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The Slumber Of Christianity: Awakening A Passion For Heaven On Earth
As believers, our walk with God is motivated by hope -not the bland, vague notion most people have, but the expectation of an exotic, pleasurable inheritance that guides us and fires our passion...or, at least, should. Ted Dekker has written an expose on the death of pleasure within the Church. Because many of us have set aside hope and the inspired imagination that drives it, Dekker says we have been lulled into a slumber of boredom, even despondency. Our faith wanes, the joy at having been liberated fades, and we feel powerless. The Slumber of Christianity explores what robs us of happiness and how we can rediscover it and live lives that rekindle hope. The pursuit of pleasure is a gift to all humans-a function of the Creator himself, who is bent upon our happiness. It's time for Christians to reclaim our inheritance of pleasure. The Slumber of Christianity will inflame hearts toward full-fledged, mind-expanding encounters with hope, through the imagination.
200 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2005
109 people are currently reading
1421 people want to read
About the author
Ted Dekker
192 books9,978 followersTed Dekker is known for novels that combine adrenaline-laced stories with unexpected plot twists, unforgettable characters, and incredible confrontations between good and evil. Ted lives in Austin with his wife LeeAnn and their four children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 90 reviews
July 25, 2011
I'm not sure I've read another book that stirred my passion and longing for Heaven as much as this one. Well, maybe Heaven by Randy Alcorn, but for totally different reasons (and this book was much shorter and easier to read).
This book took a perspective shift that was sparked within me after my own struggles with chronic illness and the sudden recent death of my father (not even yet 60), and fanned it into a full-blown inferno. Simply put, we, as Christians, are living for the wrong thing(s). All of the glory and bliss that awaits us in Heaven with Christ should be our goal, our aim, our muse, our motivator—for everything that we do. Every other earthly goal pales in comparison to the inheritance we have in Christ for which we should strive, and will ultimately fail to satisfy (despite the enemy's insistence to the contrary).
Dekker helped me rightfully realign my passion toward Eternity, and in so doing explained how this proper perspective liberates me to rightfully enjoy the pleasures of this life as a foretaste of the incomparable riches awaiting me in the next.
When actually grasped, this truth really does change everything. For instance:
1] I can see (for the first time) how a person would willingly give up their life for Christ
2] I can honestly rejoice in pain/suffering as a tool not designed by, but used by God for my good
3] The grief in the wake of my father's death is not eliminated but significantly altered and lessened
4] The self-imposed and world-imposed significance placed on earthly things, achievements, accomplishments, accolades, is gone, and I am free to live for God alone.
5] Paul's words that is would be far better to die so as to be with Christ (Philippines 1:23) actually honestly resonate with my heart.
6] I'm actually looking forward to dying and going to Heaven. No, seriously.
There's more ... but I'll stop.
The reason I didn't give the 5th star is because I feel there is one piece of the puzzle that Dekker left out (possibly intentionally for the sake of length), and that is to go into some of the specifics about Heaven that we actually do know through Scripture. When studied, the picture of Heaven that the Bible paints for us (albeit limited) is intoxicatingly alluring, and enough motivation on it's own to spark my longing and begin to wake me up from the slumber that Dekker set out to remedy. He does encourage the reader to examine the Bible for him/herself, and to spend time imagining and meditating on Heaven, but I feel that even a brief summary of some of the amazing joy and pleasure that awaits the believer in Heaven would complete the picture excellently.
If, by chance, this book has sparked your interest in Heaven and you would like a more complete look at what the Bible does reveal to us about what Heaven will be like, I highly recommend reading Heaven by Randy Alcorn (who wrote the forward to this book). The things Alcorn points out in his book absolutely blew me away and caused a yearning in me to be with Jesus in Heaven now. These two books together make a wonderful set.
P.S.— As a side note, I'm generally not interested in reading fiction. Being primarily a fiction author himself, Dekker takes some time in this book to defend his personal love and support of fiction. Surprisingly, I think he made some good points, and I'm considering delving into some fiction now as a result.
