The Counselor by A.W. Tozer REVIEW



The Counselor by A.W. Tozer is a book about the Holy Spirit. Tozer talks about the need for the Holy Spirit in our lives, the role in our lives, and how to be filled with the Spirit. He also explains what it really means to know Jesus, not just know about Him, and how so many churches today are lacking the presence of the Holy Spirit. Tozer passed away in 1963, so obviously this was written quite a while ago, though the content remains true.

I didn't really like this book, and I think that had to do mostly with the fact that this is an old book. It was pretty dry, not at all personal, and definitely read like it was old; the style is very outdated. When reading books on Biblical study, I really enjoy when the author is humorous and uses everyday situations to explain what they are saying. This book didn't have that feel at all. Instead of a friendly voice, I felt like someone was lecturing me, which I did not enjoy. Also, all of the Bible verses were in KJV, which is probably the worst person for communicating more difficult concepts to a wide variety of audiences. I thought that this actually came across as rather condescending or pretentious.

I also found that Tozer constantly repeated himself. In a paragraph or section, he would state the same point over and over again with different wording. I actually struggled to write a short summary at the beginning of this review because he pretty much just said the same few things over and over again. Finally, Tozer often discussed concepts, events, or theories without ever explaining them, which made it more difficult to keep up. He did make some really great points here and there, but overall it just didn't hold up.

Overall, I didn't enjoy reading this book. I selected it to review because I wanted to learn more about the Holy Spirit, as I feel that it's the part of the Trinity that can be the most complex to understand and isn't discussed as often, but I didn't get that at all. I had a really hard time paying attention as I read, and I won't be reading it again or lending it out.

I gave the book 2/5 stars, and I would only recommend it to someone who is going to school to study the topic. Otherwise, I would go with a different book on the subject.

xx
Heidi

*I received a free copy of this book from Moody Publishers in exchange for an honest review.

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