On entering college, Glenn Pearson says, “I had no use for Christians who took the Bible seriously;” however, he came to faith in Christ and then spent nine years on staff with Cru. He repeatedly heard the same questions about the Christian faith. “This led me to the concept of faith filters that allow skeptics to justify their philosophical and theological positions by using their own presuppositions to dismiss the parts of the Bible they don’t like,” he explains.

Today and tomorrow, January 30 and 31 of 2014, Glenn Pearson’s book, That’s a GREAT Question, is available free in several formats. {02/01/2014 Update: Only $2.99 through March 1st.)

I can’t review it really, because I only just downloaded it, but I was interested in this story-driven apologetics book because it’s a good book for both believers and non-believers and because I was intrigued by Glenn’s “filters”. The following is an excerpt from pages 33 to 34.

What Are the Presuppositions behind the Questions?

“Part one of this book will investigate the issue of filters: how they develop; how they shape our current attitudes; and, more specifically, how they can interfere with our reading of the Bible and our view of Jesus.  We will examine two types of filters employed by people outside the historic Christian faith:

“Filters that add to the basis of authority, where information beyond the Biblical texts takes on more weight than the texts themselves.  There are two filters in this category:

• The Filter of New Revelation reinterprets the Bible and Jesus in light of what some claim to be new information from God.
• The Filter of Outlandish Speculation gives credence to all kinds of wild theories about Jesus.

“Filters that subtract from or reduce the authority of the Bible.  There are three filters in this category:

• The Filter of Atheism views belief in God as a reflection of an unmet psychological need
• The Filter of Antisupernaturalism that some assumes that all events in life are explainable through science and reasoning and treats God (if he exists at all) as essentially irrelevant.
• The Filter of Selective Christian Theology rigidly defines what God is like and how he must act, to the point that Scripture no longer means what it clearly says.

“The main point is this: each of us operates with presuppositions that affect our conclusions about the Bible, God, and Jesus.  In fact, I would assert the following: The conclusions that some people reach may be more a reflection of their presuppositions than of the evidence they consider.”

18 Questions Answered about Apparent Contradictions in the Bible

Part two provides eighteen principles designed to help readers think through what appear to be hopeless contradictions in the Bible.

The eBook is only available free from Thursday, January 30th until late Friday, January 31st. Visit www.dccebooks.com today and tomorrow, clicking on the book cover, to get your free download (in various formats including Kindle, iBook, and Nook).

Also, from February 1st through March 1st, That’s A Great Question will be available for only $2.99 or less through the same web site or on Amazon.com.

NOTES: 

• Glenn’s book is also available in German.
• I recommend Everything You Need to Know to Build Your eBook Library from eQuipping for eMinistry.
• The ESV Audio Bible has been free for the month of January. Download this audio Bible before Saturday.