Title – Dug Down Deep:  Unearthing What I Believe and Why It Matters

Author – Joshua Harris

Publisher – Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2010

I liked this book.  It contains some stuff that really matters for today’s teens.  The opening chapter on teenage Amish debauchery, known as the season Rumspringa, provides the glittery lure for the reader. What does satisfy the heart?  It is not being a partying prodigal.  But neither does the answer lie with “moralistic therapeutic deism.”

The answer is the access to a loving, holy God through gospel grace.

I would highly recommend this book for teens.  Joshua Harris is a reformed Calvinist.  I am not.  The author is also a continuationist on all the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  I would hold to a cessationist position.  Yet in our slight differences, there are whole chapters in this book that edified my heart.

Josh seeks to enliven young adults with a passion for theology.  He increases an awe of God, explores the beautiful mystery of Christ’s incarnation, and emphasizes the power of the Spirit.

The heart of the book is the gospel, his father’s testimony, and the chapter on sanctification, illustrated with his clever cartoon drawings.  The loving gospel is hope, life, and lasting, ongoing transformation.  From pornography to pride issues, in this book, Josh opens up about his past struggles.  And the gospel triumphs over every sin problem.

And the last chapter, “Humble Orthodoxy”, is worth its weight in gold.  I would have bought the book just for the last chapter.  I laughed.  And I said a lot of “amens” to his conclusions.

It helps me to remember that one day in heaven there will be only one right person.

I’m sorry, but it won’t be you.  Or me.

It will be God.