{"id":38823,"date":"2021-01-18T14:42:22","date_gmt":"2021-01-18T18:42:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=38823"},"modified":"2021-01-18T14:42:22","modified_gmt":"2021-01-18T18:42:22","slug":"review-of-grace-saves-all-by-david-artman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=38823","title":{"rendered":"Review of Grace Saves All, by David Artman"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Grace Saves All<\/p>\n

The Necessity of Christian Universalism<\/em><\/p>\n

by David Artman<\/p>\n

Wipf & Stock, Eugene, Oregon, 2020. 147 pages.
\nReview written January 5, 2021, from my own copy purchased via amazon.com
\nStarred Review
\n2020 Sonderbooks Stand-out<\/a>:
\n#3 in Christian Nonfiction<\/p>\n

I am amassing quite a collection of books about why Christian Universalism is biblical and why it makes sense and why it paints a picture more worthy of God. This is another wonderful addition to that set.<\/p>\n

One thing I liked about this one was that I read it in the year it was published, and the author has read almost all the same books I have read \u2013 they are even listed in the back as \u201cRecommended Reading\u201d and are cited in many different places. (And I got a few ideas for additional reading.) He even listed all the ones I\u2019d read in the last year, so he\u2019s as up-to-date as I am.<\/p>\n

And each book takes its own approach. This book takes the approach of looking at Grace, and I found that lovely. Here\u2019s how the Introduction begins:<\/p>\n

Grace is amazing. About this all Christians agree. Yet nearly all forms of Christianity put significant limits on grace. Those forms of Christianity which proclaim that grace alone actually saves typically don\u2019t believe God gives grace to everyone, while those forms of Christianity which proclaim God gives grace to everyone typically don\u2019t believe grace alone actually saves. Is the Christian understanding of grace necessarily divided between these two grace-limiting options? Must grace either be that which saves alone but doesn\u2019t go to all, or that which goes to all but doesn\u2019t save alone? Or, is there another way? Can one be a Christian and understand grace to save alone and<\/em> go to all? Can one be a Christian and believe salvation by grace alone is for everyone?<\/p>\n

I will argue here that being Christian does not require one to limit either grace\u2019s power or scope. It\u2019s quite possible, I will contend, to be Christian and<\/em> to believe grace is God\u2019s way of finally saving everyone. Grace can be understood to be God\u2019s remedy for all human sin, not just part of it. Grace can mean God perseveres with us until we\u2019ve all seen the light and freely responded in faith. Grace can mean God is with us not just if<\/em> we get things right, but until<\/em> we get things right. How long it takes for us to get things right is not the primary issue for God. Whether it happens in this lifetime, or in the age to come, or in the ages to come after that, is not what really matters. The primary issue for God isn\u2019t how hard it will be for us, or how long it will take us. The primary issue for God is our final return home. And, like the father of the prodigal son, God will be vigilant until we all make our way home from the far country.<\/p>\n

Even though I will be arguing here that everyone will finally be saved by grace alone, what we do still matters very much. We each still have our part to play. And neither will I be downplaying the consequences of sin. We are granted terrifying freedom to bring tremendous misery upon ourselves and others. What we do matters greatly. But no matter what we do, God\u2019s grace can be understood to include God\u2019s commitment to be with us, even in the form of judgment and hell, until we eventually see the light. I will argue that God\u2019s perfecting love is continually with all of us, through whatever hell may be necessary, until all of us are finally healed and home. What makes grace truly amazing is God never giving up and never failing \u2013 God being able to save even those for whom there is apparently no hope. I maintain that it\u2019s possible to be a Christian and to have this understanding of grace.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, most people don\u2019t know it\u2019s possible to be a Christian and to believe grace is God\u2019s way of ultimately saving everyone. They don\u2019t know where to find biblical evidence for this understanding of grace. They don\u2019t know this way of understanding grace was common in early Christianity. They wrongly assume they can only be Christian if they also believe God will not, or might not, save everyone. Through this book I hope to help correct these false impressions and assumptions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As with all the other books I\u2019ve reviewed on Universalism (see the list on the side of this review page), this author fills the book with biblical references supporting what he says. Universalism is biblical! He also spends a whole chapter talking about how the early church supported Universalism. Universalism is authentic Christianity!<\/p>\n

The author calls this kind of belief about grace the Inclusive approach. At the start of the main text, he lays out a five-point biblical framework for this approach:<\/p>\n

1. God is a loving parent to all.<\/p>\n

2. God sincerely wants to save all.<\/p>\n

3. God, in Christ, covers the sin of all.<\/p>\n

4. God is sovereign over all.<\/p>\n

5. God will be all in all.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This book sums up Christian Universalism simply and clearly in a way that\u2019s easy to understand. Plenty of biblical support is cited, and the author finishes up with his own story of how he came to this view, so it\u2019s got a personal touch as well.<\/p>\n

I liked reading this book to have one more clear argument in favor of Christian Universalism. But above all, I was happy to read it because it glories in the amazing inescapable grace of God that indeed saves all. Praise God!<\/p>\n

wipfandstock.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Nonfiction\/grace_saves_all.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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