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Making Sense of God: An Invitation to the Skeptical Hardcover – September 20, 2016

by Timothy Keller (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 1,495 ratings
See all formats and editions
We live in an age of skepticism. Our society places such faith in empirical reason, historical progress, and heartfelt emotion that it’s easy to wonder: Why should anyone believe in Christianity? What role can faith and religion play in our modern lives?

In this thoughtful and inspiring new book, pastor and New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller invites skeptics to consider that Christianity is more relevant now than ever. As human beings, we cannot live without meaning, satisfaction, freedom, identity, justice, and hope. Christianity provides us with unsurpassed resources to meet these needs. Written for both the ardent believer and the skeptic, Making Sense of God shines a light on the profound value and importance of Christianity in our lives.
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  1. Print length
    336 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Viking
  4. Publication date
    September 20, 2016
  5. Dimensions
    6.19 x 1.15 x 9.3 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0525954155
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0525954156
  8. See all details
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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
1,495 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book insightful and practical, providing an integrated worldview. They describe it as a great read for intelligent readers. The writing quality is described as good and creative. Readers appreciate the author's compassion and genuine care for others. The content quality is praised, with copious footnotes and references. However, opinions differ on how easy it is to understand the logic and evidence presented.

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Thought provokingReadabilityWriting qualityPresentationCompassionContent qualityEase of understanding
116 customers mention "Thought provoking"116 positive0 negative

Customers find the book insightful and practical. It explores the formation of self, presenting alternative explanations before demonstrating why Christianity is better. The author references great scholars and lays out the material in a clear, concise way. Readers describe themselves as rational and logical thinkers who appreciate the well-researched and accessible book.

"...In Part Three, Christianity Makes Sense, Keller shows that Christianity offers “a meaning that suffering cannot remove, a satisfaction not based on..." Read more

"...The middle part is by far the largest and most comprehensive, dealing with meaning, satisfaction, freedom, self, identity, hope, morals, and justice...." Read more

"...Keller takes eight chapters to show how Christianity presents us with an integrated worldview, which gives meaning that suffering can’t take away,..." Read more

"Tim Keller continues his run of well-researched and readable books for the seeker with an inquiring mind with this “prequel” to his excellent book “..." Read more

98 customers mention "Readability"98 positive0 negative

Customers find the book accessible and readable. They say it's well-written for an educated reader, but a bright high schooler could manage it. They enjoy every chapter with logic, reason, and evidence. While it's not an easy read, they consider it worth the time to take notes and analyze.

"...This is an outstanding book." Read more

"...Agreement: This is the absolute best book I have read regarding the holes in the modern and postmodern worldview and how Christianity addresses them...." Read more

"Tim Keller continues his run of well-researched and readable books for the seeker with an inquiring mind with this “prequel” to his excellent book “..." Read more

"...The chapter on The Problem of Morals is worth the price of the book. In it he eviscerates the secular arguments for morality...." Read more

28 customers mention "Writing quality"21 positive7 negative

Customers find the book's writing quality good and creative. They say the author makes the Bible come alive and explains events well. The author is a great writer and has written several books, including The Reason for God.

"...Keller, Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, is a prolific writer and influential leader in the evangelical world...." Read more

"...He is the author of several books, including The Reason for God. Making Sense of God is a prequel to The Reason for God...." Read more

"...were easy to understand, but similarly, there are chapters that were difficult to understand; these chapters challenged my thinking about God and..." Read more

"...Whatever else one can argue about Keller, he’s a fantastic writer. As to the actual content of this work I have three review comments...." Read more

14 customers mention "Presentation"14 positive0 negative

Customers find the book well-presented and detailed. They appreciate the author's writing style, helpful illustrations, and quotes. The material is arranged clearly and concisely, making the points clear.

"...The Epilogue offers an illustration that vividly demonstrates how God makes sense. This is an outstanding book." Read more

"...He references great scholars, lays out his material in a very clear and concise manner (again, great writing), and engages many current issues in a..." Read more

"...It is another Keller masterpiece and is a formidable response to “secular religion”." Read more

"Pastor Tim Keller magnificently and thoughtfully diagnoses and engages the secularist, materialist reductionism of our generation, particularly..." Read more

10 customers mention "Compassion"10 positive0 negative

Customers value the author's pastoral compassion and genuine care for others. They appreciate his calm way of revealing the truth about Jesus and God's love. The book offers meaning beyond suffering and self-giving love. It provides biblical insights and information on historical evidence about Jesus' life and death.

