Rob Bell writes almost exactly like he talks. And that means there will be…<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n…words<\/p>\n
and half-sentences…<\/p>\n
….laid-out unconventionally….<\/p>\n
…throughout<\/p>\n
…the<\/p>\n
book…<\/p>\n
With that said, there is much about this book that is worth discussing. I\u2019ll go ahead and go on record as saying that the vitriol-fueled rumors of Rob Bell\u2019s heretical universalism have been greatly exaggerated. Bell\u2019s critics claim that the arguments in his book fall outside of historical Christian orthodoxy, while Bell himself claims to be saying nothing new, and that everything he argues for can be found within the stream of historic Christian orthodoxy. So, who is right? Well, that all depends on who you are asking, doesn\u2019t it? In contemporary use, the term \u201corthodox\u201d is quite subjective, though almost no-one attempting to employ the term as a theological trump card will admit this subjectivity. (Additionally, it should be noted that all reformers were technically heretics when they initially proposed their reforms, and that the way that the term \u201corthodox\u201d is normally employed today seems more like a power game than anything else\u2026but I digress) Frankly, there isn\u2019t much theological content in this book that you wouldn\u2019t find in the work of N.T. Wright, Dallas Willard, and anyone who advocates a \u201crestoration of all things\u201d eschatology. Even on the particular subject of Hell and eternal punishment, Bell doesn\u2019t say anything that isn\u2019t in the same spirit of what N.T. Wright argues in his chapter on Hell in Following Jesus:<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst, it must be said as clearly as possible that as soon as we find ourselves wanting to believe in hell we find ourselves in great danger. The desire to see others punished\u2013including the desire to do the punishing ourselves\u2013has no place in a Christian scheme of things. There is, of course, a right and proper desire for justice, for the victory of right over might; the desire to punish, however, must be sharply distinguished from this.\u201d<\/p>\n
And later, Wright goes on to state:<\/p>\n
\u201c[M]ost of the passages in the New Testament which have been thought by the Church to refer to people going into eternal punishment after they die don\u2019t in fact refer to any such thing. The great majority of them have to do with the way God acts within the world and history.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you\u2019d like to see those ideas teased out and backed up, I\u2019d recommend that you read Bell\u2019s book and Wright\u2019s work on the subject. I don\u2019t offer these quotes from Wright as a sort of \u201ctrump card\u201d here (Indeed, for some, Wright\u2019s name won\u2019t carry any weight at all). I\u2019m merely attempting to show that Bell isn\u2019t alone in his arguments and that it isn\u2019t accurate to claim that only someone who doesn\u2019t take the Bible or history seriously would make such an argument. It is simply not the case that in Love Wins, Bell is ignoring scripture and making an unbiblical argument. In his chapter on Hell, he actually lists and discusses every passage in the Bible that directly or indirectly discusses Hell. One may disagree with Bell\u2019s interpretation of the Bible, but (particularly on this point) an accusation that he\u2019s ignoring scripture is laughable.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not that I don\u2019t have any criticisms of the book. In his chapter on Heaven, Bell states:<\/p>\n
\u201cJesus often referred to the \u2018kingdom of heaven,\u2019 and he tells stories about people \u2018sinning against heaven.\u2019 \u2018Heaven\u2019 in these cases is simply another way of saying \u2018God\u2019.\u201d(82)<\/p>\n
There is a sense in which this is sort of true, but, at the same time, it is so oversimplified that it is utterly unconvincing as it is stated. The fact is that the Gospel of Matthew records Jesus as using the term \u201cHeaven\u201d in this way, which is made all the more obvious when these texts are compared to the parallel texts in the other Gospels where the same term is rendered \u201cKingdom of God.\u201d This comparison would make Bell\u2019s case much more convincing than simply claiming that Jesus often used the word \u201cHeaven\u201d as a euphemism for the word \u201cGod\u201d (while offering no more detail or supporting information).<\/p>\n
Additionally, in his chapter on Hell, Rob cites Jesus warning to Capernaum in Matthew 10, and says:<\/p>\n
\u201c[Jesus] tells highly committed, pious religious people that it will be better for Sodom and Gomorra than them on judgment day?<\/p>\n
There\u2019s still hope?<\/p>\n
And if there\u2019s still hope for Sodom and Gomorrah, what does that say about all of the other Sodoms and Gomorrahs?\u201d (84)<\/p>\n
My problem here is that it\u2019s just a weak supporting argument. The fact is that Jesus\u2019s message here is directed at Capernaum, and Sodom and Gomorrah are brought in to the discussion for comparison\u2019s sake. Jesus is also well known to use hyperbole as a rhetorical device in precisely this kind of scenario. Again, I\u2019m not necessarily disagreeing with the point Bell is making here, I just don\u2019t think he does himself any favors by using this particular text in this way.<\/p>\n
This is not an academic book, and it doesn\u2019t claim to be one. Rob Bell is more pastor than professor, more artist than engineer, and more conversation partner than debate opponent. He asks questions, not to undermine the Bible and\/or faith, but rather because he thinks the Bible and\/or Faith are so important\u2026and because he thinks the people that God loves (read that as \u201ceveryone\u201d) are so important. If you think that theology is best done by engineers and that \u201cChristian books\u201d should always and only reinforce what you already believe, then this isn\u2019t the book for you. If you think theology is more art than science; if you believe that neither God nor truth are threatened by questions; and if you suspect that there may be more reason to hope than you\u2019ve dared to hope for, you\u2019ll really enjoy Rob Bell\u2019s exploration of how \u201cLove Wins\u201d.<\/p>\n
Purchase the book at Amazon.com: Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived<\/a>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.assoc-amazon.com\/e\/ir?t=&l=as2&o=1&a=006204964X&camp=217145&creative=399349\")
<\/p>\nHave you read Love Wins<\/strong><\/em>?<\/h3>\nWhat did you think?<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The following review is by Adam Ellis The fact that Rob Bell\u2019s new book is considered controversial is as much a testimony to the marketing prowess of HarperOne (not to mention the unintentional marketing prowess of some critics), as it is to any theology contained in the book. The first lesson that can be derived…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":412,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,103],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books","category-guest-post"],"yoast_head":"\n
A review of Rob Bell's 'Love Wins' - Jesus Needs New PR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesusneedsnewpr\/2011\/04\/a-review-of-rob-bells-love-wins.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A review of Rob Bell's 'Love Wins' - Jesus Needs New PR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The following review is by Adam Ellis The fact that Rob Bell\u2019s new book is considered controversial is as much a testimony to the marketing prowess of HarperOne (not to mention the unintentional marketing prowess of some critics), as it is to any theology contained in the book. 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<\/a><\/p>\n