The Age of Promise by Randy Robison

The Age of Promise by Randy Robison ISBN-13: 9781400207534 Hardcover: 240 pages Publisher: Thomas Nelson Released: Jan. 30, 2018

Source: Review copy from the publisher through BookLook Bloggers.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
In The Age of Promise, Robison introduces us to ten foundational promises made in the Old Testament and transformed in Christ, ten mysteries now revealed in Jesus that offer us a deeper, more powerful relationship with the Father. These ten promises, which bring God’s intricate plan of redemption to fulfillment, include:

The promise of deliverance
The promise of the chosen people
The promise of the temple
And much, much more!



My Review:
I thought "The Age of Promise" was going to show how the Old Testament promises were fulfilled through Christ in the New Testament. However, this book instead claims that the old covenant was defective and the Jews hopeless while the new covenant is perfect and the end has already come. While I agree that sacrifices could not save a person, the Law did exactly what it was designed to do and the Old Testament Jews could find hope and faith in the promised Messiah. So, basically, I disagreed with his foundational assertions.

Frankly, he seemed to have a problem with Jews. He ignored anything in the New Testament that didn't fit with his theories. Often, when he did a word study, it was to find some meaning of the word that he was more comfortable with and fit his theories better. So he didn't win me over to his ideas. Here are some quotes to try to show some of his ideas:

Page 44: "Allusions to the coming King echo through the Psalms and the Prophets. But for hundreds of years, the people could only cling to the law. Their religion provided their only hope....Religion was about to die so that man could live." Yet "When we see how laws fit in God's plan, we can joyfully embrace the laws that apply to us today and begin walking in their promise."

Page 138: "God had decided the days of pruning his chosen people were over. He would bring the whole tree down through the work of Jesus Christ. And it would happen soon."

Page 145: "Wrath is brought by the law. This is why Christians need not fear the wrath (the judgment to destruction) of God. It was targeted specifically to those under the old covenant."

Page 170: "Since we have established through Scripture that God's kingdom is now purely spiritual..." And page 172: "[God's kingdom] does not reside in America, Israel, or any other geopolitical realm. It is present with a believer in Mumbai or Madrid, but not with a nonbeliever in Toronto or Tel Aviv." And page 173: "The promise of the kingdom, a place where God reigns over his people, is that it's here and it's for you. You need not die to enter into his kingdom....Seek first his kingdom, and you will learn to walk in it every day."

Page 187: "Since the question is not 'When will the world be terminated?' But 'When will the era be completed?" the discussion changes drastically." And page 181: "The destruction we should warn people of is the destruction sin brings in their lives, not some imminent clamity orchestrated by God." And page 182: "If we think of the end not as an expiration of time but as a fulfillment of a purpose...then his predictions of the end are a completion of something and not the termination of the world."

Page 188: "Another passage that once frightened me about the end-times relates to the predicted destruction not only of earth but of heaven itself." And page 190 in reference to 2 Peter 3:10-12: "Peter was talking about Christ's purifying fire coming to the hearts of men and the passing of the old covenant for a new and better one."

Page 198: "The reality is that our bodies are mere traps for our souls." And page 199: "Fortunately, our spirits exist, and in Christ, they are far superior to our bodies....Death, then, is necessary to free the perfected spirit from the imperfect body."


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.