) Cheer up...you're a lot worse than you think you are, and

(2) cheer up...God's grace is a lot bigger than you think it is."

These two truths are developed eloquently and cogently throughout the book. In typical Brown-like fashion this book is full of biblical principles, powerful stories, and practical examples that will help you become less of a self-righteous Pharisee, and more like Jesus - full of joy, freedom, laughter, and basking in grace and truth.

Some of the specific issues Brown addresses in this book are as follows: perfectionism, self-righteousness, legalism, anger, repentance, unity in the body of Christ, pride and humility, religiosity, honesty, freedom, grace, and truth.

In the very last chapter he specifically answers some of the questions he gets due to his many books, sermons, and speaking on freedom and grace through justification by faith alone in Jesus Christ:

(1) Are you crazy?

(2) Why do you persist in irritating everybody? Free sins? That's outrageous! Why don't you write and teach in a normal way?
... Read more ›
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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars I've been waiting for this book all of my Christian life! February 10, 2012
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Steve Brown knows God, understands grace, and is able to communicate the gospel in such a clear and concise way that it truly reaches people's hearts. I never cease to be moved by his honesty and lack of pretense. So many times when I'm reading one of his books I think to myself, "Wow. Someone gets what I'm going through and better yet, will admit it!" He's like the Velveteen Pastor. I had been looking forward to receiving this book as soon as I heard about it and when I got it I couldn't put it down. I'm going to reread it over and over again until its message sinks in and I 'get it'. All of my Christian life I've struggled with believing that God really does love me personally and the thought that He might actually 'like' me is one that I've never been able to grasp. It just seems like such an impossible reality yet Steve gives me hope that it really is true! This book is a rose among the thorns of Christian self-help books out there (in fact it is the antithesis of a Christian self-help book). It is a book about what God has done for us and what God wants to continue to do for us - bring us into an authentic grace-based relationship with Him that is solely based on what Jesus accomplished on the cross and not on our performance. I think it must grieve God deeply when we run like hamsters in a wheel in an effort to gain his love and approval. The pride and self-righteousness that springs from this wheel-spinning behavior is nauseating as well. I wept when I read the letter 'J' wrote to God because I could have written it myself. I don't have HIV or struggle with homosexual urges but the cry of his heart resonates with mine and I think it will resonate with countless others' hearts as well. He is someone I'd like to meet just so I could tell him he's not alone.... Read more ›
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars THE SOLUTION FOR RELIGIOUS INSANITY February 13, 2012
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Some wag once said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Many a Christian's faith life falls into that category. I am a Roman Catholic (but this would apply to all Christian's) and I got into the bad habit of equating God's love for me based on how hard I tried to be holy. Now, I am not saying one should not be holy, but it's the depending on self, the self-striving that eventually crushed me. The great thing about THREE FREE SINS by Steve Brown is that he shows us how God guides us back to sanity by demonstrating, via the written word (it is a book you know) that God loves us when we fail, when we sin, and even when we are good. This book is an over the counter remedy for self righteousness and its equally evil cousins religious self loathing and religious masochism. It got so bad for me that when I went to Mass every week I felt like a nudist at a porcupine convention. I was judgmental and alienated. My trying and many times my praying continually blocked out God's love. Steve Brown's book showed me what it is to be a Christian among other Christian's who sin, fail, even sometimes find success. We only have "free" sins because Jesus, who hung out with folks like you and I, paid the price. It is an old message, but nicely condensed in THREE FREE SINS by Steve Brown.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Gracious Grace March 21, 2012
Format:Paperback
I'm not sure where it began, but I know how I feel about it. Some people are very stingy with grace. These people can be found among all stripes of theological convictions. Some are Reformed, others are Wesleyan/Arminian. Some are conservative, others are moderate. Some are fundamentalists, others are evangelicals. Whatever your convictions, we have all experienced the weight of a grace-less Christianity.

The interesting thing about it, is that Paul anticipated the heart of this reaction thousands of years previously. He clearly taught that God's radical, free grace does not mean mere intellectual consent or the freedom to live in sin. Just the opposite. God's radical, free grace is actually what transforms us. It is God's "kindness which leads to repentance" (Romans 2.4). Not law.

Yet, so many today try to transform themselves (and others) through the law. Instead of a loving, kind, gracious and compassionate Christianity we are subject to a cold, distant, angry, hurtful Christianity. What our souls need is God's radical, free and transformational grace. Steve Brown has become well-known for promoting this kind of grace. He has experienced tremendous push-back, but I think that he is right in his understanding of grace. Years ago he began (in jest) offering his radio listeners three free sins. His point was to create a picture of grace that is closer to home.

For some, it has hit too close to home. For others, it has released them from a morbid obsession with law and their failure. 'Three Free Sins' seeks to help Christians understand the nature of God's grace. Those who are in Christ have been offered an unending supply of God's transforming grace. Believers need to know this.
... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars great book!
this book really made a difference, not only to my thinking but actually to my mood. i've been FEELING better ever since i read it.
Published 19 days ago by hurshy
5.0 out of 5 stars Have a new look at Jesus... Great book!
I read it from the library, then went out and bought 3 copies, one for me and 2 to give away.

I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a fresh perspective on... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Sea Dragon
5.0 out of 5 stars A fresh (but not new) perspective
This book was excellent. It helped me to think about grace in a new, more liberating way. As far as I could tell, everything the author said was in line with Scripture; it was just... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Carrie Goodwiler
2.0 out of 5 stars Decent writing, reasonable premises, dangerous potential...
"Three Free Sins" is an entertaining read by a talented writer who admits to being a frustrated, cynical old theologian/pastor. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Tyndale's Pen
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book. Must read.
This book is a great reminder:
- I am a sinner. I will be that until Christ makes me new.
- As I am striving towards obedience and avoiding sin, I am not shipwrecked when... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Rick Fisher
5.0 out of 5 stars Pure Gospel
With clarity, wit, and precision, Steve Brown preaches the gospel. A must read for anyone who cares about the Good News of Jesus.
Published 2 months ago by James P. Kress
5.0 out of 5 stars Son's Men's Bible Study Group
My son told me the men in his church were going to be discussing this book. It arrived in time for him to read and prepare for this discussion. Read more
Published 3 months ago by charlotte koontz jones
5.0 out of 5 stars God's Grace is Sufficient for Me
This book written by Steve Brown, really gives believers and "Seekers", another view of how God's Grace is all we need and, helps the reader to also realize that the price... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Richie
5.0 out of 5 stars Debunk Christian elitism
This book explains how imperfect people can achieve perfect salvation. It also puts those who are "holier than thou" on notice
Published 3 months ago by Scott Schaaf
5.0 out of 5 stars Required Reading
If you are a Christian like myself who grew up in legalistic, fear-driven church, this writing by Steve Brown will help you recover what the gospel is really about. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Kelly Beutler
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