Book Reviews

Fix Your Eyes on Jesus by Anne Ortlund

The Indwelling Life of Christ by Major W. Ian Thomas

"A tender-but-tough, back-to-basics message to help you keep your life in focus. Whether you are a new Christian, along-time believer, or just an inquirer into the faith, the profoundly simple message of this book can help point you toward a more balanced, centered and purposeful life.

Read it for a lift. Read it for a reminder. Read it as a practical guide to every day circumstances or as an insightful Study tool. But read it always with an eye toward the Savior it celebrates.

Moving yet practical insights into the basic ingredients of Christian living." Word Publishing

The Indwelling Life of Christ by Major W. Ian Thomas

Other than the Bible, this is my go to book. I think Stuart Briscoe said it best, "No man has influenced me more through his teaching and example than Major Ian Thomas. And no teaching has been more foundational in my life and ministry than his powerful exposition of the indwelling life of the risen Christian."

“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” —Colossians 1:27

I had the honor so many times, of sitting under the Major's teaching. This book makes a great morning devotional book. it is a small book with short chapters, but so life changing.

"Why do we keep failing even in our best efforts to live the Christian life? Because no one other than Jesus Christ can live it, for the simple reason that He is the Christian life! And only He can live it in our lives as well. Major W. Ian Thomas takes a refreshing look at the pure thrill of living victoriously as you embrace the living Savior’s presence within you. The more you become genuinely and relentlessly available to Christ, the more He can take over so that your Christian walk becomes vibrant and effective! This inspiring devotional, along with the application questions at the end of each reading, will help you focus consistently on Jesus Himself so you can serve and enjoy Him at an entirely new level and dimension.

You can try to steer clear of sin. Avoid temptation. Refuse to steal, lie, or use drugs and alcohol. You can indeed try to be sinless. But that is still you. And you are still trying.

Jesus Christ was not holy because He focused His efforts on avoiding sin. Instead, “He refused to allow there to be any possible explanation for the quality of His life but the Father, as God, dwelling in Him, as Man,” writes Major W. Ian Thomas.

So whom do you want dwelling in you? More of you? Or all of Christ?

Story Behind the Book

"Major W. Ian Thomas was twelve years old when he accepted the Lord with a simple prayer. But by nineteen, “I had been reduced to spiritual exhaustion,” he says, “with no hope or reason for going on.” It was then that he discovered the life-transforming secret of the indwelling life of the living Lord Jesus Christ. God gave him a message through Galatians 2:20, where he learned to say, “Lord Jesus, I can’t—You never said I could—but You can, and always said You would. That is all I need to know.” Major Thomas came to understand it was Christ Himself living through him who would do His work. This is the message he has been passionately proclaiming all his life."