Christmas time tends to be a period of merry and joyful celebrations, and rightfully so. After all, for Christians, Christmas is a celebration of the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. It reminds us of His magnificent love for us, that the King Himself would come into this world and take the form of a man in order to deliver us from our transgressions and save us all.

So why, in the midst of a joyous period, am I recommending Timothy Keller’s The King’s Cross? Shouldn’t this book be one to read around the Passover period? Am I missing the point of the book?

The answer is no. Personally, I think this is a great book to read if we want to prepare our hearts for Christmas.

The title of the book, The King’s Cross, provides a clear overlay of the content of the book itself. Chapters 1-8 detail the King Himself, Jesus. These chapters focus on who He is and what He does. He is the long promised King of Israel and the world. He has come. The later chapters, chapters 9-16 focus on the purpose of the Cross. Why did He have to die on the Cross, and what did He have to do in order to fulfil His calling to endure the Cross.

By centralising on these two aspects of Jesus (the King and the Cross), the book leads the readers to look at Jesus and deeply appreciate His mission while He was on the earth. As last week’s article reminds us, in this present age, it can be easy for us to lose focus as to why we celebrate Christmas. Even when we know that Christmas is the celebration of Jesus’ birth, celebrating His birth without having the Cross in the centre of this celebration, would significantly diminish the scale and magnitude of His love for us.

The King’s Cross is an excellent book, and I would say that it is one of my favourite Timothy Keller’s books for a number of reasons. First, after reading many of his books, The King’s Cross is one of his books that are quite exegetical, yet at the same time, easy to read. Oftentimes, I find that Keller’s books that are more theologically focused tend to be quite ‘heavy’ to read. That is, it is filled with difficult terms and vocabularies that might not be easily understood for non-native English speakers. 

But that is not the case with the King’s Cross. Though the book is focused on expositing numerous passages from the book of Mark, Keller writes in a way that is much easier for the general audience to understand.

Secondly, I think this is a great book to accompany one’s Bible study if you are currently reading the book of Mark. While this book is by no means a detailed expository or commentary on the book of Mark, it is a good introduction to those who want to better understand the stories that are written in Mark.

My final verdict on this book is that it is a must-read, and I believe this festive season is a great time to read this book. Whether you are a long-time Christians or recently converted, the King’s Cross is a great book to read because it gives us a clear overview of Jesus’ life, which can help you grow in knowing Him and loving Him more.