"...Christianity Makes Sense, Keller shows that Christianity offers “a meaning that suffering cannot remove, a satisfaction not based on circumstances,..." Read more

"...to a greater understanding of the problems and a greater appreciation to how Jesus solves them...." Read more

"...can’t take away, satisfaction not based on circumstances, a life of self-giving love, an identity that doesn’t crush the individual or cause her to..." Read more

"...is a rare combination of careful scholarship combined with pastoral compassion, and in this book, he exemplifies these qualities...." Read more

4 customers mention "Content quality"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's content quality. They find it has useful references, footnotes, and endnotes. The book covers eight meaty chapters.

"...Part Two, Religion is More than You Think It Is, covers eight meaty chapters...." Read more

"...Assertions are backed up with extensive quotes, references, and 67 pages of notes...." Read more

"...It does offer copious footnotes and is a profound apologetic resource for the Christian faith. But it is so much more...." Read more

"...Copious endnotes as expected. Highly recommend to skeptics, seekers, and Christians alike." Read more

11 customers mention "Ease of understanding"7 positive4 negative

Customers have different views on the book's understanding. Some find the logic easy to follow and understand, making it accessible and interesting. Others find the content challenging and too cerebral for casual readers.

"...There are sections in the book that were easy to understand, but similarly, there are chapters that were difficult to understand; these chapters..." Read more

"...However, I had a hard time understanding and following this book...." Read more

"...I find his logic easy to follow and understand. I grew up in a secular household and he addresses many of the assumptions I was taught by my parents...." Read more

"Very thought provoking and challenging. Without preaching, Tim Keller invites you to be honest with yourself...." Read more

Compelling
5 out of 5 stars
Compelling
Keller achieves something in this book that many apologetic works struggle to accomplish—it’s one you can confidently recommend to a skeptic. He approaches opposing viewpoints with great respect, thoughtfully presenting alternative explanations before demonstrating why Christianity offers the most reasonable conclusion. I highly recommend it to believer and skeptic!
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Dottie Parish
    5.0 out of 5 stars This is an outstanding book!
    Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Making Sense of God is an excellent exploration and comparison of the beliefs of the secular culture versus faith in God. Timothy Keller invites skeptics to read and follow his logic. Keller has thoroughly researched the in and outs of philosophy, history and religion as it applies to faith and he carefully explains the reasons we can make sense of God. He suggests that we can’t live without meaning, satisfaction, freedom, identity, hope and justice.

    Part One of the book is titled Why Does Anyone Need Religion? Many skeptics believe religion will eventually go away. Keller cites many facts to show the opposite is true; religion is growing. Skeptics also believe religion is based on faith and secularism is based on evidence. Keller shows that both faith and secularism are based on faith as well as evidence.

    Part Two, Religion is More than You Think It Is, covers eight meaty chapters. In Chapter Six, The Problem of Self, I particularly liked his comparison of an Anglo-Saxon warrior in Britain in AD 800 who examines his heart and sees two strong inner impulses or feelings. One is aggression which fits his culture so he says “That’s me.” The other impulse he sees in himself is same sex attraction. He suppresses that and says “That’s not me.” Keller compares this to a man today walking around New York who has the same two inward impulses. Sensing an impulse to aggression he says, “This is not me.” Sensing same sex desire he says “That’s me.” Keller shows that identity is not just an expression of inward desires and feelings. We use a set of beliefs and values to sort through and decide what we will incorporate into our identity. “Identity is determined not by our feelings and desires but rather by our beliefs about our varied, contradictory, changing feelings and desires.” Pg127

    In Part Three, Christianity Makes Sense, Keller shows that Christianity offers “a meaning that suffering cannot remove, a satisfaction not based on circumstances, a freedom that does not hurt but rather enhances love, an identity that does not crush you or exclude others, a moral compass that does not turn you into an oppressor, and a hope that can face anything, even death.” Pg 216 This section includes information on the historical evidence about Jesus, his life, death and resurrection. The qualities of Jesus and his claims are detailed beautifully. The Epilogue offers an illustration that vividly demonstrates how God makes sense.

    This is an outstanding book.
    18 people found this helpful
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  • S. Grotzke
    5.0 out of 5 stars Top Shelf Book
    Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Point: Every single individual lives a life based on a complex tangle of “experiences, faith, reasoning, and intuition.” Although the materialist or secularist can claim that belief in a God outside of space and time is unreasonable, that position is only tenable if the presupposition “God cannot exist” is there prior.

    Path: In three main parts, Keller patiently and systematically guides the reader through the reasonability of faith in God, and not just any God, but the God of the Bible. Those parts are titled “Why does anyone need religion?”; “Religion is more than you think it is”; and “Christianity makes sense”. The middle part is by far the largest and most comprehensive, dealing with meaning, satisfaction, freedom, self, identity, hope, morals, and justice. His purpose is not to give a definitive argument for God, but demonstrate that arguments against a God are unfounded and fail repeatedly.

    Sources: Keller does his normal deep digging and provides the reader with a lifetime of supplementary reading ranging from early church fathers to reformers, philosophers to militant atheists.

