Making Sense of God: An Invitation to the Skeptical
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Overview
We live in an age of skepticism. Our society places such faith in empirical reason, historical progress, and heartfelt emotion that it’s easy to wonder: Why should anyone believe in Christianity? What role can faith and religion play in our modern lives?
In this thoughtful and inspiring new book, pastor and New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller invites skeptics to consider that Christianity is more relevant now than ever. As human beings, we cannot live without meaning, satisfaction, freedom, identity, justice, and hope. Christianity provides us with unsurpassed resources to meet these needs. Written for both the ardent believer and the skeptic, Making Sense of God shines a light on the profound value and importance of Christianity in our lives.
- Discusses the relevancy of Christianity in modern times
- Explains how faith and religion are more important than ever
- Preface: The Faith of the Secular
- Part 1: Why Does Anyone Need Religion?
- Isn’t Religion Going Away?
- Isn’t Religion Based on Faith and Secularism on Evidence?
- Part 2: Religion Is More Than You Think It Is
- A Meaning That Suffering Can’t Take from You
- A Satisfaction That Is Not Based on Circumstances
- Why Can’t I Be Free to Live as I See Fit, as Long as I Don’t Harm Anyone?
- The Problem of the Self
- An Identity That Doesn’t Crush You or Exclude Others
- A Hope That Can Face Anything
- The Problem of Morals
- A Justice That Does Not Create New Oppressors
- Part 3: Christianity Makes Sense
- Is It Reasonable to Believe in God?
- Is It Reasonable to Believe in Christianity?
- Only in God
Top Highlights
“To state that there is no God or that there is a God, then, necessarily entails faith. And so the declaration that science is the only arbiter of truth is not itself a scientific finding. It is a belief.” (Page 35)
“Sociologists Peter Berger and Grace Davie report that ‘most sociologists of religion now agree’ that the secularization thesis—that religion declines as a society becomes more modern—‘has been empirically shown to be false.’” (Page 24)
“Terrible deeds have been done in the name of religion, but secularism has not proven to be an improvement.” (Page 12)
“He now believes that secular reason alone cannot account for what he calls ‘the substance of the human.’ He argues that science cannot provide the means by which to judge whether its technological inventions are good or bad for human beings. To do that, we must know what a good human person is, and science cannot adjudicate morality or define such a thing.10 Social sciences may be able to tell us what human life is but not what it ought to be.” (Page 12)
“People believe in God not merely because they feel some emotional need, but because it makes sense of what they see and experience. Indeed, we have seen that many thoughtful people are drawn toward belief somewhat unwillingly. They embrace religion because they think it is more fully true to the facts of human existence than secularism is.” (Page 23)
Making Sense of God isn’t so much a series of answers for those who think they have questions (like The Reason for God) as it is a series of questions for those who think they have answers.
—Andrew Wilson, The Gospel Coalition
I’ve read six other books by Keller, but Making Sense of God may now be my favorite... The skeptic is paid the respect he deserves... All sides are invited into a conversation (no bomb throwing allowed) where each participant is reminded that they utilize both faith and reason.
—David George Moore, Patheos
- Title: Making Sense of God: An Invitation to the Skeptical
- Author: Timothy Keller
- Publishers: Viking, Redeemer
- Print Publication Date: 2016
- Logos Release Date: 2017
- Pages: 335
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Apologetics
- ISBNs: 9780525954156, 9780698194366, 0525954155, 0698194365
- Resource ID: LLS:MAKINGSENSEOFGOD
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T01:27:06Z
Timothy Keller (1950-2023) was the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, which he started in 1989. For over 20 years, he led a diverse congregation of young professionals with a weekly attendance of over 5,000. He was also president of Redeemer City to City, which plants new churches in New York and other cities. For the last decade, the organization has launched over 200 churches in 35 cities. Logos has collected his sermons in the Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (1989–2011) and Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (2012–2013).
Keller wrote multiple New York Times bestselling books, including The Reason for God and The Prodigal God. His recent work included The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God, Walking with God through Pain and Suffering, and Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work. He is also wrote his own commentary and study guide series. Christianity Today has said, “Fifty years from now, if evangelical Christians are widely known for their love of cities, their commitment to mercy and justice, and their love of their neighbors, Timothy Keller will be remembered as a pioneer of the new urban Christians.”
