Desiring God

Rating:
Summary: Very difficult read
Review: John Piper has a great ministry and has a good vision of what it is to desire God above all else in life. The problem is, he has trouble getting it on paper in a form mortal man can understand. I have a Bachelors in English, but nothing I've had to study came as hard as deciphering this book. Verbage and word choice is at a level far above post-grad -- and to make matters worse, his sentence structure is VERY unusual and choppy (albeit l-o-n-g). He would likely say, "To the store I am going."
The content of the book is great and he knows his stuff -- to the point of obvious passion -- but be prepared to rake the text with a very fine comb if you intend to understand it. It will not be a fast nor enjoyable read. I would recommend instead: The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges. It is a very straightforward approach to the same subject and is very well written.

Rating:
Summary: Two aims are NOT better than one... :o)
Review: Writing a review for a book that is single-handedly responsible for a radical change in your life is difficult. Such is the case with this book for me. I start out by saying that because I am not being flippant with my review; it is a very serious thing to me.

The most revolutionary concept set forth in this book is that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. The first time I read that, it meant little to me and I gave it a nod because it sounded so Christian and so right. But when you consider what it implies, you just might find the foundation of your Christian life changed into a white-hot passion to know God and experience all that He is for you in Christ.

God is most glorified when we obey the command, "Delight yourself in the Lord." To obey God's commands out of duty, exclusively because it is right, is not pleasing to God. This is a difficult roadblock to overcome, and Piper does a masterful job of explaining, from numerous Scriptures, why this is so. Is obeying God the right thing to do? Yes! But if our heart is not in the obedience, how is God glorified in that?

I would recommend first reading Piper's "The Dangerous Duty of Delight," which is Desiring God in a nutshell. Desiring God picks up with a deeper discussion on how this concept of Christian Hedonism (that is, radically pursuing pleasure in God *Himself*, not His gifts) changes the way we look at conversion, worship, love, Scripture, prayer, money, marriage, missions, and suffering (and yes, suffering is a big part of a Christian's life).

This book, to put it simply, is a must-read for every single Christian. If you read of people who are positively "on fire" for God, and you wonder where such passion comes from, John MacArthur, R.C. Sproul, J.I. Packer, Jerry Bridges, James M. Boice, and I would strongly exhort you to read this book. It is the overflow from a man whose desire in life is to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples.

Rating:
Summary: A God-Inspired Delight
Review: It seems as though God has smiled upon His child, John Piper; Piper is certainly beaming right back at Him.
This revolutionary work highlights the tremendously important duty which God has placed upon those He chooses--to delight in Him! Using scripture as his foundation and guide, Piper has accomplished what few have; he has discovered at the root of Christianity a truly God-centered lifestyle, which is one of pure joy. Of course, this is what theological geniuses such as Henry Scougal and Jonathan Edwards have already shown, and but for one terribly important attribute, "Desiring God" would be superfluous given their work.
That attribute? It's easy to read.
Piper has taken remarkably difficult concepts and treated them in such a way as to make them accessable to any Christian who has a desire to learn the heart of God for His creation. This blend of rigorous theology and down-to-earth writing cause to ring clear as a bell the very factor which makes this book plausible--Piper means every word.
He means it when he writes that God is his delight; he means it when he writes of the joy and assurance to be found in Him. Without this honest tenderness, without the expression of Piper's deepest heart (and finding that this expression is one of contentment!), the work would be rather pointless. After all--what good is a book about finding delight in God, when it's author views his faith as duty?
But Christianity is not duty; it is not a negative. There is no sense in which Christianity is a loss, but it is instead a tremendous gain. This vision for life, as shared by Piper, opens the Christian's life to all the joy that God has been eager to give all along. One finds this vision echoing throughout the Bible, and Piper has done the Christian community an immeasurable favor by highlighting the essential command: "Delight yourself in the Lord!" (Psalm 37:4)
One gets the feeling, however, that Piper is only half-satisfied by the praise which is offered him from his brethren (as, indeed, the reviews for his work are extremely positive).
No, one gets the feeling that Piper didn't need that praise at all--he'd already found it in His God.
As God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him, then God must be tremendously glorified in the work of John Piper, as He was in the work of Edwards, Scougal, Calvin, Luther, Paul and Peter. Because Piper is--just as tremendously--satisifed in God.

Rating:
Summary: Your image of God will change after reading this book...
Review: Desiring God has simply been THE most influential book in my life besides the Good Book and Mere Christianity (by C.S. lewis).

I used to wonder, "What is the connection between pleasure/happiness and the Christian faith? What should my motivation be for following God?" This book answers these questions. We shouldn't follow God out of fear or duty. The ultimate reason for following/serving God should be leaning into the deepest pleasures available to the human heart.

Happiness and pleasure are the motivations of everyone, as Piper illustrates--using Pascal in the introduction, and the good news is that God is the ultimate pleasure available. The rationale for thinking that God is the ultimate pleasure giver is given in the first chapter: God is a 'happy God.' God, in his 'society of love'--the trinity--has been eternally happy and created the world to share the love that He already has within His tri-unity. We reflect God's own happiness (and thus give Him glory) by serving Him out the pleasure that comes from seeking His company through every action in life. Hence the tag line of the book, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."

I have re-read the introduction and the first chapter to this book 10 times at least in the last 5 years. Frankly, you can get the jist of the whole book by reading just the intro and first chapter.

