Book Review

The Thrill of Orthodoxy by Trevin Wax

This week I decided to do something new on the blog – give a brief review and recommendation of a book I recently read. I will do these periodically when I read a book that I think will be of interest to the members of BRCC.

I recently read The Thrill of Orthodoxy by Trevin Wax. This book was published in late 2022 and has been well-received within evangelical circles. The author, who is vice president of research and resource development at the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, and a former missionary to Romania, is writing to encourage believers to study and embrace the historic, orthodox Christian faith rather than the pale counterparts being offered by many today. Regarding his goal for the book Wax writes:

“I hope to reawaken in you an appreciation for biblical and historic Christianity so that you will be steady and fruitful in the turbulent times to come. This is the adventure: to bind our hearts to something ancient and enduring, with faith that the faith will outlast all fads and fashions. We’re not digging in, but digging down to the bedrock of our faith, so we can stand. The church marches on, not because we are faithful in every respect—we haven’t been, and we won’t be—but because Jesus himself is faithful. He promised to build his church, and the gates of hell will not prevail. And so, shaking off our spiritual slumber, we join hands with millions of others across space and time, saying with boldness and confidence, ‘This I believe.'”

The book does a very good job of doing just that. Blending church history and easy-to-understand discussions of critical doctrines, he shows not only the meaning and importance of orthodoxy but also shows how, contrary to what many believe, orthodoxy is actually broader than heresy. Through several surprising turns of phrase and ideas, he shows that it is actually error and heresy that are restrictive, reductive, simplistic, and ultimately boring. On the other hand, orthodoxy is broad enough to grasp all of life and experience, deep enough to allow the full truth, and complex enough to handle the paradoxes of life. Consequently, far from being boring, orthodoxy is actually thrilling, allowing the lifelong adventure of exploration and defense of truth worth living and dying for in our age.

I would highly recommend the book as an excellent resource, both to understand essential Christian beliefs and to reignite a passion for those beliefs.

As a note, I actually listened to the audio version which is read by the author. For this book, print, digital, or audio will be fine. So choose whichever version you prefer and enjoy!

In Christ,

Bret