I love these series of books...The Gospel according to the Old Testament. I have read about 5 of them now and they all are very concise and deep in the word of God. It has given me a new appreciation for the Old Testament and yearning for more. I loved the title of this one, Living in the Gap between Promise and Reality. I think as Christians, we struggle with all the time. Just as Abraham did. If we are not, I think then we may be living on cruise control. It takes you thru the life of Abraham and the promises he clung to. You realize fast that is pretty much how Abraham lived by faith-clinging to the Lord and resting on his promises. Abraham did struggle with fear (lying that Sarah was his sister-in law instead of his wife) however, God did always bring him back to the reality of His Faithfulness. Our failure shows of our inadequacy and how we deal with situations. Abrahams fear drove him back to God instead of away from God thru repentance. Failures in our lives, show our true heart condition. Another heart condition is our willingness to to give sacrificially. Abraham had done that numerous times. With Lot in letting him choose which land to live in. It Lot's case, his choices in life were determined by what appealed to him. Which Satan always takes advantage and will take root in that weakness. That is so true today and is applicable in my Christian walk. I can see that very plainly looking back. My favorite things of the bible is when one thing is mentioned only once or twice. In the case of Melchizedek. A High Priest that Abraham recognized and gave a 10th of his riches. Jesus Christ is the forerunner of a great High Priest. But in recognizing this, Abraham lived his life in the greatness of God's Kingdom and not simply a matter of doing mighty deeds for God and rescuing the underserving. It involves coming to God thru the priest that God has established.

Abraham learned much about God's grace. God's promises are not destroyed by man's failure but by man not wanting a God that will change their lives and make demands of them. In a covenant relationship such as Abraham and God had and we have thru Christ, God is offering himself. He provides amazing Grace that we change not of ourselves but by recognizing who God is and who we are. We surrender and it is all consuming in every area of our lives.

In conclusion, Abraham took many short cuts to help fulfill God's promises, however, he learned each time and grew to resist the temptation to do so. It will take a life time I am sure for this christian.

A special thank you to P&R Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.