tim keller forgive book review

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Tim Keller’s New Book Tackles the Central Subject of the Christian Life

Review: ‘forgive’ by tim keller.

More By Chris Brauns

If I could have chosen for a topic for Tim Keller to write about, forgiveness would be high on the list. No subject is more central to the Christian life. God’s forgiveness is the greatest need for all who fall short of the glory of God. And, in a broken world, if we’re to love our neighbors as ourselves, we must understand how to forgive and be forgiven.

In his new book Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I? , Keller tackles this subject at last.

While all (or nearly all) recognize the fundamental importance of forgiveness, there’s widespread debate about how to understand forgiveness and live it out. Many in our late-modern age question whether grave offenses should ever be forgiven. Even Christians who know we’re to pray “forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us” struggle to agree on a basic definition. And, as Keller points out, there’s an ongoing discussion about “the apparent contradiction between forgiveness and justice, the sense that we will have to choose one over the other” (xviii).

Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I?

Pastor and  New York Times  bestselling author Timothy Keller outlines the reasons why forgiveness has to be a central part of everyone’s lives.

Forgiving anyone in a meaningful way is one of the hardest things a person has to do. If you do not, resentment and vengeance begin to consume you. It is nearly impossible to move past transgression without forgiveness, but few people have the resources and the tools to forgive others fully and move on with their lives. Forgiveness is an essential skill, a moral imperative, and a religious belief that cuts right to the core of what it means to be human. In Forgive , Timothy Keller shows readers why it is so important and how to do it, explaining in detail the steps you need to take in order to move on without sacrificing justice or your humanity.

Defining Forgiveness

One of the strengths of Forgive is that Keller outlines a careful four-part definition of forgiveness that lays the groundwork for discussion (9–10). He summarizes four actions that constitute forgiveness:

1. “[It is] to name the trespass truthfully as wrong and punishable, rather than merely excusing it.”

2. “It is to identify with the perpetrator as a fellow sinner rather than thinking how different from you he or she is. It is to will their good.”

3. “It is to release the wrongdoer from liability by absorbing the debt oneself rather than seeking revenge and paying them back.”

4. “It is to aim for reconciliation rather than breaking off the relationship forever.”

Each component is vital. “If you omit any of these four actions,” writes Keller, “you are not engaging in real forgiveness” (10).

Countering Current Obstacles to Forgiveness

Another strength of Keller’s summary of forgiveness is that it guards against two prevalent obstacles to Christian forgiveness. The first of these obstacles is therapeutic forgiveness, an understanding of forgiveness as a private emotional strategy done for the benefit of the one forgiving (29–31).

Keller’s definition of forgiveness counters therapeutic forgiveness. He argues that forgiveness means absorbing the debt and refraining from revenge. Contra therapeutic forgiveness, forgiveness aims for reconciliation and isn’t merely a private emotional strategy.

Forgiveness aims for reconciliation and isn’t merely a private emotional strategy.

We desperately need Keller’s response to therapeutic forgiveness. Many, if not most, Christian books on forgiveness promote a therapeutic understanding and in so doing redefine a word that is central to the gospel. Keller warns, “The resources for healing relationships and strengthening community are being eliminated by a therapeutic culture (31).”

The second obstacle to Christian forgiveness that Keller counters is that of a new “shame-and-honor culture,” sometimes called “cancel culture.” Keller explains that in the new shame-and-honor culture, being a victim grants status: “The further down the existing social ladder one is, the greater honor is possible” (31). This culture values fragility and outrage and, thereby, disincentivizes forgiveness. After all, if unresolved differences provide a platform for being outraged, forgiving offenses forfeits status. “Forgiveness is seen now as radically unjust and impractical,” Keller writes, “as short-circuiting the ability of victims to gain honor and virtue as others rise to defend them. And so this culture is littered with enormous numbers of broken and now irreparable relationships” (32).

Again, Keller’s response is much needed. Most of us have witnessed social media interactions that have devolved into participants seeking to gain status through victimhood rather than people finding healing.

