Confronting Casual Christianity

The author urges the reader to confront their spiritual condition.

Although many people suggest that Christianity is declining, research indicates that it continues to be the world's most popular worldview. But even so, the Christian faith includes many controversial beliefs that non-Christians find hard to accept. This book explores 12 issues that might cause someone to dismiss orthodox Christianity—issues such as the existence of suffering, the Bible's teaching on gender and sexuality, the reality of heaven and hell, the authority of the Bible, and more. Showing how the best research from sociology, science, and psychology doesn't disagree with but actually aligns with claims found in the Bible, these chapters help skeptics understand why these issues are signposts, rather than roadblocks, to faith in Christ.

The Christian church is in a state of decline. It has replaced Biblical truth and divine authority with a pseudo-scientific view of origins, moral relativism, commitment to a political philosophy that denies God, a perspective of history that trivializes the roles of men and women of faith, a capitalistic vision of the church that equates size and prosperity with success, and a mistaken notion of the relationship between faith and public policy that rules out Christian activism. A creeping professionalism has taken the role of ministry out of the hands of regular believers and placed it into the hands of formally trained clergy and a group of elite religious experts. In The Casual Christian, "author Craig Olson "takes a look at modern church practices and contemporary Christian ministry through the lens of apostolic practices. He shows how biblical teaching has simply been set aside in preference for the prevailing practices and values of a secular culture. Studying the church from the Pentecost through the Great Revival, Olson found the way Christians did church then differs a great deal from the way they do it today. In The Casual Christian, " Olson reaches out to those who are disillusioned with today's church. Based on historical Christian practices, he suggests ways to revitalize the church and make it relevant to the times in which we live.

This study on the book of Revelation will challenge you to seek Christ more than answers about, “when will the rapture happen”, “who will have to suffer in the tribulation”, or “when will the antichrist appear?” There is no doubt that during this study you will form an opinion about these questions, it’s simply human nature, but the focus that will begin to form in your heart will be on how to share Christ in the end times, which is the bigger and better question to answer. This study will move you or your group past the fear-based ministry that eschatology has become and into the grace-based ministry of sharing the Gospel. This workbook will help individuals and groups to place their focus on Christ, not on the fear of the end of the world.

Keeping Your Balance looks at the challenge that Christians face in maintaining a biblical balance in seven key areas of life.

These include the following: family and ministry; self-denial and liberty; patience and confrontation; the temporal and the eternal; the inner man and the outer man; reality and hope; and striving and trusting.

In each of these categories, the author first highlights the balance that is clearly set forth for the believer in Scripture. Second, a discussion is presented of the symptoms that may be manifested when an individual loses balance in a particular area. The practical life consequences of that imbalance are also examined. An understanding of these tensions is absolutely vital for living a life to the glory of God.