Book Review: Upside Down

This book is one that I've been reading in addition to my regular quiet times for a little while, trying to read a chapter every few days. I'm (over on my other blog) blogging through the Beatitudes of Jesus, and they are wonderful. Here, we have legendary former Bishop David Pytches, a real grandfather of renewed Anglican Evangelicalism in the UK (through his role in the origins of Soul Survivor and New wine), going through some of the toughest teachings of Jesus. This book is called "Upside Down" (which title apparently came from John Wright, pastor of Trent Vineyard), and its subtitle is the simplistic (but challenging to do) "living the beatitudes in the 21st century.

This book is not a particularly easy one to review - by and large it is immensely agreeable, focused on Jesus, and bang in line with what I've been thinking about in relation to the beatitudes. That said, the way Pytches writes is methodical, rich and full of allusion and reference to people who have lived out what Jesus taught. This is perhaps one of the best parts of this great book: the way in which the author inter-weaves dozens of stories of people who have followed Jesus regardless of what the world says. Pytches uses a genuinely international cast - from throughout church history. As an encouragement and challenge to us, the stories of other followers of Jesus are always good to read.

Pytches organises his material clearly - focusing on the beatitudes found in Matthew 5, and giving each one a full chapter of unpacking and analysis. This is immensely helpful - and makes it very clear that even the shortest utterances of Jesus are worthy of careful consideration. This is one of the reasons I read it alongside my quiet times - what Pytches' gets from the biblical text, from the words of Jesus, is deeply refreshing and spiritually challenging. The simple fact is, Pytches has followed Jesus for years, has studied the stories of those who have gone before, and produced an excellent exposition of Jesus' teaching on living.

I personally loved his opening chapter, "Dark Nights of the Soul", based on Matthew 5:3. I've written about Christianity and Depression before - and Pytches' addresses that. But, echoing Jesus, he goes further and deeper into related issues: spiritual poverty, disillusionment, despair and prayer. This is a powerful and impacting chapter - I wish I could give you a carbon copy of it! Pytches uses the stories of Christians as varied as John Wesley, Selwyn Hughes, Charles Spurgeon, David Bracewell and the Apostle Paul!

I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly with Pytches' conclusion that:

"these Beatitudes represent the core teaching of Jesus with regard to character for his disciples. He indicates the basic attitudes to be cultivated by those who are entering his kingdom"

And Pytches' closes his book with 8 dynamite points, applying each of the character traits he has teased from the the beatitudes to a specific area of ministry: not in a way that raises above others certain people, but as an aspiration and encouragement for those seeking to follow Jesus. It is fantastic to see a book close so practically - as so many books on Christian living tend to be quite airy-fairy or detached from normative Christian life in the Church!

I'd highly recommend this book. I think it could be used as the basis for a small group series, or discussion group series. It is also useful (if you want to get the same experience as me out of it) as a companion to a devotional life: as it emphasises what Jesus says and applies it. For a modern day explanation of what a Christian character seeking to echo Jesus might look like, it is superb. Read this book, follow @marypytches on Twitter for more, and consider how Jesus' teachings could impact your character for the sake of his Kingdom.