God Saves: Rethinking Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine--and Why It Matters

God Saves is an argument for rediscovering one of Christianity's most ancient, potent, and liberating teachings, albeit one frequently maligned and misunderstood. In some circles, it's called the doctrine of predestination; in others, the doctrine of election. The time has come to reconsider it in the light of Christian scripture, and so to recast and reclaim it anew for the twenty-first century. At the heart of the doctrine is the idea of being "elected" or "chosen" by God for salvation, which would seem to be fertile ground for arrogance, anxiety, and division. Properly understood, however, the teaching cultivates the opposite: humility, assurance, and above all, companionship, even and especially with members of other religions, or no religion at all. In a lively, accessible style, Boulton draws on key biblical passages--from Genesis to Exodus to Paul's Letter to the Romans--to show how, at its core, the election doctrine is the Christian Gospel in two words: God saves. We don't. Religion doesn't. Or, if you prefer the Gospel in one word: Jesus, from a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew Yeshua, meaning "God saves."

Wayne G. Boulton served as president of the Presbyterian School of Christian Education; as professor of Christian ethics at Hope College in Holland, Michigan; and as pastor of several congregations in Maryland, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Ordained in the Presbyterian Church (USA), he is the author of many books and articles, and co-editor of From Christ to the World: Introductory Readings in Christian Ethics (1994).