It has been our privilege this week to have Dr. Jeremiah Johnston with us at our church. He is the president of the "Christian Thinkers Society". Educated at Oxford, he has since been given a multifaceted ministry by God that has involved, among other things, being a professor, a broadcaster, a speaker, and an author.
In our series of meetings, Dr. Johnston has dealt with a different topic each session. But the one he addressed tonight was, in my opinion at least, particularly enlightening. As he discusses in his book, Unimaginable, one can hardly comprehend what the world would be like without Jesus Christ and the Christian faith.
For this reason, I wanted to devote a short blog tonight to a promo for his book. He divides his topic into three sections: “The World Before Christianity”, “The World Without Christianity”, and “The World With Christianity”.
The world before Christianity was a world of suffering, fear, inequality, and bondage. Let’s face it - the ancient world was a brutal place! And yet, the world without Christianity is no better. It eventually manifests itself in such cruel, ruthless, and hateful expressions as Hitler’s Germany, Stalin’s Russia, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, and other, similar totalitarian regimes committing unspeakable brutalities.
By contrast, the world with Christianity has become a place with new hope, new life, and new freedom for untold numbers of people. Throughout history, billions of oppressed individuals have been elevated as the cause of Christ has become a “Tour de Force” for good for all people everywhere!
Continuing in the vein of earlier books such as What If the Bible Had Never Been Written? and What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? by D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, Dr. Johnston’s book is perhaps best summed up by Dr. Jack Graham, Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas thusly:
“It is essential that we understand the influence of Christ and the Christian faith upon civilization and culture. Our witness in the world is at stake, and one of the most significant reasons we believe and share our message is the massive impact of Christianity upon the lives of millions…”
I wholeheartedly concur. If you want to strengthen your understanding of the historical impact of Christianity, then I highly recommend that you secure a copy of Dr. Johnston’s book and read it soon. Your heart will be blessed for having done so.
More importantly, you will find a new and powerful way to fulfill the admonition of the Apostle Peter in his first New Testament letter (chapter 3, verses 15) to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have … with gentleness and respect.”
BOOK SOURCES:
Jeremiah J. Johnston, Unimaginable: What Our World Would Be Like Without Christianity (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2017. Available at retailers nationwide.
D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, What If The Bible Had Never Been Written? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1998).
D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001).
In these latter two books, also available at retailers nationwide, the authors detail Christianity’s impact on charity, education, politics, civil liberties, science, economics, sexuality, medicine, morality, art, and many other matters over the last two thousand years.
JEREMIAH JOHNSTON’S WEBSITE: www.ChristianThinkers.com.
SEE ALSO: http://myfaithradio.com/programs/jeremiah-johnston-show/.
SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/1_peter/3-15.htm.
In our series of meetings, Dr. Johnston has dealt with a different topic each session. But the one he addressed tonight was, in my opinion at least, particularly enlightening. As he discusses in his book, Unimaginable, one can hardly comprehend what the world would be like without Jesus Christ and the Christian faith.
For this reason, I wanted to devote a short blog tonight to a promo for his book. He divides his topic into three sections: “The World Before Christianity”, “The World Without Christianity”, and “The World With Christianity”.
The world before Christianity was a world of suffering, fear, inequality, and bondage. Let’s face it - the ancient world was a brutal place! And yet, the world without Christianity is no better. It eventually manifests itself in such cruel, ruthless, and hateful expressions as Hitler’s Germany, Stalin’s Russia, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, and other, similar totalitarian regimes committing unspeakable brutalities.
By contrast, the world with Christianity has become a place with new hope, new life, and new freedom for untold numbers of people. Throughout history, billions of oppressed individuals have been elevated as the cause of Christ has become a “Tour de Force” for good for all people everywhere!
Continuing in the vein of earlier books such as What If the Bible Had Never Been Written? and What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? by D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, Dr. Johnston’s book is perhaps best summed up by Dr. Jack Graham, Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas thusly:
“It is essential that we understand the influence of Christ and the Christian faith upon civilization and culture. Our witness in the world is at stake, and one of the most significant reasons we believe and share our message is the massive impact of Christianity upon the lives of millions…”
I wholeheartedly concur. If you want to strengthen your understanding of the historical impact of Christianity, then I highly recommend that you secure a copy of Dr. Johnston’s book and read it soon. Your heart will be blessed for having done so.
More importantly, you will find a new and powerful way to fulfill the admonition of the Apostle Peter in his first New Testament letter (chapter 3, verses 15) to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have … with gentleness and respect.”
BOOK SOURCES:
Jeremiah J. Johnston, Unimaginable: What Our World Would Be Like Without Christianity (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2017. Available at retailers nationwide.
D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, What If The Bible Had Never Been Written? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1998).
D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001).
In these latter two books, also available at retailers nationwide, the authors detail Christianity’s impact on charity, education, politics, civil liberties, science, economics, sexuality, medicine, morality, art, and many other matters over the last two thousand years.
JEREMIAH JOHNSTON’S WEBSITE: www.ChristianThinkers.com.
SEE ALSO: http://myfaithradio.com/programs/jeremiah-johnston-show/.
SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/1_peter/3-15.htm.