Pastoral Insights for the Repentant and the Offended

Those processing the complexities of relating to people who’ve hurt them will benefit from the pastoral and practical insights in Forgive . For example, distinguishing worldly sorrow (as in the person who’s sorry he got caught) from godly grief (one who is truly repentant) is one of the most challenging aspects of processing broken relationships. In this context, Keller outlines the distinguishing characteristics of biblical repentance and warns against those who say they’re repentant but who only feel sorry for themselves and seek to manipulate those they hurt:

Self-pity looks like repentance, but it is self-absorption, and that is the essence of sin. . . . Repentance begins where self-pity ends. . . . There is a kind of false repentance that is excessive. The person is filled with loud and intense self-loathing, cries, and tears. Listeners feel compelled to tell them they aren’t that bad, they aren’t that guilty. And this is the very point of such self-flagellation—it tries to pressure others and even God not to accuse but excuse and pardon. The inner logic goes something like this: “If I beat myself up enough, surely this will atone for my sin and no one will ask me for anything else.” (146–48)

Keller also offers convicting insights for how we view those who have offended us:

If a cartoonist wants to make someone look ludicrous, she can create a caricature. She can take something about a person’s face that’s unusual or a bit unattractive and exaggerate it, making it prominent so that the person looks foolish. That’s exactly what your heart does when someone wrongs you. You think of them one-dimensionally, in terms of that one thing they’ve done to you. . . . If somebody has lied to you, you tell yourself “She lied because she is just a liar!” But if you are ever caught in a lie, and someone asks why you lied, you say, “Well, yes, but it’s complicated.” (165)

Should Victims Automatically ‘Pay’ the Cost of Offenses?

Throughout Forgive , Keller rightly emphasizes that victims shouldn’t feel they have the right to harbor bitterness.

Yet, at times, it seems Keller pushes so hard against the tendency to bitterness that he risks becoming unbalanced in ways that are in tension with justice. I’ll give two examples.

First, Keller tells victims that internal forgiveness is unconditional. Regardless of the offense, those offended should always internally pay the cost of offenses. In making this point, Keller summarizes internal forgiveness as having three components: (1) identifying with the wrongdoer; (2) absorbing the debt, that is, inwardly paying the debt of the wrongdoer yourself rather than making him pay it; and (3) willing the good of the wrongdoer (164–71).

The first and third aspects are consistent with biblical teaching. We should all recognize we’re sinners who have been forgiven much. And we should pray for the best for our neighbor, even for those who have offended us. Christians should love their enemies.

But the idea that the offended should automatically pay the debt of the wrongdoers, even when the offender is unrepentant, is problematic. Consider the situation of victims of the worst sorts of violence. Keller advises,

When you are wronged, the perpetrator owes you a debt. . . . Your forgiveness means you bear the cost of what the man has done, rather than him bearing it. There is always a cost to wrongdoing and it must fall on someone. Either the wrongdoer bears it or someone else must (166–67).

Should victims be counseled when processing the wrong done to them that they should inwardly choose to pay the offense of the debt of unrepentant offenders? To be sure, the offended must endure pain without being defined by hatred and bitterness. But to tell victims they must internally pay the cost of unrepentant offenders is neither helpful nor consistent with New Testament examples.

We should pray for the best for our neighbor, even for those who have offended us. Christians should love their enemies.

Paul doesn’t take this approach with Alexander the metalworker (2 Tim. 4:14). Nor does he with the offenses committed against the Thessalonians (2 Thess. 1:3–10). Rather than picturing themselves as paying down the cost of what is done by unrepentant offenders, victims should be advised to proactively show love and not take revenge. Where the cost is concerned, it’s more consistent with Scripture to assure victims that God is just. Turn the matter over to him. The price justice requires for this offense will be paid in one of two ways. Either the offender will repent and believe, in which case Christ paid for the offense. Otherwise, the unrepentant offender will face a just Judge.

Indeed, this is how Peter summarized Jesus’s response on the cross. The Lord didn’t revile or retaliate. He made no threats. He took on himself the penalty for the sins of his people. And where the unrepentant are concerned, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly (1 Pet. 2:21–25).

As an antibitterness strategy, teaching that victims should automatically pay the offenses committed against them regardless of the repentance of the offender may not be effective—it could build bitterness instead. It may also compromise the witness of the church to an onlooking world if we’re reluctant to speak about how offenders will face the wrath of God.

Leave Room for God’s Wrath

This brings us to a second and related area of concern regarding balance. Though Keller does write about God’s wrath at length in Forgive (71–85), he’s cautious about comforting victims with the truth that unrepentant offenders will stand before God. He warns against an attitude that would delight in the thought of an offender facing God’s judgment: “‘Leave room for God’s wrath’ has often been interpreted like this: ‘Yes—leave it to God. God will let them have it! And in a way that you cannot!’” (195).

