Jesus - A Theography by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola

           What's a theography? Perhaps you asked yourself that question as you read the title of the blog. As authors Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola point out in their work Jesus - A Theography, through their theography they are pointing out "God's interactions, intersections and interventions with humanity through the life of Jesus." (pg.x).
          The book is very thorough in following the life of Jesus, but not just from His birth. They begin, instead, with who Jesus was from eternity past (in the beginning) and continue all the way up until His second coming. This is something not normally attempted when writing a normal biography about Jesus, and the authors cover the full spectrum of Jesus life, past, present and future with an acute emphasis on not missing the big picture. The big picture to them is showing from the scriptures themselves that the entire Bible is all about Jesus from beginning to end.
           One of the things which makes the work unique is the extensive note section at the back of the book. Coming in at close to 100 pages, the writers document extensively to support their claims and leave no question as to whether or not they spent the amount of time needed in researching this project. The notes section contains enough books, articles and other resources listed that it would take someone months to even begin to follow up on their labors in study. This is a strong point for anyone interested in studying the subject further.
           While the book uses many of the Old testament types and shadows to paint a picture of Jesus, it also utilizes many illustrations, symbols and character portrayals, such as Moses, Joseph and even Abraham to fill in the details more precisely. Some may take issue with the use of a few of these comparisons and claim they lack enough support to warrant their use. But, there are more than enough items which carry strong sciptural support to reveal the person of Jesus Christ throughout the Biblical pages.
           If you're looking for light reading, this may not be the book for you. But if you are desiring to go beyond merely the face of the Bible stories you've read for so long, you may discover a whole new treasure of riches, waiting to be revealed. This book was given to me complimentary as a part of the book review program for bloggers at www.booksneeze.com.  If you want to know more about the Bible and the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, this might be a good place to begin.