Introduction to Another Book
For basically my whole life, I have had this pathological inability to not say something that I think is funny. A thing being funny has always seemed, to me, to not just be sufficient justification for doing it but a sort of undeniable imperative. It is only by a Herculean act of willpower that I added an explanatory subtitle to Another Book. The thought of this plain white book sitting on the Apocalyptic Shelf1 sandwiched between dramatic covers of fiery mountains smashing the earth and many headed monsters coming out of the sea etc., between ‘Left Behind vol. 38:You’re really screwed now’ and ‘Armchair Guide to Armageddon w/full color timeline and bushcraft survival manual’ with no other indication of what it is than the simple words, ‘Another Book’ is incredibly tempting to me. The name is a bit of an indictment of all of the books out there that are all the same and yet clamor for our attention and money as if they had something new or important to say. But wait, it’s so much more!2
What is my little book? Past the jokes what is it actually about? Please read the following in your best dramatic announcer voice.
With our world falling deeper into final collapse every day, we all want to know: When? How will it all end? What are the signs? In Another Book, author Jonathon Cutchins, with no earthly qualifications, guides us through the apocalypse with zero timelines, no detailed charts, absolutely no numerological or chronological information, and one vague reference to current events.
Through an examination of scripture and the book of Revelation, he answers the burning questions no one is asking about the end of the world and the Lord’s return:
· Who is coming back?
· Where is He coming?
· What is the relationship between His Second Coming and His Passion?
· How is any of this good news?’
Cutchins’ journey through prophecy focuses on comforting consciences troubled by failure and confronting the real enemy, our own righteousness. He shows how end-times prophecy depicts the faithful Lord and His gracious Gospel so we can look forward to His return not with anxiety but with happy anticipation.
As a special Easter Egg to the incredibly exclusive group of ‘anyone who is signed up for my substack’3 I am revealing the part of the back cover text that is left on the editor’s floor but that for this somewhat longer introduction and apologia works nicely:
Don’t get bogged down on minor issues like one world totalitarian governments deceiving with satanic power, space mountains smashing into the earth, and monsters coming out of giant pits to cause mayhem.
Wow! I should really charge for this stuff. I was torn between ‘Jesus in John’s Apocalypse’ and ‘The Gospel in the Apocalypse’ and those titles I think really do get at the heart of what the book is about. Another Book gets at the same thing in a more obscure way as a reference to all of the books of our works and merits being considered and then the judgment being overturned based on ‘another book’ identified later in chapter 20 as the Book of Life. As Chapter 1, verse 1 says this is really ‘the Revelation of Jesus Christ’ everything else is just the scenery against which that Revelation happens and what we really want to know, and the question that my little book tries to answer, is: How is the strange warmaking Christ of the Apocalypse connected to the loving, healing, suffering, dying, rising Christ of the Gospels? Ultimately, this isn’t just about the Apocalypse. The question of how the Lion and the Lamb are One and the same is one of the crucial questions at the heart of Christianity.
And so, I am pleased to be offering not merely one of the very few4 relentlessly Christological views of the New Testament Prophesy but I believe the only one that focuses on Theology of the Cross.5
The occasion for writing this introduction is that we have just finished working on layout and are awaiting the book proofs. I’ve never published before but my current understanding is that we are looking for a release right around the new year. We had a talk with Marketing right before our vacation last week that I have been turning over in my mind ever since. I was never under the impression that I knew anything about marketing or would be good at it or honestly was very interested in it but the whole thing was more upsetting and honestly repellent than I expected. What it boils down to, is that the Marketing Guy cannot conceive of anything other than buying ads on social media and sees the whole of the marketing process as making the right deal with Facebook, and any criticism should proceed under the assumption that he is quite good at putting ads on social media to sell books which is probably true. My interest in that is far far less than zero and I kept trying to talk about alternatives. He told me to think about it for a couple weeks with the same voice that I use when I ask Susy if she really wants to color on the walls and we are having another call this Friday.
But the more that Cheyenne and I talked about it the more certain we are that we really do want to color on the walls, I mean we want to publicize our book organically through the body of Christ not through some ad hoc marketing scheme. So, the sum of it is this. We are looking for people who would be interested in receiving a copy of the book to send one to. Not just for free but with our love and blessing. So, if you know such a person or are such a person, I think that you can just reply if you are in the email or mail to comfortwithtruth@substack.com. Think that is a weird way to sell a book? I am working on an evangelism strategy that I call, ‘Free Beer’ that’ll blow your mind. Our modern society isn’t much interested in purity but I am convinced that the form of a thing ought to match its essence and selling Free Grace seems a bit of an oxymoron. With that thought in mind, I am dropping a link to one of my favorite bits on
Love and peace, jc
I might ought to figure out the real name of the place where they put books about Revelation seeing as I have written one. Eschatology section? Prophesy? *shrug*
Disclaimer: It’s not actually so much more. Possibly slightly more.
Anything that is small enough is exclusive from a certain point of view.
I don’t know of any others and would sincerely like to see another Another Book.
Theology of the Cross, for those not familiar, can briefly be described by saying that all of our works are actually obstacles to holiness. The more that a thing seems righteous to us the more sinful that it probably is in reality and conversely, and this is an often missed point, the things that actually are righteous seem contemptible and evil to us. Our attempts to add to or complete the righteousness of Christ through anything whatsoever are sinful. Eternal truth cannot be discovered or understood by philosophy or reason but only in the suffering of Christ. The Law says “Do this” and the thing is never done. Grace says, “Believe this” and everything is already done.
“The medium is the message” would also cover marketing, so your approach makes a great deal of sense. It would feel off to try to shovel money to “the Zuck” for FB ads to promote a book with a godly message. I hope to read your book once it is published.
Your sense of humor and your distaste of marketing remind me of my dad. He had a similar way with words and a distaste for hucksters, especially of the Gospel. As a Christian book publisher, he once sent a book presenting a view other than premillenial dispensationalism to every name on the GARBC list of preachers called Up, Up and Away by a gentleman named Phillip Yerby, as I recall. Good memories.
I trust your book will do well. While the escatalogical follies of yore are died down somewhat, there remains a need for a serious treatment of the last book of God's Revelation to His church. Most particularly in these current days of disquiet.