I simply can't overstate the impact this book has had on my view of God, and the connection it highlights between my happiness and pleasure in life to my faith in God. My faith would be impoverished today if it weren't for the wisdom of this book. For a pleasureable experience that will last you a life time--read this book.

Rating:
Summary: A sledgehammer to joyless churchgoers!
Review: To those of us who attempt to labor in serving Jesus, to those of us who obey God as a means to show Him our gratitude for all He does for us, and to those of us who manage to walk through life joyless and incontent, this book delivers a blow as powerful as a sledgehammer. God doesn't want us to do our moral duty. God doesn't want us to serve Him as though He needed us. God doesn't want us to show Him our gratitude by what we can do for him. God wants us to do what delights us most fully and most lastingly. Piper shows that joyless Christianity is an oxymoron of the first degree and a result of spiritual pride. Biblically-soaked, Christ-exalting, God-centered- this book is a pleasure to read precisely because it shows so clearly how God desires to be our complete and eternal pleasure (Psalm 16:11).

Rating:
Summary: Excellent for the hungry
Review: This book by John Piper is a wonderful book that helps us to rear our thinking, our devotion, and our worship to God. John Piper continues on the theme of the Westminister's confession of, "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever," by restating it to say, "The chief end of man is to glorify God BY enjoying Him forever" therefore the sub-title, Meditations of a Christian Hedonist.

Rating:
Summary: A Biblically Accurate Picture of the Christian Life
Review: In this work, John Piper has built a biblically accurate picture from the foundation up. Dr. Piper starts with a crucial premise -- that God is infinitely happy and infinitely lovely -- and from that premise establishes that a God-centered life must therefore be a gloriously happy one. Even suffering on earth cannot detract from the joy that comes from the hope of spending eternity with God.

I should note that Dr. Piper emphatically does not advocate a non-biblical hedonism in this book. I suspect that the reviewers who trash the book for that reason have not really read it. Dr. Piper is very realistic about the fact that Christians will suffer and that Jesus calls us to suffer for His sake. If anyone has any doubt on that score, notice that the last chapter of the book (before the wonderful appendices) is devoted to suffering. No, this work does not advocate do-what-you-like, eat, drink, and be merry hedonism, nor does it encourage people to ask God to give them the weak, Godless pleasures they enjoy. Rather, it accurately observes that God IS all-pleasing, and consequently that running the race set before us will, despite hardships, be incredibly happy so long as we "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith." (Heb. 12.)

C. S. Lewis once warned his readers that "theology is practical." In this book Dr. Piper neatly demonstrates that Lewis was right. In an era in which practical and devotional books without any significant theological content abound, Dr. Piper freely mingles exhortation and theology, life and doctrine. The result? A phenomenal work that is worth any Christian's time to read.

Dr. Piper has devoted another book -- _The Pleasures of God_ -- exclusively to establishing the foundation of this book (and of the Christian life): the happiness of God. I would therefore recommend that if you have yet to read _Desiring God_, consider reading _The Pleasures of God_ first. This isn't absolutely necessary, as Dr. Piper devotes Chapter One of _Desiring God_ to establishing God's happiness, but it could prove helpful for some readers.

Rating:
Summary: Desiring God needed an editor
Review: Piper has a good point about taking joy in God, His goodness, and our salvation. The concept isn't new (see the Westminster Confession) but is well worth remembering. We are supposed to enjoy being christians and to take joy in what God likes.

The problem with Desiring God is that it is not well written. There are several problems. First, Piper seems to have transcribed sermons and turned them into chapters. This never reads well. Second, there are many awkward similies/illustrations that distract rather than illuminate. Third, Piper runs out of topic fairly early in each chapter, but the chapters chug onward anyway. Finally, the phrase "Christian Hedonist" appears so frequently that I began to wonder if he had trademarked it and was coming out with a line of clothing.

An editor could have helped immeasurably.

Rating:
Summary: Life Changing
Review: John Piper does an excellent job of unlocking the key to a joyful life. This book could change your life and your view of God. By showing that God is the source of everlasting joy with a plethora of biblical support, Piper shows that Christianity is not about following a set of rules but enjoying God.

Many people ask what we will do when we get to heaven. When we are in heaven, God will be our entertainment, we will be so delighted in Him that nothing could even begin to compare to the worth of the glory of God.

But Piper takes this a step further and shows how God is our entertainment here and now. Even now, in this sinfilled world, we can delight in the infinite worth of the glory of God.

I you are trying to find a plug for a hole in your life, Piper will help lead you in studying the bible and discover that God is the infinite plug to the infinite hole in your heart.

I highly recommend this book, as it has greatly impacted my view on God.

Rating:
Summary: The Pleasure Principle
Review: Piper's provocatively titled book is premised on the unremarkable theme that Christians should forego the passing pleasures of the world for eternal happiness in God. Piper's variation on this theme is that the desire to maximize one's personal pleasure (in God, of course) should be the chief motivating factor in the Christian's daily walk. Piper even suggests that it is wrong to serve God apart from the pursuit of personal pleasure (in Him, of course).

For any one not fully satisfied with a love motivated by self-interest, I would highly recommend Fenelon's, Christian Perfection, and particularly the chapters entitled Pure Love and Knowing God. He recognizes that self interested love is a pragmatic approach to God, but then shows a still more excellent way. Fenelon writes: "It is not that the man who loves without interest does not care for the reward. He cares for it in so far as it is of God, and not in so far as it is his own interest. He wants it because God wants him to want it. It is the order, not his own interest, that he seeks in it."