The Scandal of the Kingdom: How the Parables of Jesus Revolutionize Life with God

In “The Scandal of the Kingdom”, Dallas Willard shines great light not only on the parables of Jesus, but Jesus himself, as He ‘came up with’ these ancient stories for the very first time. Why did He say things the way He did? What was His strategy, in conveying to us the reality of the Kingdom of God? What were the things He valued the most, the things He most longed to impart?Willard has such a high regard for Jesus, in the most practical kind of way. He understood Him as someone who teaches us eagerly, creatively, with all of his love and care, and with all the resources of his own mind. In “The Scandal of the Kingdom”, Dallas emphasizes Jesus’ role as teacher, yet never at the expense of everything else that He is to us. Jesus is always exalted in his place within the Trinity, always the One who reigns as our Way, Truth, and Life. The reader comes away with in awe of Him, with a changed expectation of what He wants to show them and how He is ready to work in their life.As for me, I have always found that the books that were written more ‘indirectly’ (such As Life Without Lack, or Allure of Gentleness) have never felt like ‘less’ than his other books. The characteristic clarity, directness, warmth, and original pattern of thought are immediately present. The family and friends of DW have done a beautiful job.“The Scandal of the Kingdom” is a wonderful, wonderful gift to us. Not Dallas Willard leftovers! But choice gold!

It was in reading Dallas Willard's words In his other books that the "Upside Down Kingdom" first became real to me, especially in my thinking about the Beatitudes and great respect for Jesus in ways I had not thought of before even though I had been going to church all my life. The book The Scandal of the Kingdom gently brings the parables of Jesus into a deeper understanding and clarity. Chapter 14 "Persistence as the Prerequisite to Growth" was one of my favorite chapters. I had the word "Persist" on my heart one morning after a restless night of prayer shortly before the book arrived in the mail. Chapter 11 "The Miracle of Forgiveness" is another one of my favorite chapters in the book as it refreshes that we need God's help to forgive and what forgiveness is and what it is not. I also love the dedication to Jane. What beautiful lives Jane and Dallas's love of God together created and his love for them blessed us with so much help in figuring out how to persist. This book is just another testimony to their good lives in the Kingdom of God.

No matter what I am reading, if a new Dallas Willard book is published, I set all my other books to the side. I eagerly anticipated this book and so far it has not disappointed. I have often struggled to understand and articulate clearly the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. In this book Dallas very clearly lays out what is the Kingdom of God and what it means to live in the Kingdom of God. I have found myself savoring each sentence. For example, Willard encourages his readers go mature from merely having faith in Christ to having the Faith of Christ. I have meditated on this and read it over and over. This is a book to be treasured.

The words of Jesus brought to us through Dallas Willard open the parables to me as never before. Already a lover of Dallas's style of teaching, I was excited to get this new book. His blend of the whole of Scriptures and practical illustrations as he explains the parables makes them come alive to me again today. Dallas is throwing the truths down alongside my life in a way that I can understand. I am just a few chapters in and I already want to re-read parts I have already read. I am pairing this reading with the workbook by Jan Johnson so I can soak in the insights more deeply. I highly recommend this this to you!

Having read nearly every book that Willard wrote, I was eager to read this one as well. Although to be honest, I wondered what his 1983 series on the parables could add to what he has said elsewhere. What I encountered was not so much another teaching, but actually a rich immersion in a beautiful vision of the abundant life Jesus wants for all of us. There were of course various gems scattered throughout the book. But beyond that, the more I read, the more my heart ached for this amazing way of life that Dallas portrays so well. Rarely have I seen such a compelling vision of life with God.

I ordered this product as a pre-order as soon as I heard it was coming out. I am about half-way through and have loved this "natural next step to Divine Conspiracy". Dallas is still helping followers of Jesus pursue the Kingdom long after he has passed.

In Dallas’ inimitable way of opening the Scriptures, he leads us into an in-depth look at how Jesus uses parables in his teaching and conversation, and how/why they speak to us today. A treasure!

Like a space nerd learning a new Star Wars movie is being released, my heart lept at the prospect of unpublished material from Dallas Willard 'coming soon' to print. When I found my copy had been delivered to my porch, I grabbed my reading glasses and dug in, eager to hear Dallas's voice again. It doesn't disappoint; in fact, it surprised me in the way only Willard can, with mind-opening observations that I don't know how I missed or lived without in the first fifty readings of the parables of the gospels. Enlightening and refreshing, and while not as dense as 'Conspiracy', it's likely worth a second and third read.

How to unlock your hratt to understand the radical but loving words about the ways you can experience the Kingdom of God in an interactive relationship with Jesus to learn the counter cultural nature of genuine kingdom living.

Dallas teaches even more from his past lectures.