Video: A Review of The Mark of the Christian by F. Schaeffer

This post consists of a Video discussion along with a Book Review of Francis Schaeffer's The Mark of the Christian.

Does the world have any right to question whether I am a Christian?

Well, this is exactly the question that is raised as one reads through this IVP Classic. Francis A. Schaeffer reacts to the post-modern Christian context and raises several questions that are necessary to be asked in the context of the Church at large today.

The author begins by reminding his readers how Christians walk around with different marks of Christianity. He immediately rubbishes the external and material marks of Christianity and establishes love as the essential mark of a Christian. He further goes on to say that if love is the mark of the Christian – will the Christian today be identified as one?

Quite often, the author says that the Christian today walks around with a loving nature that is only skin deep. We are called to love not only fellow Christians but also those who are not Christians — our fellow neighbours who are equally created in the image of God. This is one area where we as Christians struggle the most. We may say the loftiest of sermons, yet when it comes to stepping into the dirt and rescuing the trapped, we can be seen taking the back seat.

Further, the author notices that as Christians we fail to love fellow Christians, so we end up with fractured relationships. Now, as witnesses of Christ, if this is how we live, the author asks: Will the world see Christ in us?

This is where the author makes the reader really reflect on his/her life. He does not make love a legal requirement but rather presents love as an intrinsic part of redemption. This observable love is what the author says attracts the whole world to Christ.

According to the author, as Christians we may get very good at giving apologetic answers, but if we cannot love, then that becomes pointless. Thus, the author attempts to present the implications of a Christian’s inability to live a life of love.

The author raises profound questions and his reflections are deep and hard-hitting, yet the beauty of the book is its writing — engaging and simplistic. He avoids bringing in the complexities of academic writing, yet he maintains the balance by writing a book that makes the reader think and reflect. It may be a small-sized book, but it is not meant for casual reading. It will definitely make the reader question his/her present life of faith and testimony.

The book is a helpful study to the Christian today, as it’s a study on God’s commandment to love and its implications. The world we live in today is increasingly being torn apart by hate — right from family politics to the wider geopolitics of the world. In a world like this, one wonders: What can the Christian do by living a life of unconditional love that overcomes disputes, egos, and hurt? What are the implications of bearing The Mark of the Christian?

Reviewed by Shashank S Rawat