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If I Were God, I'd Make Myself Clearer: Searching for Clarity in a World Full of Claims
Written from a Christian perspective, this books struggles honestly with a dilemma facing 'believers' and 'unbelievers' With so many religions on offer, can one of them be considered true? Or are they different paths up the same spiritual mountain? And how can any one person sort their way through the maze of claims?
84 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2003
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90 people want to read
About the author
John Dickson
95 books128 followersJohn focuses on the big ideas that have shaped our world.
His journey is an eclectic one. Starting out as a singer-songwriter, he now works as a writer, speaker, historian of religion (focusing on early Christianity and Judaism), media presenter, Anglican minister, and director of a multi-media think tank.
With an honours degree in theology from Moore Theological College Sydney, and a PhD in history from Macquarie University, John is also an Honorary Fellow of the Department of Ancient History (Macquarie), and teaches a course on the Historical Jesus at the University of Sydney (Department of Hebrew, Biblical and Jewish Studies) .
John is a founding director of the Centre for Public Christianity(CPX), an independent research and media company promoting informed discussion about social, ethical and religious issues in modern life.
His book “The Christ Files: How Historians Know what they Know about Jesus” was made into a four-part documentary which aired nationally on Channel 7 in 2008. Now a best-selling DVD, it also won the 2008 Pilgrim Media award (see www.thechristfiles.com.au). His more recent Life of Jesus also aired on Channel 7 in 2009 (see www.lifeofjesus.tv).
His journey is an eclectic one. Starting out as a singer-songwriter, he now works as a writer, speaker, historian of religion (focusing on early Christianity and Judaism), media presenter, Anglican minister, and director of a multi-media think tank.
With an honours degree in theology from Moore Theological College Sydney, and a PhD in history from Macquarie University, John is also an Honorary Fellow of the Department of Ancient History (Macquarie), and teaches a course on the Historical Jesus at the University of Sydney (Department of Hebrew, Biblical and Jewish Studies) .
John is a founding director of the Centre for Public Christianity(CPX), an independent research and media company promoting informed discussion about social, ethical and religious issues in modern life.
His book “The Christ Files: How Historians Know what they Know about Jesus” was made into a four-part documentary which aired nationally on Channel 7 in 2008. Now a best-selling DVD, it also won the 2008 Pilgrim Media award (see www.thechristfiles.com.au). His more recent Life of Jesus also aired on Channel 7 in 2009 (see www.lifeofjesus.tv).
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 17, 2025
an accessible and thought provoking response to one of the most essential questions that has tantalised humankind throughout history.
“no matter how educated, materialistic or secular our society becomes, questions of spirituality do not just go away. we appear to be incurably inquisitive about realities deeper than our investments, our waistlines, our holidays...
to ignore the question, then, or to relate it to the level of the obscure is to stand out against the mainstream of human thought.”
but if there really is something of the divine out there,
“surely God wouldn’t leave people with nothing but a bewildering variety of religious voices? if i were God, i would make myself clearer!”
john dickson writes with clarity and remains objective and respectful in his examination of the world’s religions. if you are looking to study the condensed facts in a digestible way this is your book. it is not designed to convert its reader to christianity, but rather outline the alleged “signpost” to God’s existence: the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ- a subject you might decide to be worthy of further investigation.
“no matter how educated, materialistic or secular our society becomes, questions of spirituality do not just go away. we appear to be incurably inquisitive about realities deeper than our investments, our waistlines, our holidays...
to ignore the question, then, or to relate it to the level of the obscure is to stand out against the mainstream of human thought.”
but if there really is something of the divine out there,
“surely God wouldn’t leave people with nothing but a bewildering variety of religious voices? if i were God, i would make myself clearer!”
john dickson writes with clarity and remains objective and respectful in his examination of the world’s religions. if you are looking to study the condensed facts in a digestible way this is your book. it is not designed to convert its reader to christianity, but rather outline the alleged “signpost” to God’s existence: the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ- a subject you might decide to be worthy of further investigation.
