Ebook

Grace and Truth

How the Biblical Narrative Affirms that Christ Is Supreme and Parts of the Bible Are Obsolete

Author: Francois Ntone

Publication Date: February 9, 2021

Price: $2.99

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Download a free PDF file that provides an insightful overview of many topics covered in this book and some material from an upcoming book that examines and challenges John Calvin’s views on the relationship between the old and new covenants in the Bible. 

In this book, the author follows the biblical narrative from Adam to Christ and his apostles while tracking the flow of ideas on matters of theology and ethics.  The internal debates and evolving beliefs on such matters are highlighted.  Readers develop an awareness of the fragmented and incomplete understanding of the divine will among God’s people in the pre-Christian era.  The narrative points to Christ as God’s true representative and the ultimate teacher.  It also unambiguously leads to the conclusion that parts of the Bible are made obsolete by his teaching.  This conclusion is in conflict with the assumption of biblical inerrancy, which relies on unconvincing biblical evidence, but has led many Christians to the belief that all parts of the Bible are equally relevant.  Such a belief has created confusion among Christians and non-Christians regarding biblical morality.  This study rigorously shows that Christianity must be Christ-centered rather than Bible-centered, a fact that remains widely misunderstood today.

Based on my interactions with both Christians and non-Christians, I became aware that there is a need for a book that examines the biblical narrative in a comprehensive manner.  Indeed, many Bible readers, even those who frequently attend Bible studies at their churches, do not have adequate knowledge of the flow of ideas inside the Bible from beginning to end.  Furthermore, they often lack adequate knowledge of Christian history, and often do not realize that some assumptions about the Bible presented to them are tied to particular historical developments that may not have been present from the beginning (See this post for example).  This book attempts to fill this gap by providing a brief history of Western Christianity and then examining the Biblical narrative in detail, with special attention to theological and ethical developments throughout the Bible.  A sample list of covered topics and a  table of contents are provided below (The page numbers are valid for the Interactive PDF version of the book).

Grace and Truth walks the reader through the biblical narrative and probes into theological and ethical questions throughout the narrative, including questions that are typically avoided in Sunday morning sermons.

For example:

• How does the status of women change within the Old Testament and later in the New Testament?
• Is the story of Cain and Abel consistent with a doctrine of original sin?
• What is God’s position on violence from the very beginning and later?
• What does the story of Noah and the flood say about God’s activity on earth? Is that picture of God sustained throughout the biblical narrative?
• What made Abraham and Isaac special?
• How did Jacob struggle to accept the God of Abraham and Isaac?
• Did Joseph follow the model established by Abraham, Isaac and Jacob or was he different enough to contribute to social inequalities?
• Do some parts of the Bible assume that God controls all aspects of human life, and what are the implications of such an assumption?
• Did Abraham and Moses have the same understanding of God’s character? How did Moses arrive at the notion of a Warrior-God?
• What is the Law of Moses? What role does the fear of the Lord play in it?
• Where did the idea of a chosen nation come from?
• Are the Ten Commandments really the ultimate statement of God’s expectations?
• Did Moses understand God’s compassion?
• How did the violent Levites become the guardians of Israelite religion?
• Was God pleased with the conduct of the Israelites during the period of the Judges? Was he pleased with the transition from the judges to the monarchy?
• Did Elijah understand God’s compassion?
• How does the notion of an angry Warrior-God evolve in the Old Testament narrative?
• How does the belief that God loves Israel and hates the Gentiles evolve in the Old Testament narrative?
• How do the internal debates in the book of Job raise questions about the theological assumptions in the Law of Moses?
• Does the Law of Moses say anything about life after death?
• Did the major and minor prophets understand God’s compassion better than Moses?
• How did the major and minor prophets announce the coming of a new covenant? Was that new covenant to maintain the idea of a chosen nation?
• How do ideas about the afterlife evolve in the Old Testament?
• Where did the idea of God the Father and God the Son originate from?
• Did Jesus and Moses have the same understanding of God’s character?
• What are the rules of conduct in Jesus’ kingdom of God?
• In what ways does Jesus’ teaching call his followers to a higher standard that is necessary to regulate life in the kingdom of God announced (less clearly) by the major and minor prophets?
• Does God deal with all sins the same way? What is the unforgivable sin?
• Does Jesus condone violence of any kind?  Does he agree with the notion of a Warrior-God?
• Does Jesus agree with Moses on material possessions?
• Does Paul see the new covenant as an expanded view of the old covenant or a replacement of the old covenant?
• Does the book of Hebrews see the old covenant as an expanded view of the old covenant or a replacement of it?
• Why does the pursuit of Jesus’ kingdom of God make obsoleting the old covenant necessary?

Introduction 1
Chapter 1: Brief History of Western Christianity 11
The Early Years of the Christian Church 11
The Church in the Graeco-Roman World 13
Doctrinal Debates Within the Church 14
Consequences of the Coalescence Between Rome and Christianity 17
Developments After the Decline of the Roman Empire 20
The Reformation and its Aftermath 28
Further Developments in Western Europe 35
Chapter 2: Protestantism in The United States 36
Protestant Churches in the United States 36
The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy 42
The Importance of Understanding the Biblical Narrative 54
Chapter 3: The Critical Background in Genesis 56
Beginning 56
The Story of Noah 61
The Story of Abraham 65
The Story of Jacob 75
Joseph and Judah 81
Chapter 4: Moses and His Contribution 89
Moses and the Kingdom of Priests 89
The Law of Moses 108
Chapter 5: Judges, Kings and Prophets 121
The Judges of Israel 121
The Kings and Prophets of Israel 129
Chapter 6: Return to the Promised Land 160
The Jews Are Allowed to Return to the Promised Land 160
Ezra the Priest 161
Nehemiah’s Leadership 162
Chapter 7: The Writing Prophets 167
Isaiah the Prophet 167
Amos the Prophet 186
Hosea the Prophet 189
Jonah 191
Jeremiah the Prophet 194
Chapter 8: Jesus According to the Gospels 204
The Coming of the Messiah 204
The Baptism and Temptation of Jesus 208
The Beginning of Jesus’ Ministry in the Book of John 211
Jesus’ Ministry in Galilee 218
Jesus Confronts the Jewish Establishment 236
Conversations with Mary and Martha 240
The Last Visit to Jerusalem 243
The Arrest, Crucifixion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus 248
Chapter 9: Jesus’ Teaching About the Kingdom of God 254
The Beatitudes 254
The Greatest in the Kingdom of God 257
Jesus and the Law of Moses 260
Various Topics in Kingdom of God Ethics 264
Chapter 10: The Early Church and the Law of Moses 292
The Birth of the Church 292
The Letters of Paul 300
The Letter to the Hebrews 309
Chapter 11: Why Does All This Matter? 320
Biblical Inerrancy 320
Grace and Truth Through Christ 321
Tables 322
Index 330