Christian victims ought not to take sinful pleasure in another’s destruction; instead, Jesus calls us to love our enemies. However, as I have said above, the Bible doesn’t see it as inconsistent with Christian love to rest in the truth that God is a just Judge (Ps. 37; Rom. 12:17–21; 2 Tim. 4:14). A loving Christian who renounces revenge but trusts the justice of a holy God is not bitter or angry. Indeed, trusting in God’s justice should move us to love. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, explaining his compassion for the Nazis who would execute him, wrote from prison, “It is only when God’s wrath and vengeance are hanging as grim realities over the heads of one’s enemies that something of what it means to love and forgive them can touch our hearts.”

Keller counters the idea of victims being comforted by the justice of God, writing, “If we don’t tell God what to do with his wrath but allow him to send it when and where he wills, what does he do with it? In Jesus Christ God comes and takes the penalty of justice himself” (195).

Elsewhere, Keller summarizes, “The message of the prophets, then, is that no amount of human evil and recalcitrance can ultimately stop God’s forgiveness from finding its way to us” (64). While Keller is clear that God’s forgiveness is conditioned on repentance in the larger context of Forgive , such statements should be qualified in the immediate context. Jesus’s forgiveness doesn’t break through for the unrepentant, nor does Christ bear their punishment (John 3:36).

Eyes on King Jesus

Cornelius Plantinga painted the right word picture when he wrote , “Anybody who thinks hard about forgiveness will start a lot more rabbits than he can catch. The topic raises a whole nest of questions, and the good answers will seldom be the easy ones.” In a constructive way, Tim Keller’s Forgive will begin many discussions. He has flushed out any number of forgiveness rabbits to be pursued even if doing so requires a trip into the briar patch. I look forward to engaging further with them in the days to come.

A loving Christian who renounces revenge but trusts the justice of a holy God is not bitter or angry.

As for balance and the difficult situation of grave offenses and unrepentant offenders, perhaps Keller’s book gives this writer a needed push. In my book Unpacking Forgiveness (Crossway, 2008), consistent with the position argued by a number of other theologians , I emphasized forgiveness is conditional. I argued that Christians ought always to have an attitude of forgiveness—that is, we should always offer the gift of forgiveness—but that forgiveness takes place only when the offender is repentant. I remain persuaded by that position. But it isn’t lost on me that some might weaponize an incomplete and distorted understanding of the conditional nature of forgiveness as a license for harboring bitterness and resentment and taking revenge (if only in small ways). Perhaps in that regard, Keller’s work warns those who would weaponize conditional forgiveness.

The best thing that could be said of any book on forgiveness is that it focuses on the cross and King Jesus. This is beautifully true of Forgive . Keller invites the reader to consider Christ, to understand how he atoned for sin, to be moved by his example: “Don’t let yourself be twisted. Take in what Jesus Christ has done, put your little story about what people have done to you in the big story of what he did for you, and you’ll have the power you need to grant forgiveness” (181).

Since Unpacking Forgiveness was published, I’ve spoken and engaged with so many people in my own congregation and with people across the country and on the other side of the ocean. In addition to what I’ve seen as an author and pastor, I’ve experienced betrayal and pain alongside my extended family. Both pastorally and personally, there’s been a lot of forgiveness to unpack. Thinking about those with whom I’ve interacted, including my own family, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Keller’s book.

Chris Brauns is the pastor of The Red Brick Church in Stillman Valley, Illinois. He is the author of Unpacking Forgiveness: Biblical Answers for Complex Questions and Deep Wounds , Bound Together: How We Are Tied to Others in Good and Bad Choices , and When the Word Leads Your Pastoral Search: Biblical Principle and Practices to Guide Your Search . Chris blogs at A Brick i n the Valley .

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WHY SHOULD I AND HOW CAN I?

by Timothy Keller ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2022

Refreshing, accessible work on the basics of forgiveness from a Christian perspective.

Promoting the Christian concept of forgiveness to an unforgiving world.