December 19, 2022
This title caught my eye, and I must have skipped the synopsis because it ended up being completely different than I expected lol. I really enjoyed it though. It’s a short book that seeks to illustrate the verifiable nature of Christianity, by essentially asking “if God were real, wouldn’t he make himself clearer to us?”
Notes
• In seeking to affirm all religious perspectives, we actually honour none of them. They all believe in love and goodness but they differ on matters of God, creation, heaven, hell, sin and salvation. It is best to acknowledge the real differences among those beliefs, while generously committing to respect, honour, and value the person who holds them.
Verifiability
• Unverifiable does not mean untrue, it simply means that a thing cannot be tested, thereby sheltering it from critics. Likewise, verifiable does not mean true. It means it is open to scientific or historical scrutiny. So if the Creator were interested in our devotion, and there is a spiritual reality to which we are all invited, surely claims about that reality would be of a verifiable nature.
How is Christianity different?
Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was an event of history, vulnerable to the examination of critics, including the names of places, titles, and architectural details.
• example: For centuries, historians tried to find the Pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed a paralyzed man. This site was dug up in 1888, with architectural details as described in John 5.
• example: The Dead Sea Scrolls found in 1947 clarify and confirm the picture of ancient Judaism found in the New Testament.
The quality of evidence
• language:The original NT language, Koine Greek, is simple and widely understood today, meaning there is confidence that English translations of the text are accurate renderings of the original.
• age: For ancient writings, scholars never expect to find the original, but rather manuscript copies that are as closely dated as possible. The oldest available copy of Plato’s works was written in 895 AD, a thousand years after it was first written. By comparison, the earliest copies of the Gospels were written in 200 AD, only a century after they were first written in 60-80 AD. Jesus died in 33 AD, so 500 witnesses would have still been alive.
• volume: For the writings of Plato, Aristotle and Julius Caesar, we possess only a handful of separate manuscripts. For the Gospels alone, we possess 2000 separate copies.
• stability: We can reference 200 AD manuscripts to confidently see that what was originally penned had been carefully preserved over the centuries.
Other sources:
Key moments in Jesus’ life have been confirmed by non-Christian authors of the period. Together, they piece together when Jesus lived, where he lived, his mother’s name, his irregular conception, and that he was a teacher, did things thought to be supernatural, was given the title Messiah, was executed, and was claimed to have risen from death.
The resurrection:
God affirms the Christian tradition by offering the world a revelation of himself in the person of Jesus, and the resurrection itself is the divine sign post. Lines of verification for this event include
• the 500 witnesses who claimed to have seen the risen Jesus
• the empty tomb confirmed by Jewish leadership
• the fact that the first witnesses were women. In this period, a woman’s testimony carried little weight. If one were making up a story for people to believe, they would not include that detail unless it happened to be true.
• the slight divergence in the various witness accounts. Historians look for general agreement but also small differences that tell you the witnesses have not copied each other’s stories.
• the transformation of Jesus’ followers. Hundreds of nobodies held firm to their testimony even in the face of their own death.
Notes
• In seeking to affirm all religious perspectives, we actually honour none of them. They all believe in love and goodness but they differ on matters of God, creation, heaven, hell, sin and salvation. It is best to acknowledge the real differences among those beliefs, while generously committing to respect, honour, and value the person who holds them.
Verifiability
• Unverifiable does not mean untrue, it simply means that a thing cannot be tested, thereby sheltering it from critics. Likewise, verifiable does not mean true. It means it is open to scientific or historical scrutiny. So if the Creator were interested in our devotion, and there is a spiritual reality to which we are all invited, surely claims about that reality would be of a verifiable nature.
How is Christianity different?
Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was an event of history, vulnerable to the examination of critics, including the names of places, titles, and architectural details.
• example: For centuries, historians tried to find the Pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed a paralyzed man. This site was dug up in 1888, with architectural details as described in John 5.
• example: The Dead Sea Scrolls found in 1947 clarify and confirm the picture of ancient Judaism found in the New Testament.
The quality of evidence
• language:The original NT language, Koine Greek, is simple and widely understood today, meaning there is confidence that English translations of the text are accurate renderings of the original.
