I just finished re-reading this groundbreaking novel. I remember reading it when it first came out in 1986 and being utterly blown away. This is Chrisian fiction?! I had no idea what other books would be written by authors following the trail blazed by Mr. Peretti. It was my first big step into the category of 'thrillers,' and I was amazed. Enough reminiscing, although I'm sure that many others could echo these thoughts. What about the book itself?
This one is a bit difficult to explain. The author maintains his storyline on two levels: one level tells the story of physical activities, and another shows what's going on behind the scenes in the spiritual realm. Think angels vs. demons, light vs. darkness. The piece that makes this interesting is the way that the two levels interact and play off each other.
The central plot revolves around the humans, and the spirit characters win or lose according to how they can influence those people. The spirits whisper thoughts into minds and give nudges at just the right times to move the story along. Angels are strengthened when people pray, while demons find strength in numbers and in their own pride.
Now, for those who enjoy realism in a story, you might struggle to suspend your disbelief a few times as you read the book. Most things will have you thinking, "Wow, could it really work like that?" There will be times where things seem a bit unbelievable even from the perspective of a spiritualy sensitive Christian.
The pastor, Hank, can call out demons by name - and that always fixes everything in this particular story. Okay, well, it is a story after all, not a theological treatise. And, in our stories, we like a good hero. A theology instructor once explained:
"We often base our idea of the normal Christian life on our own experiences - and lack thereof. Instead, we should base our views on what the Bible tells us, and if our experiences don't match up, then maybe we're not exactly living the normal Christian life as prescribed in the New Testament."
That's not a word-for-word quote, but hopefully, you get the idea. Just because there are some things in this story that we don't often encounter (e.g., casting out demons), that doesn't make them unreal.
Almost every plot twist in this book traces back from the obvious physical occurrence to some subtle spiritual cause. In one sense, that's just too easy. We all like to think, "the devil made me do it" when we actually have our own set of motivations. Still, this book makes me wonder how oblivious we are to battles happening all around us. (See my wife's blog for more on some of our struggles and battles in the journey of adoption.)
By the end, you might be thinking, "That seemed to work out a little too nicely." Maybe so, but I am a firm believer in Romans 8:28, that God orchestrates things for our good. I see this in real life, so I don't have too much difficulty believing when it happens in the story.
Well, this reads more like a sermon than a book review, but I guess I got carried away. I recommend this book for all people of all ages. At the very least, it will probably spur some interesting conversations.
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