God’s Book: An Honest Look at the Bible’s Seven Toughest Topics

“The Bible was inspired for us, [but] it’s not directly addressed to us,” argues pastor Ollerton (The Bible: A Story that Makes Sense of Life) in this comprehensive reassessment of core scriptural issues. Employing a nonliteralist lens, he surveys seven topics. These include how life on earth began, which he argues need not be a matter of debunking the creation story, as it’s less an objective report than a means of explaining, in a faith-centered way, “the origin and purpose of everything.” Instead, he invites readers to find God in the “unimaginably precise” conditions necessary for life to emerge. Elsewhere, he tackles the age-old conundrum of why God allows suffering, writing that God didn’t create evil, but can “bring good out of it” in ways that are unknowable within finite human lifespans. Despite a few ill-fitting elements, including the letters addressed to his children that conclude each chapter, Ollerton offers balanced, thorough takes on difficult scriptural issues and generally resists pat explanations in favor of leaving things open-ended. Curious Christians, especially young people, will get a lot out of this. (June)