Few people could effectively argue with the concept that the form of Christianity most prevalent in America today is but a faint shadow of the dynamic faith that exploded in the early centuries after Jesus' death and resurrection and changed the world. And few could effectively argue with the notion that one of the primary reasons American Christians live in that shadowy world is their failure to live out what they say they believe.

That failure has created a powerless form of cultural Christianity that knows little about unconditional love for others, sacrificial generosity, compassionate justice, or unqualified forgiveness, much less walking on water and raising the dead. Johnnie Moore, campus pastor, religion professor, and a vice president at Liberty University, is among those many believers who suffered the fallout of cultural Christianity at an early age, when his outwardly faithful, churchgoing parents got a divorce. "Our Christianity was actually one big PR stunt that we carefully crafted in order to look good," Moore writes. What's worse, the pastor who provided marital counseling to his parents was himself having an affair with another pastor's wife. As a result, Moore understandably began to doubt not the existence of God but the goodness of God. And as he and many others have discovered, cultural Christianity views doubt as a sin perhaps even greater than adultery between two Christian leaders.

But as Moore later discovered, facing his doubts head-on gave him the courage and honesty to begin to live a life of genuine faith, a life that is finally beginning to bring his words and actions into alignment with what he truly believes. Through HONESTLY, Moore encourages others to trade in their shadow spiritual life for the bright, shining life in the light of God's promises by really living what they say they believe.

To accomplish this, Moore guides readers along a five-part pathway, from doubt to belief, from belief to a healthy soul, from a healthy soul to perseverance, from perseverance to mission, and from mission to vision. That sequence is critical to understanding where Moore is going with his premise that if all Christians would live out their beliefs, the world would experience a radical, dramatic and sudden transformation. Without that larger structural sequence, the book at times seems to veer off course, challenging believers to be acutely aware of the needs of the world without showing them exactly how to live what they believe.

Moore's points are most clearly made when he uses fresh illustrations of faith in action from his own experience, such as his recounting of an oath of martyrdom taken by the graduates of a Bible college in India. "Should my blood be spilled, may it bring forth a mighty harvest of souls," the students pledged as part of the much longer oath they recited that day. Standing at the podium leading the pledge was a man who had survived 17 death threats; among the graduates were two whose blood would be spilled within several years.

If you’re tired of cultural Christianity and long for the real thing, Moore’s HONESTLY is a good place to start to re-ignite your faith and begin to live as if you actually believe what you say you believe.