Skip to content ↓

Book Review – Christ Our Mediator

Book Reviews Collection cover image

Having written The Cross Centered Life, in which he exhorted believers to keep the gospel the main thing – the central focus of the Christian life – C.J. Mahaney now stops to reflect on Christ’s sacrifice. Christ Our Mediator follows hard on the heels of many similar books timed to coincide with the popularity of The Passion of the Christ. Mahaney begins the book by asserting (correctly, it seems) that a visual presentation of Christ’s crucifixion simply is not enough – we must also be told about the content of the story of the gospel. “The gospel message isn’t visual; it’s truth. It is truth to be believed, not simply a collection of images to be viewed” (page 10). Knowing that many people have seen the how of Christ’s death, Mahaney sets out to bring sense to the why of it.

To explain the cross, Mahaney presents a handful of reflections or meditations on Christ’s suffering and death. Drawing on Scripture and the teachings of great Christians of our day and days past, he presents the gospel in all its force and power. He presents the message that people hate to hear, yet so badly need to hear. This message is the only thing that can save the soul, and Mahaney presents it with that sort of urgency.

This little book, weighing in at only 95 pages, will stir your heart with renewed love for Christ. We could wish that it was a little bit longer, but clearly it was meant only as an introduction to this important topic. Mahaney is sure to recommend, as further reading, other excellent books dealing with the subject. He recommends The Gospel for Real Life and The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges, The Cross of Christ by John Stott, Saved From What? by R.C. Sproul, The Passion of Jesus Christ by John Piper and The Message of Salvation by Philip Ryken. To that list I would add The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy, a wonderful book of meditations upon the cross.

Another challenging little book by C.J. Mahaney, Christ Our Mediator is a welcome sequel to The Cross Centered Life and one I heartily recommend. It provides a great introduction to the importance of the cross and will lead the reader not only to understand why Christ had to die, but to want to know more.

RatingEvaluation
★★★Theology/Accuracy
Strong, biblical and challenging throughout.
★★Readability
Easy to read and understand.
★★Uniqueness
Unique mainly in its introductory capacity.
★★Importance
This is a book that will benefit every Christian.
Overall
This is a great little book, though one limited in scope.
More About Ratings & Reviews

  • Free-stuff Fridays (Truth78)

    This weeks giveaway is sponsored by Truth78. Are you wondering how you can help lead the children growing up in your church or home to a saving faith in Christ?  Zealous, written by Truth78 executive director David Michael, is for parents and ministry leaders, and anyone who wants to be inspired with biblical vision and…

  • Deconstruction

    Walking Through Deconstruction

    I suppose by now we all know a least a few people who have begun the process of deconstructing their faith. Meanwhile, we have undoubtedly heard of many more who are doing so in a public way—celebrities who have decided to rigorously examine the faith they once professed and to reject much of what they…

  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (January 17)

    A La Carte: Andrew Tate or Panda Express / The metrics monster / Nearer My God to Thee / Even as the fire rages / Why a jealous God is the best kind of God / Political idolatry / and more.

  • Quiet Time

    The Quiet Time Kickstart

    We are all people of habits. To some degree, we are always battling to establish good habits while battling to supplant bad ones. This is true of us in many different areas of life and most certainly true in our spiritual lives. In fact, some have argued that when we describe the way we relate…

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (January 16)

    A La Carte: Why don’t we read the Bible more? / Did David rape Bathsheba? / To (almost) die is gain / Learn to pray the Bible / When you’re close to burnout / Called to freedom / and more.

  • How To Obtain a Plenary Indulgence in 2025

    How To Obtain a Plenary Indulgence in 2025

    I think we can sometimes fool ourselves into believing that the Reformation caused the Roman Catholic Church to abandon some, most, or all of the doctrine that was so concerning to the Reformers. We can sometimes believe that the Catholicism of today is materially different from that of the 16th century or that it has…