Pastor and theologian Keller, author of The Reason for God , The Meaning of Marriage , Hope in Times of Fear , and many other bestselling Christian-focused books, introduces forgiveness through the biblical parable of the unforgiving servant. Using this story, the author concludes that forgiveness, as understood in Christianity, has three dimensions: “First there is the vertical— God’s forgiveness to us. Second there is the internal—our granting forgiveness to anyone who has wronged us. Third there is the horizontal—our offer to reconcile. The horizontal is based on the internal and the internal is based on the vertical.” Keller contrasts these teachings with modern culture, which is a “reverse honor culture—also called ‘cancel culture’—that ends up valuing not strength but fragility and creates a society of constant good-versus-evil conflict.” Such a culture “sweeps away the very concept of forgiveness and reconciliation,” leaving us with a view of forgiveness as being anti-justice and anti-victim. Under such an ethos, forgiveness must be earned. After these introductory concepts, Keller goes on to explain how Christian ideas of forgiveness do indeed provide for justice, allow healing for victims, and promote a healthier society. He notes that God’s offer of forgiveness for us, a motif found throughout the Hebrew Bible and Christian New Testament, is the basis on which we can forgive others. In other words, one’s ability to forgive begins with an acknowledgement that all people need forgiveness. Keller also explains that forgiveness is at its best in the context of reconciliation with another. If that is not possible, then it can still be a meaningful tool in finding peace and controlling anger. The author presents a solid defense of Christian forgiveness theology within a modern, relevant context, quoting sources as varied as Augustine, Adele, Kafka, and Clint Eastwood.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2022

ISBN: 978-0-525-56074-6

Page Count: 272

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2022

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UNCOMFORTABLE CONVERSATIONS WITH A JEW

by Emmanuel Acho & Noa Tishby ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 30, 2024

An important dialogue at a fraught time, emphasizing mutual candor, curiosity, and respect.

Two bestselling authors engage in an enlightening back-and-forth about Jewishness and antisemitism.

Acho, author of Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man , and Tishby, author of Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth , discuss many of the searing issues for Jews today, delving into whether Jewishness is a religion, culture, ethnicity, or community—or all of the above. As Tishby points out, unlike in Christianity, one can be comfortably atheist and still be considered a Jew. She defines Judaism as a “big tent” religion with four main elements: religion, peoplehood, nationhood, and the idea of tikkun olam (“repairing the world through our actions”). She addresses candidly the hurtful stereotypes about Jews (that they are rich and powerful) that Acho grew up with in Dallas and how Jews internalize these antisemitic judgments. Moreover, Tishby notes, “it is literally impossible to be Jewish and not have any connection with Israel, and I’m not talking about borders or a dot on the map. Judaism…is an indigenous religion.” Acho wonders if one can legitimately criticize “Jewish people and their ideologies” without being antisemitic, and Tishby offers ways to check whether one’s criticism of Jews or Zionism is antisemitic or factually straightforward. The authors also touch on the deteriorating relationship between Black and Jewish Americans, despite their historically close alliance during the civil rights era. “As long as Jewish people get to benefit from appearing white while Black people have to suffer for being Black, there will always be resentment,” notes Acho. “Because the same thing that grants you all access—your skin color—is what grants us pain and punishment in perpetuity.” Finally, the authors underscore the importance of being mutual allies, and they conclude with helpful indexes on vernacular terms and customs.

Pub Date: April 30, 2024

ISBN: 9781668057858

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Simon Element

Review Posted Online: March 13, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024

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THE 48 LAWS OF POWER

by Robert Greene ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1998

If the authors are serious, this is a silly, distasteful book. If they are not, it’s a brilliant satire.

The authors have created a sort of anti-Book of Virtues in this encyclopedic compendium of the ways and means of power.

Everyone wants power and everyone is in a constant duplicitous game to gain more power at the expense of others, according to Greene, a screenwriter and former editor at Esquire (Elffers, a book packager, designed the volume, with its attractive marginalia). We live today as courtiers once did in royal courts: we must appear civil while attempting to crush all those around us. This power game can be played well or poorly, and in these 48 laws culled from the history and wisdom of the world’s greatest power players are the rules that must be followed to win. These laws boil down to being as ruthless, selfish, manipulative, and deceitful as possible. Each law, however, gets its own chapter: “Conceal Your Intentions,” “Always Say Less Than Necessary,” “Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy,” and so on. Each chapter is conveniently broken down into sections on what happened to those who transgressed or observed the particular law, the key elements in this law, and ways to defensively reverse this law when it’s used against you. Quotations in the margins amplify the lesson being taught. While compelling in the way an auto accident might be, the book is simply nonsense. Rules often contradict each other. We are told, for instance, to “be conspicuous at all cost,” then told to “behave like others.” More seriously, Greene never really defines “power,” and he merely asserts, rather than offers evidence for, the Hobbesian world of all against all in which he insists we live. The world may be like this at times, but often it isn’t. To ask why this is so would be a far more useful project.

