• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Anchored in Christ

KevinHalloran.net

  • Home
  • About Me
    • Contact
  • Popular Posts
  • Speaking
  • Resources
    • The Gospel
    • Free Prayer Tools
    • 100+ Book Recommendations for Christians
    • 100+ of the Best Christian Biographies
    • 250+ Free Online Seminary Classes, Courses, Programs, and Book Recommendations
    • Accessible Theology Book Series
  • When Prayer Is a Struggle
  • Videos
  • Español

Kevin / February 22, 2022

A Brief Review of God, Technology, and the Christian Life by Tony Reinke

Tony Reinke, author of 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You (see my review) and Competing Spectacles (read my five takeaways), just released his newest book God, Technology, and the Christian Life—his biblical theology of technology. I really enjoy reading Reinke on technology and had been eager to get my hands on this book since I first heard about it a couple of years ago.

Reinke almost called this book A Christian Optimist’s Guide to Modern Technology. “Tech is not all roses, but it’s not all bad Apples either,” Reinke writes. “This book is my case for a more positive view of human innovation and innovators.”

The structure of the book answers six key questions about technology:

1) What is Technology?
2) What is God’s Relationship to Technology?
3) Where Do Our Technologies Come From?
4) What Can Technology Never Accomplish?
5) When Do Our Technologies End?
6) How Should We Use Technology Today?

He answers each question focusing on nine key sections of Scripture (Genesis 4:1–26; 6:11–22; 11:1–9; 1 Samuel 17:1–58; Job 28:1–28; Psalm 20:1–9; Isaiah 28:23–29; 54:16–17; and Revelation 18:1–24) and by profiling nine influential voices on the topic of technology throughout (John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, Abraham Kuyper, Herman Bavinck, Jacques Ellul, Wendell Berry, Kevin Kelly, Elon Musk, and Yuval Noah Harari).

If I had to summarize the book’s message in a sentence, it would be that God is sovereign over technology. (I know, a big shocker for a guy who works for John Piper’s ministry!) Everything related to the invention, innovation, and use of technology is under God’s control. And that’s good news for an age when many of our greatest technologies also cause many of our greatest problems.

“No maverick machine, bot, or genetic edit can thwart the governance of God. He can allow them to run amuck and do real damage, but he can stop them too. God has set limits. He can, and does, and will continue to intrude upon our tech aspirations at his own will. What countless catastrophes has he stopped already?”

If you stop and think about how much technology governs our lives, it might scare you. Then you factor in what is coming down the pike in terms of technology: transhumanism, the colonization of Mars, sex robots, even better artificial intelligence, and high-tech government surveillance… you might just buy a cabin off-the-grid somewhere and call it a life. But we don’t need to fear. And God’s sovereignty is also a reason to be optimistic: good will come from technology as He has ordained since the very beginning of time.

God, Technology, and the Christian Life is a book for tech early-adapters, luddites, and everyone in between. Reinke’s research is thorough, knowledge of theology illuminating, outlook on tech realistic, and tone both comforting and worshipful. This book gave me hope, both in the wonderful promise of technology to do good for humanity (and even push back the curse at times!) and in the One sovereign over every element of technology and its use.

Because technology is such a huge part of our everyday lives, we would all benefit from Reinke’s biblical theology of technology. We need to see technology and its role as God does instead of living naively by technology’s dictates. Reinke is a faithful teacher who will help you do just that.

I’ll let Reinke have the last word in this brief review:

“The ultimate point of technology (in any age) is to point us back to the glory and the generosity and the majesty and self-sufficiency of the Creator himself. And the ultimate goal of technology is to usher us deeper into the creative genius of God, to direct our hearts to God, to adore him and to thank him for our daily bread. God’s glory is the end of creation and the aim of all our innovations. He is worthy of our lives, worthy of our best inventions, worthy of all praise.”


You may enjoy this podcast interview with Tony Reinke on the book:

Print Friendly, PDF & EmailPrint Friendly

Related Posts

  • What does ‘God has Spoken by His Son’ Mean in Hebrews 1:2?What does ‘God has Spoken by His Son’ Mean in Hebrews 1:2?
  • New Video —> How the Book of Exodus Confronts Our Secular AgeNew Video —> How the Book of Exodus Confronts Our Secular Age
  • A Great (Free) Resource for Learning the Bible’s Grand StoryA Great (Free) Resource for Learning the Bible’s Grand Story
  • A New Thought-Provoking Documentary on a Biblical Theology of the SupernaturalA New Thought-Provoking Documentary on a Biblical Theology of the Supernatural
  • Five Takeaways from Competing Spectacles by Tony ReinkeFive Takeaways from Competing Spectacles by Tony Reinke

Share this:

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Print

Filed Under: Books & Reviews, Social Media & Technology Tagged With: Biblical Theology, Technology, Tony Reinke

Primary Sidebar

Let’s Connect

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Now Available in Paperback, Kindle, and Audiobook

Recent Posts

  • When You Fear God Doesn’t Hear Your Prayers
  • Top Links for January 2022
  • God’s Sovereignty Should Fuel Prayer, Not Hinder It
  • The Best of 2022
  • What does “the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” mean?
  • Top 10 Books I’ve Read in 2022
  • A Free Worksheet to Organize Your Prayer Life
  • Pray the Bible: A Free Video Course on Prayer
  • Recommended Links for November 2022
  • Book Briefs (Fall 2022)

Blog Sponsors

Blog Categories

Bible & Theology Books & Reviews Christian Living Culture Evangelism Humor Leadership Life Links Marriage & Relationships Ministry Missions Prayer Quotes Resources Social Media & Technology






Footer

About Me

I serve with Open the Bible. I wrote When Prayer Is a Struggle: A Practical Guide for Overcoming Obstacles in Prayer (P&R). Learn more about the book.

Learn More

Let’s Connect!

Follow me on Facebook

Follow me on Twitter

Follow me on Instagram

Subscribe to my channel on YouTube

Videos: When Prayer Is a Struggle

FTC Disclosure of Material Connection: I sometimes share affiliate links, meaning if you make a purchase through a link, I make a small commission at no extra cost to you to cover blogging expenses.

Copyright © 2023 · Digital Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

 

Loading Comments...
 

    loading Cancel
    Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
    Email check failed, please try again
    Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.