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Josh McDowell Answers Five Tough Questions
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472 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 1991
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About the author
Josh McDowell
508 books639 followersJosh McDowell is a bestselling Christian apologist, evangelist, and author of over 150 books, including Evidence That Demands a Verdict and More Than a Carpenter. Once an agnostic, he converted to Christianity while investigating its historical claims. He went on to earn degrees from Wheaton College and Talbot Theological Seminary. For decades, McDowell has been a prominent speaker with Campus Crusade for Christ, addressing issues of faith, character, and youth culture worldwide. His work emphasizes historical and legal evidence for Christianity and tackles challenges posed by skepticism and non-Christian beliefs. He lives in California with his wife, Dottie, and is the father of four children, including fellow apologist Sean McDowell.
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September 5, 2024
THE FAMED APOLOGIST DEALS WITH FIVE KEY ISSUES
Joslin "Josh" McDowell (born 1939) is a Christian author best known for his many works of apologetics; he has been affiliated with Campus Crusade for Christ (now "Cru") since 1964. His many books include 'Evidence that Demands a Verdict,' 'More Evidence That Demands a Verdict,' 'Daniel in the critics' den,' 'More Than a Carpenter,' 'The Islam Debate,' 'The Resurrection Factor,' 'Jesus: A Biblical Defense of His Deity,' 'He Walked Among Us,' etc. His life story was told in Joe Musser's book 'Josh: Excitement of the Unexpected' and also in the DVD 'Undaunted.'
The "Five Questions" addressed in this 1991 book are, "1. Is the Bible completely reliable? 2. What should I believe about evolution? 3. Is Israel God's chosen people? 4. Is the church necessary today? 5. Are we living in the End Times?" He wrote in the Preface, "People are asking these questions in the 1990s... This book provides some answers. They are what I believe to be the RIGHT answers to those crucial questions... There is room for diversity among Christians. We differ on some minor points of doctrine... These are crucial concerns, and this is what I believe about those concerns. Carry an open mind, and walk with me as we deal with them."
He notes, "The case for including the Apocrypha as holy Scripture completely breaks down when examined. The New Testament writers may allude to the Apocrypha, but they do not quote from it as holy Scripture or give the slightest hint that any of the books are inspired. (The only exception is Jude, who alludes to 'The Assumption of Moses' and quotes from the Book of Enoch---see Jude 9,14.)" (Pg. 43) Later, he states, "The letter of Jude, written by the brother of James, bears a strong resemblance to 2 Peter." (Pg. 123)
He explains, "I believe in a universal Flood and lean toward (though am not necessarily convinced by) the recent creationist view (that is, the earth is much younger than the 4.6 billion years that many scientists need in order to hold an evolutionary point of view). There are good Christian scholars, both scientific and biblical, who differ in perspective and argue for a local flood or an old earth or for a progression creationism. It must be understood clearly that there is room for a difference of opinion here, and I do not consider either view the 'Christian' view. Both are viable options." (Pg. 128)
He argues, "The finds in 1974 by Donald Johanson ('Lucy' and her thirteen companions) are a subclass of Australopithecus... If we classify those as extinct apes instead of primitive humans, Johanson's finds present no problem to creationists. The only real connection between Australopithecus and human beings is the tools found in the vicinity of the fossils. The evolutionists assume, without evidence, that Australopithecus used the tools. Creationists are just as justified in assuming that the tools belonged to humans who hunted Australopithecus." (Pg. 196)
He contends, "Catastrophism is a strong explanation for most of the fossil records, the strata, and the types of rock. Certainly some catastrophism took place, according to the Bible, during the Flood... This scenario does not account for everything we find in the geological record. For instance, in the Gulf of Mexico one finds twenty-five thousand feet of strata in many, many layers. Some seem to have been formed by evaporation and precipitation, some from shells and bones that accumulated on the ocean floor, and some by sedimentation. How can all this be explained by the cataclysm of the Flood? And yet the Flood may be a better explanation for much of the world's strata than is uniformitarianism." (Pg. 209-210)
He summarizes about eschatology, "Looking at the three major schools of thought from the perspective of history, the most commonly held view is the view of premillennialism. This seems to be the view of the New Testament writers, who expected the return of Christ in their day. The next most commonly held view is the view of amillennialism... Numerically speaking, it is the view that is most popularly held among Christendom... In recent days, however, an offshoot of postmillennialism has become popular in some circles. While divergent views about the end times stem from divergent practices in the interpretation of the Scriptures, each person holds his view for reasons sufficient for himself... Differences of opinion concerning future events are not worth severing fellowship between believers." (Pg. 471-472)
This is an interesting, yet also somewhat unsatisfying book---mostly because of Josh's reluctance to come down strongly on "one side or the other." It provides very helpful insight into his own beliefs, and his reasons for them, however.