This book took a perspective shift that was sparked within me after my own struggles with chronic illness and the sudden recent death of my father (not even yet 60), and fanned it into a full-blown inferno. Simply put, we, as Christians, are living for the wrong thing(s). All of the glory and bliss that awaits us in Heaven with Christ should be our goal, our aim, our muse, our motivator—for everything that we do. Every other earthly goal pales in comparison to the inheritance we have in Christ for which we should strive, and will ultimately fail to satisfy (despite the enemy's insistence to the contrary).
Dekker helped me rightfully realign my passion toward Eternity, and in so doing explained how this proper perspective liberates me to rightfully enjoy the pleasures of this life as a foretaste of the incomparable riches awaiting me in the next.
When actually grasped, this truth really does change everything. For instance:
1] I can see (for the first time) how a person would willingly give up their life for Christ
2] I can honestly rejoice in pain/suffering as a tool not designed by, but used by God for my good
3] The grief in the wake of my father's death is not eliminated but significantly altered and lessened
4] The self-imposed and world-imposed significance placed on earthly things, achievements, accomplishments, accolades, is gone, and I am free to live for God alone.
5] Paul's words that is would be far better to die so as to be with Christ (Philippines 1:23) actually honestly resonate with my heart.
6] I'm actually looking forward to dying and going to Heaven. No, seriously.
There's more ... but I'll stop.
The reason I didn't give the 5th star is because I feel there is one piece of the puzzle that Dekker left out (possibly intentionally for the sake of length), and that is to go into some of the specifics about Heaven that we actually do know through Scripture. When studied, the picture of Heaven that the Bible paints for us (albeit limited) is intoxicatingly alluring, and enough motivation on it's own to spark my longing and begin to wake me up from the slumber that Dekker set out to remedy. He does encourage the reader to examine the Bible for him/herself, and to spend time imagining and meditating on Heaven, but I feel that even a brief summary of some of the amazing joy and pleasure that awaits the believer in Heaven would complete the picture excellently.
If, by chance, this book has sparked your interest in Heaven and you would like a more complete look at what the Bible does reveal to us about what Heaven will be like, I highly recommend reading Heaven by Randy Alcorn (who wrote the forward to this book). The things Alcorn points out in his book absolutely blew me away and caused a yearning in me to be with Jesus in Heaven now. These two books together make a wonderful set.
P.S.— As a side note, I'm generally not interested in reading fiction. Being primarily a fiction author himself, Dekker takes some time in this book to defend his personal love and support of fiction. Surprisingly, I think he made some good points, and I'm considering delving into some fiction now as a result.
Read
May 2, 2012Foreword by Randy Alcorn
Rise up from slumber. Set your mind and heart on an inheritance that will blow your mind. Feel your heart flutter and find a new passion for life here and now. This is the call from Ted Dekker, who writes with passion and insight on the search for happiness and heaven.
“Are you desperately longing for heaven?” It’s a question that begs answering. Peter says, “we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth” (2 Peter 3:13). But, in fact, as Christians today are we? Are we actually looking forward to and longing for our eternal home?
Heaven plays a major role in my novels and nonfiction. Researching my book Heaven, I read 150 volumes on the subject, many long out-of-print. I’ve taught a seminary course “A Theology of Heaven.” I’ve received literally thousands of letters and emails about heaven. There’s a great deal I don’t know, but one thing I do know is what Christians think about heaven. And how seldom we think about it.
Sadly, Ted is right when he says “the church today has little passion for the coming life.”
What a contrast to the early Christians. Their pictures on the catacomb walls portrayed heaven with beautiful landscapes, children playing, people feasting at banquets. Believers throughout the ages saw heaven as a constant source of strength and perspective. It was their central reference point, the north star by which they navigated their lives. But today, heaven has fallen off our radar screens.
What God made us to desire is exactly what he promises: a resurrected life in resurrected bodies, in a resurrected community, with the resurrected Christ on a resurrected Earth. This is the eternal heaven that awaits us, and should daily capture our imaginations.
Ted’s right—we’re slumbering. We need to wake up and smell the New Earth. Taste the coming resurrection. The doctrines of resurrection and New Earth mean that this present world, though suffering under sin and curse, is bursting with clues and foretastes of the coming world.