• age: For ancient writings, scholars never expect to find the original, but rather manuscript copies that are as closely dated as possible. The oldest available copy of Plato’s works was written in 895 AD, a thousand years after it was first written. By comparison, the earliest copies of the Gospels were written in 200 AD, only a century after they were first written in 60-80 AD. Jesus died in 33 AD, so 500 witnesses would have still been alive.
• volume: For the writings of Plato, Aristotle and Julius Caesar, we possess only a handful of separate manuscripts. For the Gospels alone, we possess 2000 separate copies.
• stability: We can reference 200 AD manuscripts to confidently see that what was originally penned had been carefully preserved over the centuries.
Other sources:
Key moments in Jesus’ life have been confirmed by non-Christian authors of the period. Together, they piece together when Jesus lived, where he lived, his mother’s name, his irregular conception, and that he was a teacher, did things thought to be supernatural, was given the title Messiah, was executed, and was claimed to have risen from death.
The resurrection:
God affirms the Christian tradition by offering the world a revelation of himself in the person of Jesus, and the resurrection itself is the divine sign post. Lines of verification for this event include
• the 500 witnesses who claimed to have seen the risen Jesus
• the empty tomb confirmed by Jewish leadership
• the fact that the first witnesses were women. In this period, a woman’s testimony carried little weight. If one were making up a story for people to believe, they would not include that detail unless it happened to be true.
• the slight divergence in the various witness accounts. Historians look for general agreement but also small differences that tell you the witnesses have not copied each other’s stories.
• the transformation of Jesus’ followers. Hundreds of nobodies held firm to their testimony even in the face of their own death.
June 2, 2008
I enjoyed the brevity of this book. The author compares Christianity to other religions, showing that Buddhism, Islam, and Confucianism can't be "verified" because they rely on the dreams or visions of the religion's founder. He then compares the three religions which he believes can be verified by checking historical claims: Mormonism, Judaism, and Christianity and concludes that Christianity is the most "verifiable" by investigating its claims.
The book probably won't win the reader over to Christianty but it accomplishes its task of showing that Christianity's claims appear to be true and merit further investigation.
The book probably won't win the reader over to Christianty but it accomplishes its task of showing that Christianity's claims appear to be true and merit further investigation.
May 13, 2025
A nice, snappy look into thoughts about how to consider and assess spiritual revelation.
May 10, 2020
"If I were God, I'd make myself clearer" is written by John Dickson, and faces the question about why God doesn't reveal himself more, and with so many religions to offer, can one of them be considered true? It probes the issue that all faiths are of equal value, and shows that such thinking is neither logical nor fair to the claims of those faiths. The book talks about which religions can be more thoroughly examined because they make claims which can be checked and verified, and therefore offer a degree of confidence in their claims.
- What I liked
- I really liked Chapter 3's point on the language of "tolerance" and "acceptance", and what they really mean. I've always had a gripe with the words being used in situations where they just don't apply, and chapter 3 really brought my thoughts together on this. Some quotes I loved from this chapter:
> Sometimes, in seeking to affirm all religious perspectives, we actually honour none of them
> For a Muslim, then, modern-day 'tolerance' would mean willingness to accept as valid the Buddhist teaching that, contrary to the koran, human beings experience many lives, not just one.
> Our common insistence upon mere "agreement" is intellectually suspect and culturally insensitive. Moreover, it tends to mute healthy discussion and debate among the faiths.
> True Tolerance, on the other hand, is both intellectually rigorous and culturally sensitive, in that it acknowledges the real differences among the faiths.
I think this is absolute gold, and 100% accurate.
- I liked the tone of this book, I felt it was very easy to read, it was logical and simple. When reading other books on similar topics, I often get very distracted and don't take much in, due to the language used and the tone, however, this book was not like that at all. I read it in 2 days, and in 2 sittings, and could have easily read it all at once.
