PUBLISHER DESCRIPTION
A beloved pastor and a New York Times bestselling author examine scripture and share inspiring personal stories to help show the important role that Jesus’ resurrection plays in our everyday lives.
The Son of God was crucified, died and buried, and He lay in the tomb for three days–until He walked out shining like the sun. In a culture in which history is erased or rewritten at will, the existence of an empty tomb matters. Why?
Because if the tomb is empty–then anything is possible.
In his first book, Joby Martin, Lead Pastor of The Church of Eleven22, dives deep into scripture and traces the story of salvation by highlighting the seven mountains throughout scripture where God manifests himself. As he describes each encounter with God, Martin shows us how the interaction on each mountain laid the groundwork for the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary, and shows what God revealed about Himself in the process. He illuminates seven familiar passages, unveiling how God’s plan for Christ’s sacrifice is threaded throughout scripture, and shows why Christ’s resurrection–impossible, unbelievable–means that nothing is too hard for our God. Ultimately, he asks readers, Do you live every day of your life as if the tomb is empty–or as though Jesus is still hanging on that cross?
Written with New York Times bestselling author Charles Martin, If the Tomb is Empty is an insightful and spiritually rich examination of what the miracle of Christ’s resurrection means for all of us.
My Review:
When I finished reading this book, three things were immediately evident:Author Joby Martin loves and serves Jesus with his whole heart; he’s a true student of The Word; and he’s committed to reaching as many people as possible with the good news of salvation through Jesus.
This author has a welcoming writing style that immediately draws you into the book. I loved how he shared his life experiences with his readers. There were times that I laughed out loud at some of his descriptions of places and events.However, don’t let the writing style give you the idea that this is a only an entertaining book, as there’s true depth in every chapter. There were many times I thought “This is so good; I need to read that again”. The chapter on the Beatitudes was the best explanation I’ve ever read on that passage of scripture. If there’s any drawback to the book, it’s that sometimes he dives so deeply into a side point that I could lose track of the theme of that particular chapter. But this is not a really a complaint, because I appreciated very detail he included.
I recommend this book for both those who are searching to know the truth about Jesus, as well as those who having been following Him for some time.The author convincingly proves his conviction that the tomb is empty and Jesus is alive. I’ve been encouraged, convicted, and inspired by this wonderful book.
I voluntarily received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
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https://www.amazon.com/If-Tomb-Empty-Resurrection-Anything-ebook/dp/B096RS9JPN/ref=sr_1_3?crid=6SV80NZ7YVWB&keywords=if+the+tomb+is+empty+joby+martin&qid=1644349414&sprefix=If+the+%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-3
About Joby Martin
Joby Martin is the founder and lead pastor of The Church of Eleven22 in Jacksonville, Florida, one of the fastest growing churches in America. In 2012, Joby and a team of leaders launched Eleven22 which has grown to multiple locations. The church welcomes tens of thousands of members weekly both in person and through live services at Eleven22 Online. The Church of Eleven22 is a nondenominational church whose vision is “a movement for all people to discover and deepen a relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Eleven22 has a retail ministry, Hope’s Closet Thrift, and Eleven22 has also entered the Florida prison system with the Word of God.
Joby holds a Master of Divinity and has been in full time ministry since 1998. He is an author, a national speaker and an active member of the Acts 29 church planting network preaching internationally including Scotland, Africa, Jamaica, Brazil and Israel.
Pastor Joby’s wife, Gretchen, serves the church alongside him by writing music and singing with The Church of Eleven22 worship band. They reside in Jacksonville and have a son and daughter.
Pastor Joby considers his life’s mission to live out Acts 11:24, “for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.” His passion is proclaiming the gospel and seeing lives surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.