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998

ISBN: 0-670-88146-5

Page Count: 430

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1998

GENERAL BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | PHILOSOPHY & RELIGION | PSYCHOLOGY | HISTORICAL & MILITARY

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Forgive: Why should I and how can I? by Timothy Keller

Stephen cherry reads about a sacrifice that may feel too much.

TIMOTHY KELLER, founder of the Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, believes that forgiveness is fading in today’s world. His book Forgive therefore introduces “Christian forgiveness” to those for whom it might be an alien idea.

Such forgiveness has three dimensions: the upwards — the embrace and acceptance of God’s forgiveness of us; the inward — the gradual giving up of vengefulness; and the outward — the work that the forgiver does to establish a reconciled relationship.

Keller explains that this is unnatural as well as counter-cultural and is possible only when resourced by prayer and Christian community. He also emphasises that this forgiveness involves sacrifice and suffering on the part of the one who has already been harmed, the forgiver.

The strength of Keller’s approach is that it comes out of a coherent neo-Calvinist theological position, in which substitutionary atonement is central. Forgive would be a welcome and practical resource in congregations where this approach is normative.

Whether tying forgiveness so closely to a theological position is necessary or wise is another matter, however. Indeed, there might be missiological advantages in taking the reverse approach and inviting people to approach the divine through their experiences of human forgiveness rather than feeling obliged by their faith to forgive at all costs.

I also wonder what the message here is for those for whom the trauma of harm or abuse has created a crisis of faith in God. When understood in this way, can the word “forgiveness” make any sense to people without faith in God?

The biggest question, however, comes from those for whom the sacrifice of forgiving has led, and will lead, nowhere other than further suffering. These are the truly vulnerable, and their cries should remind us that, while it can be deeply transformative, forgiveness may not always be the answer.

I am not sure that forgiveness is fading. There is huge interest in it, and yet it is also easily and commonly eclipsed. Given its undoubted centrality in Christianity, the many questions of forgiveness deserve urgent and serious attention beyond this analysis and framework.

The Revd Dr Stephen Cherry is the Dean of King’s College, Cambridge.

Forgive: Why should I and how can I? Timothy Keller Hodder & Stoughton £18.99 (978-1-4736-4313-0) Church Times Bookshop £17.09

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Others Magazine

Book review: forgive by tim keller.

27 December 2022

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Why is forgiveness a crucial part of Christianity? In his new book, Forgive , Tim Keller explores the biblical foundations of the practice and shows how Christ’s decision to forgive was so countercultural.

Reviewed by Tanwin Tanoto

Tim Keller has written a lot of books on big topics: biblical theology, contemporary apologetics, preaching, prayer and even biblical commentaries. So when I found out that his next book would be on forgiveness, I found it a bit underwhelming. Was this a waste of his brilliance and insights? After all, hasn’t this topic been written about and discussed ad nauseam by other writers and thinkers? 

Forgiveness is a topic that can make or break people, and it is controversial. We live in a cancel culture where removing someone rather than forgiving them is supposedly more virtuous. So yes, forgiveness is a timely, important and hard topic to write about.

In typical Keller fashion, he brings to the surface aspects of forgiveness that we may or may not realise. Things like conflict over forgiveness, where many argue that forgiveness helps perpetrators to escape accountability; the fading of forgiveness, where the concept of forgiveness becomes increasingly problematic; and the indelible need for forgiveness – that the need to grant and to receive forgiveness cannot be ignored.

To understand the need and importance of forgiveness in our community, Keller explains the nature of God through a biblical survey. I believe that a crucial element to forgiveness is to understand what it is not. Culminating in the life, teachings and sacrifice of Jesus, Keller explains how the concept of forgiveness was revolutionary in Christianity. Ancient Greeks and Romans didn’t forgive – it was beneath them. To have the Son of God cry out, “Father forgive them ...” was countercultural back then, and is still countercultural today.

