Right Thinking in a World Gone Wrong: A Biblical Response to Today's Most Controversial Issues

by John F. MacArthur Jr.

Book Overview

"Our response to moral questions is not determined by politics, economics, personal preference, popular opinion, or human reasoning. It is, instead, grounded in what God has told us is true about ourselves and our world....God's Word offers sanity, cla

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0736926437
• ISBN13: 9780736926430
• Release Date: February 2009
• Publisher: Harvest House Publishers
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

issues facing today's world

Right Thinking in a World Gone Wrong is a book for real issues that people face each day. This book compares the secular view and the Biblical view on key issues facing today's world. MacArthur and his team use the Bible as their authority, and though I don't agree with some of their interpretations, they are consistent. This is a thoughtful read that will help many Christians who are unsure of God's perspective on certain topics. It is written in a concise easy to read style. One interesting thing about this book is the way it was written. Each chapter is written by a different author. The authors address such topics as abortion, euthanasia, global warming, homosexuality and illegal immigration.

A good book that handles Controversial Issues

This book compares secular thinking vs. Biblical thinking. This book will help give you the answers so you can stand firm in the faith and defend a Christian position on cultural and political issues of our day. It aims to apply the scripture to everyday situation and concerns that Christians face in their lives and questions and issues you may encounter and want to have a biblical response. It is written by a variety of authors. Some chapter titles and topics covered in the Content are: Christian Liberty and Entertainment Internet Dating/God honoring romance Video Games - A biblical worldview Parental Guidance - Making wise media choices America Idols - Entertainment, Escaptism and the Cult of Celebrity Issues Relating to Divorce and Remarriage Abortion, Birth Control and Ministry Hope, Holiness, and Homosexuality Euthanasia, Suicide, and Capital Punishment God, Government and the Gospel Sorrow, suffering and the Sovereignty of God Why Christians can trust God These are just a few of the issues covered. There is a scriptual topical reference guide in the back of the Book. The writing is clear and helpful. There was some startling statistics on video games and the economy of the industry, the effects it is having on youths and Young adults in our cuture, and how it effects their maturity, reality and purity. This is a book with solid biblical answers for the most talked-about trends and issues of our day.

And what of Morality?

Wow! I was recently at a conference with John Piper & John MacArthur, and each speaker gave everyone a free book. This is the book MacArthur was so generous to charitably donate to us spiritually impoverished youth. The book is a compilation of essays written by pastors serving within MacArthur's church. Each essay addresses points of contention that living as a Christian in our modern pagan world brings, and wisely draws out such practical spiritual value; I want to especially emphasize the timeless need for this book in its few essays on Evil & Suffering in the World. Beginning with Rick Holland's essay "Evil, Suffering and the Sovereignty of God," I have since had my days flooded with thoughts as the text challenged me to continue to question. These essays not only addressed the philosophical side to the problem of pain, but in addition addressed -often the most felt need- the actual practical experience we each face in suffering. They really outlined so clearly the areas of psychological difficulty, and worked our way together to the meat of the Christian's hope. There is no doubt that they teach the deep stuff in these essays, but you don't even realize it while reading; they selectively use the correct philosophical & psychological terms, making this book accessible for everyone.

Invaluable guide to today's ethics as a Christian

Right Thinking in a World Gone Wrong by John MacArthur is a thorough look at many of the dilemmas and issues facing Christians in today's world in a remarkable way. There is a great deal of discord within the church about issues like homosexuality, illegal immigration, politics, and so many other issues. MacArthur and some other authors back up their point of view with plenty of Scripture, and I was glad to see their compassionate view on illegal immigration. It's an issue that had bothered me, and I wasn't quite sure how to view it as a Christian, but MacArthur boiled it down to its essence giving me and other Christians a way to view this volatile issue through faith. I don't necessarily agree with his view on capital punishment, but for the first time I was able to see how Christians can support it and yet oppose abortion Biblically. MacArthur offers a real way for Christians to interact with the world without losing their soul. Popular culture including media, video games, and celebrity is also addressed by focusing on the 1 Corinthians 10:23 All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. This book covers a wide range of subjects and gives Christians a guide to use to help their own response to the world.

A Pastoral Perspective on Controversial Issues

As a contributor to this book, I am admittedly biased. But I thought a few remarks might prove useful to anyone considering it. First, this book addresses a wide range of contemporary issues in a practical fashion from a biblical (and pastoral) perspective. It is not just another ethics textbook (nor was it ever intended to be). Rather, it was written by our pastoral staff with the intent being to show how biblical principles apply to the issues that Christians face everyday. The book is born out of real-world ministry experience, as we attempted to apply biblical principles to real life. Second, the book is intended to be a concise treatment of the topics addressed. Full books could be written on many of the topics we addressed. Our goal was not to do that, but rather to give a succinct and hands-on treatment of each of the issues. As a result, topics like abortion, euthanasia, birth control, homosexuality, global warming, illegal immigration and the like are addressed in a concise manner. In this way, the book is somewhat of a handbook on contemporary issues. Finally, in response to J.J.'s rather negative review, it should be noted that the book does NOT equate saving faith with external obedience, but in fact clearly states that obedience follows faith as its fruit (see p. 9, for example). Also, the love of God is specifically addressed in the book (see pp. 206-207, for example). Based on J.J.'s comments, it becomes difficult to imagine that he even read the whole book. In any case, our church staff's hope (in putting this book together) was that it would be a resource for pastors and lay-people alike, as they seek to exalt Christ by exhibiting "right thinking in a world gone wrong."