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    That's a Very Good Question!: Answers to Tough Questions.
    That's a Very Good Question!: Answers to Tough Questions.
    That's a Very Good Question!: Answers to Tough Questions.
    Ebook116 pages1 hour

    That's a Very Good Question!: Answers to Tough Questions.

    By Dan Marler

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    About this ebook

    Pastors are asked lots of questions about the Christian faithin fact, they are asked some very good questions. Like these:

    What convinces you that there is a God?
    Can God do anything?
    Whats the difference between blind faith and reasonable faith?
    Whats the point of praying?
    Can you explain Gods timing?
    How can someone who has been really hurt extend Gods grace?

    This book provides answers to these tough questions and many others as Dan takes a look at some of the more interesting and difficult questions that he has been asked in his many years of pastoral ministry and offers answers that are biblically sound, understandable, witty, and encouraging.

    Youve probably asked some of these very good questions yourself.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWestBow Press
    Release dateMay 30, 2012
    ISBN9781449759094
    That's a Very Good Question!: Answers to Tough Questions.
    Author

    Dan Marler

    Dan Marler is married to Nadia, and they have two children, Rachel and Taylor. Dan is the pastor of the First Church of God in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Dan worked briefly in radio and then in the corporate world before surprising everyone—including himself—and following God’s call to ministry. In his spare time, Dan likes to read, play guitar, watch comedians, write stories, go to the beach, talk to God, read some more, and then take a nap. More of Dan’s writings, podcasts, and videos can be found at: Danmarler.blogspot.com. Follow Dan on Twitter... @danmarler And feel free to friend request Dan on Facebook.

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      Book preview

      That's a Very Good Question! - Dan Marler

      Copyright © 2012

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      WestBow Press books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

      WestBow Press

      A Division of Thomas Nelson

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.westbowpress.com

      1-(866) 928-1240

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

      and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      ISBN: 978-1-4497-5204-0 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4497-5909-4 (eBook)

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2012908802

      Dedicated to my good friend and brother in Christ, Greg Glatz. Thanks for being gracious to me… lots of times.

      Contents

      Introduction

      Part I Cultural Issues & Apologetics

      1. What convinces you that there is a God?

      2. Can God do anything?

      3. Is Jesus a good man and a wise teacher?

      4. Why do you say grace couldn’t be made up?

      5. Why does God allow evil things to happen?

      6. Is evil parasitic?

      7. What’s the difference between blind faith andreasonable faith?

      8. Healthy skepticism? Is it okay to be skeptical?

      9. What happens when we deny reality?

      10. Are the findings of science the only trustworthyform of knowledge?

      11. Can a sincere Christian pursue studies and workin the field of science?

      12. What does tolerance really mean?

      13. Should we keep God and morality out of politicsand law-making?

      14. You can’t legislate morality, right?

      15. How do we encourage moral development in oursociety?

      16. What do you have to say in light of ’s moral fall?

      17. What do you think about the pastor who burneda copy of the Koran?

      18. What do you think about that end of the worldprediction?

      PART II Living The Christian Life

      19. What’s the point of praying? God is sovereign;won’t He just do what He wants to do?

      20. Have you ever tried to be quiet and enter intosolitude and meditate?

      21. Is there such a thing as bad prayer?

      22. Forgive 70 times 7? Should we extend limitlessforgiveness?

      23. Does forgiveness require us to deny that anoffense has occurred?

      24. How can someone who has been really hurtextend grace?

      25. Why can we extend grace to everyone except our own spouse?

      26. We’re having problems in my church. Would you offer helpful thoughts and passages?

      27. Why is it important not be hasty in appointing church leaders?

      28. How do I know if I was gossiping about someone?

      29. Can you explain God’s timing?

      30. Should Christians desire suffering?

      31. When something bad happens is it okay to cry?To be mad at God? To complain?

      32. I’m filled with fear. What can I do?

      33. God’s will is scary for me. Is that normal?

      34. I’ve been hurt by religion and religious leaders.Do you have any thoughts/advice?

      35. Why can’t I feel happy for my sister-in-law when something good happens for her?

      36. Are all Christians priests?

      37. In the story of Jesus being tempted by Satan,what’s going on?

      38. Why does obedience reveal genuine love?

      39. What is the message behind that Parable of 3

      servants? Does God leave us? What about gifts?

