Anchored in Christ

Scripture is an incredible wealth of information for our spiritual transformation. We should be in it daily and we should conform our lives to it. The Bible is also a complex book. Its format is not written as a Christianity FAQ section that clearly answers everything by neatly tying up questions and putting them into a neat little box.

Even the most mature believers still have questions and ponder the mystery of God’s revelation and inevitable questions that arise.

Sam Storms wrote Tough Topics: Biblical Answers to 25 Challenging Questions to clear up some important theological questions that confuse believers.

The book presents 25 tough questions of the Christian faith in chapters that are more than introductory material–but less than a full exploration on each topic, kind of a medium depth analysis of each question. He writes for the educated Christian layperson, seeking to stretch minds and hold to his ultimate aim, which isn’t knowledge–it’s worship.

While the 25 chapters deal with a variety of questions, some topics are addressed more than others: spiritual warfare and the spiritual/miraculous gifts (Storms writes from a continuationist perspective). Other questions answered include the eternal destiny of infants who die, open theism, legalism, tithing, sex in heaven, etc. (see the full table of contents for each of the questions). At the end of each chapter, he points readers to further resources to study for those who want to know more.

My experience in the book is that Storms does what he intends to: he doesn’t merely skim the surface of a topic nor does he take you in depth, but provides a helpful, clear, and pastoral answer clearly argued from Scripture.

I found the book very helpful, and one that made me worship and better equipped to think biblically about the tough topics addressed. In answering these questions, Storms deepened my desire to learn more about these topics. One chapter that especially led me to worship is his chapter on eternal security, explaining what it would mean for each member of the Trinity if believers could lose their salvation.

You might not agree with all of his conclusions, but you should find his perspective helpful and make you wrestle with what you believe. I wouldn’t call this book a ‘must have’–but I will call it a book that can be very helpful for pastors and Christians interested in deepening their faith and understanding of a few of Christianity’s tough topics.

Title: Tough Topics: Biblical Answers to 25 Challenging Questions
Author: Sam Storms
Year: 2013
Pages: 368
Rating: 4.5

I received this book for free from Crossway Books for this review.