Book Review: Connected Christianity by Art Azurdia

So I just finished reading Connected Christianity by Dr. Art Azurdia. I must say I wish I had read this book in a day or two instead of the weeks I took to finish it, so I could do this review justice. That aside, this book is phenomenal! It was given to me by the youth pastor at Calvary Chapel Crook County . I don’t know why it was given to me (I do help out with the youth), maybe he was planning on going through it as leadership, I don’t know. Aside from that, this book struck a chord within my being that had never been struck. That chord harmonized being a Christian and being in the world, the very contents of this book.

Dr. Azurdia beautifully unpacks John 17:14-19, the central passage of scripture for this book (More of an emphasis on verses 17-19):

“I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ¹⁵ I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ¹⁷ Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. ¹⁸ As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.” – John 17:14-19

In the first chapter, “A Worldly Christianity”, Art clearly shows that, as Christians we are to be in the world, not disengaged from it. His ideology is that far to often, Christians try to remove the influence of the world from them, thus living a sheltered life and not engaging the lost with the Gospel. He focuses on verse 18 of John 17 for this chapter. Essentially, we have been commissioned to be sent into the world by Jesus himself. A calling we cannot refuse.

Dr.Azurdia uses an amazing example from his own life. He talks about how he and his wife were convicted by the fact that many of the young believers in his congregation had no friends outside of their sphere of Christian influence. They pulled their children out of the private Christian school and enrolled them in a public school. Eventually they started having a Friday night dinner once a month that had three rules for their children 1) Invite as many friends as you like, 2) We will provide food and drink and 3) No Christians. You can read the book to hear the rest of the story. I think the tag-line for this chapter is “We cannot hope to be authentically Christian without being meaningfully worldly.” Read the book to see how he unpacks that sentence.

In the second chapter, “A Holy People,” he focuses on the importance of our sanctification in our mission to be worldly. Art uses vs 17 to build this chapter on, the idea that in order to be authentically Christian while being meaningfully worldly, we have to let the truth of Christ (his Word) sanctify our lives. God wants a holy people.

In the third chapter, “An Effective Redemption,” Art shows that this mission should not be founded on anything else but the work of the cross. He then ties this chapter to chapter 3, dealing with our sanctification. It truly is beautiful.

The last chapter, “Our Sympathetic Resonance,” Dr. Azurdia deviates from the passage in John and focuses on Hebrews 4:14-16. This chapter is my favorite as it beautifully illustrates the humanity of Christ and the deity of Christ, and how these two entities, when combined make for a “great High Priest,” or the perfect mediator between humans and God. Chapter 4 illustrates how Jesus is uniquely qualified for this, as he was tempted in every way we were, yet remained sinless, thus he can sympathize in our weakness. The final call of this chapter is powerful. Art compares the old testament covenant with the new covenant we have as believers, and because of this we have constant access to the throne of grace, and how we need to be constantly coming before that throne on our knees, obtaining mercy for our failures, and grace to persevere.

I suggest you read this book. If you are in Corvallis, I can loan my copy to you, but be prepared to be rocked.