Christians tend to have a lot of burning theology questions. Many things within the Bible remain a mystery. We often don’t understand God, the world, or the after-life. In The Grand Paradox: The Messiness of Life, The Mystery of God, and the Necessity of Faith, author Ken Wystma explores these theological issues, discussing the paradoxes of Christian faith.

I liked Wystma’s commentary on Heaven and Hell; Wystma treats Hell as a place where we are separated from God, rather than a physical location. Another nice thing about this book is that it examines how culture changes our view of what our goals should be. I’m glad that The Grand Paradox talks a lot about doubt’s relationship with faith. I liked how Wystma said that even if Christians were given answers to the theological questions that we desperately want to know, this would not erase our doubt. Wystma says answers are not the solution to doubt, but what helps our doubt is faith. This book also acquainted me with the term theodicy, the concept of why God would allow evil; I was introduced to a lot of interesting concepts through this book.

Understanding Christianity can be a messy process, and sometimes Christianity seems paradoxical. This book explores a Christian’s relationship with doubt and faith in a thought-provoking and insightful way, and I’m glad I spent the time reading this book.

I received a review copy from Book Look Bloggers. You can find the book here on Amazon.