WILL I MAKE IT TO HEAVEN? How many
Christians have asked themselves this
question? Author Daniel Deeds answers
this troubling question head on in the
pages of this book with courage and
insight. The general Christian world has
called this issue the "security of the
believer." During the Protestant
Reformation, and in Reformed circles
today, it is called the "Perseverance of
the Saints," a designation which, in and
of itself, has caused much controversy.
That is why this book is an urgent read
for the Church. There are many "gospels"
being preached today in the Evangelical
world. What is lacking is clarity on the
nature of salvation in Christ, and the
Christian's part--or lack thereof--in
it. Let the author explain (from the
Introduction): Is perseverance necessary
for salvation? Is it possible for a
believer to abandon Christ and go back
to sin and the world after having been
converted? If so, what would the result
be? Would such a person remain eternally
saved anyway, or would salvation be
forfeited? Can someone who is a believer
in Christ today know for sure that
he/she will continue to be saved
forever? These questions have been
around for ages. They have probably
crossed the mind of every single
Christian. Yet when searching Scripture
for answers, Christians don't all reach
the same conclusions. Throughout the
centuries of Christian history, this
issue has led to many debates, and
differences have even caused divisions
in churches and denominations. In some
cases, Bible colleges and ministries
were founded for the express purpose of
promoting a particular perspective on
this point of doctrine. And what has
been achieved through so much debating?
Far from coming to a consensus, the
subject continues to be the cause of
disagreement and fragmentation in the
body of Christ. Instead of being
remedied, the problem is only
exacerbated every time somebody comes
along and proposes a new system of
interpretation, believing to have
finally found the key to overcome the
differences and bring an end to the
debate. At present, we have more
theories disputing over the minds of
Christians than at any time in history,
and if this is any indication of what
lies ahead, viewpoints may just continue
to multiply, causing further division,
until the return of Christ. The
solution, however, is not to pursue
unity by ignoring the issue. Abandoning
our efforts toward doctrinal unity and
aspiring only to have institutional
unity is, in reality, to give up on
achieving true unity. If Christ's church
does not benefit from division, it
profits even less from a disregard for
doctrine. External unity, without
confessional unity, is merely apparent
unity, which becomes an ideal context
for the proliferation of error rather
than for the proclamation of the truth.
After all, the church should function as
the pillar and buttress of the truth (1
Tim. 3:15). If this issue has ever
troubled you, your church, or your
denomination--read this book