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The Gospel of Being Human: How Asking Better Questions of the Bible Reveals Who We Are
What If Being Human Isn’t the Problem—but the Point?
Many Christians have been taught to see themselves as fundamentally broken—with a human nature defined by sin, separated from God, and constantly striving to be worthy. They have been taught that being human is something to overcome—that their deepest instincts, emotions, and desires are untrustworthy. But what if that’s not the whole story? What if God is inviting us to see our humanity as, in fact, very good news?
In The Gospel of Being Human, Marty Solomon (host of the BEMA podcast) and Reed Dent invite you on a journey of curiosity, attention, and wonder—asking better questions about who we really are and what Scripture actually says about our identity. As you go to God’s Word to explore ten common perspectives about sin, salvation, and our relationship with God, you’ll discover a more expansive and hopeful vision of what it means to be created in His image.
Explore ten common theological perspectives and examine how they shape our understanding of God, ourselves, and others.Learn how curiosity, attention, and wonder can transform your spiritual life and lead to a more vibrant relationship with God.Challenge the belief that humans are defined by sin—and discover how Scripture reveals our fundamental goodness as image-bearers of God.Reframe the gospel not as an escape from our humanness, but as a reclamation of what God called “very good” and an invitation to partner with God in restoring the world.Engage with timely conversations on faith deconstruction and reconstruction while holding onto a biblical faith that is both authentic and deeply rooted in Scripture.If you’ve ever felt like your faith was missing something—or wondered whether God’s good news is bigger than you’ve been told—The Gospel of Being Human offers an invitation to step into a fuller, richer understanding of who God has always intended you to be.
Many Christians have been taught to see themselves as fundamentally broken—with a human nature defined by sin, separated from God, and constantly striving to be worthy. They have been taught that being human is something to overcome—that their deepest instincts, emotions, and desires are untrustworthy. But what if that’s not the whole story? What if God is inviting us to see our humanity as, in fact, very good news?
In The Gospel of Being Human, Marty Solomon (host of the BEMA podcast) and Reed Dent invite you on a journey of curiosity, attention, and wonder—asking better questions about who we really are and what Scripture actually says about our identity. As you go to God’s Word to explore ten common perspectives about sin, salvation, and our relationship with God, you’ll discover a more expansive and hopeful vision of what it means to be created in His image.
Explore ten common theological perspectives and examine how they shape our understanding of God, ourselves, and others.Learn how curiosity, attention, and wonder can transform your spiritual life and lead to a more vibrant relationship with God.Challenge the belief that humans are defined by sin—and discover how Scripture reveals our fundamental goodness as image-bearers of God.Reframe the gospel not as an escape from our humanness, but as a reclamation of what God called “very good” and an invitation to partner with God in restoring the world.Engage with timely conversations on faith deconstruction and reconstruction while holding onto a biblical faith that is both authentic and deeply rooted in Scripture.If you’ve ever felt like your faith was missing something—or wondered whether God’s good news is bigger than you’ve been told—The Gospel of Being Human offers an invitation to step into a fuller, richer understanding of who God has always intended you to be.
- GenresChristianNonfiction
230 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 7, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
April 16, 2026
I love the framework of a Scottish cathedral that opens the book—a great cloud of witnesses, known and unknown, who are ultimately human in the same way we are. It’s overwhelming to think about, and yet a mere drop of the witness of the grand cosmic reality in which we live.
Do we have our origins as enemies of God? Not according to Scripture. The case is laid out thoroughly in this work. The analysis of the Romans Road, while not new to me, is an important thing to revisit. Those rigid, simple pathways I grew up with are still deep ruts in my spiritual life. It’s so much easier to limit God to something I can understand than to attempt to grasp how big God really is.
And apparently, I still have things to learn about Elijah.
Keep wrestling. Keep digging. Onward to Book III.
Do we have our origins as enemies of God? Not according to Scripture. The case is laid out thoroughly in this work. The analysis of the Romans Road, while not new to me, is an important thing to revisit. Those rigid, simple pathways I grew up with are still deep ruts in my spiritual life. It’s so much easier to limit God to something I can understand than to attempt to grasp how big God really is.
And apparently, I still have things to learn about Elijah.
Keep wrestling. Keep digging. Onward to Book III.
May 6, 2026
So good! Teaching centered on a deep love of God and of people. I should reread chapters 3 and 6 daily.
takeaways I don’t want to forget:
- mercy for the wretched is the scandal of the gospel
- God is for the bad guys. He is for the flourishing of even those we despise. He longs to see the righteousness taste redemption and the wicked taste repentance.
- compassion grows when we approach others with curiosity, as image bearers shaped by complex stories. Being human means recognizing other humans as like us.
takeaways I don’t want to forget:
- mercy for the wretched is the scandal of the gospel
- God is for the bad guys. He is for the flourishing of even those we despise. He longs to see the righteousness taste redemption and the wicked taste repentance.
- compassion grows when we approach others with curiosity, as image bearers shaped by complex stories. Being human means recognizing other humans as like us.
July 30, 2026
Read it. Now.
You are a human and you are loved by God. Sin is a late comer to the party; you are not defined by it. You are good.
You are a human and you are loved by God. Sin is a late comer to the party; you are not defined by it. You are good.
March 28, 2026
Assumptions are often the enemy of truth. And they are almost always the killers of curiosity.
There’s an old story about three men encountering an elephant in the dark. One grabs the trunk and says, “It’s a snake.” Another feels the leg and says, “It’s a tree.” The third places his hands on the side and says, “You’re both wrong, it’s a wall.”
All three are convinced they are right. And yet all three are wrong.
Not because they are dishonest or because they are trying to deceive. But because they are working with partial perspectives of something much bigger than they can comprehend.
I’ve become convinced we often do the same thing with Scripture.
We read a story. We learn a Sunday school lesson. We hear a sermon or two. We hold tightly to what we’ve been taught—or to what we assume we already understand. And without realizing it, we can reduce sacred stories into smaller truths we can manage. We try to fit deep and complex realities into neat little boxes.
But Scripture is often doing something much bigger than our assumptions allow.
That’s one reason I’m excited about Marty Solomon and Reed Dent’s new book, The Gospel of Being Human. Drawing on the same contextual tools Marty introduced in Asking Better Questions of the Bible, this work invites readers to slow down, pay attention, and consider the possibility that our perspective may be incomplete—especially in the ways we understand ourselves, perceive God, imagine how God sees us, how we relate to one another, and how we live out the good news today.
I can honestly say this is both a challenging and deeply worthwhile read. You may not agree with every conclusion. That’s okay. But books like this remind us that curiosity, humility, and careful attention are not threats to faith. They are often the very things that deepen it.