    Agreement: This is the absolute best book I have read regarding the holes in the modern and postmodern worldview and how Christianity addresses them. After reading nearly every chapter I thought, “I just had this conversation last week!” This book both opened my eyes to a greater understanding of the problems and a greater appreciation to how Jesus solves them.

    Personal App: The greatest compliment one of my unbelieving friends can pay me is “you understand and state my belief better than I could!” I feel as though this book helps me do this.

    Favorite Quote: There is no way to pick a favorite, but one which points to a strength of the book is this one: “The point is rather that science alone cannot serve as a guide for human society.”

    It would be worth another read and I would recommend it to someone who:

    Believes science has all the answers.
    Is struggling to believe in the God of the Bible while surrounded by “real life”.
    Wants to better understand their neighbor, coworker, or family member who thinks “faith” is a crutch.
    Anyone trying to engage the modern and postmodern man.

    Other books along this theme would be:
    Anderson, James N. What’s Your Worldview?: An Interactive Approach to Life’s Big Questions. Crossway Books, 2014.
    Craig, William Lane. On Guard: Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision. New. David C. Cook, 2010.
    Keller, Timothy J. The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. New York: Riverhead Books, 2009.
    Koukl, Gregory. Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions. Zondervan, 2009.
    Lewis, C. S. Mere Christianity. New York: HarperCollins, 2001.
    Strobel, Lee. The Case for the Real Jesus: A Journalist Investigates Current Attacks on the Identity of Christ. 1st ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009.
    13 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Ed Charlton
    5.0 out of 5 stars thought provoking read
    Reviewed in Canada on August 25, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Timothy Keller in his usual fashion brings in many different facets of life and thought to address issues of faith and challenge people to look again at what they believe about God, Jesus, and humanity.
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  • Cymru-Kat
    5.0 out of 5 stars A gripping read!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 29, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    Bought for my son who said it was well written and a compelling read.
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  • Erick
    5.0 out of 5 stars Ótimo presente para um amigo cético
    Reviewed in Brazil on August 23, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    O livro é de uma profundidade intelectual muito grande, enquanto se mantém fácil de ler. É honesto quanto aos pontos levantados e as limitações nos raciocínios. Acredito que um cético honesto terá dificuldade em se manter na mesma posição após ler esse livro.
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  • Matt
    5.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly well researched and reasoned!
    Reviewed in Germany on August 6, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    This book is soooo worth reading!
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  • Philip Southwell
    5.0 out of 5 stars Challenging for believer and skeptic alike
    Reviewed in Australia on December 21, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This book is written for the thoughtful secular naturalist and their Christian friends. The first 211 pages provide a robust defense of religious belief against modern and postmodern secular thought, while the final 40 pages make the case that "Christianity makes sense."

    The opening section, titled "Why does anyone need religion?" presents statistics indicating that the global population of religious people is growing, while the number of atheists is projected to decline from 16.4% to 13.2% over forty years. Keller argues that embracing atheism itself requires a leap of faith and illustrates this using atheist Barbara Ehrenreich as a case study.

    The core of the book lies in the second section, "Religion is more than you think it is." Here, Keller systematically demonstrates that atheism is not only intellectually unsustainable but also fails to meet fundamental human needs. Drawing on extensive dialogue with philosophers and thinkers, he asserts that a world without God offers only "created meaning," which he contrasts with the "discovered meaning" provided by religious belief—a meaning that transcends individual feelings and is more rational, communal, and durable.

    A particularly thought-provoking part for me was the chapter on Human Rights. Keller notes that the UN Declaration of Human Rights simply lists the rights but does not provide a basis for them. No basis is provided because these rights can only exist if founded on a higher authority (God). He examines failed secular attempts to establish this foundation and points to Martin Luther King Jr.'s statement that African Americans will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream." This biblical quote is from Amos 5:24 and King's ground for human rights is in God.

    The final section, "Christianity makes sense," acknowledges that neither religion nor secularity can be conclusively proven. Instead, they represent systems of thought that must be compared and contrasted to determine which makes the most sense. Keller begins by presenting six historical arguments that support the reasonableness of belief in God. Then in chapter twelve Keller presents one of the most refreshing portraits of Jesus as a man who satisfies all human need in a way which does not create a new power structure of oppression. This portrayal is breath-taking, the full grandeur of which will be obscured without an understanding of the previous eleven chapters.

    Keller writes with humility and compassion, as a fellow-traveller and never a judge. He refuses to straw-man his conversation partners but presents them as colleagues seeking the truth. Throughout, Keller allows readers to feel the weight of the arguments posed by contemporary and historical philosophers, scientists, and thinkers. He feels the weight of their concerns and presents a compelling vision of a world where their needs are met generally in religion, and specifically in Christianity focused on the person Jesus Christ.
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