For those of you who follow the news in the evangelical world, you know that Tullian Tchividjian is the grandson of Billy Graham and the pastor at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church where the late D. James Kennedy served for many years. And if you follow the news, you’ll also remember that Tullian’s transition to Coral Ridge was not easy. How could it be after so many years with such a prominent pastor? Transitions are always painful, especially when they happen in churches unused to transitions.
I’m not glad for Tullian’s difficult year–the hardest of his life he says. But I’m thankful for the fruit of the Lord’s refining. I sense in Tullian a deeper passion for the gospel than ever before, a desire to exult in justification by faith alone with new found vigor. I hear this passion in talking to Tullian in person and in reading his latest book.
Surprised Grace: God’s Relentless Pursuit of Rebels is not just a series of sermons on Jonah. It’s the story we all live in, whether we realize it or not. We all flee to Tarshish at times. And on other occasions, we’ve all found ourselves in the belly of the great fish. We all need more grace. We all need the gospel. All the time.
Tullian writes:
Surprised by Grace is well-written, exegetically careful and pastorally sensitive. Tullian mines the world of literature, art, and theology to bring out the abiding significance of this beloved story. And through it all, he points us to Christ.
