06 December 2010
By Craig Groeschel - Pastor of LifeChurch.tv
Excerpts From Resonate’s, THE REVIEW by JASON GHRIST
“Groeschel challenges our attitudes and motivations but his tender and transparent discussion regarding troubling – often traumatic – occurrences in our lives and the issue of forgiveness, is profound and inspiring”
“His disarming warmth and transparency under-girds the powerful
truths he seeks to communicate and shows he is not interested in
offering platitudes or shaming the abused. He addresses real issues
for very real people that really do believe in God – yet are often
hindered as a result of misperceptions influenced by an extremely
painful past”
“The key is to understand that belief in God is experienced at different levels of knowing God. The more intimate we are with God, the more our lives, actions and motivations will be in line with our beliefs”
By JASON GHRIST
ResonateNews.com
GLANCING at the title, The Christian Atheist, could certainly arrest the
attention of the casual book browser. "How can one be a Christian and
an atheist at the same time?"
In Craig Groeschel's, "The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living as if He Doesn't Exist," this is precisely the very question he seems eager to answer.
In this wonderfully engaging read, Groeschel invites us to count on the
reality of God in every area of our lives as if we actually believe God
exists.
Groeschel makes a compelling case that we all display various areas in
our lives indicating direct contradiction to our beliefs about God’s
existence and involvement in daily activities. He challenges us to
consider, “If I believe in God, then why doesn’t my life show it?”.
Certainly this is not the first book ever written on the subject. What makes Groeschel’s writing so unique and compelling is the way he tackles various social ills within contemporary
Christian culture. Unlike its predecessors, “The Christian
Atheist” may not strike today’s Christian reader as “preachy” or
judgmental.
In contrast, the reader will find Groeschel to be funny,
down-to-earth, compassionate and perhaps most importantly, transparent.
He never separates himself in ways to make the reader feel inferior. Instead he provides various examples in his own
life – some troubling, some heart-breaking, even some hilarious – where
he has experienced failures and successes.
The key, says Groeschel, is to understand that belief in God is
experienced at different levels of knowing God. The more intimate we
are with God, the more our lives, actions and motivations will be
in line with our beliefs.
“Some of us know God by reputation,” Groeschel writes, as when we hear about someone from a close friend.
“We may know a bit about God— perhaps we’ve been to church a few times, we’ve heard some Bible stories … But it’s only secondhand. Some of us know God in our memories.," he writes. "We’ve truly experienced his goodness, grace and life in the past, ‘I knew him years ago, but I can’t say I know him now.’ “And some of us know God intimately. Right here, right now.”
Since we have the potential to grow deeper in our intimacy with God, Groeschel contends, the reality is that our lives – in greater or lesser degrees – only partially reflect our belief in God. Every area of life is affected.
In light of this inescapable truth, it might be easy to shame ones self
for being hypocritical. Perhaps it would be easy to discount God’s
unconditional love and favor offered through the redemptive work of
Jesus. Groeschel, however, compassionately reminds readers that
even this sort of response is yet another example of Christian Atheism
at work in our lives.
“We Christian Atheists can easily believe that God loves other people,” he writes. “We just can’t comprehend how or why he’d love us.”
In fact, Groeschel stresses the importance that “our own efforts” will
never cause God to love us any more than he already does. We are in
need of transformation, he says, but we need God to help us.
“Change won’t just take all the strength you have; it will take more,” he writes. “You need God’s power. Do what you can, and trust God to do what you can’t.”
Groeschel challenges our attitudes and motivations but his tender and transparent discussion regarding troubling – often traumatic – occurrences in our lives and the issue of forgiveness is profound and inspiring.
His disarming warmth and transparency under-girds the powerful
truths he seeks to communicate and shows he is not interested in
offering platitudes or shaming the abused. He addresses real issues
for very real people that really do believe in God – yet are often
hindered as a result of misperceptions influenced by an extremely
painful past.
“The Christian Atheist” is for any Christian who is painfully aware of
the disparity between their beliefs and their attitudes and behavior.
In its pages the reader in any life-circumstance may find inspiration
and hope to enter into the reality and power that is found through
intimacy with God and fellowship with his people.
The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living as if He Doesn't Exist
Author: Craig Groeschel - Pastor of LifeChurch.tv
Zondervan
Copyright 2010
pages 256
