It’s been some time since I last posted. For those of you who were on pins and needles waiting for it, I do apologize. You know who you are:)
My blog is all about “Adventures in Finding the Point.” I said when I started that I was trying to think through things that I hadn’t figured out yet. In the course of this adventure, I have, and probably will again, get caught up in an exciting idea and have to find my way back down to weigh that idea against Truth and what I know. For those of you who don’t know me well, I am a passionate person and can sometimes get swept up by it.
Such was the case with “Love Wins.”
This will be the last time I post about this book, so please bear with me.
Love Wins challenges all kinds of ideas and beliefs about Heaven and Hell. Some of the things Rob Bell says I like- those things that sound like they came straight from “The Great Divorce,” specifically. We have the ability to effect Heaven and inflict Hell now- it’s not something for which we have to wait. He paints beautiful and striking pictures of the love and grace of God- I think he really gets that aspect of God. It’s an aspect many people need to encounter.
However, I take issue with many of his ideas about Hell and judgement and the like. The Bible is squishy when it comes to the specifics, but here is what I think is true:
Hell is just as real as Heaven and, without Jesus, that is where we would end up. Period.
Hell is NOT going to be a pleasant place. It was not made for us- it’s something we choose when we don’t choose Jesus. It is an either/or.
Now, do I believe in post-mortem conversion (accepting the Grace of Jesus after the grave)? I don’t know. I certainly hope it’s a possibility and I have no issue with the idea itself, but the Bible sure doesn’t say anything conclusive about it, so it’s not something I wan to count on. Would you?
On the other hand, do I believe that even those people who have never heard the name of Jesus will go to Hell? I cannot go as far as some and give an unequivocal ‘Yes.’ I believe that God is good and true and loving and knows our hearts. But He is also just righteous and demands a level of righteousness that we cannot meet without Christ.
On a bad day, I confess, I think God could be doing some things differently. Why didn’t He just TELL US?! Why would a good and gracious God send people to hell? But that’s pride, to think that I understand something that God does not. How could I possibly have a more developed sense of justice than He? Who am I? So to say “I could never follow a God who does this...” is foolish. And dangerous. (Thank you, Francis Chan.)
Conclusion? Hell isn’t the point. Jesus is always the point. It’s not about how we’re going to spend eternity. Jesus is not fire-insurance. It’s about having an encounter with the One who would make us the ‘righteousness of God’ in Him, choosing Him, and pursuing Him. The rest are just details, because if we are doing the first three things, the rest will follow suit. It’s honestly inevitable. How can we truly be pursuing Him and not leading people to Him also?
Rob Bell made some irresponsible statements and had some questionable exegesis (suggestion- don’t make assertions like he did without supplying a bibliography). But he did make some good points. Do I recommend the book? I don’t know... maybe. If you’re willing to process and not simply swallow, then yes.
And I apologize for not processing first.
PS- For the record, I do think that Rob Bell loves Jesus, but is treading dangerous ground. We need to be praying for our brother, that he doesn’t stray into weird theology and take others with him. We need to be praying that he would be seeking God’s face earnestly, and that God would reveal Himself more and more. It’s cowardly, and honestly a little lazy, to call him a heretic and stand on a soapbox about it, but do nothing proactively.
I’ll get off of my soapbox now...