Joslin "Josh" McDowell (born 1939) is a Christian author best known for his many works of apologetics; he has been affiliated with Campus Crusade for Christ (now "Cru") since 1964. His many books include 'Evidence that Demands a Verdict,' 'More Evidence That Demands a Verdict,' 'Daniel in the critics' den,' 'More Than a Carpenter,' 'The Islam Debate,' 'The Resurrection Factor,' 'Jesus: A Biblical Defense of His Deity,' 'He Walked Among Us,' etc. His life story was told in Joe Musser's book 'Josh: Excitement of the Unexpected' and also in the DVD 'Undaunted.'
The "Five Questions" addressed in this 1991 book are, "1. Is the Bible completely reliable? 2. What should I believe about evolution? 3. Is Israel God's chosen people? 4. Is the church necessary today? 5. Are we living in the End Times?" He wrote in the Preface, "People are asking these questions in the 1990s... This book provides some answers. They are what I believe to be the RIGHT answers to those crucial questions... There is room for diversity among Christians. We differ on some minor points of doctrine... These are crucial concerns, and this is what I believe about those concerns. Carry an open mind, and walk with me as we deal with them."
He notes, "The case for including the Apocrypha as holy Scripture completely breaks down when examined. The New Testament writers may allude to the Apocrypha, but they do not quote from it as holy Scripture or give the slightest hint that any of the books are inspired. (The only exception is Jude, who alludes to 'The Assumption of Moses' and quotes from the Book of Enoch---see Jude 9,14.)" (Pg. 43) Later, he states, "The letter of Jude, written by the brother of James, bears a strong resemblance to 2 Peter." (Pg. 123)
He explains, "I believe in a universal Flood and lean toward (though am not necessarily convinced by) the recent creationist view (that is, the earth is much younger than the 4.6 billion years that many scientists need in order to hold an evolutionary point of view). There are good Christian scholars, both scientific and biblical, who differ in perspective and argue for a local flood or an old earth or for a progression creationism. It must be understood clearly that there is room for a difference of opinion here, and I do not consider either view the 'Christian' view. Both are viable options." (Pg. 128)
He argues, "The finds in 1974 by Donald Johanson ('Lucy' and her thirteen companions) are a subclass of Australopithecus... If we classify those as extinct apes instead of primitive humans, Johanson's finds present no problem to creationists. The only real connection between Australopithecus and human beings is the tools found in the vicinity of the fossils. The evolutionists assume, without evidence, that Australopithecus used the tools. Creationists are just as justified in assuming that the tools belonged to humans who hunted Australopithecus." (Pg. 196)
He contends, "Catastrophism is a strong explanation for most of the fossil records, the strata, and the types of rock. Certainly some catastrophism took place, according to the Bible, during the Flood... This scenario does not account for everything we find in the geological record. For instance, in the Gulf of Mexico one finds twenty-five thousand feet of strata in many, many layers. Some seem to have been formed by evaporation and precipitation, some from shells and bones that accumulated on the ocean floor, and some by sedimentation. How can all this be explained by the cataclysm of the Flood? And yet the Flood may be a better explanation for much of the world's strata than is uniformitarianism." (Pg. 209-210)
He summarizes about eschatology, "Looking at the three major schools of thought from the perspective of history, the most commonly held view is the view of premillennialism. This seems to be the view of the New Testament writers, who expected the return of Christ in their day. The next most commonly held view is the view of amillennialism... Numerically speaking, it is the view that is most popularly held among Christendom... In recent days, however, an offshoot of postmillennialism has become popular in some circles. While divergent views about the end times stem from divergent practices in the interpretation of the Scriptures, each person holds his view for reasons sufficient for himself... Differences of opinion concerning future events are not worth severing fellowship between believers." (Pg. 471-472)
This is an interesting, yet also somewhat unsatisfying book---mostly because of Josh's reluctance to come down strongly on "one side or the other." It provides very helpful insight into his own beliefs, and his reasons for them, however.
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