      40. How does the Bible teach us?

      41. Would you please suggest some Bible study resources?

      42. What’s the difference between religion andhaving a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ?

      43. How do I get saved?

      Introduction

      One of the dangers of writing a book that presumes to answer questions is that people may think you fancy yourself to be one of those smug, irritating, know-it-alls who believes he has an answer for every question.

      I want to stress that although I am slightly irritating, I don’t think I know everything. In fact, I seem to be reminded every day of how little I know. (This occasionally happens before I’ve even left home.) I’ve been asked many questions, to which I have responded, I don’t know. Frankly, I don’t mind saying I don’t know, but I typically feel discomfited when people respond with, Well, what good are you, then?

      Nevertheless, a lot of questions come my way, partly because I’m a pastor, and partly because some of these folks didn’t have anyone else to ask. I try to offer sound, honest, helpful biblical advice and after years of doing this, I’ve compiled quite a few questions and answers.

      Would you like to read some of them? Good! That’s why I’ve written this book. In fact, if this book helps just one person, it will have been a wonderful…

      Wait a minute. Actually, now that I think about it, if this book helps just one person, then I’ve probably used up way too much time, energy and paper on it.

      I have received some of the questions included in this book in various ways, numerous times. A few of the other questions are little more unique. I picked these questions to include in the book because I thought they were some of the more interesting ones.

      Thank you to my son, Taylor, for reading the manuscript, offering helpful suggestions, and providing significant help in the production of this book. I hereby state in this public forum that he is my favorite son.

      I also offer thanks to Lisa Roule for her editorial expertise. I hereby state in this public forum that Lisa is my favorite editor.

      Also, thanks to Nancy Dell, who read the manuscript and said, Are you sure you want to do this?

      Also, thanks to my wife Nadia who, upon reading these words, is just now finding out that I wrote a book.

      Any mistakes, errors, lapses in judgment or poorly executed jokes are entirely my fault, not Taylor’s or Lisa’s. However, if anyone reads this book and gets really mad—I mean, like, seriously angry—then I’m blaming it on Taylor, Lisa, and Nancy. But not Nadia.

      So, with humility—not as a know-it-all—I offer some questions and answers. I’m hoping that this will be helpful to more than one person.

      Blessings,

      Dan

      "I always tell my students the burden of proof is always mine because I’m the one who wants to know. I’m not in this discussion to put you back on your heels. I’m here to determine the truth…I’m not trying to win an argument…We’re not ducking, we’re not dodging we’re just looking for the truth.."

      —Dallas Willard speaking at the Veritas Forum

      "If all men are offended because of Christ, let them be offended…We do him singularly little honor by watering down his personality till it could not offend a fly. Surely it is not the business of the Church to adapt Christ to men, but to adapt men to Christ."

      —Dorothy Sayers

      "Why can’t we Christians just be faithful followers of Christ and ignore what is going on in the culture at large? …The answer is, because the gospel is never heard in isolation. It is always heard against the backdrop of the culture in which you’ve been born and raised."

      —William Lane Craig

      Part I

      Cultural Issues & Apologetics

      1. Hey Dan… What convinces you that there is a God?

      What convinces you that there is a God?

      Answer…

      I find several arguments for the existence of God to be very persuasive. I will mention two of those arguments here, but first, in response to your question, I should say this, I don’t believe in God primarily because of logical arguments. I am glad that there are logical arguments for the existence of God and those arguments strengthen my faith. But arguments for the existence of God are not the main reason that I believe in

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