“The Martyr’s Song” is sort of a fictional sequel to Ted Dekker’s non-fiction book “The Slumber of Christianity” (see my review). In it he tries to give a “real-life” example of what it means to delight in Heaven, in the world to come. Without giving away the plot, I will say that this book shares the story of a sadistic persecution of Christians that supposedly took place in Bosnia sometime in the 20th century. The evil characters will make you cringe, while those who are being persecuted will bring you to the point of weeping. Some of the main characters give their lives valiantly for the truth and show what it means to “love not your life unto death”. I recommend it above most other fiction that’s available out there. It will encourage you in many ways.
That being said, the one thing this book won’t do is clearly share the Gospel with you. Dekker favors language about having a loving relationship with God over actually explaining what Christ did for us on the cross and what we must believe in order to be saved. The book would be much better (and infinitely more helpful for unbelievers) if he talked about both.
I don’t think the point of this particular book is to explain the gospel. I think the Circle Trilogy is his best gospel-based work. Martyrs Song is for believers, and it is to remind us of eternity with Him. To give us an example of just what you said- what it looks like to love the Lord more than your own life. And also to remind us of what we’re really living for.