- What I disliked
- This book is short, and obviously isn't trying to answer everything about Christianity, but, that being said, I just felt that the book didn't cover much ground, because there were only really 5 points. The human need for religion (chapter 1 & 2), the misleading language of "tolerance and "acceptance" (chapter 3), verifying different religious claims (chapter 4), and the historicity of the gospels (chapter 5). All of these seem to be quite basic ideas, or complex ideas explained in very little detail. Chapters 1-4 are all very basic concepts, and chapter 5 is incredibly complex, but a small book can't go in much detail.
- Expanding on my last point, I felt the book doesn't really answer the question. I think it only really answers the question about other religions, and about the language of tolerance. I thought the book was going to focus on why God doesn't make his presence clearly known where people disbelieve in him, and why the evidence isn't more obvious. Instead, the book focused on the different religions, and tolerance, not really linked with the title of the book. I think the book is written with the intent to answer the question for people who are non-religious, rather than to purely for Christians wanting to know what the Bible says on the matter.
I would recommend this to anyone with questions about God revealing himself, questions about different religions, and general questions about Christianity.
- What I liked
- I really liked Chapter 3's point on the language of "tolerance" and "acceptance", and what they really mean. I've always had a gripe with the words being used in situations where they just don't apply, and chapter 3 really brought my thoughts together on this. Some quotes I loved from this chapter:
> Sometimes, in seeking to affirm all religious perspectives, we actually honour none of them
> For a Muslim, then, modern-day 'tolerance' would mean willingness to accept as valid the Buddhist teaching that, contrary to the koran, human beings experience many lives, not just one.
> Our common insistence upon mere "agreement" is intellectually suspect and culturally insensitive. Moreover, it tends to mute healthy discussion and debate among the faiths.
> True Tolerance, on the other hand, is both intellectually rigorous and culturally sensitive, in that it acknowledges the real differences among the faiths.
I think this is absolute gold, and 100% accurate.
- I liked the tone of this book, I felt it was very easy to read, it was logical and simple. When reading other books on similar topics, I often get very distracted and don't take much in, due to the language used and the tone, however, this book was not like that at all. I read it in 2 days, and in 2 sittings, and could have easily read it all at once.
- What I disliked
- This book is short, and obviously isn't trying to answer everything about Christianity, but, that being said, I just felt that the book didn't cover much ground, because there were only really 5 points. The human need for religion (chapter 1 & 2), the misleading language of "tolerance and "acceptance" (chapter 3), verifying different religious claims (chapter 4), and the historicity of the gospels (chapter 5). All of these seem to be quite basic ideas, or complex ideas explained in very little detail. Chapters 1-4 are all very basic concepts, and chapter 5 is incredibly complex, but a small book can't go in much detail.
- Expanding on my last point, I felt the book doesn't really answer the question. I think it only really answers the question about other religions, and about the language of tolerance. I thought the book was going to focus on why God doesn't make his presence clearly known where people disbelieve in him, and why the evidence isn't more obvious. Instead, the book focused on the different religions, and tolerance, not really linked with the title of the book. I think the book is written with the intent to answer the question for people who are non-religious, rather than to purely for Christians wanting to know what the Bible says on the matter.
I would recommend this to anyone with questions about God revealing himself, questions about different religions, and general questions about Christianity.
July 8, 2023
This is a great research book that offers some of the evidences of Christian claims. In one way, it helps me to get to know more historical facts that should erase one's doubts about the veracity of the Bible.
In fact, God already made Himself clearer.
Quotes:
The openness of Christianity to rigorous scrutiny is, in my opinion, one of the most exciting things about it. I want a faith that can be tested.
At its heart, Christianity concerns the public, verifiable life story of the man Jesus, the man who claimed personally to reveal God and of whom God has ‘given assurance’, to use Paul’s words, by raising him from the dead.
God has personally revealed himself (given a photo, if you like) through the Jewish Messiah, Jesus. This man—so the claim goes—is the appointed herald, judge and saviour not just of Jews but of all the peoples of the world. God has given ‘assurance’ of this by raising this man from the dead—a dramatic, public and verifiable event of ancient history, and one which has shaped the world immeasurably
In fact, God already made Himself clearer.
Quotes:
The openness of Christianity to rigorous scrutiny is, in my opinion, one of the most exciting things about it. I want a faith that can be tested.
