In expositions of Christ's life through examples from the Gospels, Lucado breaks down familiar stories and passages and reflects them through his own unique imagination. Like a tour guide, he brings the reader into the story and brings their attention to details they might have missed, explains historical background to better understand the people and places explored, and brings life to characters who mostly look flat and one-dimensional on page. In some circumstances, Lucado becomes a time-machine-translator in a way, by taking these biblical stories and placing them in contemporary contexts, trying to help modern-day readers easily relate to foreign situations.
At times, Lucado's use of such liberties with the Holy Word made me feel uncomfortable; who is he to think he can assume and imagine what was happening in the bible? It's fine for personal reflection, but to teach these assumptions to the mass public edged the line of liberality too closely for my comfort.
However, I cannot deny that Lucado has the power of exhortation, especially when he uses these emotionally rhetorical devices. Lucado's use of personal anecdotes, his understanding and sympathy for present-day spiritual and emotion afflictions, and his sensitivity to what our hearts crave most make Next Door Savior a deeply reflective book for any person to read.
For the non-believer, it is a good book to understand what it really means for Jesus to be fully man and fully God at the same time. For the searching believer, it is a great reminder of who and what it is exactly that you believe, and why. For the mature believer, it is an excellent book to re-look at certain stories of the bible in a new light, and reset the spiritual sensor of your heart.
All in all, I don't think you'll walk away from Next Door Savior disappointed, and will definitely bring the real next door Savior nearer to your heart.
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