Questioning the Bible by Jonathan Morrow [Podcast]

The Bible is the most influential book in human history. But what are we supposed to do with it in the 21st century? And even more importantly, can it still be trusted as the Word of God? There are an unprecedented number of sophisticated attacks on the origin, credibility, and reliability of the Bible today. It can be difficult to know what to say when skepticism and secularism take over so many conversations. The questions are coming from all sides:

Has the biblical text been corrupted over the centuries? Who really chose the books of the Bible and why? Is the Bible unscientific? Which interpretation of the Bile is correct? Are there contradictions in the BIble?

These are just a few of the questions that Jonathan Morrow deals with in his new book Questioning the Bible and that we will discuss in this episode of the Think Christianly podcast.

***Exclusive code for 35 % off of Questioning the Bible from Moody Publishers for the Think Christianly audience by following this link ( QTB35 ).***

What People Are Saying About Questioning the Bible:

“Questioning the Bible is simply a fabulous book. It asks the skeptical questions people are asking about the Bible and then gives solid answers that are aware of where the real discussion is and what the good options are. In a world that is becoming more skeptical and in a church where many have no idea how to answer such questions, here is a resource that can give real aid and comfort.” – Darrell Bock, Senior Research Professor of New Testament and Executive Director of Cultural Engagement at Dallas Theological Seminary

“Jonathan Morrow deftly addresses eleven major challenges to the Bible’s authority… It needs to be read and studied in groups or individually. And it must be given to friends and relatives, especially college students, who need to consider the wisdom in its pages.” – J.P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the Talbot School of Theology (from the Forward)

Questioningthebible-JonathanMorrow“The Bible is under more scrutiny than ever before. Yet Jonathan Morrow is up to the task! Questioning the Bible offers insightful and well-researched responses to the top objections. It is ideal for the person who genuinely wants to know whether the Bible can be trusted. I highly recommend it for individuals and group study.” – Sean McDowell, PhD is an assistant professor at Biola university, popular speaker, and the author of Apologetics for a New Generation

“Anyone who thinks apologetics is no longer important doesn’t know the world students live in and the questions they ask (and are being asked). But Jonathan Morrow knows students. He knows what they need to know, and that’s why this book is so helpful. In it, you will find clear, concise answers that Christians, especially students, need when (not if) the truthfulness of their faith is challenged.” – John Stonestreet, Senior Fellow of Worldview and Culture for the Colson Center for Christian Worldview and co-host of BreakPoint radio

“For the skeptic, the Bible is a big target. He raises serious questions about alleged errors, apparent contradictions, canonicity, authorship, textual corruption, morality and much more. At the end of this intellectual onslaught, the Bible’s authority is seemingly wiped out and the skeptic feels justified in dismissing it altogether. Tragically, most believers have no adequate response and when the challenges come, most retreat into an anti-intellectual privatized “faith” or worse, lose all confidence in the Bible’s authority as well. Church leaders have largely failed to equip their people. That’s why Jonathan’s book is so important. He answers the most pressing objections to the Bible in a way that is intelligent, relevant and accessible. You don’t have to be a scholar to defend the Bible, you just need this book.” – Brett Kunkle, Student Impact Director at Stand to Reason – str.org

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I Don’t Talk About Jesus Christ In Conversations Much Any More

Whenever people use the word Christian in a conversation, I don’t assume they are using the term correctly (i.e., something that the founder of Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth, would recognize). Again, I’m not being critical here; we just live in a postChristian culture today. There’s simply too much misinformation out there. Moreover, people tend to repeat commonly used slogans or embrace a vision of Christianity that sounds curiously like twenty-first-century American values. In light of that, I have found that when I share what the New Testament actually teaches, people are genuinely surprised. In fact, many Christians I encounter also are surprised (and even resist) what I am about to share. So what do we do?

Well, lots of things! But in this post I will highlight just one. It’s a simple move, but has the desired effect. I don’t refer to Jesus Christ in conversations much anymore…I talk about Jesus of Nazareth. Why? Because Jesus was a real historical person who lived in the 1st century and is not as easily dismissed. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that Jesus is the Christ and defend that view with passion and confidence. But my goal is to get people thinking about Jesus in a way perhaps they haven’t in a long time (or even ever done). Jesus is real. He is not in the category of the Easter bunny.

