There are many theology books written out there. Sometimes there is a good paragraph or a great concepts, but every now and again, you get a book that will completely change how you look at Scripture. This is definitely one of those books. After reading this book, I will never, ever look at the narrative of the prodigal son the same way again. The book is short, but packed full of information. It is truly a life changing read.

The book doesn't only cover the prodigal though. It looks at all of Luke 15 and goes line by line with the analysis. I really appreciated that as well. It would have been easy to write just on the prodigal and would have still been a fantastic book, but the addition of the Lost Coin and the Lost Sheep narratives were well received as well. The heart though is the prodigal narrative.

The reason for the 4 vs 5 star is simply, it is way shorter than you think. The last 3rd of the book is a play written by the author on the prodigal. It is good, but it was like having a fantastic meal that is just mind blowing, only to have a dessert which is good, but not as good, so you are left with an "eh" taste at the end of the meal. ( )

This is a smaller treatment of Luke 15 than "Finding the Lost Cultural Keys", but still very valuable. I love Bailey and after his exegesis he has written a play that captures the essence of the overall message of Luke 15. This guy should be read by all Christians ( )