In The 10 Most Common Objections to Christianity, Alex Mc Farland makes a case for the Christian faith by addressing, as the title suggests, the ten most common objections that people have to Christianity. Such objections include the claim that God is not real and that the Bible is nothing but a human book developed over time. Other objections arise of certain moral dilemmas about God while yet other ones are rejecting Christianity exclusivist claim, namely that man can be saved only through Jesus Christ.  

 Much of this opposition of the unbelieving world usually stems out of a desire to believe almost anything else than what the Bible presents as God’s revelation of the truth. This approach is usually characterized by inconsistency and often results in naïve and silly conclusions. McFArland writes, “When someone doesn’t accept your conclusion yet can’t refute your data, he may resort to sarcasm, slander or verbal attacks in an attempt to discredit your view. This is sometimes called an ad hominem attack, which means ‘to the man.’ Basically, it’s a tactic of belittling the messenger when you’re unable to disprove his message.”

The point that McFarland makes in each of these ten chapters is that if the facts are objectively observed the evidence is there for the existence of God and for Jesus being just who He claimed to be. Furthermore, the Bible is a reliable and trustworthy witness of God, and that moral dilemmas, although not easy, have an answer with God. If those who make the objections could set aside their bias and give the evidence a chance, they would find that all these objections are not actually valid.

The main argument used by the author is that of the authenticity of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and not just some exalted moral teacher who lived 2000 years ago. For this, McFarland focuses a great deal on the resurrection account. He states in chapter five that the greatest proof for his uniqueness is his physical resurrection. “So, obviously, the truth of the resurrection is a central question. And, just as obviously, anyone wanting to disprove Christianity would have to discredit the historicity of this event. Put simply, either the resurrection happened and Jesus is who He claimed to be, or it didn’t and we are under no obligation to any of His teachings or example.”

Furthermore, if Christ is who He claimed to be then His words are authoritative on all matters of life. Therefore, all other religious claims collapse, for Jesus said that He is the way, the truth and the life, and that no one comes to the Father but through Him (John 14:6). This is as exclusivist as possible. McFarland gives a good explanation for this rejection when he says that “If there’s one thing that Americans don’t want to hear, it’s that their neighbor Joe, a super-nice guy who serves at a soup kitchen every holiday and who dabbles in Buddhism every once in a while, might be going to hell. We don’t like to offend people, especially when it comes to matters of faith. We’d rather give everyone a gold star for effort and celebrate our spiritual diversity. In short, we like inclusivity.” This is because the society is more concerned with feelings rather than truth and yet, as the author argues throughout the book, truth exists and can be known from the Bible. 

After giving solid arguments in each of the ten chapters McFarland ends by inviting people to address the implications of the evidence and respond by accepting Christ as their personal savior. This is at the end of the day, why the author labors throughout the book, so that whatever obstacle people have in seeing Christ may be removed.

This book is a good resource for every believer who feels intimidated by the secular charges against Christianity. The apostle Peter writes that Christians must always be ready to give an answer concerning the hope they have in Christ (1 Pet 3:15). In addition, I think it makes a great gift for an unbeliever friend, as an aid in your attempt to present the gospel to them. Whether to increase your ability to answer some of the charges of the world, or as a bridge to reach an unbeliever, I think you will find The 10 Most Common objections to Christianity a useful resource.