(RNS) — Evangelicals love to talk to Jesus.And often, they say, he replies — giving them advice, comfort and words of encouragement.
That is one reason why “Jesus Calling,” a book of daily devotions that combines Bible verses with friendly messages written as if Jesus were speaking, has been one of the bestselling Christian books of the past 20 years.
Written by a former Presbyterian Church in America missionary, “Jesus Calling” and its ancillary products have sold more than 45 million copies since 2004. The book is currently fifth on the Evangelical Christian Publishers bestseller list.
Author Sarah Young, who died last year, never claimed the book recorded the actual words of Jesus, which she believed were found only in the Bible. Instead, she said, she was trying to convey what she felt during her prayer times.
“The books are designed to help people connect not only with Jesus, the living Word, but also with the Bible, the written Word,” she told Religion News Service in an email interview in 2021.
Some of her fellow Presbyterians are unconvinced. They worry the book falsely claims to speak for Jesus and that for some readers, it has overshadowed the Bible and Young’s success challenges the authority of male church leaders.
During their recent General Assembly, leaders of the PCA voted to ask a denominational committee to assess whether “Jesus Calling” is appropriate for Christians to read and to recommend further action …
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That is one reason why “Jesus Calling,” a book of daily devotions that combines Bible verses with friendly messages written as if Jesus were speaking, has been one of the bestselling Christian books of the past 20 years.
Written by a former Presbyterian Church in America missionary, “Jesus Calling” and its ancillary products have sold more than 45 million copies since 2004. The book is currently fifth on the Evangelical Christian Publishers bestseller list.
Author Sarah Young, who died last year, never claimed the book recorded the actual words of Jesus, which she believed were found only in the Bible. Instead, she said, she was trying to convey what she felt during her prayer times.
“The books are designed to help people connect not only with Jesus, the living Word, but also with the Bible, the written Word,” she told Religion News Service in an email interview in 2021.
Some of her fellow Presbyterians are unconvinced. They worry the book falsely claims to speak for Jesus and that for some readers, it has overshadowed the Bible and Young’s success challenges the authority of male church leaders.
During their recent General Assembly, leaders of the PCA voted to ask a denominational committee to assess whether “Jesus Calling” is appropriate for Christians to read and to recommend further action …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]