My Interview with The Book Report

The latest issue of the Crossway Book Report is now online. The big news is the impending release of the Literary Study Bible, something I've been looking forward to for a while, but there is also an interview with me about Rethinking Worldview (which is also something I've been looking forward to). You can download the PDF version of the Book Report by clicking on this link, or you can read the text of the interview here.

I'll highlight just one question and answer here:

CBB: Your definition of “witness” is broader than a lot of people’s. Explain.

JMB: Most people, it seems to me, adopt a narrow definition of the word. For them, “witness” means evangelism proper, and it might be stretched to include apologetics. Worldview thinking compels a broader conception of witness, though. I take it to mean any effort we make to “bear witness,” to speak Christian truth to the surrounding world. In the third section of the book, I look at evangelism and apologetics, but I also include a section on works of the imagination. After all, the average Christian has been much more profoundly influenced by non-Christian art and entertainment than he has by non-Christian evangelism and apologetics.

We have tended to neglect cultural contribution, though, because evangelicals are uneasy about the relationship between art and truth. The role of truth in evangelism or apologetics is fairly obvious. Both disciplines can be fairly summed up, in fact, as “telling the truth about Christ.” I think the same can be said of art. The evangelicals I speak with tend to agree with me about the influence of art and entertainment, and they concede that Christians should be more involved in such endeavors—not just as evangelism tools, but for their own sake. How to do it, though, still baffles them, so I hope this expanded concept of “witness” will shed some light.

Looking at the line-up of new books featured in the Book Report, I'm once again honored and humbled to be included in such company. I encourage you to follow the link and check them all out!