The Carpenter from Nazareth is preparing a place for us. He knows how to build. He’s constructed entire worlds, billions of them. He’s going to strip the damaged paint off the old Earth, sand and refinish it, then present it magnificent and pristine. He says it will one day be our home...and His, for He will dwell there with His people, forever bringing heaven to earth (Revelation 21:3).
With the Lord we love and with the friends we cherish, believers will embark together on the ultimate adventure, in a spectacular new universe awaiting our dominion and exploration. Jesus will be the cosmic center. Joy will be the air we breathe.
And right when we think “it doesn’t get any better than this”—it will.
So listen to Ted Dekker’s wake-up call. You’ll never regret the world you’ll wake up to...not in a billion years.
Rise up from slumber. Set your mind and heart on an inheritance that will blow your mind. Feel your heart flutter and find a new passion for life here and now. This is the call from Ted Dekker, who writes with passion and insight on the search for happiness and heaven.
“Are you desperately longing for heaven?” It’s a question that begs answering. Peter says, “we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth” (2 Peter 3:13). But, in fact, as Christians today are we? Are we actually looking forward to and longing for our eternal home?
Heaven plays a major role in my novels and nonfiction. Researching my book Heaven, I read 150 volumes on the subject, many long out-of-print. I’ve taught a seminary course “A Theology of Heaven.” I’ve received literally thousands of letters and emails about heaven. There’s a great deal I don’t know, but one thing I do know is what Christians think about heaven. And how seldom we think about it.
Sadly, Ted is right when he says “the church today has little passion for the coming life.”
What a contrast to the early Christians. Their pictures on the catacomb walls portrayed heaven with beautiful landscapes, children playing, people feasting at banquets. Believers throughout the ages saw heaven as a constant source of strength and perspective. It was their central reference point, the north star by which they navigated their lives. But today, heaven has fallen off our radar screens.
What God made us to desire is exactly what he promises: a resurrected life in resurrected bodies, in a resurrected community, with the resurrected Christ on a resurrected Earth. This is the eternal heaven that awaits us, and should daily capture our imaginations.
Ted’s right—we’re slumbering. We need to wake up and smell the New Earth. Taste the coming resurrection. The doctrines of resurrection and New Earth mean that this present world, though suffering under sin and curse, is bursting with clues and foretastes of the coming world.
The Carpenter from Nazareth is preparing a place for us. He knows how to build. He’s constructed entire worlds, billions of them. He’s going to strip the damaged paint off the old Earth, sand and refinish it, then present it magnificent and pristine. He says it will one day be our home...and His, for He will dwell there with His people, forever bringing heaven to earth (Revelation 21:3).
With the Lord we love and with the friends we cherish, believers will embark together on the ultimate adventure, in a spectacular new universe awaiting our dominion and exploration. Jesus will be the cosmic center. Joy will be the air we breathe.
And right when we think “it doesn’t get any better than this”—it will.
So listen to Ted Dekker’s wake-up call. You’ll never regret the world you’ll wake up to...not in a billion years.
July 10, 2010
Wow. Little surprise that the author who writes such amazingly intense novels could also write such an amazing nonfiction book. I do think this is by far the best nonfiction book I'be ever read. Very powerful. I think it impossible to read through this book and not have your thinking changed.
January 16, 2008
This is one that Christians need to read. Ted reminds us of the gift of imagination, given to us by God to be used for his glory. And he reminds us of our need to passionately serve God. Dekker is an amazing author.
March 20, 2013
Ted Dekker Spends the majority of his time writing Christian Fiction. He does that with great precision as he weaves faith into a story of myth and revealing the redemption of Christ. He did this very well in theCircle Trilogy that became a quadolgy (if that is a word lol).
