The God Question

What does it take to live a meaningful life? Why are so many people in affluent nations so anxious and unhappy? What difference does believing in God really make? Does belief in the God of the Bible truly make sense today?

In this revised edition of The God Question, philosopher J. P. Moreland invites us on a journey to a rich, flourishing life. He digs into the causes of our cultural crisis of unhappiness and considers how the God revealed in Jesus provides the most rational solution to our deepest needs. With special sensitivity to skeptics, seekers, and Christians who are disenchanted with their faith, he helps us see the Christian story—its reasonableness and its relevance—in fresh ways.

For anyone wrestling with big questions about life and faith, Moreland provides insight from his many years of philosophical studies and his own experience as a Christian. Filled with personal stories, this book explores evidence for the existence of God, the reliability of the Gospels, essentials of a flourishing Christian life, the reality of miracles, and more. This edition features a new section on overcoming anxiety and depression. Wherever you are on your journey, The God Question will help you see anew what difference Jesus makes in a human life.



J. P. Moreland (PhD, University of Southern California) is distinguished professor of philosophy at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, in La Mirada, California. He has written or contributed to over ninety-five books, including The God Conversation,Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview, In Search of a Confident Faith, and Love Your God With All Your Mind. Throughout his career Moreland has co-planted three churches, spoken and debated on over 200 college campuses around the country, and served with Campus Crusade for Christ (Cru) for ten years. He was selected in August 2016 by The Best Schools as one of the 50 most influential living philosophers in the world.

Preface
Part 1: Why Can't We Be Happy?


1. Why Can't I Be Happy?


2. Hope for a Culture of Bored and Empty Selves
Part 2: Is There a Real Solution to Our Dilemma?


3. The Question of God, Part 1


4. The Question of God, Part 2


5. The Luminous Nazarene


6. My Own Journey as Jesus' Apprentice
Part 3: How Can the Solution Help Me Change?


7. Rethinking the Whole Thing


8. Two Essentials for Getting Good at Life


9. Avoiding the Three Jaws of Defeat


10. How to Unclog Your Spiritual Arteries and Develop the Heart to Work with God
Part 4: Is This Life All There Is?


11. From Here to Eternity


Epilogue


Notes

"The God Question transforms your thinking about why you are unhappy and how to become happy. J. P. Moreland compels you to set aside the mental preoccupations that deplete you and reconnect with your core identity . . . Jesus forming in you. Moreland provides helpful steps and strategies for changing your narrative, for moving from your 'empty self' to living a larger purpose from which you can derive significance and well-being. Whether you are a seeker or a believer, this book is for you . . . a masterpiece that shines brilliant truths of Scripture on your twenty-first-century incapacity to ever be happy . . . apart from Jesus."



"Insightful, challenging, relevant, inspiring—all fitting descriptions of The God Question. Moreland masterfully combines insights from his personal spiritual journey, his philosophical training, and his conversations with seekers and believers over many years to help us all find answers to life's biggest and most important questions."



"J. P. Moreland, a favorite professor of mine, does not disappoint. He taught me that we should not live to do philosophy but that we should do philosophy that we might live. This book exemplifies someone who has wrestled with the big questions through a skillfully led life and has acquired knowledge. Along with his personal, identifiable story, the book is set in the context of increasing personal malaise, anxiety, and unhappiness that is endemic in our culture. He invites us to explore the big question about life's meaning—the quest of the human heart. Yet he recognizes that the heart cannot embrace what the mind cannot believe. He goes on to help remove obstacles from before us while offering the best explanation of why so many are unhappy and how we can attain the happiness for which we have been designed."



"You can seek and find happiness. But unless you have the Author of true happiness as your guide, you won't be able to tell the real thing from the fakes. Convincingly argued and clearly written, The God Question explains how to set off on your quest and how to mark the mileposts along the way."



"An astonishing achievement! What happens when a world-class philosopher like J. P. Moreland turns his mind and vast life experience to the most profound questions we all face? We get a spiritual earthquake capable of moving people at the deepest levels. This book satisfies both the mind and the heart in ways that self-help or New Age books never could. Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, Wayne Dyer, Eckhart Tolle, and the rest of the popular gurus of the media need to read this book to see where the deepest satisfaction, happiness, and joy can really be found." weniger anzeigen expand_less