I like Piper’s premise that the main thing of the gospel is Christ Himself, not just our getting Heaven or having our guilt gone through the forgiveness of our sins.

I wanted Piper to go deeper with God being the main thing, as I stated above. Instead he goes off on lots of other related things, sometimes the very things he says aren’t the most important good news of the Gospel, which sort of defeats the point of a book called GOD Is the Gospel.

Maybe it’s just his writing style as well as my disappointment with the book’s focus not being more on the title of it, but I’m only a quarter of the way through the book and I will probably only skim through the rest. There were some good points, but they were littered throughout a mostly surface skim of the main subject expressed by this book’s title. ( )

This book is a plea that God himself, as revealed most clearly and fully in Jesus’s death and resurrection, be seen and enjoyed as the final and greatest gift of the gospel.

The gospel of Jesus and his many precious blessings are not ultimately what makes the good news good, but means of seeing and savoring the Savior himself. Forgiveness is good because it opens the way to enjoying God himself. Justification is good because it wins access to the presence and pleasure of God himself. Eternal life is good because it becomes the everlasting enjoyment of Jesus.

All God’s good gifts are loving to the degree that they lead us to God himself. This is the love of God: doing everything necessary, most painfully in the death of his Son, to enthrall us with what is most deeply and durably satisfying―namely, himself.

Good read. ( )

John Piper is one of my favorite contemporary authors. Few books have impacted me as deeply as did his Desiring God. I still frequently drink from Piper's well and am refreshed.

God is the Gospel is a good and passionate reminder that God himself is the best gift given to us in the gospel. This book is an important antidote to the me-ism and self-esteem-driven drivel that permeates so much contemporary pop Christian culture.

This is also one of Piper's more exegetical books, with much extended reflection on Scripture.

But it doesn't live up to his earlier books, at least not for me. The freshness and vitality of Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, and Future Grace are not there. There is much less in terms of illustration and application. That original trilogy is hard to beat.

God is the Gospel is very good - but not Piper's best. So, if you've not read Piper, start with something older. Get some vintage Piper. Dive into Desiring God (don't settle for the abridgement - The Dangerous Duty of Delight - you'll miss way too much!). But if you're a long-time Piper reader, then don't skip this one (like you would!). It's worth the read. ( )

Classic Piper with some honing in on this one particular theme, that despite all the benefits of the gospel, the best and greatest gift of the gospel is God Himself.

Key quote = "What makes all the events of Good Friday and Easter and all the promises they secure good news is that they lead us to God...Everything else in the gospel is meant to display God's glory and remove every obstacle in him (such as his wrath) and in us (such as our rebellion) so that we can enjoy Him forever." ( )