However the slumber of Christianity is his only non-fiction book that I am aware of and it is about breathing life back into lifless Christianity. Dekker in this book wants to awaken sleeping christians. He wants to remind us that there is life in death. I am remided in this book that I live so that I might die. Are we living in anxious hope of death or do we enjoy getting what we can in this life and living short sighted? A quote I like: Christians, "If our hope is for only the things our faith can give us in this life, we are to be pitied more than all men!" christians have we fallen in such a deep slumber coveting the things of this world that we have lost sight of true hope. Pauls himself longed for the ship of death that would be his vehicle home. Even in life his hope was chrsit. He said for me to live is christ and to die is gain. He was awake, alive, and vibrant in hope. Life in Christ for me is life. Death in Christ for me is life. He was saying in life and in death it is a win win situation because he was not in spiritual slumber. Ted says, "Awakening to a passion for heaven on earth begins by exposing the slumber that has stolen that passion and understanding the critical role the emotion of hope plays in any passion for the bliss to come." Set your mind, will, and emotion on a course toward heaven and live in light of eternity. "Fascinate your mind with Christ, and fan into flames a vision of the afterlife." In my opinion the only thing that seperates Christians today from the apostles/disciples of jesus is the anticipation of the hope to come. We say lord I am ready Just let me get married first, or see my kids grow up or have a nice job or... the list goes on. Jesus says, die and deny then you can follow me. This is hope!
However the slumber of Christianity is his only non-fiction book that I am aware of and it is about breathing life back into lifless Christianity. Dekker in this book wants to awaken sleeping christians. He wants to remind us that there is life in death. I am remided in this book that I live so that I might die. Are we living in anxious hope of death or do we enjoy getting what we can in this life and living short sighted? A quote I like: Christians, "If our hope is for only the things our faith can give us in this life, we are to be pitied more than all men!" christians have we fallen in such a deep slumber coveting the things of this world that we have lost sight of true hope. Pauls himself longed for the ship of death that would be his vehicle home. Even in life his hope was chrsit. He said for me to live is christ and to die is gain. He was awake, alive, and vibrant in hope. Life in Christ for me is life. Death in Christ for me is life. He was saying in life and in death it is a win win situation because he was not in spiritual slumber. Ted says, "Awakening to a passion for heaven on earth begins by exposing the slumber that has stolen that passion and understanding the critical role the emotion of hope plays in any passion for the bliss to come." Set your mind, will, and emotion on a course toward heaven and live in light of eternity. "Fascinate your mind with Christ, and fan into flames a vision of the afterlife." In my opinion the only thing that seperates Christians today from the apostles/disciples of jesus is the anticipation of the hope to come. We say lord I am ready Just let me get married first, or see my kids grow up or have a nice job or... the list goes on. Jesus says, die and deny then you can follow me. This is hope!
January 20, 2011
This book made me rethink about Christianity. I'll admit I'm not a fan of religion. I have not gone to church in ages but Dekker really inspires the notion of true hope instead of just "chrurchianity" as we've commonly been guilty of. He is a man after my own heart. Boy, do I love the words he writes almost as much as I respect the man behind such words. He is unfathomably mysterious and simply, yet his style remains one of simplicity and common-ground for people of all schools of thought, mind and ultimately heart.
June 8, 2023
Very unique and interesting perspective, that highlights the importance of keeping heaven as our greatest hope and anticipation throughout our lives. He talks a bit about his childhood and his beliefs, which did help me understand his writing style more. While I did get a bit out of the book, I think I came away more so with a glimpse of the inner workings of the mind of this well known author, more that anything else.
September 12, 2013
Great topic, intriguing start with first few chapters. Would have liked Dekker to flesh out a solution more than he did with this book but overall, an easy read that still should awake the slumberer with a charge to action.
March 13, 2022
If I could give one book to every Christian I know, it would be The Slumber of Christianity
Dekker uses his incredible talent as an engaging author of thriller and suspense in combination with his personal life story to craft a profound narrative that is sure to awaken you in hope if you have ears to hear
Dekker uses his incredible talent as an engaging author of thriller and suspense in combination with his personal life story to craft a profound narrative that is sure to awaken you in hope if you have ears to hear
March 10, 2017
A wonderful look at what it really means to be a Christian. Could have done without the annoying formatting, though...
August 6, 2013
Hope, imagination, even suffering. Ted Dekker shows us how these gifts and experiences can help believers awaken from what he calls a slumber--a loss of excitement for the abundant life God has provided. I like his ideas, especially using pleasurable experiences to foreshadow the much greater joy available in heaven. One thing I wish he would have done more of is to point to God as the ultimate end of our journey, and not just heaven. Yes, heaven is the believer's eternal home with God, and the two are inseparable, but as a destiny it should never outshine the relationship we will have with Him.