At its heart, Christianity concerns the public, verifiable life story of the man Jesus, the man who claimed personally to reveal God and of whom God has ‘given assurance’, to use Paul’s words, by raising him from the dead.
God has personally revealed himself (given a photo, if you like) through the Jewish Messiah, Jesus. This man—so the claim goes—is the appointed herald, judge and saviour not just of Jews but of all the peoples of the world. God has given ‘assurance’ of this by raising this man from the dead—a dramatic, public and verifiable event of ancient history, and one which has shaped the world immeasurably
February 16, 2025
A short sharp read that is really good. Took me 1 hour. It is aimed at someone who wants to know a bit more about religion and how to see which one is truthful.
He discusses now religion is a normal part of humanity yet has been slowly removed from relationships and conversations.
He then goes on to see which claims of Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Mormonism etc is verifiable. I think he does a good job here and it seems like an Easy way discuss this with people.
He finishes with verifiable lines of evidence of Jesus claims of Divinity, death and resurrection.
He did t talk about divine hiddeness which I thought the book was about.
If you liked this you will like more than a carpenter by Josh Macdowell, case for faith by Lee strobel and cold case Christianity by j warner Wallace.
He discusses now religion is a normal part of humanity yet has been slowly removed from relationships and conversations.
He then goes on to see which claims of Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Mormonism etc is verifiable. I think he does a good job here and it seems like an Easy way discuss this with people.
He finishes with verifiable lines of evidence of Jesus claims of Divinity, death and resurrection.
He did t talk about divine hiddeness which I thought the book was about.
If you liked this you will like more than a carpenter by Josh Macdowell, case for faith by Lee strobel and cold case Christianity by j warner Wallace.
March 28, 2021
This book is very short, not much longer than reading a web article. It is quite informative - Dickson explains the ideology of pluralism in a clear way that points out the illogical nature of it with kindness.
Especially this book points out Christianity has tangible proof but no other religions do. You probably won’t enjoy this unless you are a Christian.
Especially this book points out Christianity has tangible proof but no other religions do. You probably won’t enjoy this unless you are a Christian.
October 11, 2018
Very clear and engaging.
July 1, 2023
Short and very readable - helps you see the real issue and leaves you options for further study
April 11, 2025
2.75 stars.
February 15, 2012
This short book has a clear and limited aim. It's not to present the essence of Christian faith. Nor to disprove other beliefs.
Instead, its aim is to show that the nature of Christianity is that it is open to objective enquiry. Such enquiry is not the whole of Christianity, nor sufficient to make one convert. Yet the openness flows directly from the historical and objective nature of the claims: that the real Jesus really lived, died and rose again.
The book is also good in pointing out the impossibility of all faiths being equally true, a prevalent modern mis-application of 'tolerance'. (All could be equally untrue, of course.)
I think this book is good as a friendly give-away and conversation-starter. In fact, I can already think of someone who might enjoy reading it. Time to buy a new copy...
Instead, its aim is to show that the nature of Christianity is that it is open to objective enquiry. Such enquiry is not the whole of Christianity, nor sufficient to make one convert. Yet the openness flows directly from the historical and objective nature of the claims: that the real Jesus really lived, died and rose again.
The book is also good in pointing out the impossibility of all faiths being equally true, a prevalent modern mis-application of 'tolerance'. (All could be equally untrue, of course.)
I think this book is good as a friendly give-away and conversation-starter. In fact, I can already think of someone who might enjoy reading it. Time to buy a new copy...
March 26, 2014
Accessible and insightful as a modest endeavour to 'illustrate the broadly verifiable nature of Christianity... by outlining the main lines of verification open to the interested enquirer'
Although true to the disclaimer (not a definitive work), worth reading nonetheless!
Although true to the disclaimer (not a definitive work), worth reading nonetheless!
November 17, 2015
I don't think I could possibly say it better than Tracey has in her review of this same book. I agree wholeheartedly with her comments.
February 9, 2018
definitely a must read.
Non-biased perspectives
Non-biased perspectives
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews