Occasioned by a discussion in which I participated earlier this week, I’ve just finished a major revision of an essay I did a couple of years ago, which is now titled, Troubling Inconsistencies in the New Testament: Five Reasons for Skepticism.
I did this revision primarily so that I’ll have it as a ready reference — these days, I really am trying to get away from directly challenging traditionalists about their theology, because it’s largely a waste of time.
I’m far more interested in reaching out to skeptics and non-believers who, deep in their hearts, sort of wish they could believe, but haven’t found a way to do so that’s consistent with their educations and experience. I feel a special obligation to such folks, perhaps because I used to be one of them. They simply don’t buy the argument that "The Bible says it, I believe it, that settles it!" So I’m trying to articulate alternative, positive, empirically-defensible arguments why it makes good sense:
- to conclude that God exists;
- to put one’s trust in him and make one’s self available for his service;
- and to follow Jesus.
Leave a Reply