Book Review: Follow Me by David Platt

Follow Me is the follow-up of the widely-received and highly-acclaimed book Radical by David Platt.  With great conviction, Platt exposes the hypocrisy, frivolity, and fluff that surround modern Christianity.  He calls the church to return, or at least examine, the invitation of Christ to “Come and Follow Me.”

In Follow Me, Platt not only challenges our modern terminology (i.e., inviting Jesus into your heart), he challenges our methods and motives.  He works from the premise of Radical, which basically contends that we have tried to fit Christianity into the mold of the American Dream.  We judge “successful” ministries by the size of their facility, budget, and attendance.  We have invited Jesus into our hearts, but we have failed to align our lives with the New Testament practices of authentic discipleship.

Platt’s strong words are mingled with rebuke and practicality.  He not only exposes the apathy of the church, he grabs the church by the hand (and heart) showing us the trail back to Christ.  In a simplistic and sobering style he extends the invitation to “Follow Christ.”  If we are truly following Christ, we become fishers of men.  If Platt is apalled by the lack of personal evangelism in the lives of believers, I wonder how the Lord feels?  Authentic salvation always results in authentic discipleship.  Most of the church never involves themselves with discipleship because most of the church, as Platt contends, is not genuinely saved or right with God.  He succinctly puts it this way, “When I look at the church today, it seems like we have taken the costly command of Christ to go, baptize, and teach all nations and mutated it into a comfortable call for Christians to come, be baptized, and sit in one location.”

As with any other author, I do not necessarily line up with everything Platt promotes, but I do believe he has struck a chord with a generation of believers who are tired of man-made, man-centered ministries.  I believe his pursuit is legitimately Christ, and for that reason I highly recommend this book; not because Platt is an exceptional author (I believe he is), but rather because He points us to the Eternal Author.

Favorite Quotes from the book Follow Me:

“We’ve taken the lifeblood out of Christianity and put Kool-Aid in its place so that it tastes better to the crowds, and the consequences are catastrophic.”

“The only reason we can seek Christ in our sinfulness is because He sought us as our Savior”

“Notice in his invitation that Jesus does not tell his disciples what he will call them to do.  Instead,  Jesus tells them what he will cause them to do.”

“We have tragically minimized what it means to be His follower, and we have virtually ignored the biblical expectation that we fish for men. The result is a rampant spectator mentality that skews discipleship across the church, stifles the spread of the gospel around the world, and ultimately sears the heart of what it means for each of us to be a Christian.”

“A superficial approach to Christianity always results in a spectator mentality in the church.”

“God grows his church by creating disciples who are serious about reflecting the righteousness of God and honoring the holiness of God.”

“For far too long, we have disregarded Christ’s commands in the name of church growth.”

“When I look at the church today, it seems like we have taken the costly command of Christ to go, baptize, and teach all nations and mutated it into a comfortable call for Christians to come, be baptized, and sit in one location.”