Customer Reviews

Know What You Believe: A Practical Discussion of the Fundamentals of the Christian Faith

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I first encountered Paul Little's "Know What You Believe" and "Know Why You Believe" about 12-13 years ago. Over the years, I have read many tomes of systematic theology, dogmatics, etc. In fact, I'd thought that I long "out-grew" these "Beginner" books on the Christian faith. Then my wife bought a new edition that contains both books and I read them through again over the weekend. I was pleasantly surprised by the masterful simplicity in Little's presentation of the core truths of Christianity in such a clear, intelligent manner; yet without trivialising the whole thing with needlessly casual anecdotes or the feeling like he's "talking down to you". As a young Christian, I got the feeling that these books were simple apologetics that one used for evangelism and discipleship. On rereading them this round, I found them to be very scholarly works but presented in a very readable format (and believe me, that's quite a feat!). For me on a personal level, it's a return to the basics, the core truths - the vital stuff that makes Christianity so amazing and meaningful in the first place.

These two books are modern Christian classics and should be on every Christian's bookshelf. Buy a dozen today and start rereading them and giving them out.

If you are just beginning as a Christian, this book will help you to get a firm foundation for your faith. It helps you with your Biblical study of your new life. If you are a more mature Christian, this book helps you keep the simplicity of the Christian faith in mind. When you speak with people about our Lord, have this book readily available. It will not do the speaking for you, but will help you to express what the Bible says if you happen to need some help. And I have needed this type of help from time to time. If you are wanting to know what Christianity is about and don't want to go through the Bible yet or talk with a Christian, this book will help you to see what it is that we believe.

I had a hard time putting this book down. I keep saying that I would put it down after I finish "just this one part". It helped me to get back to the basics of my belief. I was able to read the Bible with fresh eyes again. A wonderful book to read and great resource to have. I expect that I will need to buy several copies between giving them out and wearing mine out.

I would recommend this book to anyone.

Paul Little does an excellent job explaining the basic beliefs of Christianity. He focuses on telling what the Bible says, not what other people say. This is the perfect book for new believers, but it is also excellent at reaffirming the beliefs of more mature Christians.

Paul Little's book, KNOW WHAT YOU BELIEVE, provides an apologetic of the Christian faith in simple, yet elegant terms. Little provided a straight forward approach to understanding the faith. It is an excellent resource for learning about the Christian faith and can be used as an evangelism tool - either through a pre-Christian reading it, or by providing a Chrsitian the skills to share the faith.

This book will enable the reader to draw near to God, as he or she learns about our Father, the glorious Lord Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. A wonderful experience!

I think an alternative title could be "Know Why You SHOULD Believe." This is a great book for not only the Christian but anyone wanting to know why they should believe the incredible claims of Christianity. The Author does an excellent job of explaining the faith in a reasonable manner and does it in an easy-to-read format. This is the best book I have found to give to the "seeker" of Truth!

The front cover description by Billy Graham of this book is amazingly accurate - "Scholarly, articulate, simple." Paul Little really does an amazing job of addressing the core essentials of the faith in less than 150 pages - from the nature of God, to the nature of man, from the importance of Christ's substitutionary death on the cross to His imminent return for His Bride, the Church. I especially liked the way that Little handed controversial issues, by giving an adequate description of both sides without seeking to interject his own opinions on several matters.

I also liked the flow of the book, beginning with the essential element of Scripture from which God has revealed Himself to man in a special manner to a chapter on the nature of God Himself. From there, Little explores the historical person of Jesus Christ and the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, upon which the entirety of Christianity rests. Once the concept of God's creation and the god-head itself are addressed, Little turns to the problem with the world - sin and the separation of man from his designed status as a child of God. Little then follows that with the chapter on the Holy Spirit, introducing the reader to the remainder of the Trinity and the special work of the Holy Spirit to convict man of his sin. Following this, Little turns to the good news of salvation and the redemption of man through the blood sacrifice of Christ. The remaining three chapters deal with other spiritual issues facing believers, including angels, Satan and demons, the role of the Church in the life of the believer, and the fundamentals of eschatology, or the "things to come" as Little phrases it.

The book is simply profound in its ability to cover such a wide gamut of ideas and principles giving just enough to address the issue without either boring the reader or leaving the reader without a proper understanding. A great book to suggest to every believer, regardless of where they are on their spiritual journey.

Know What You Believe is an excellent synopsis of the fundamentals of the Christian faith. Paul E. Little proceeds with commendable logic by covering a low-level defense of the Bible, the properties of God and what sets Him apart from other gods, the nature and life of Christ, the significance of Christ's death on the cross, the relationship of man and sin, the work of the Holy Spirit, the implications and requirements of salvation, the biblical description of angels, demons, and Satan, the church universal and local, and a brief overview of the competing theories for the end times. If you are looking for a summary of all the elements of mere Christianity, this may be the book for you. If you are looking for the best scholarship has to offer on the nature of the Trinity, I recommend you look elsewhere.

Nevertheless, I do have one complaint against the book, and that is concerning the unfair treatment of Roman Catholocism. Although Know What You Believe will tend to be accepted by most mainline Protestant groups and some Roman Catholics, he does not give certain Catholic doctrines fair treatment, although he is quite willing to be fair to the Armenian/Calvinist debates. For instance, he denies the doctrines on Purgatory without giving at least giving a Catholic defense. It is fine to say that Purgatory is not a necessary element of Christian faith, but it would be better to leave it out of the book entirely than to set it and other Roman doctrines as straw man arguments and proceed to knock them down.

Despite this problem, I have found Paul E. Little's summary of the faith very useful in completing a sometimes fragmentary knowledge of Christian faith and ideas as they are taken from Scripture. This book is often useful even to long-term knowledgeable Christians as a reaffirmation of the faith, and sometimes an eye-opener to smaller details one might not have thought of before, such as the relationship between the body, spirit, and soul. The competing theories of the end times, although not comprehensive, is laid out in a very clear and readable format, allowing for even a more knowledgeable Christian to benefit from Little's style.

A great book for all Christian's especially for those who have any doubt about their salvation or those who cannot answer the question " What exactly do I believe?" The book on tape read by the author is a wonderful classroom tool and study guide. Will prepare all to answer the questions and doubts of unbelievers.

A great first book to read on the beliefs of born-again Christians. Using the New International Version, Mr. Little shows where these beliefs are found in the Bible. He avoids beliefs distinctive to any particular Church or denomination, the book is geared to ALL believers.

This is a great book for all types of study environments. It is good for small groups with study questions for each chapter. It is also great for personal study of the basic tenants of Christianity. In easy to understand language, Paul Little covers the foundational aspects of the Christian faith. I currently use this book in the development of new leaders in our church.