(I received an advanced copy of this book as part of being in the book launch group)
There’s an old story about three men encountering an elephant in the dark. One grabs the trunk and says, “It’s a snake.” Another feels the leg and says, “It’s a tree.” The third places his hands on the side and says, “You’re both wrong, it’s a wall.”
All three are convinced they are right. And yet all three are wrong.
Not because they are dishonest or because they are trying to deceive. But because they are working with partial perspectives of something much bigger than they can comprehend.
I’ve become convinced we often do the same thing with Scripture.
We read a story. We learn a Sunday school lesson. We hear a sermon or two. We hold tightly to what we’ve been taught—or to what we assume we already understand. And without realizing it, we can reduce sacred stories into smaller truths we can manage. We try to fit deep and complex realities into neat little boxes.
But Scripture is often doing something much bigger than our assumptions allow.
That’s one reason I’m excited about Marty Solomon and Reed Dent’s new book, The Gospel of Being Human. Drawing on the same contextual tools Marty introduced in Asking Better Questions of the Bible, this work invites readers to slow down, pay attention, and consider the possibility that our perspective may be incomplete—especially in the ways we understand ourselves, perceive God, imagine how God sees us, how we relate to one another, and how we live out the good news today.
I can honestly say this is both a challenging and deeply worthwhile read. You may not agree with every conclusion. That’s okay. But books like this remind us that curiosity, humility, and careful attention are not threats to faith. They are often the very things that deepen it.
(I received an advanced copy of this book as part of being in the book launch group)
July 1, 2026
If Marty Solomon's Asking Better Questions of the Bible: A Guide for the Wounded, Wary, and Longing for More navigated the precarious terrain of how we view the scriptures (what they are, how it should be approached, read and studied, and why they matter to the Christian life), his newest, a collaboration with his podcast and organization partner Reed Dent, probes one of the primary issues that emerges from a failure to ask better questions about the Bible: harmful understandings of who we are in in relationship to who we believe God to be. And what binds these two things together is the question of what we believe this world (or creation) to be.
This is a book also for the wounded, wary, and longing for more, but one that begins to narrow in on the root of what either allows the Christian story to make space for this or not. Indeed, often it can be the source of these things, and that root reaches into these fundamental qeustions of identity.
It's no suprise that there would be lot of Genesis talk at play here, the necessary soil that needs to be overturned in order to plant the seeds of a better conversation. The common refrain that pushes through the whole however is simply this: the invitation to be curious. Apart from that we do not leave the space for God to speak (or to hear God speaking). And lest we think this feels overly obvious, the challenge of curiousity, for all of us, is that we have a tendency to be curious only where it reinforces our own tightly guarded appeal to our grasp on truth. It doesn't matter which side of the common divide we are on, the tendency is the same. And here's the thing with that tendency: if we appeal to curiousity to legitimize our rejection of one side of the equation, we are failing to be curious about the other. Curiousity is not, then, about what we believe on one side or another of our common divides, it is rather about how we posture ourselves amidst the journey that belief represents. Curiousity is not a lifelong commitment to agnosticism, nor is it a directionless appeal, rather it is simply this: if God is true, what shapes our seeking of something we can only ever know in part on our way to the hope of the transformed life and world. In this kind of posturing, we are then free to learn how to ask better questions, ones that seek holistic understandings of this relationship between God, humanity, and creation, always allowing those unsettled parts of our senses to speak into a conversation that has the power to pull us sharply to modes of certainty we then need to protect at all costs, precisely because what hangs in the balance, we perceive, is the very idea of God itself.
Solomon (and Dent) are those rare voices that speak with a weathered and tested conviction, while also demonstating what it is to be curious by nature. They have a wealth of studied and experiential justification for trusting in the Christian story, a reasoned faith if you will, and yet they model what it looks like not to be settled. This matters to them, and they see it mattering to their primary audience (the wounded, wary, and longing for more), precisely because they know the damage that can be caused by certain theological positions birthed by a failure to ask better questions. They know how difficult it is to have that stuff scrutinized and layed bare, to feel like everything that matters most hangs in the balance. And yet that's precisely where the wounded, wary and longing for more are. Everything does hang in the balance, because those once certainties do not and cannot make sense of the lived life, the world that confronts us each and every day. Solomon and Dent are convinced there is a way forward: asking better questions. And that way forward will bring us straight to the heart of the matter: who we believe God is matters to who we believe we are, and those things matter to what we see creation to be. That's where the real wrestling happens. If we cannot trust that we cannot be curious about it, instead opting to build our theological fortresses on either side of that vast ocean that lies inbetween or rejecting the whole thing altogether.
There's so much great stuff here to that end, much of it facing common translations and interpretations of paradigm shaping passages head on. One of my favorites was their observations about passages that seem to suggest God repaying generations for the sins of the fathers. It's a small but massive example of how so much can hinge on an interpretation, and the authors show what happens when we ask better questions of that passage. Suddenly, what gets unearthed is something long buried by a lengthy history of Protestant interpretations building their own questions on a certain theological foundation. Seeing those passages through the light of God's responsiveness, where the phrasing is an intended contrast meant to say something about God's love, about God's intention to continue attending to generations caught in these particular cycles. This is not a passage about God's essential punishment in this present moment, nor about some eternal lobbying of this punishment on to subsequent generations, it is a literary design built on an equation that ancient audience would have understood, meant to communicate one thing: God will not cease or stop attending to His beloved creation. The equation rendered in the literary design is meant to befuddle any conceptions that God would or could.
It's worth stating here too, where Solomon and Dent locate their foundation, beyond a simple conviction that God is that which they seek, in the Jewish and Rabbinic Traditions driving and underlying Christian interpretation. This is what leads them to give the scriptures an authoratative voice and what allows them the freedom to hold something like the Protestant Tradition and its specific interpretations to the fire. it's not aimless, rather, it is taking our assumptions and consistently holding it to the fires of the world in which these texts were birthed. We are free, and indeed invited into the process of continued midrash, meaning this foundation doesn't hand us certain theologies, but it does anchor us in something tangible: always holding our world accountable to the world of revelation that went before us. It frees us to seek precisely by giving us a means of critiquing where we are deviating from the spirit that set that movement in play. Meaning, every Tradition needs this same internal critique, and likewise this internal critique doesn't mean that everything within a given Tradition is wrong. in fact, every "Christian" Tradition exists, if we dig deep enough, precisely because at one point in time something left the people of that time wounded, wary and longing for more, getting curious about what was unsettling them. That's the wonder and beauty of the journey. Every Tradition, in it's own way, needs to grapple with where we went from curious to certain as time went on. That we in the West need to hold Protestantism, or the endless varied Traditions that fall under that umbrella, to the fires is not a bad thing or something to be feared, but rather is a necessary part of the Christian journey.
