An extended Reading the Bestsellers review of a 2024 book by Lesley Crewe
Note: Our print issue contains a shorter version of this review. Faith Today welcomes your thoughts on any of our reviews. We also welcome suggestions of other Canadian Christian books to review: Contact us.
Vagrant Press, 2024. 280 pages. $25
I’ve fallen into believing the world I’m living in is so distant from the world Jesus walked through that His battles and temptations were different than mine and that He is the farthest being away from me at this moment.
A God Named Josh has the capacity to help rewire such thoughts. While Jesus never physically stepped foot where I am in Hamilton, Ont., He did live in a place with equally broken people, an equally – if not more – corrupt political climate and similar economical situations. Jared Brock writes this powerful, detailed and sometimes humorous biography of Jesus, and he presents a compelling case for what Jesus’ life may have looked like in the first century eastern Mediterranean world.
Jared Brock, for those who don’t know, is a Canadian author of books and documentaries including A Year of Living Prayerfully, Over 18, Redeeming Uncle Tom, and editor of the blog SurvivingTomorrow.org.
Whether you’re a seasoned theologian with an academic background, a devoted Christian with an average day job or you’ve just begun wondering about who Jesus is, Brock manages to make this history-packed biography accessible to a wide range of readers. To make room for readers less fluent in historical and theological language, he takes care to explain the functioning of the Sanhedrin; the roles of the elders, scribes and Pharisees; and the biographies of Annas and Caiaphas.
The title A God Named Josh concisely points to the framework for the entire book. When I told my seminary-educated father I was reading a book called A God Named Josh, his response was, “A God named what?” Josh stems from the Hebrew name for Jesus, Yehoshua, or, in English, Joshua. The more familiar translation Jesus refers to the Greek translation of His name.
In our culture today most of us know at least one person named Josh, and that’s likely something Brock had in mind. Anyone we may know named Josh is undoubtedly a regular person whose friends affectionately call him by a shortened version of his full name. All this aligns with Brock’s aim to dig into the human side of Jesus in this book in contrast to the deity-side that Christians usually focus on.
When it comes to studying Jesus, A God Named Josh provides a deep dive into nearly every angle possible. It’s evident Jared Brock has done his research, not just through the Bible – though I’m quite certain he references over a thousand verses – but also through historical records and accounts. Brock explores everything from the potential physical appearance of Jesus to what He believes about money to what He would have been like as a politician. Spoiler alert – it’s radical.
The book is broken up into ten chapters, all covering a different characteristic. For example, there’s “The Infant Josh,” “The Rabbi Josh,” “The Everyday Josh,” “The Economic Josh” and “The God Josh.” It’s more of a thematic study versus a genealogical study.
Rather than doing a mediocre job at summarizing the book, I’d like to simply present three key takeaways I gathered.
The first is this – A God Named Josh gracefully corrects some common misconceptions. I was under the impression that Jesus had 12 disciples. Wrong. Though there may have been 12 inner-group disciples, there were approximately 70 dedicated followers of Christ. Also, did you know the name Jehovah was an accidental translation of a made-up word, Jesus probably didn’t have flowing brown hair, wasn’t born on December 25 and isn’t John the Baptizer’s first cousin? This was all news to me. Though there were many other corrections Brock made, these were the ones that will hopefully help you win your next trivia night.
The second takeaway is rooted in the heart of Jesus, and chapter five, “The Relational Josh,” really brings this to life. Jesus’ heart for women, children and every vulnerable being is expressed. If you’ve ever struggled to view Jesus as a friend – as someone who dwells with you constantly – then A God Named Josh may encourage you to have a metaphorical coffee with God. As I read this chapter, I found myself humming the old hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.”
Lastly, Jared Brock’s description of the crucifixion in the final chapter, “The God Josh,” will change your perspective of the cross. It would do a disservice to summarize this section, but I will say Brock writes this chapter as far away from sugarcoating as possible. It’s raw, violent, torturous and gruesome. I think it’s something I’ll go back to every Holy Week.
A God Named Josh is a book you can read multiple times and continually encounter something new. It’s a book worth marking up with highlighter and column notes. It’s worth lending to a friend who struggles to approach Jesus. It’s worth a read. At least once.
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