While the Church embodies forgiveness through our worship of Jesus and our teaching of the Bible, sadly it is sometimes also a place where forgiveness is hard to find. The very nature of sinners gathering together every week, rubbing shoulders and living together in a community, means forgiveness needs to be a part of a balanced diet in local churches.

There are too many stories where forgiveness is not granted or received. Or it is poorly executed and applied. Churches are filled with stories of broken people whose hearts are broken by other broken people. Yes, there is plenty of brokenness in the Church, not to mention the number of people who leave the Church due to lack of forgiveness.

This book helps me affirm a few things about forgiveness – that forgiveness is needed, forgiveness is revolutionary, forgiveness is hard, and forgiveness is costly. I hope this book can be a resource for anyone who needs to grant or receive forgiveness. Moreover, I pray this book can raise awareness of what forgiveness can do in God’s beautiful churches.

Available online and at Christian bookstores.

TANWIN TANOTO IS A MINISTER AT HURSTVILLE CHURCH OF CHRIST IN NSW.

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Forgive - Timothy Keller

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The latest book from prolific teacher and pastor Timothy Keller, Forgive is as good a book on the topic of forgiveness as you could hope to find. 

Full of cultural references and solid biblical exposition, Keller deftly explains why the need to forgive is so essential in a society that seems, increasingly, to hang onto hurt feelings and desire vengeance. Without shying away from the thorny issues of Church abuse, seeking justice and dealing with the real-world consequences of others’ bad behaviour, Keller nevertheless makes the case for forgiving as God commands. But he doesn’t leave the reader there. He also provides a practical guide on how to do this.

This deeply intelligent yet readable book starts by exploring the history of forgiveness as a concept, alongside how it has seemingly fallen out of fashion – as well as the consequences of that for us as individuals and a society. Keller then unpacks a Christian understanding of forgiveness before moving on to why we need to receive God’s forgiveness, how to do so and, finally, why and how we extend that to others.

The 33-page appendix gives the reader a wide array of practical tools to apply these often seemingly intimidating concepts, including a reference section of Bible passages that instruct us on forgiveness, and practical tools to make forgiving others easier and reconciliation possible.

Whether or not you would consider yourself to be in need of instruction in this area, this is a clever, culturally relevant read that sheds light on an important topic, one that increasingly polarises people both in and outside the Church. As angry voices abound on social media, and cancel culture continues to divide rather than heal, this book feels timely and significant.

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Book Review: Forgive

Originally published: “Timothy Keller, Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I? (New York: Viking, 2022),” in Themelios 48, no. 1 (Spring 2023), 241-42 or online here .

On June 17, 2015, Dylann Roof entered Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church and killed nine African Americans during a Bible study. Grief-stricken families in the city and throughout the country were mourning in light of such a tragic event. Members of the courtroom and thousands of Americans were awestruck though, when families of the victims looked at Roof and said, “I forgive you.” National responses to those three words were mixed: some admired the courage it took to forgive, while others scorned the families for extending forgiveness towards another mass murderer. Forgiveness is an incredibly complex and difficult topic, especially in the current state of American culture. While many argue that forgiveness culture is fading, in his latest book,  Forgive,  Timothy Keller demonstrates why every human person both has an indelible need for forgiveness and why we ought to forgive others (p. xv–xviii).

OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK

Keller frames his book around the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant found in  Matthew 18:21–35 , and he often returns to the themes of the parable throughout the book. Keller’s book begins with an incredibly helpful introduction regarding the current state of forgiveness in Western culture, followed by a chapter explaining what forgiveness is and why it is important. Every act of disobedience requires both a vertical (to God) and horizontal (to others) dimension and our ability to carry out such forgiveness rests upon our understanding of the gospel (pp. 17–18). Following the introductory material, the book is divided into three sections: Loosing and Finding Forgiveness (chapters 2–4), Understanding Forgiveness (chapters 5–7), and Practicing Forgiveness (chapters 8–11).

In the first section, Keller notes that Western society has “anxiety and confusion” regarding forgiveness (p. 21), particularly because of the emergence of the new “shame-and-honor culture” in the 21st century (p. 31). While previous shame-and-honor cultures often exalted the virtuous, Keller notes that “greater honor and moral virtue are assigned to people the more they have been victimized and subjugated by society or others in power” (p. 21). This new shame-and-honor culture is not quick to extend forgiveness, yet, as Keller notes, “our society cannot live without forgiveness” (p. 34). In chapter 3, Keller traces the development of forgiveness in Western culture, which has its origin in the “coming of Christianity” (p. 43). In chapter 4, the Bible is presented as the wellspring of forgiveness, one that we need to return to amidst a forgiveness-stricken culture (p. 53).