This is a book also for the wounded, wary, and longing for more, but one that begins to narrow in on the root of what either allows the Christian story to make space for this or not. Indeed, often it can be the source of these things, and that root reaches into these fundamental qeustions of identity.
It's no suprise that there would be lot of Genesis talk at play here, the necessary soil that needs to be overturned in order to plant the seeds of a better conversation. The common refrain that pushes through the whole however is simply this: the invitation to be curious. Apart from that we do not leave the space for God to speak (or to hear God speaking). And lest we think this feels overly obvious, the challenge of curiousity, for all of us, is that we have a tendency to be curious only where it reinforces our own tightly guarded appeal to our grasp on truth. It doesn't matter which side of the common divide we are on, the tendency is the same. And here's the thing with that tendency: if we appeal to curiousity to legitimize our rejection of one side of the equation, we are failing to be curious about the other. Curiousity is not, then, about what we believe on one side or another of our common divides, it is rather about how we posture ourselves amidst the journey that belief represents. Curiousity is not a lifelong commitment to agnosticism, nor is it a directionless appeal, rather it is simply this: if God is true, what shapes our seeking of something we can only ever know in part on our way to the hope of the transformed life and world. In this kind of posturing, we are then free to learn how to ask better questions, ones that seek holistic understandings of this relationship between God, humanity, and creation, always allowing those unsettled parts of our senses to speak into a conversation that has the power to pull us sharply to modes of certainty we then need to protect at all costs, precisely because what hangs in the balance, we perceive, is the very idea of God itself.
Solomon (and Dent) are those rare voices that speak with a weathered and tested conviction, while also demonstating what it is to be curious by nature. They have a wealth of studied and experiential justification for trusting in the Christian story, a reasoned faith if you will, and yet they model what it looks like not to be settled. This matters to them, and they see it mattering to their primary audience (the wounded, wary, and longing for more), precisely because they know the damage that can be caused by certain theological positions birthed by a failure to ask better questions. They know how difficult it is to have that stuff scrutinized and layed bare, to feel like everything that matters most hangs in the balance. And yet that's precisely where the wounded, wary and longing for more are. Everything does hang in the balance, because those once certainties do not and cannot make sense of the lived life, the world that confronts us each and every day. Solomon and Dent are convinced there is a way forward: asking better questions. And that way forward will bring us straight to the heart of the matter: who we believe God is matters to who we believe we are, and those things matter to what we see creation to be. That's where the real wrestling happens. If we cannot trust that we cannot be curious about it, instead opting to build our theological fortresses on either side of that vast ocean that lies inbetween or rejecting the whole thing altogether.
There's so much great stuff here to that end, much of it facing common translations and interpretations of paradigm shaping passages head on. One of my favorites was their observations about passages that seem to suggest God repaying generations for the sins of the fathers. It's a small but massive example of how so much can hinge on an interpretation, and the authors show what happens when we ask better questions of that passage. Suddenly, what gets unearthed is something long buried by a lengthy history of Protestant interpretations building their own questions on a certain theological foundation. Seeing those passages through the light of God's responsiveness, where the phrasing is an intended contrast meant to say something about God's love, about God's intention to continue attending to generations caught in these particular cycles. This is not a passage about God's essential punishment in this present moment, nor about some eternal lobbying of this punishment on to subsequent generations, it is a literary design built on an equation that ancient audience would have understood, meant to communicate one thing: God will not cease or stop attending to His beloved creation. The equation rendered in the literary design is meant to befuddle any conceptions that God would or could.
It's worth stating here too, where Solomon and Dent locate their foundation, beyond a simple conviction that God is that which they seek, in the Jewish and Rabbinic Traditions driving and underlying Christian interpretation. This is what leads them to give the scriptures an authoratative voice and what allows them the freedom to hold something like the Protestant Tradition and its specific interpretations to the fire. it's not aimless, rather, it is taking our assumptions and consistently holding it to the fires of the world in which these texts were birthed. We are free, and indeed invited into the process of continued midrash, meaning this foundation doesn't hand us certain theologies, but it does anchor us in something tangible: always holding our world accountable to the world of revelation that went before us. It frees us to seek precisely by giving us a means of critiquing where we are deviating from the spirit that set that movement in play. Meaning, every Tradition needs this same internal critique, and likewise this internal critique doesn't mean that everything within a given Tradition is wrong. in fact, every "Christian" Tradition exists, if we dig deep enough, precisely because at one point in time something left the people of that time wounded, wary and longing for more, getting curious about what was unsettling them. That's the wonder and beauty of the journey. Every Tradition, in it's own way, needs to grapple with where we went from curious to certain as time went on. That we in the West need to hold Protestantism, or the endless varied Traditions that fall under that umbrella, to the fires is not a bad thing or something to be feared, but rather is a necessary part of the Christian journey.
April 14, 2026
"of course he's not tame [...] but he's good"
I thought of Mr. Beaver's remarks concerning Aslan multiple times while reading this book. Marty and Reed probe deeply into the question, "What if the beauty of God's image and the very goodness of humanity is still true?"
To begin with - if you have not read "Asking Better Questions of the Bible," stop, go read it, and then come back here at a later time. **Bonus points if you are familiar with the Bema Discipleship Podcast and have read any Rabbi David Forman.**
Having grown up a PK and a kid in the church for always, I am very familiar with the sentiment, "there are no good people" and the concept of total depravity. I wrestled hard at the concept that my friend's mom believed adamantly that his baby sister, still in utero, was a terrible sinner already.
I also struggled with the fact that even though churches often said, "everyone is welcome," they usually meant, "most people who look like, act like, and think like us are welcome, provided they dress and behave appropriately." Especially, when comparing the words and deeds of those in church leadership when compared to Jesus' desire to eat with sinners and tax collectors.
Marty and Reed tread upon these questions. They grapple with familiar stories and seek to break free from the lullaby effect that years of Biblical exposure can bring.
They don't do so lightly.
They seek to expose our ability to act like, think like, walk like, talk like and smell like Jesus. Like the way our Father intended.
It's not tame.... but it's good.
I thought of Mr. Beaver's remarks concerning Aslan multiple times while reading this book. Marty and Reed probe deeply into the question, "What if the beauty of God's image and the very goodness of humanity is still true?"
