1 Corinthians 6:7-11: "The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters. Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
One such person is Julia Pilon, or JFJewelz, author of Skeleton Keys. According to her own words, Pilon used to be a regular party animal, a girl whose priorities in life were going to parties, getting drunk, doing drugs, and at one point becoming a full-time stripper. Having lived this lifestyle prior to her conversion to the Faith, Pilon spends the majority of the book giving her testimony on top of giving life advice to people to help them live lives that are filled with peace, joy, and happiness.
That being said, there are a few problems with this book. First off, while I get that Pilon was trying to write a book to help people deal with different emotional and relationship issues, the advice itself has very worldly feel, meaning that the advice sounds like something that any non-believer could tell us. There are very few mentions of God or Jesus, and only a handful of scripture verses are quoted. Another problem is that on pages 39-40, we read the following:
"Always remember, if you want apple trees, you must plant apple seeds! This goes for everything. Money, love, forgiveness, respect, whatever it is you need or want. Give, give, give and then give some more because it is the skeleton key to financial gain, financial security and many of your deepest desires!"
In the context of the chapter, Pilon talked about how after years of cheerful giving and fervent prayer, God eventually gave her and her family the house that she had always wanted to live in. She then concludes that if you give cheerfully and pray enough, God will give you financial gain, financial security, and your deepest desires. This a form of the prosperity gospel, which is completely unbiblical and therefore false theology.
Also, Pilon at the end of the book leads the reader into a prayer that asks Jesus to come into someone's heart. Such a concept is not what scripture says about salvation; to know what scripture teaches about what man must do to be saved, watch my old video blog about the Gospel.
If you're looking for a book that relies on scripture to make its points, has solid theology, and constantly talks about what God and Jesus have done for them, then you might want to look somewhere else. However, if you are looking for a motivational self-help book to help you through your daily life, then you might get some value out of Skeleton Keys.
Final Grade: C+
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