In the second section, Keller discusses the balance between forgiveness and justice, which is most perfectly found in the cross of Jesus (p. 71). Christians can be people who walk in forgiveness, relinquishing others’ debt to us, because Jesus has fully born the justice and wrath of God. In chapter 6, Keller tackles the notoriously difficult subject of forgiveness in light of abuse. This chapter draws heavily upon Rachel Denhollander’s work on abuse, particularly in light of her role in exposing Larry Nasser. In chapter 7, Keller argues that in order for forgiveness to be full, one must have both “inward and outward” forgiveness (p. 107). In other words, forgiveness flows from the heart inwardly and pursues reconciled relationships outwardly.

In the final section ( chs. 8–11 ), Keller handles the practicality of forgiving others. In chapter 8, he argues that it is imperative that one understands the concepts of guilt and shame, especially in a particular cultural moment where “secular people are in a strange position of feeling like sinners without having a name for it” (p. 123). Every person, because of their disobedience to God, has a desperate need for forgiveness. This leads Keller in chapter 9 to explain how one receives God’s forgiveness: through repentance towards God. Repentance leads to a life of forgiveness from God, which then leads to a life of forgiveness towards others (ch. 10). In this chapter, he notes that to forgive someone is to follow in step with the gospel, by releasing others from liability and to aim for reconciliation and restoration. Lastly, in chapter 11, Keller practically explains how one can extend forgiveness and mend broken relationships.

REVIEW OF THE BOOK

One of the great strengths of Keller as an author is his ability to engage the complexities of a subject like forgiveness. Not surprisingly,  Forgive  is not a simple, reductionistic book that is easily codified into a two-step program. Rather, Keller presents a holistic understanding of forgiveness that is grounded in the gospel but extends to all the many and varied permutations of human relationships and life on earth. Important topics are covered in this book, with which Christians often struggle: When is repentance real? How do I forgive someone who hurt me? What role does guilt play in Christianity? How do we talk about justice in light of the gospel’s call to forgive? Questions such as these and many more are handled this important book. Pastors and Christians would be wise to consult this work when dealing with their own personal struggles to forgive or counseling others as they attempt to walk in forgiveness.

As a pastor within a progressive metropolitan era, Keller demonstrates his ability to understand and critique contemporary trends in broader Western culture. Not only does Keller successfully demonstrate the current problems with forgiveness in our culture, but he also provides a beautiful and compelling vision of a better way—the way of Jesus Christ. Keller’s chapter on the sensitive topic of forgiveness and abuse is almost worth the price of the book alone. In a moment where many abuse scandals are rising to the surface, Keller’s wisdom on engaging such a difficult topic from a biblical perspective is much needed. Lastly, Keller has provided four incredibly helpful and practical appendices on the issue of forgiveness.

Keller’s latest work is a must-read not only for pastors and seminary students but for every Christian. For as long as this present age continues, the issues of forgiveness, justice, reconciliation, and restoration are ones that we will inevitably engage on a frequent basis.

Dustin Hunt

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Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I? Hardcover – Nov. 1 2022

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• Print length 272 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Viking
• Publication date Nov. 1 2022
• Dimensions 15.88 x 2.51 x 23.55 cm
• ISBN-10 0525560742
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• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Viking (Nov. 1 2022)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0525560742
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0525560746
• Item weight ‏ : ‎ 459 g
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.88 x 2.51 x 23.55 cm
• #131 in Christian Soteriology (Books)
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Timothy keller.

Timothy Keller is senior pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Manhattan. He is renowned for his clear, reasoned approach to Christian apologetics and his book THE REASON FOR GOD: BELIEF IN AN AGE OF SKEPTICISM was named Book of the Year for 2008 by World Magazine.