To begin with - if you have not read "Asking Better Questions of the Bible," stop, go read it, and then come back here at a later time. **Bonus points if you are familiar with the Bema Discipleship Podcast and have read any Rabbi David Forman.**
Having grown up a PK and a kid in the church for always, I am very familiar with the sentiment, "there are no good people" and the concept of total depravity. I wrestled hard at the concept that my friend's mom believed adamantly that his baby sister, still in utero, was a terrible sinner already.
I also struggled with the fact that even though churches often said, "everyone is welcome," they usually meant, "most people who look like, act like, and think like us are welcome, provided they dress and behave appropriately." Especially, when comparing the words and deeds of those in church leadership when compared to Jesus' desire to eat with sinners and tax collectors.
Marty and Reed tread upon these questions. They grapple with familiar stories and seek to break free from the lullaby effect that years of Biblical exposure can bring.
They don't do so lightly.
They seek to expose our ability to act like, think like, walk like, talk like and smell like Jesus. Like the way our Father intended.
It's not tame.... but it's good.
August 6, 2026
It would be hard for me to say how grateful I am for this book. The tone is humble and curious and engages so many questions I’ve had in thorough, compelling dialogue. This book and his “Asking Better Questions of the Bible” are a light on the path for how to keep engaging my faith in a way that rings true to lived experience and to the experience of many I have observed and walked beside.
Thank you!
Thank you!
April 7, 2026
Chapter 6 wrecked me. Full stop, ugly cried. It’s a truth I so desperately need to get through my thick skull, to break through to the other side of this “deconstruction” and start to rebuild. “He waits patiently for the righteous to learn compassion”. Rebuilding not with hammer power but with lamb power. Come and see ❤️
April 10, 2026
I absolutely loved this book. I feel like more people need to know that we’re perfectly imperfect humans. The whole point of grace is because we need/ needed it.
My favorite chapters Chapter 9 - “there’s something about finally getting all you wanted- becoming too comfortable and complacent with what you’ve been given- that turns out to be poisonous” this chapter spoke to me greatly. And not surprisingly I am filled with more questions 🤪
“Am I after intimacy or am I after what feels like success?” 👀
“Maybe there’s something necessary about the wandering that makes this kind of face to face intimacy with God possible in the first place”
“Faith was more about God getting me somewhere better than him being with me wherever it is I am now” - this one struck because I always am wishing I was better, acted more Christlike, followed the Spirit instead of my flesh more etc. there’s a voice of discontent always wanting to be better than who I am now, instead of peacefully at rest allowing His grace to bring me content where I am.
“Our heaven centric and blessing obsessed theology has made us impotent and frail as the people of God rather than like the vibrant and bright eyed Moses” 😢 it seems it’s quite difficult to not be on the backside of the curve in self serving madness. Thank God for His spirit that convicts and covers us with grace as we repent and turn toward him daily.
I don’t feel eloquent enough to even review the book in a way it deserves but I absolutely loved it! Highly recommend!
My favorite chapters Chapter 9 - “there’s something about finally getting all you wanted- becoming too comfortable and complacent with what you’ve been given- that turns out to be poisonous” this chapter spoke to me greatly. And not surprisingly I am filled with more questions 🤪
“Am I after intimacy or am I after what feels like success?” 👀
“Maybe there’s something necessary about the wandering that makes this kind of face to face intimacy with God possible in the first place”
“Faith was more about God getting me somewhere better than him being with me wherever it is I am now” - this one struck because I always am wishing I was better, acted more Christlike, followed the Spirit instead of my flesh more etc. there’s a voice of discontent always wanting to be better than who I am now, instead of peacefully at rest allowing His grace to bring me content where I am.
“Our heaven centric and blessing obsessed theology has made us impotent and frail as the people of God rather than like the vibrant and bright eyed Moses” 😢 it seems it’s quite difficult to not be on the backside of the curve in self serving madness. Thank God for His spirit that convicts and covers us with grace as we repent and turn toward him daily.
I don’t feel eloquent enough to even review the book in a way it deserves but I absolutely loved it! Highly recommend!
August 23, 2026
Summary: A reframing of the gospel beginning with the good news of our humanity and an invitation to curiosity and wonder.
We often are taught that the gospel is bad news before it is good news. This book challenges this idea with the contention that before all else, our humanity is good news. God’s story in scripture begins with making us in his image. Thus we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We were created with purpose and we were deeply loved from the beginning. This book also is an invitation to be curious, to wonder, and to question how we’ve understood the story. In the end, it is a better story than many of us have been led to believe.
Marty Solomon and Harry Dent invite us over the twelve chapters of this book to explore how we think not only of our humanity but of God. Whereas we divide the world into “us” and “them,” the story of the Garden is that there is only “us,” beloved and broken rebels. We are kindred with all humanity. While it is true that of ourselves, we are incapable of pleasing God, this is not an invitation to passivity. Rather, through God’s redemptive purpose, God calls us to partner with his work in the world. But we often believe God has to punish sin before he loves us. Or he only loves us because of Jesus’ intervention. The authors observe that there is a 1000:3 ratio between God’s love and God’s wrath in scripture and God is utterly free to love us.
With this, the authors turn to our conceptions of God. God is not on the side of some people and against others. As we see in the story of Jonah, God is even for the bad guys, who are not irredeemable. God’s broken world is not beyond repair and so we are called to build lives and communities to reflect his love. And what we build will matter, and so we work with hope. But God will not win by sheer force (nor should we try) but through a “left-handed” power of humility, compassion and presence. So, our lives aren’t measured by success but faithfulness, of living connected to God.
Chapter Ten helped make clear my sense of unease with this quite engaging book. It focuses on “The Romans Road” presentation of the gospel as a formulaic solution to our sin problem. Admittedly, we can reduce the wonders of the gospel to a formula. But I felt the authors both set up a straw man that was unlike anything I’ve been taught and seemed to minimize the cross. They insist “the cross is about more than just the propitiation for our sin” but do not specify what that “more” is. It may be about more but it is not about less! And what I find the authors doing is shifting focus from the cross to “God’s love” that seems to be accessible apart from the cross.
What is hard is that the authors are spot on in focusing on God’s relentless love. But we should not shrink from the cross, uneasy with the violent death of the Son. Rather, we ought to see it as loving act of the Triune God, so identifying with humanity as to die unjustly for our sin. In so doing, God shows us our great worth and his undying love.
