Paul Luckraft reviews ‘The Forgotten Jesus’ by Robby Gallaty (Zondervan, 2017).
The author’s main contention in writing this book is that our understanding of Jesus has been shaped by many different cultural influences and that Christians today, especially in the West, are largely ignorant of the fact that Jesus was a Jewish man living in a Jewish world and observing Jewish customs.
Gallaty aims to help us rediscover this forgotten Jesus and to be able to place what he said and did within a more meaningful context.
High Definition
For the author, entering the Jewish world of Jesus is like getting high definition television. Once you view the gospels in this way, the extra clarity and precision means you can’t go back! Nothing is more exciting than “the experience of learning to apply a Hebraic hermeneutic to the Bible” (p23).
But this is not just a matter of information and insight, valuable though that is. The book builds up towards a key question – which Jesus will you choose? Furthermore, by seeing Jesus as the disciples did, we can better appreciate (and perhaps begin to emulate) the “revolution that would eventually transcend the sprawling Roman Empire and change the world” (p202).
Easy to Read
The book is easy to read and contains nine chapters. The first three provide a foundational look at the 1st Century world in which Jesus lived. In particular, it illustrates the difference between Western (Greek) thinking and a Middle Eastern (Hebraic) mindset, as well as connecting Jesus with prominent Old Testament figures such as Abraham, Joseph and Moses, and providing some information on the centuries between the Testaments.
In the central three chapters, Gallaty sheds light on Jesus’ upbringing and early life, and explores the connections between his ministry and what was commonly known by those who heard him teach.
The final three chapters explain the Messiahship of Jesus and how he was ultimately rejected and sentenced to death. His final days contain many intriguing elements usually lost on traditional Christian teaching but which can be illuminated by a new Hebraic perspective.
For the author, entering the Jewish world of Jesus is like getting high definition television. Once you view the gospels in this way, the extra clarity and precision means you can’t go back!
Why This Book?
There are now many books helping us understand the Jewishness of Jesus, so why buy this one? Overall Gallaty has put together a very full compilation of such treasures. He acknowledges that he has drawn on many sources and that much of what he says can be found elsewhere. However, he has packed a huge amount into a relatively short book without being too concise or patchy.
He is also aware that the Jewish Roots movement has produced much that is based upon conjecture and speculation - perhaps following the thrill of the new rather than giving it sufficient scrutiny. Gallaty asserts that we “cannot just take what we read and hear as if it is verifiably true” (p203), but need to exercise discernment.
In this Gallary is successful. Clearly he has treated his sources with caution and produced a book that can be trusted: not only to affirm what is written of elsewhere, but also to add some extra thought-provoking gems. What did Peter actually hear when the cock crowed? What were those swaddling clothes really like, and why were they readily available and appropriate? And when Jesus quoted the first line of Psalm 22, was he intending us to understand even more than just the agony of his forsakenness?
The books ends with recommended resources (books and websites), a 260-day Bible reading plan and good endnotes. It does not, however, include an index, which would have been useful for those wanting to treat the book as a resource in its own right rather than a one-time read.
Overall this is a worthwhile addition to any collection of books on the Hebraic background to Jesus and the gospels.
‘The Forgotten Jesus: How Western Christians Should Follow an Eastern Rabbi’ (224pp, paperback) is available from Amazon for £9.99. Also available on Kindle and as an audiobook. Find out more on the book’s website.
Robby Gallaty is Senior Pastor at Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
