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A Change of Allegiance  /  Chapter 4, The God of the Bible  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 1
Dean Taylor says conservative writers sometimes “were not consistent or even honest with the New Testament,” while liberal writers “were not honest with the Old Testament”; where do you feel that tension in your own instincts about God, and what does the chapter force you to stop “explaining away”?
Another way to ask: Taylor says conservatives can twist the New Testament and liberals can twist the Old Testament. Where do you feel that pull in your own view of God, and what does this chapter make you stop explaining away?

Direct Answer The transcript frames the tension as wanting a God who matches Jesus’ nonviolence while also needing to be honest that the Old Testament contains God-commanded wars. The chapter forces you to stop explaining Old Testament violence as merely “man messing things up” and to face that Scripture portrays God as holy and judgment-involving, not merely non-judgmental.

Support from Transcript:

  • Dean Taylor says conservative writers seemed “not consistent or even honest with the New Testament,” while liberal writers were “not honest with the Old Testament.”
  • He describes newer liberal portrayals of God as “a non-violent deity who would never condemn or hurt anyone,” implying God “really doesn't punish people” and would not sentence anyone to hell.
  • He admits he tried to read the Old Testament so he could “explain away each act of violence or war as merely a mistake on man's part and not God's perfect will.”
  • He found a few seeming supports (e.g., “Thou shalt not kill,” Abraham avoiding conflict, Jehoshaphat: “Ye shall not need to fight…”), yet concluded his “liberal glasses were flawed.”
  • His turning point: “wars and battles were actually called for by a direct command of God.”
Discussion Follow-ups Where do you personally feel pressure to protect God’s image by editing the text? What changes when you admit the Bible presents both mercy and punishment as part of God’s self-revelation?

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