I raise this because there is so much good here. The focus on us as image-bearers and partners of God. That God has no “Us-Them.” The gospel as an invitation to partner in the reclamation of a very good world and about life here and now and not just after we die. I can see how the book might be helpful for those struggling with self-image or questions about faith. The first chapter on curiosity is a wonderful guide for those deconstructing (and hopefully reconstructing) faith. But I am uncomfortable about the book’s downplaying the cross. Here, too, the authors react to caricatures. Rather than re-frame with a rich theology of the cross, they shift to a God who loves and forgives freely without constraint. The implication is that Jesus didn’t need to die. I cannot commend that as gospel.
_____________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.
We often are taught that the gospel is bad news before it is good news. This book challenges this idea with the contention that before all else, our humanity is good news. God’s story in scripture begins with making us in his image. Thus we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We were created with purpose and we were deeply loved from the beginning. This book also is an invitation to be curious, to wonder, and to question how we’ve understood the story. In the end, it is a better story than many of us have been led to believe.
Marty Solomon and Harry Dent invite us over the twelve chapters of this book to explore how we think not only of our humanity but of God. Whereas we divide the world into “us” and “them,” the story of the Garden is that there is only “us,” beloved and broken rebels. We are kindred with all humanity. While it is true that of ourselves, we are incapable of pleasing God, this is not an invitation to passivity. Rather, through God’s redemptive purpose, God calls us to partner with his work in the world. But we often believe God has to punish sin before he loves us. Or he only loves us because of Jesus’ intervention. The authors observe that there is a 1000:3 ratio between God’s love and God’s wrath in scripture and God is utterly free to love us.
With this, the authors turn to our conceptions of God. God is not on the side of some people and against others. As we see in the story of Jonah, God is even for the bad guys, who are not irredeemable. God’s broken world is not beyond repair and so we are called to build lives and communities to reflect his love. And what we build will matter, and so we work with hope. But God will not win by sheer force (nor should we try) but through a “left-handed” power of humility, compassion and presence. So, our lives aren’t measured by success but faithfulness, of living connected to God.
Chapter Ten helped make clear my sense of unease with this quite engaging book. It focuses on “The Romans Road” presentation of the gospel as a formulaic solution to our sin problem. Admittedly, we can reduce the wonders of the gospel to a formula. But I felt the authors both set up a straw man that was unlike anything I’ve been taught and seemed to minimize the cross. They insist “the cross is about more than just the propitiation for our sin” but do not specify what that “more” is. It may be about more but it is not about less! And what I find the authors doing is shifting focus from the cross to “God’s love” that seems to be accessible apart from the cross.
What is hard is that the authors are spot on in focusing on God’s relentless love. But we should not shrink from the cross, uneasy with the violent death of the Son. Rather, we ought to see it as loving act of the Triune God, so identifying with humanity as to die unjustly for our sin. In so doing, God shows us our great worth and his undying love.
I raise this because there is so much good here. The focus on us as image-bearers and partners of God. That God has no “Us-Them.” The gospel as an invitation to partner in the reclamation of a very good world and about life here and now and not just after we die. I can see how the book might be helpful for those struggling with self-image or questions about faith. The first chapter on curiosity is a wonderful guide for those deconstructing (and hopefully reconstructing) faith. But I am uncomfortable about the book’s downplaying the cross. Here, too, the authors react to caricatures. Rather than re-frame with a rich theology of the cross, they shift to a God who loves and forgives freely without constraint. The implication is that Jesus didn’t need to die. I cannot commend that as gospel.
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.
April 30, 2026
This book does not waste a word. As each chapter dives into questions about the nature of humanity, our relationship with God, and the nature of his calling for humanity, the chapters start to build on top of each other, and the ideas and realizations become more and more profound, hitting deeper and deeper. Many times I found myself in a place of awe and wonder at the goodness of God, and how he views and loves humanity. Marty and Reed helped me to put words to feelings that my heart has long been pondering, but had yet to realize fully.
In a refreshing way, this book is not solely about theology, as every chapter is also deeply rooted in practical application. Through humble, direct, and challenging reflections, Marty and Reed have rightly identified the core of many pressing issues in our world and within the church, and gracefully invite every single one of us (not “those people”, whoever they may be), to consider how we could potentially bring life to the places that need it most in our world today.
Though they confidently present a very poignant perspective throughout the book, they consistently leave ample space for the reader to wrestle with what they are reading, and to ultimately take it or leave it. They decide to let their words speak for themselves, and never suggest that their ideas are “the true Gospel”, and anything else is heresy. I have learned a lot of how to create that space when presenting my own perspectives to people from their work.
And to round it all out, after giving the reader many new ideas to consider, they help to chart out a potential path through a process of deconstruction and reconstruction, which was so refreshing and helpful. They did not prescribe what tenets of faith need to be there per-se, but offer wisdom in how to go about the reconstruction process well, and how to build something beautiful that can serve the church in its mission for eons to come.
I would highly recommend this book, as both the content, and the way it is presented, is extremely relevant for all of the problems we are facing today, both inside and outside of the church. If you want a book that can help point you in a direction for cultural healing in US, and maybe beyond, and how to think about the Gospel in a life giving way, give this book a read!
In a refreshing way, this book is not solely about theology, as every chapter is also deeply rooted in practical application. Through humble, direct, and challenging reflections, Marty and Reed have rightly identified the core of many pressing issues in our world and within the church, and gracefully invite every single one of us (not “those people”, whoever they may be), to consider how we could potentially bring life to the places that need it most in our world today.
Though they confidently present a very poignant perspective throughout the book, they consistently leave ample space for the reader to wrestle with what they are reading, and to ultimately take it or leave it. They decide to let their words speak for themselves, and never suggest that their ideas are “the true Gospel”, and anything else is heresy. I have learned a lot of how to create that space when presenting my own perspectives to people from their work.
And to round it all out, after giving the reader many new ideas to consider, they help to chart out a potential path through a process of deconstruction and reconstruction, which was so refreshing and helpful. They did not prescribe what tenets of faith need to be there per-se, but offer wisdom in how to go about the reconstruction process well, and how to build something beautiful that can serve the church in its mission for eons to come.
I would highly recommend this book, as both the content, and the way it is presented, is extremely relevant for all of the problems we are facing today, both inside and outside of the church. If you want a book that can help point you in a direction for cultural healing in US, and maybe beyond, and how to think about the Gospel in a life giving way, give this book a read!
April 11, 2026
Beginning of 2023 a small group of friends and myself started listening to and discussing the BEMA podcast- that was my introduction to Author Marty Solomon and also, eventually, to Author Reed Dent. What began as a journey of learning with curiosity and a new set of tools when reading the bible, led to a courageous reassessment of my long held religious beliefs. Ultimately, what emerged is wonder about God, the genius/perfection (only God) of the Bible and a newfound effort (boy, is it a work in progress) of trusting God and receiving the gift of love that conquers all. That brought me to having the opportunity to read The Gospel of Being Human, before it reached the masses.
