Who Do You Say that I AM? by Becky Harling

Who Do You Say that I AM? by Becky Harling ISBN-13: 9780802415509 Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Moody Publishers Released: February 6, 2018

Source: Review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Jesus wants to know, “Who do you say that I AM?” How we answer defines our lives both now and forever. This study in some of the “I AM” statements of Jesus will help women move from knowing about Him to knowing Him personally. Guiding them through significant questions Jesus asks in the Gospels and the answers He himself provides.

Becky Harling has years of experience as a Bible teacher and women’s ministry leader.


My Review:
Who Do You Say that I AM? is an 8-week Bible study, and each week had 5 days of study. Each week, the author explored a question that Jesus asked and an "I am" statement Jesus made at some point that she feels answers the question. She started with a personal story, then the verses to read with some background information. She then asked questions about the reading, if you've experienced something similar, and brought in related verses. She provided a verse to memorize and a praise song to listen to.

I liked some parts of the book, but the quality seemed inconsistent to me. For example, the week on "I Am the Resurrection and the Life" was about how God will give us new dreams when our dreams fail and how God can fix the messes in our lives. There's amazing power and hope in the actual promise of resurrection, so why not talk about that? On page 231, she provided verses that show "how you are of great value to God" but were about how God loves us. One can love worthless things, so I was baffled as to why she used these verses rather than ones actually talking about how God views us as valuable.

And on page 174, she said that "the priest was to continuously burn fragrant incense...(Ex. 30:1, 7-8)." But those verses say they offered incense in the morning and the evening, not continuously. She said the incense was made through crushing flowers, but the mix was actually described as "fragrant spices" and contained resins (Ex. 30:34). She then suggested that "the crushing of our soul produces a fragrance that rises up as a sweet aroma to God..." Um, incense is symbolic of prayer (Psalm 141:2, Revelation 5:8). Not sure how the imagery of God allowing our souls to be crushed and burned in a fire was supposed to be comforting. Sounds more like hell.

Week 1: Who Do You Say That I am? Matthew 16:15
I Am He. John 4:26

Week 2: Do you still not see or understand? Mark 8:17-18
I Am the Bread of Life. John 6:35

Week 3: Why are you so afraid? Matthew 8:26, Mark 4:40
I Am the Good Shepherd. John 10:11

Week 4: What do you want me to do for you? Mark 10:51
I Am the Light. John 8:12

Week 5: Do you believe that I am able to do this? Matthew 9:28
I Am the Resurrection and the Life. John 11:25

Week 6: Do you want to get well? John 5:6
I Am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. John 14:6

Week 7: Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Matthew 6:27, Luke 12:25
I am the Vine. John 15:5

Week 8: Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner? Luke 17:18
I Am the Living One— The First and The Last. Revelation 1:17


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.


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