Bethel Church, California, is one of the most popular and polarising churches in America. With its own Christian music label, reports of miraculous healings, and the manifestation of a glittering Glory cloud, the congregation of Bethel Church is ever-growing. Bethel Church situates itself in the global movement of the New Apostolic Reformation, believing that present-day apostles and prophets must govern the church. Some praise the church for the clear manifestation of God's activity; others see the integration of controversial and hazardous practices into the church.

In Reckless Christianity, Holly Pivec and R. Douglas Geivett provide meticulous research and an incisive critique of the Bethel movement. Citing its charismatic senior leader, Bill Johnson, as promoting a "reckless" Christianity, Pivec and Geivett return to Scripture, the authoritative Word of God, to provide guidance on the boundaries of practice and where these boundaries are crossed. In its pursuit of experimentation, Reckless Christianity argues that the leaders of Bethel are pulling its followers into a dangerously speculative and experience-driven Faith.