Get your hands on this book. Whether you know it all (all things religious, that is) and want to be challenged, maybe you're searching for understanding of "humanity" or of a "higher power" outside yourself, or maybe you've been hurt by people or institutions that say the right things but you have that nagging feeling that it doesn't feel right, this book will remind you of the good. Good news about being you!
One of my favorite lines (I have many) from this book is in the last chapter which says "To be human means to be more than an animal. To be sure, we have that part of us. It is an aspect of our nature that Paul says wars inside us. But there's a war because it is not the only part of us. Our nature is more than sarx; we are also created to walk in the Spirit. That is what makes you human." I am continuing to discover that because God first loved me, I can also love being human and be grateful and celebrate God's work in and through humanity (me). Happy reading!
Get your hands on this book. Whether you know it all (all things religious, that is) and want to be challenged, maybe you're searching for understanding of "humanity" or of a "higher power" outside yourself, or maybe you've been hurt by people or institutions that say the right things but you have that nagging feeling that it doesn't feel right, this book will remind you of the good. Good news about being you!
One of my favorite lines (I have many) from this book is in the last chapter which says "To be human means to be more than an animal. To be sure, we have that part of us. It is an aspect of our nature that Paul says wars inside us. But there's a war because it is not the only part of us. Our nature is more than sarx; we are also created to walk in the Spirit. That is what makes you human." I am continuing to discover that because God first loved me, I can also love being human and be grateful and celebrate God's work in and through humanity (me). Happy reading!
April 8, 2026
Both Marty Solomon and Reed Dent have been hugely impactful on my faith and how I see myself in the narrative of God's story. While I have followed their teaching for years now this book was still fresh and insightful.
The concept of 1000:3 has always been among my favorite teachings and its placement in this book really helps get the ideas to resonate with people at all points in their faith journey I think.
To some, just hearing that God doesn't just want to smite you every waking moment is enough good news. However, the beauty and the richness of how true that is as it is traced through scripture and spelled out across these pages. Not only does he not want to smite you, he wants to partner with you and walk with you right where you are.
The book also shows that asking questions and fostering wonder don't destroy faith, they deepen it. Some of the flat platitudes and distilled doctrines fall so much shorter than the life God envisions for those whom he loves. The theological landscape this book explores is vast and deep yet every moment of it is rich and readable for anyone of any level.
This book is one I will revisit because the depths are so rich that a second pass will still not help me soak it all in much like their podcast.
I definitely recommend this to anyone who is feeling dry in their faith, struggling with big questions, doubting their worth to God, those who are deconstructing, and anyone that just wants to be inspired by what it means to be a partner with God. You will not be disappointed.
The concept of 1000:3 has always been among my favorite teachings and its placement in this book really helps get the ideas to resonate with people at all points in their faith journey I think.
To some, just hearing that God doesn't just want to smite you every waking moment is enough good news. However, the beauty and the richness of how true that is as it is traced through scripture and spelled out across these pages. Not only does he not want to smite you, he wants to partner with you and walk with you right where you are.
The book also shows that asking questions and fostering wonder don't destroy faith, they deepen it. Some of the flat platitudes and distilled doctrines fall so much shorter than the life God envisions for those whom he loves. The theological landscape this book explores is vast and deep yet every moment of it is rich and readable for anyone of any level.
This book is one I will revisit because the depths are so rich that a second pass will still not help me soak it all in much like their podcast.
I definitely recommend this to anyone who is feeling dry in their faith, struggling with big questions, doubting their worth to God, those who are deconstructing, and anyone that just wants to be inspired by what it means to be a partner with God. You will not be disappointed.
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is one of those bittersweet ends to a book that is just so life-giving. The Gospel of Being Human was written to remind us that before the story was bad, before sin entered the world, the story was good. It is about our shared humanity and loving our neighbor, and it is a powerful reminder that the Gospel of Jesus Christ really is good news, not just for me or those I love, but for my deepest enemy, for “them.” For anyone looking for an engaging, thought-provoking read that challenges your perspective on the Text and its implications for your life, this is a worthwhile read. Here are a few of my favorite quotes:
“God sees the whole truth of you from your beloved creation to your darkest moments—not just on a timeline from past to future, left to right, but all at once. He sees every face of the many-dimensional shape that is you simultaneously. And he doesn’t withhold forgiveness, doesn’t give up.”
“God waits patiently for the wicked to learn repentance. And he waits patiently for the righteous to learn compassion.”
“What appears to be utter weakness—the emptying, servant life and death of Jesus—turns out to be the only power that’s real. The kind of power that invites you, makes a way for you, gives itself to you, dies for you, always loves you, whether you accept it and submit to it or not.”
“God sees the whole truth of you from your beloved creation to your darkest moments—not just on a timeline from past to future, left to right, but all at once. He sees every face of the many-dimensional shape that is you simultaneously. And he doesn’t withhold forgiveness, doesn’t give up.”
“God waits patiently for the wicked to learn repentance. And he waits patiently for the righteous to learn compassion.”
“What appears to be utter weakness—the emptying, servant life and death of Jesus—turns out to be the only power that’s real. The kind of power that invites you, makes a way for you, gives itself to you, dies for you, always loves you, whether you accept it and submit to it or not.”
April 15, 2026
A short read, absolutely FILLED with gold.
This book pulls at the strings of a searching, curious, or broken heart, and does so with boldness and grace. Marty Solomon and Reed Dent have written something that speaks straight to the soul, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
For anyone who has grown up in a church culture heavy with shame, or quietly wrestled with fear about who they are to God, this book is a gift. Marty and Reed directly challenge the idea that God's love and wrath must be held in perfect balance, a belief many of us have absorbed without even realizing it! As he writes: "Not only is there not a single passage in the Bible that suggests that God's love and his wrath are in perfect balance, but there are passages that state quite the opposite." He unpacks how shame has often been used in church settings to manipulate and control, and contrasts that with the profound freedom of truly knowing who you are without fear. It’s a beautiful, liberating call to step into your identity as a reflection of God's love in the world.
This book genuinely changed my perspective and my confidence in how God sees me. It'll speak to any open heart, whether you're a lifelong believer, someone building on their faith, or simply someone searching for something more.
Highly, highly, HIGHLY recommend.
