CHRIST the AUTHOR of ETERNAL SALVATION (Heb 5:9): General William Booth (1829-1912), founder of the Salvation Army, looked into the future and warned what he saw as the dangers ahead: “1. Christianity without Christ; 2. Religion without the Holy Spirit; 3. Forgiveness without Regeneration; 4. Morality without God; and 5. preaching Heaven without Hell.” What a sorry thing is Christianity without Christ! It is a message without a theme, prophecies without fulfillment, commands without power to do them, mere form without reality. Christ is not only central to the gospel, He is everything. The Author who conceived it is also its climax. The One who promised also performed. Without Christ incarnate, we cannot fully know God. Without Christ crucified, there is no way to be saved. Without Christ risen from the dead, “we are of all men most miserable.” Without Christ returning for us, there is no grand conclusion to His glorious plan.