God Looks Like Jesus: A Renewed Approach to Understanding God

“In books like The Myth of a Christian Nation and Cross Vision, Greg Boyd has proven to be one of the most insightful theologians on the planet. Now, with God Looks Like Jesus, he has teamed up with M. Scott Boren and written a simple but profound reflection on Jesus. ‘Jesus is the answer’ might sound too rudimentary, but the truth is this: Jesus is the best critique of what has gone wrong in Christianity. In a day when all kinds of racism and bigotry and nationalism and prosperity and violence are trying to camouflage themselves as Christianity, Boyd and Boren remind us all: the word Christian means ‘Christlike.’ If it doesn’t look like Jesus, and love like Jesus, and show compassion like Jesus—it is not of God. Because God is and always has been like Jesus. And we are called to follow. God, give us the courage.”

“Greg Boyd works to counter the ‘good cop/bad cop’ caricature that some people have of God (even if unconsciously), where Jesus in the New Testament is pitted against Israel’s God in the Old Testament (with the Holy Spirit as a vague bystander). Boyd invites us to reexamine our perceptions of God without ignoring the Old Testament depictions of divinely sanctioned violence that were to be carried out by ancient Israel. God Looks Like Jesus is an accessible yet challenging book that implores us to employ our theological imaginations.”
 

“It is no secret that the ‘Christian’ brand repeatedly finds ways to drift from the Jesus way into toxic images of God and a gospel distorted by the idols and ideologies of our age. In God Looks Like Jesus, Boyd and Boren recenter our theology and practice in a way that is wondrously (even scandalously) ‘Jesus-y.’ They demonstrate how a Christ-centered theology that transcends sloganeering leads to real-life liberation on the ground. This book offers the church and beyond a much needed spiritual bath!”
 

“I have deep respect for pastors and leaders like Greg Boyd who are willing to wrestle with theological constructs at the deepest level and be transformed by what they discover. In God Looks Like Jesus, Boyd writes with humility, wisdom, and lived experience that challenges our faith and calls us to practice following Jesus more fully, more freely, more expansively.”
 

“Jesus is God with a face. I can’t tell you who first said that, but I have long believed it to be true. In God Looks Like Jesus, Boyd and Boren demonstrate how this simple truth has revolutionary implications. When we truly grasp that Jesus—not our philosophical constructs or religious traditions—reveals God’s character, everything changes. This book isn’t just a theological treatise; it is an invitation to fall in love with a God who looks more like a crucified savior than a celestial dictator.”
 

“The strength of this book lies in its simplicity. In a world that often mistakes God’s power for human might, Boyd and Boren reveal a radical truth: Jesus’ self-giving love is the fullest picture of God. With theological depth and pastoral warmth, this book will inspire, unsettle, and draw readers deeper into the beauty of a Jesus-centered faith.”
 

“In this short, accessible, and yet remarkably informative book, Boyd and Boren help us (re)discover the good news of a God who looks like Jesus. I loved reading God Looks Like Jesus, and as a pastor I am even more excited to give this book away to others and to have it as a resource to learn and encounter the love of God revealed in Christ. This is the exactly the kind of book I’ve been waiting for!”
 

“God Looks Like Jesus demonstrates how transformative and revolutionary a simple insight can be. As the apostle Paul once experienced scales falling from his eyes, we may be provoked to see God with new and startling clarity by looking, as Boyd does, at the crucified Jesus. This small book can have the impact of an Emmaus road encounter. The God of Jesus has been beside us all along, but we did not truly perceive with whom we were walking. The moment of true seeing is the start of a new life. I’ve been waiting for a book like this for a very long time—a resource to help me shout from the mountaintops the good news of how Jesus changes everything.”