This book pulls at the strings of a searching, curious, or broken heart, and does so with boldness and grace. Marty Solomon and Reed Dent have written something that speaks straight to the soul, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
For anyone who has grown up in a church culture heavy with shame, or quietly wrestled with fear about who they are to God, this book is a gift. Marty and Reed directly challenge the idea that God's love and wrath must be held in perfect balance, a belief many of us have absorbed without even realizing it! As he writes: "Not only is there not a single passage in the Bible that suggests that God's love and his wrath are in perfect balance, but there are passages that state quite the opposite." He unpacks how shame has often been used in church settings to manipulate and control, and contrasts that with the profound freedom of truly knowing who you are without fear. It’s a beautiful, liberating call to step into your identity as a reflection of God's love in the world.
This book genuinely changed my perspective and my confidence in how God sees me. It'll speak to any open heart, whether you're a lifelong believer, someone building on their faith, or simply someone searching for something more.
Highly, highly, HIGHLY recommend.
July 23, 2026
a very enjoyable & thought-provoking continuation of “asking better questions of the bible”!! felt like this one also had more material not explicitly stated in the podcast than the former, which was cool. i especially loved the concept of right-handed vs left-handed power—similarly to reed, i have always grappled with the concept of omnipotence & its place in theodicy
there were multiple moments in which i could tell they were having to (or choosing to) stay theologically vague & allowing the audience to do the wrestling match & draw conclusions themselves. how i’d love to have a conversation with each of them tracing their thoughts beyond what they’ve expressed
when i talk to other christians (or ex-christians) who are expressing curiosity about the existence of theology outside of whatever flavor of conservative evangelical dogma they have grown up in, i always wish i could start lobbing a million books and thinkers at them at once. scot mcknight, tish harrison warren, brian zahnd, sarah bessey, nt wright, dallas willard, david bentley hart, the list goes on and on. this book is so valuable in that it synthesizes a lot of the conclusions & ive drawn as a result of steeping in a different (in my opinion, more thoughtful & rich) kind of faith. what an amazing resource that also naturally leads into the podcast that drove so much of this change for me
there were multiple moments in which i could tell they were having to (or choosing to) stay theologically vague & allowing the audience to do the wrestling match & draw conclusions themselves. how i’d love to have a conversation with each of them tracing their thoughts beyond what they’ve expressed
when i talk to other christians (or ex-christians) who are expressing curiosity about the existence of theology outside of whatever flavor of conservative evangelical dogma they have grown up in, i always wish i could start lobbing a million books and thinkers at them at once. scot mcknight, tish harrison warren, brian zahnd, sarah bessey, nt wright, dallas willard, david bentley hart, the list goes on and on. this book is so valuable in that it synthesizes a lot of the conclusions & ive drawn as a result of steeping in a different (in my opinion, more thoughtful & rich) kind of faith. what an amazing resource that also naturally leads into the podcast that drove so much of this change for me
April 26, 2026
What if I went on a date with my wife and all she did was obsess over why she shouldn’t be in the room with me?
That single thought has rocked my prayer life since reading this wonderful book. I struggle with prayer and that section in the book isn’t necessarily even about prayer, but it’s where it landed for me. I don’t really struggle with going to God when I’m in crisis, I struggle with going to Him when things are going well. In the mundane, in the day to day. I struggle with truly walking side by side with Him in the life of faith He invites us into.
If you’ve made it all the way through the main 5 sessions of the BEMA podcast, then this book is an invaluable resource to have in print of what I see as some of the most important teachings that really stand out from the podcast. But even for someone that has listened to every single podcast like me, there were some beautiful nuggets that truly changed the way I see God and relate to Him. I’m incredibly thankful for Marty Solomon, Reed Dent, and the entire team at BEMA.
That single thought has rocked my prayer life since reading this wonderful book. I struggle with prayer and that section in the book isn’t necessarily even about prayer, but it’s where it landed for me. I don’t really struggle with going to God when I’m in crisis, I struggle with going to Him when things are going well. In the mundane, in the day to day. I struggle with truly walking side by side with Him in the life of faith He invites us into.
If you’ve made it all the way through the main 5 sessions of the BEMA podcast, then this book is an invaluable resource to have in print of what I see as some of the most important teachings that really stand out from the podcast. But even for someone that has listened to every single podcast like me, there were some beautiful nuggets that truly changed the way I see God and relate to Him. I’m incredibly thankful for Marty Solomon, Reed Dent, and the entire team at BEMA.
April 11, 2026
Marty is back encouraging us to ask questions, making sure our beliefs are really OURS and Biblical. With historical and Jewish context, you’ll look at these selected Bible stories and see them in a new light. With some great stuff about how we view ourselves and others all through the God’s love.
“We don’t have enough room in this book to explore
every nuance of the theological frameworks we each might be bringing to the biblical text, but that is why our posture of curiosity is so important. Remember, considering a different perspective doesn’t mean you have to toss out everything you’ve ever believed, just like considering an idea from a new theologian or scholar doesn’t mean you must agree with everything
they’ve ever said or written. But it may turn out that these
invitations to be curious help you discover a path to a more comprehensive and congruent understanding of who God says you are in light of his Word.”
P 4, THE GOSPEL OF BEING HUMAN
“We don’t have enough room in this book to explore
every nuance of the theological frameworks we each might be bringing to the biblical text, but that is why our posture of curiosity is so important. Remember, considering a different perspective doesn’t mean you have to toss out everything you’ve ever believed, just like considering an idea from a new theologian or scholar doesn’t mean you must agree with everything
they’ve ever said or written. But it may turn out that these
invitations to be curious help you discover a path to a more comprehensive and congruent understanding of who God says you are in light of his Word.”
P 4, THE GOSPEL OF BEING HUMAN
May 4, 2026
**AUDIO BOOK**
I actually finished this a while ago but didn't log it since "technically" I didn't finish it since the final "chapter" was the audio description of a table containing all the bullet points that end each chapter already. Completionist/Obbsessive tendancies aside, I figured I'll actually log this now.
Good "listen" for sure! I think I maybe prefer the first of Marty's books to this one, but only because there was more enjoyable intellectual stimulation over a wide range of topics in his first book. This one is more personally streching and applicable, however I do think he takes some leaps in his arguments that I wish he spent more time on. That isn't to say that his conclusions/questions are wrong, just that I wish he had spent more time on walking me through them. A good and challenging book that wrestles with some important issues for Christians (and everyone). The concluding chapter really brings it all together.
I'll likely return to this at some point.
I actually finished this a while ago but didn't log it since "technically" I didn't finish it since the final "chapter" was the audio description of a table containing all the bullet points that end each chapter already. Completionist/Obbsessive tendancies aside, I figured I'll actually log this now.
