Monday, January 30, 2017

Be careful about what you are willing to lose

You may have noticed I didn't post any articles this past week. The reason was that I was fighting a low-grade fever and a cough that kept me weak and uninterested in doing anything. The good news is that the fever broke Saturday evening, and I'm feeling much better. After talking to folks who've had the same symptoms I can expect about 1-2 weeks more coughing. If nothing else, it's good exercise. My stomach muscles feel like I've done 1,000 crunches this week.

In between naps this past week I have been able to do some extra reading, and one of the books I'm working on is Taking Pascal's Wager: Faith, Evidence and the Abundant Life by Michael Rota.  Pascal's wager is essentially this: If a person believes that Christianity might be true then it is rational for a person to become a Christian because there is very much to gain by doing so and very little to lose. Rota spends much of the book pointing out the many arguments that point towards the existence of God and the truth of Christianity.

Not only does the author present his arguments, but he is very honest about the arguments that are in opposition to his view. He addressed each of those counter-evidences with great skill and honesty. This book is a rigorous read, but it is far more readable than many books of this nature. By this I mean that there is much here for the academic, but for those of us who are not (like myself) it is highly informative and helpful.

Scripture tells us to always be ready to give a reason for the hope that exists in us, and this book can help Christians do that. Rota presents his arguments clearly and in a way that will help any of us be better able to defend our faith. As regular readers of this blog know, I have been very interested in apologetics for a couple of years now, and this has been one of my favorite reads in that genre.

No comments: