“Eternity In Their Hearts” Book Review

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has
put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can
find out the work that God does from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11

by Chuck Ness

Don Richardson spent many years in Papua New Guinea. In his research, he investigated many cultures and their religious ceremonies. This book is a result of that investigative work. The first time I read this book was back in 2004, and I still find myself picking it up from time to time. The information inside is well worth the few dollars you may spend.

Besides being an avid reader of Christian literature, I am also a history buff, so I love learning about different cultures and how they came about. Yet, regardless of how cultures around the World and throughout history are different, I am always amazed at how similar the people truly are. My faith in God has always allowed me to see those similarities, and this book helps reiterate my belief that God created us all to be one people under The One true GOD.

In this book, Richardson shows us how the ancient, and modern day, customs of many societies prove they have not completely forgotten about the One true GOD. He makes the case that God has preserved remnant memories of Himself embedded in, not just the hearts of man, but also in the traditions and ceremonies of their cultures. He further maintains that missionaries would be much more successful if they could connect the links these traditions and ceremonies have with the forgotten truth.

Don uses Paul's presentation to the Greek philosophers as an example of how some traditions and beliefs actually point to Who the One true GOD is. Using one of the many stutues the Greeks worship, Paul reasoned with the men at the Areopagus in Athens that the One whom they ignorantly worshiped, “the Unknown God”, is the True God and He does not dwell in temples made by men. Acts 17:22-34

He goes on to use examples told by missionaries to show how God primed the hearts of the Gentiles for the good news. “Eternity in Their Hearts”, shows us that regardless of how far we have wandered, there is spark in the hearts of all men that makes them yearn to cry out Abba, Father.

This book does an excellent job of using true accounts of mass conversions of tribal people who lived as savages. Humans with no apparent exposure to orthodox religious instruction, apparently grasped the gospel message. The God Jehovah of the Abrahamic religion appears to be identical to Viracocha of the Incas; El and Elyon of the Canaanites; Thakur Jiu of the Santal; Magano of the Gedeo; Koro of the Mbaka; Shang Ti of the Chinese; Hananim of the Koreans; Y'wa of the Burmese Karen; Karat Kasang of the Burmese Kachin; Gui'Sha of the Burmese Lahu; Siyeh of the Wa; Phra-Ariya-Metrai of the Shan and Palaung; Chepo-Thoru and Gtuang of the Indian Naga and Mizo.

Like the example of Paul and the Greek philosophers, he also uses the example from Paul's letter to the Romans 2:14-15 which helped him with the idea for the title of the book,

"For when Gentiles who do not have the Law instinctively perform the requirements of the Law, these, though not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience testifying and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them,"
Romans 2:14-15

Using first and second-hand documentation as well as scholarly citations to defend his theory, Richardson gives Christian apologists material they can use defending the Scriptures. All these examples show how God primed the hearts of the Gentiles for the good news. “Eternity in Their Hearts”, shows us that regardless of how far we have wandered, there is spark in the hearts of all men that makes them yearn to cry out Abba, Father.

For the Christian, and for the open-minded, this can be an exciting book to read! If you are a skeptic, or don't believe God is working in the world today, you better not read this book, because it will sour your mood. However if an unbeliever truly wants to know if God does or does not exist, then you must read it to have an informed opinion.

This is an excellent book that shares some amazing things that have happened in the work of those who answer to the Clarion Call of Matthew 28:19-20. It's an easy book to read, and one that will keep you from putting it down. Be careful, because you may find yourself ignoring other things you need to do in order to read the next example offered as proof that God has put eternity in our hearts. I highly recommend this book for one and all, and if your looking for a great Christmas gift, this is a must as a stocking stuffer.