Good "listen" for sure! I think I maybe prefer the first of Marty's books to this one, but only because there was more enjoyable intellectual stimulation over a wide range of topics in his first book. This one is more personally streching and applicable, however I do think he takes some leaps in his arguments that I wish he spent more time on. That isn't to say that his conclusions/questions are wrong, just that I wish he had spent more time on walking me through them. A good and challenging book that wrestles with some important issues for Christians (and everyone). The concluding chapter really brings it all together.
I'll likely return to this at some point.
April 14, 2026
This book is easy to read while provoking such changing thoughts that are rooted in the Word! BEMA (which the authors founded and are a part of) is my husband and my favorite resource for practical application of what got a showcasing through His word!! Every time I read a chapter, there are so many takeaways. I might as well read the book out loud to whoever I’m talking about it too lol! As a mom of four little kids, my reading time is sparse and this book is well worth that precious time.
‘Are we able to bear the name of the compassionate Christ and still have nothing but hate for another human being? If not, how do we close the gap between "us” and "them"? This is an essential question because it is only at the point where they meet—where "them" becomes "us"— that compassion can truly open up.’
‘Are we able to bear the name of the compassionate Christ and still have nothing but hate for another human being? If not, how do we close the gap between "us” and "them"? This is an essential question because it is only at the point where they meet—where "them" becomes "us"— that compassion can truly open up.’
Review of advance copy
This book offers such a refreshing and hopeful perspective on faith and what it truly means to be human. Instead of focusing on brokenness, it beautifully reframes the gospel as an invitation to embrace our humanity as something God called “very good.”
The authors do an incredible job of challenging common assumptions about sin, identity, and our relationship with God while staying deeply rooted in Scripture. Their emphasis on curiosity, wonder, and asking better questions really stood out to me—it made my faith feel more alive and meaningful.
This book is both thought-provoking and encouraging. It’s perfect for anyone wrestling with their faith, going through deconstruction, or simply wanting a deeper, more expansive understanding of God and themselves. Highly recommend!
The authors do an incredible job of challenging common assumptions about sin, identity, and our relationship with God while staying deeply rooted in Scripture. Their emphasis on curiosity, wonder, and asking better questions really stood out to me—it made my faith feel more alive and meaningful.
This book is both thought-provoking and encouraging. It’s perfect for anyone wrestling with their faith, going through deconstruction, or simply wanting a deeper, more expansive understanding of God and themselves. Highly recommend!
April 8, 2026
This is such a beautiful book. Marty and Reid invite us to examine what it means to be human, not as the world around us tries to define but by asking what is God’s posture toward us; not one of wrath but one of love, one that invites us in to His purpose and His story. They encourage us to ask better questions and turn to scripture to see how God himself speaks about us and to approach the Word with a “posture of curiosity, attention, and wonder along the way”. It is a thought provoking journey that will encourage, challenge, and grow you. I highly recommend you pick this up and start asking better questions today!
April 23, 2026
I’m not sure this book revealed who I am (as promised on the cover), but Marty Solomon and Reed Dent recommended good questions I’d never thought to ask about common Sunday school passages of the Bible. I appreciated them presenting the implications of there being multiple answers to some of those questions. My primary takeaway from this book will be how they reframed Moses’ burning bush, calling us to stare at the spiritual conundrums of our life longer and from more vantage points. The text bogged down too often in hypothetical vignettes, but that might be a rabbinical tradition. The chart in the appendix makes for a great summary of the book.
April 11, 2026
Do you wonder why you are here? What can you possibly contribute that's worth anything? Is there more to life than holding your breath until you get to heaven? Do you keep searching for the right equation that makes life work and make sense? Have too many voices told you that God is too holy for you and your messy life? That He's far away and pouring out His wrath until you get your life together then you can partner with Him? This book will give you new and refreshing answers to the hard questions you are afraid to ask out loud...
Review of advance copy received from Author
Review of advanced copy
What does it mean to be part of the kingdom of God?
Solomon’s second book invites a curious reexamination of our faith and theology. Not to abandon them, but to make our lived faith stronger and Biblical and rooted in how God made us — humans!
He posits curiosity as a healthy spiritual practice — in fact it’s one way God uniquely created humans with this “curiosity tool.” It’s one way God invited us to be part of his Kingdom and work bringing heaven to earth.
What does it mean to be part of the kingdom of God?
Solomon’s second book invites a curious reexamination of our faith and theology. Not to abandon them, but to make our lived faith stronger and Biblical and rooted in how God made us — humans!
He posits curiosity as a healthy spiritual practice — in fact it’s one way God uniquely created humans with this “curiosity tool.” It’s one way God invited us to be part of his Kingdom and work bringing heaven to earth.
May 6, 2026
Love it; asking better questions; what does it mean to be human, wrestling with the text. Nothing in here was surprising to me as I have listened to Marty’s podcast for a long time, I read one of the reviews talking about wanting it to go more in depth than where he went, I would suggest for those readers that they check out the podcast as much of what he talking about is referenced and studied from the text itself.
May 20, 2026
Marty approaches assumptions of Scripture as just that, assumptions. He reexamines with curiosity, wonder, and attention, inviting us to reconsider a God who we cannot wrap our heads around. I appreciate Marty's humility in his exploration of ten different theological assumptions as well as his consistent call to see God as who He overwhelmingly reveals Himself to be "compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, maintaining love and faithfulness, forgiving, and punishing sin", in short, as Love.
May 24, 2026
Gosh I wish everyone would read this book. It challenges typical assumptions we make about God/ humans and aligns theology with the entirety of scripture rather than using verses out of context. It uses digestible language but causes you to reconsider ideas you’ve heard 1000 times.
“Understood this way - as a posture of curiosity, attention, and wonder - deconstruction is a healthy, expected, and essential part of development”
“Understood this way - as a posture of curiosity, attention, and wonder - deconstruction is a healthy, expected, and essential part of development”
June 19, 2026
He covers a lot of the same material in the Bema podcast. It is a great book, and does a great job of refocusing the Gospel message on love rather than judgment, without ignoring the need for judgment and justice. Marty and Reed very clearly draw out their points from Scripture, and make a very compelling case that we have mischaracterized the Gospel because we have mischaracterized the Old Testament. Very much worth the time to read.
July 21, 2026
Marty's wisdom from "Asking Better Questions of the Bible" continues in this follow up book. This book will help Christians relearn who they are, the goodness of their God-given identity, and how reframing the way God sees us actually helps us read scripture with a deeper understanding. Marty's researched and thoughtful insights have changed the way I see myself, God and the world around me. This is a must-read for all followers of Jesus.
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