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Karissa Reads Books

Book Review: Forgive by Timothy Keller

Forgive is the latest book from Timothy Keller. Keller is pastor and theologian, based in New York City. He’s written many books now and I found him to offer the most balanced and Biblical approach of any Christian writer currently living. Forgiveness is a huge topic to tackle. It is one of the most painful and difficult things that Christians are called to do and yet it is also the most central to the Christian faith. It is a tragedy that Christians are not better known in our society as people of forgiveness. It is central to our faith in that without the ultimate forgiveness of sins we believe is represented by Jesus’ death on the cross, Christian faith is worthless. It is central to our faith in that we are called (by Jesus) to forgive others as we have been forgiven. Meaning without condition and continuously. When Jesus taught his followers how to pray (commonly called The Lord’s Prayer) He instructed them to ask that their sins be forgiven as they also forgave those who sinned against them. When Jesus’ disciples asked how many times they should forgive another person, Jesus’ told them that this should essentially not be counted, that they should forgive over and over, to forgive extravagantly, just as God forgave them.

If We root our moral norms in the biblical God, that means grounding ourselves in not only a holy and just God but also a merciful and forgiving one. Respectful interaction with opponents and forgiveness of wrongdoers is part of the church’s faith. Timothy Keller, Forgive

What I also appreciate about Keller is that he doesn’t shy away from the obvious response here. Forgiveness is all well and good but what about when we’ve been horribly hurt? Or abused? What about when the perpetrator offers no repentance? What about when the church has used this forgiveness policy to perpetrate or cover up abuse? These are hard and important questions and sadly church history has often not left a good taste in the mouths of the watching world. Keller delves right into these questions, talking about social justice and right and wrong. Along with forgiveness, Christians are called to defend the weak, to speak out against evil, and we have often failed to do so. We have often used forgiveness as a weapon. We have defended ourselves in our own sin rather than admit our flaws and seek to do better.

So when we get angry, we should ask: “What am I defending?” If we do that, we will see how often we are defending our ego, pride, agendas, and image. God’s anger is always righteous because He is perfect love. So His anger is always in defense of the good, true, and beautiful, and His anger is always released to destroy evil, sin, and death. Timothy Keller, Forgive

Keller doesn’t hesitate to condemn such abuses where they have occurred and the book has many examples of both the good and the bad. At the same time, he doesn’t hesitate to lean into one of the more unpopular aspects of Biblical forgiveness. Namely, that it should be applied to all and that our goal should be to bring those who are truly repentant back into the body of Christ. Reading Forgive , I knew I could think of many people who would take issue with this but of course, Keller is writing for a primarily Christian audience, to those who have already accepted and acknowledged their own need for forgiveness. Not to say the book doesn’t have anything of value for a non-Christian but it wouldn’t necessarily be the book of Keller’s I would recommend to someone new to church theology.

Forgiveness’s purpose here is not to humiliate, defeat, or drive out sinners, but to correct and restore them. It is often easier to turn a blind eye to sin in the community. The admonition of fellow believers requires the church to function as a body in the costly work of reconciliation. James R. Edwards, The Gospel According to Luke

In the past almost three years since the start of the global Covid-19 pandemic, I have seen more division and hurt within the Christian church than I’d ever witnessed before, even as someone who grew up immersed in Church culture and Christian ministry. I imagine Keller himself has seen a lot of this too and I’m sure that his book is a reaction to what’s going on amongst Christians, particularly in the West right now. The book is well-timed and I would recommend it to anyone who desires to be a follower of Jesus.

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5 thoughts on “Book Review: Forgive by Timothy Keller”

“Forgiveness’s purpose here is not to humiliate, defeat, or drive out…” I like this part. There is a weird sort of cancel culture, if you will allow me that connection, in some churches. There is also a forcefulness that uses threat of “cancelling” someone is they don’t comply immediately. Forcing someone into a religion by threats of throwing them out is counterintuitive and neglects the amazing journey some folks of faith go on to find their place in religion. I’m glad this book spoke to you! Lately, my ASL professor has been starting class with scripture about not complaining. I’ll bet you can guess why.

You’re right…a lot of Christians will disparage “cancel culture” but there is plenty of precedent of people being cast out or shunned from Christian community. It’s the same thing really. Keller focuses on the fact that forgiveness, as Jesus taught it, is about bringing a person back in to the fold. But he does a good job of also acknowledging times when that may be dangerous or more harmful (like in cases of abuse), whereas sometimes lean too heavily on forgiveness and end up simply sweeping crime under the rug.

Oh, yes, that is a good point. I wonder if there are rehabilitation places in the world that focus on forgiveness in a Christian way but also keeps dangerous people away from the general community.

I think so. I really hope so.

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