July 27, 2011
Ted Dekker's fiction revolutionized the way I looked at "Christian Fiction," and that same power is prevalent in this book as well. I highly recommend it. As for the subject matter, the title says it all. His premise is that Christians have fallen asleep to the hope of heaven. It is this hope that keeps us going in this life, and heaven is our ultimate prize. We will never find fulfillment in life on earth till we long for heaven.
July 14, 2012
Loved it. A must-read. Hope: the expectation of the amazing, beautiful, perfect Kingdom that we will share with our Beloved Christ. This hope is the essential driving force of Christian life. Without it, we become tired and ineffective and may even lose our faith. Dekker's exposition on this topic is excellent. If you are asleep, it will make you thirst. If you are awake, it will stoke the consuming fire in you.
August 15, 2008
This book was a bit disappointing. I liked the subject and loved the author, butn I could not get through it... I actually kept falling asleep! I get his point, about awakening your passion, but he draws it out too long while mixing his personal biograhy/testimony in... I didn't like the way it was laid out.
DekKer really needs to keep to his fiction.
DekKer really needs to keep to his fiction.
June 26, 2010
One of my favorite of all of Ted Dekker's books. It was quite an eye opener for me. I totally believe that many Christians here in America are being lulled to sleep and don't even know it.
This book reminded me that my eyes and heart should be heaven bound instead of earthly tied.
This book reminded me that my eyes and heart should be heaven bound instead of earthly tied.
May 18, 2011
This is the best book on Heaven I've ever read. Many parts of this book made me want to cheer. It stirred something deep within me that's longing for Heaven. It is both encouraging and incredibly motivating.
I'm going to buy it and read it again with a highlighter.
I'm going to buy it and read it again with a highlighter.
May 21, 2014
First Ted Dekker's non-fiction book I've ever read.
I liked it a lot but there were little things that I didn't like (I won't say because it would be a huge spoiler). However, I loved the way that he explains the slumber of Christianity.
I liked it a lot but there were little things that I didn't like (I won't say because it would be a huge spoiler). However, I loved the way that he explains the slumber of Christianity.
February 26, 2008
This book really hit me, especially where I am in my life right now. Dekker really has something to say in this book. It's not the same Christian jargan heard everywhere else.
July 22, 2008
Very well written and insightful.
September 3, 2010
A must read for all Christians!!!
July 27, 2013
A direct discussion on the weariness we all experience and what realities, though unseen, address our innermost longings... Intriguing and inspiring of hope.
September 20, 2015
This had some really beautiful points about hope and about Heaven that I don't often think about, but that are totally true and inspiring.
November 13, 2010
An explanation of why Dekker writes so passionately.
September 3, 2021
DNF 55%
I really struggled with this book. There is a bit of truth to what Dekker is saying, but there were too many things going wrong that I just had to stop.
1. There were a number of times I felt he was not using scripture well (taking it out of context or reading into it what he wanted).
2. He lumps the majority of Christians world wide into this "slumber" with no consideration that it may be a majority of the Christians in the western world, but doesn't take into account the growing and thriving "church" in the rest of the world (in particular in the countries where Christians are under serious persecution).
3. I felt that he rambled quite a bit and made it even more confusing than it needed to be. He could have condensed things and been so much clearer, and that would have helped.
Perhaps there are some good things to be gotten further into the book, but for me it isn't worth slogging through the rest.
I really struggled with this book. There is a bit of truth to what Dekker is saying, but there were too many things going wrong that I just had to stop.
1. There were a number of times I felt he was not using scripture well (taking it out of context or reading into it what he wanted).
2. He lumps the majority of Christians world wide into this "slumber" with no consideration that it may be a majority of the Christians in the western world, but doesn't take into account the growing and thriving "church" in the rest of the world (in particular in the countries where Christians are under serious persecution).
3. I felt that he rambled quite a bit and made it even more confusing than it needed to be. He could have condensed things and been so much clearer, and that would have helped.
Perhaps there are some good things to be gotten further into the book, but for me it isn't worth slogging through the rest.
