THE LIES WE ARE TOLD, THE TRUTH WE MUST HOLD: WORLDVIEWS AND THEIR CONSEQUENCES, by Sharon James

A Brief Book Summary from Books At a Glance 

by Kirsten Birkett 

 

About the Author 

Sharon James is an author of many books, conference speaker, and Social Policy Analyst for The Christian Institute. She has degrees in history (Cambridge University) and theology (M.Div., Toronto Baptist Seminary), and a doctorate from the University of Wales. 

 

Contents 

Part One: The Lies We Are Told 

1. There Is No God and No Absolute Morality   
2. No God: From Atheism to Death Camps   
3. No Absolute Morality: From Relativism to Fatherlessness  
4. No Universal Truth: The Death of Common Sense  
5. No Universal Humanity: Divided We Fall  
6. False Prophets: The Compromised Church   

Part Two: The Truth We Must Hold  

1. The Biblical Worldview: Foundation of Truth, Freedom and Dignity  
2. The Biblical Worldview: Foundation of Human Flourishing  
3. The Biblical Worldview: Christ Is King – Hope For the Future  
4. What Should I Do Now?  

 

General Summary

A footnoted but accessible description of the way in which the biblical worldview in the West has been replaced by relativism and identity politics, and the sad consequences. Part 2 describes the biblical view and how it provides a better vision for humanity and society. There are summaries, further reading, and other resources provided.  

 

Part One: The Lies We Are Told

 

Chapter 1: “There Is No God and No Absolute Morality”

Faith has been virtually banned from the public square, replaced by the naturalistic worldview, assumed to be ‘scientific’– that this world is all there is; we evolved by chance; there is nothing special about humanity. There will be no judgement, and indeed all authority or judgement can be considered evil; self-actualization is the highest good; and restraints of Christian morality are evil. Religion is personal and unprovable. There is no purpose to history, nothing after death, and no universal truth.

 

Chapter 2: “No God”: From Atheism to Death Camps

Ludwig Feuerbach (1804-1872) in Essence of Christianity (1841) claimed that “God is just a comfort blanket,” a human projection created from the desire to believe in life after death. We only need answer to the “God within.” Charles Darwin (1809-1882): “made atheism intellectually possible,” and his evolutionary ideas spread far beyond biology to society in general, devaluing human life and feeding eugenics. Karl Marx (1818-1883) wanted to overthrow society and abolish private property, abolish the family, the rule of law, and religion and morality, with no care for individuals. His ideas caused horror in Russia, China, Cambodia, and other communist regimes. Intellectual elites in the West call for the abolishing of capitalism, but “when capitalism is thrown out, every marker of human flourishing decreases.” . . .

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