Question: What is one way today you can disrupt the predictable flow of a conversation with Jesus of Nazareth?

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Are People Free To Believe Whatever They Want About God?

Yes and no. If all that is meant here is that people should not be coerced or forced to believe something or follow a certain religion—then I wholeheartedly agree. Religious liberty and freedom of conscience are extremely important principles to defend. The Manhattan Declaration captures this well: “No one should be compelled to embrace any religion against his will, nor should persons of faith be forbidden to worship God according to the dictates of conscience or to express freely and publicly their deeply held religious convictions.”

In his excellent book The Case for Civility, Os Guinness articulates a vision of what we should be after in public discourse about our various religious beliefs:

The vision of a civic public square is one in which everyone—people of all faiths, whether religious or naturalistic—are equally free to enter and engage public life on the basis of their faiths, as a matter of “free exercise” and as dictated by their own reason and conscience; but always within the double framework, first, of the Constitution, and second, of a freely and mutually agreed covenant, or common vision for the common good, of what each person understands to be just and free for everyone else, and therefore of the duties involved in living with the deep differences of others.

This is an example of what true tolerance is. True tolerance is where we extend to each other the right to be wrong. False tolerance, on the other hand, naïvely asserts that all ideas are created equal and this must be rejected. Not only is this obviously false, it’s unlivable. Unfortunately, “The ideal of religious tolerance has morphed into the straitjacket of religious agreement.” Contrary to what is commonly believed, the height of intolerance is not disagreement, but rather removing the public space and opportunity for people to disagree.

However, true tolerance is usually not what people have in mind when they say people should be free to believe in whatever God (or no god at all) they want to. Here is the simple, but profound point to grasp—merely believing something doesn’t make it true. Put differently, people are entitled to their own beliefs, but not their own truth. Belief is not what ultimately matters—truth is. Our believing something is true doesn’t make it true. The Bible isn’t true simply because I have faith. Truth is what corresponds to reality—telling it like it is.

The bottom line is that we discover truth; we don’t create it. Reality is what we bump (or slam!) into when we act on false beliefs. Spending a few minutes fondly reflecting on your junior high, high school, and college years will bring this principle vividly and painfully to life.

Question: How would our culture–and educational system–be better if took this to heart? Leave a comment below!

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Nothing Is Off Limits If You Are A Christian

Christianity is irrelevant, out of touch and obsolete. Unfortunately many people today think that. Even more tragic is that many Christians live this way. God is relevant and even welcome at weddings and funerals perhaps, but when reading the New York Times? How to live? The latest scientific discovery? Historical questions? Not so much. This unnatural and disastrous separation of Christianity from reality is, at its root, a theological problem. This disconnect is understandable for a broadly secular culture, but as Christians we have no excuse for this. We have forgotten who we are and who God has created us to be.

“Remember that God is a rational God, who has made us in His own image. God invites and expects us to explore His double revelation, in nature and Scripture, with the minds He has given us, and to go on in the development of a Christian mind to apply His marvelous revealed truth to every aspect of the modern and post-modern world.” – John Stott

If you are a Christian, then absolutely nothing is off limits. Why? Because reality is involved. And if God has spoken–generally or specifically–then our job is to discover and apply the truth. Some of this is due to distrust or lack of confidence in the Bible. Fortunately when it comes to the BIble, our questions can be reasonably answered. The whole earth is Christianity’s playground to explore, not just the acre we tend to unintentionally confine ourselves to.

Question: What areas are you tempted to view Christianity as not being relevant too? Leave a comment below!

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How to Answer Common Questions About Christianity [Podcast]

Have you ever found yourself in a conversation about your Christian faith and just were not sure what to say or how to answer a question? What about God, science, and evolution? How do you answer the problem of evil and suffering? How do you defend the Bible? How do we live out our faith in a culture that disagrees with us? What about doubts? In this podcast, we will explore these common questions and more.

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