BE PATIENT, GOD HASN'T FINISHED WITH ME YET!
Learning from the life of Jacob
By Roger Ellsworth
Evangelical Press. 120 pages . £7.95
ISBN 0 85234 524 0
Really good expositions of the Old Testament are rare. So it was with anticipation that I opened this book on the life of Jacob.
Roger Ellsworth, an American Baptist pastor, puts into print sermons he preached at Immanuel Baptist Church. His obvious pastor's heart shines through these sermons, along with his evangelistic passion. But this is a book of sermons and not a commentary. His emphasis is on application. As the subtitle says, he wants the reader to learn from the life of Jacob. There are many helpful lessons in this easy to read book.
Covering most of the life of Jacob, the author is not afraid to preach on the more sordid aspects of Jacob's life that others ignore. He is also happy to say when verses are difficult to understand and to explain the options. He rightly understands Jacob within the context of the covenant.
Yet I came away disappointed with this book for two reasons. Firstly, and most importantly, it is not always a good example of how to apply the Old Testament. In his eagerness to apply, the author often makes connections that are not there and stretches the text. He frequently uses the passages as a springboard to jump to too many other Bible verses. Secondly, although it has helpful lessons it is predictable. There is little that is fresh in style or content.
Although it breathes a warm, pastoral heart, this book is not the best example of how to expound the Old Testament. Whilst wanting to apply lessons from Jacob, I wonder if these are the correct lessons from the text? Its strength is its weakness.