September 5, 2022
Note to self: Listened on Hoopla audio 9/5/22 while cutting back mint and clearing under butterfly bushes. Wow! Ted Dekker's vulnerability about his life's story is refreshing. Admitting boubts about if God exists after growing up as a missionary's kid is a good for all to hear. Nothing wrong with owning your own faith. It's because God was there for me in three of my lowest points in life that I know He is who He says He is and why I live every day while on earth in joy and excittedly looking forward to the day I see Jesus face to face. Mr Dekker's words, ideas and logic are benificial for Christians of any maturity. If you're a skeptic this 4 hour read could give you something to think about. I'm gonna buy a hardcopy and read deaper now.
April 24, 2024
A must read for the modern Christian
Ted Dekker is a masterful story teller and this book was a beautiful surprise since it is a serious work and not fiction. He tells the truth that Christianity today has lost the luster of the unspeakable joy and hope that the first century disciples wrote about. It is true that we have shifted focus to only those things we experience in this life through the five senses; the truth is our greatest joy is once we leave this life and step into eternity with our Creator. I strongly encourage every believer to read this as a reminder of what we should spend this life on and I implore every unbeliever to read it also and discover the true joy of salvation as Jesus intended it.
Ted Dekker is a masterful story teller and this book was a beautiful surprise since it is a serious work and not fiction. He tells the truth that Christianity today has lost the luster of the unspeakable joy and hope that the first century disciples wrote about. It is true that we have shifted focus to only those things we experience in this life through the five senses; the truth is our greatest joy is once we leave this life and step into eternity with our Creator. I strongly encourage every believer to read this as a reminder of what we should spend this life on and I implore every unbeliever to read it also and discover the true joy of salvation as Jesus intended it.
December 29, 2017
I'm AWAKE!!!
Thank you, Ted for the awakening!
It's easy to slumber through our lives and not wake up and not think about our heavenly home that is more beautiful and perfect than we can possibly dream up!!! I really enjoyed the reference Thomas Hunter in The Circle series...now I want to read it AGAIN!!! This is a book I would recommend to each and every person in the WORLD, the information is that good and important to wake up Christians and bring nonbelievers to a life of knowing the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!!!
Thank you, Ted for the awakening!
It's easy to slumber through our lives and not wake up and not think about our heavenly home that is more beautiful and perfect than we can possibly dream up!!! I really enjoyed the reference Thomas Hunter in The Circle series...now I want to read it AGAIN!!! This is a book I would recommend to each and every person in the WORLD, the information is that good and important to wake up Christians and bring nonbelievers to a life of knowing the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!!!
March 1, 2022
If I could give this book 4.5 stars I would!
I absolutely believe that this book needs to be read by every person that considers themselves to be a part of the Body Of Christ. Having an eternal focus has somehow gotten lost and this book gives you the tools to "wake up from slumber".
The only thing I disagree with is where he talks about depression. People with depression can still hope for heaven. This goes along with the section that talks about suffering. David was depressed throughout the Psalms. Yet, in the same lament he still hopes for heaven.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book.
I absolutely believe that this book needs to be read by every person that considers themselves to be a part of the Body Of Christ. Having an eternal focus has somehow gotten lost and this book gives you the tools to "wake up from slumber".
The only thing I disagree with is where he talks about depression. People with depression can still hope for heaven. This goes along with the section that talks about suffering. David was depressed throughout the Psalms. Yet, in the same lament he still hopes for heaven.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book.
July 7, 2018
I used to read Dekker's stuff allllll the time. His first run was fantastic (Thr3e, the Circle Trilogy, Showdown, Sinner, and Saint, etc.), but he got a little repetitive.
This non-fiction outing was pretty good, and his infectious enthusiasm shows through. But it's a bit preachy and even downright condescending in parts (boy is that a tough line to walk when trying to shake people up!).
But overall, it's a great little book.
This non-fiction outing was pretty good, and his infectious enthusiasm shows through. But it's a bit preachy and even downright condescending in parts (boy is that a tough line to walk when trying to shake people up!).
But overall, it's a great little book.
July 14, 2018
Wasn't anything new or exciting that I hadn't heard before, but it was encouraging to change my thinking into anticipating heaven. Desiring it and living life here on earth to remind you of what you should be anticipating. Loved the idea of a steak or lobster dinner once a month to remind my taste buds of what is to come!
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