Yesterday, I started reading a book called, Love Wins by Rob Bell. Most everyone has heard of the book because of the controversy that it has caused. I have stayed away from the book for quite a while for the simple fact that things I have heard about it, I do not agree with.
One of my friends and I have had several discussions about this book and the Rob Bell belief, but neither of us had actually read the book. Over the past several weeks I have had this burning desire to finally read the book and see what it is all about. As I started reading the first chapter, I already had the mind-set of not agreeing with it. As I continued reading...my mind-set started changing a little.
Questions that he brought up made me think. I have had a hard time understanding to begin with the questions of, why me, why them, why you, why not him or her or them? Why was I born into such a loving family where I have 2 christian parents who brought me up in a christian home. Why was this girl born into a family where she is raped, and abused every single day by her father? Why was this boy brought up in a home where he has to listen to his parents constantly argue and neglect to take care of their own son because they were to wrapped up in their own problems. He brought up the belief by some people that up until a certain age children are not held accountable for their beliefs so if they die before that age, they automatically go to heaven. After that age, they become accountable for what may happen after they die. He then poses the question, why take the chance that we will grow up to become non-believers and spend eternity in a firey pit. You might as well end the lives before that age where you become accountable so you do not take the chance of spending eternity in hell.
The whole concept of christianity is so very distorted in many people's eye's and quite frankly, I can't blame them. In this book he shares a testimony of a women who says, " I grew up in an abusive household. Much of my abuse was spirituel--and when I say spiritual, I don't mean new age,esoteric, random mumblings from half-wiccan, hippie parents...I mean that my father raped me while reciting the Lord' Prayer. I mean that my father molested me while singing Christian hymns." What kind of God would allow this? Then You have the "christians" who go to church on Sunday with their christian attitudes but during the week they live their lives as partiers. They judge the people who do not go to church, yet them theirselves only go to church so they feel like what they are doing during the week is okay, as long as they are in church on Sunday morning. Is that how God wants us to act? What about the people who go out publically condemning other people as if they had a right to. The one's who go out on the streets holding up signs saying, "YOU ARE GOING TO HELL!!" They paint this picture of a hateful God and never show the loving and forgiving God. Is that the God we want people to know? So, do I blame people for being turned off by christianity? Absolutley not. I blame the "so-called christians" who painted this distorted view of who God is.
While reading the first chapter, these questions were bogged down on my mind. I couldn't help but feel like pain for people who expirience false christianity and are turned off by God. My heart cries out for these people. How can God eternally punish these people, when they fell into unfortunate circumstances that distorts their view of God? Can a loving God do that?
My very first lesson that I did with my youth came from the old testimate. They asked if we could study more of the old testimant because they have not done much study on it. Even though I was happy that they were interested in learning it, I was also scared. The old testimant and new testimant are like night and day. It's almost as if you are reading about 2 different God's. Most everyone knows about the loving and forgiving God but you ralrely hear about the wrathful and jsut God. We studied the story of the Golden Calf found in Exodus. The kids were shocked to hear how God sent a plague to these people who dilibertly went against God. These people heard the Good News and yet they still made an idol to worship instead of worshipping God. God does not hide his anger and discust in this passage. He made it very clear that he wanted these people to be punished. God holds us accountable for our actions as He should. If we sin, we will be punished.
My reasoning for bringing this up is that these people already knew who Christ was/is. Yet, they still denyed Him. As christians, we need to be held accountable because we aleady know right from wrong in Christ eye's. For someone who has never been exposed to Christ because of circumstances that they can not help, how can they be held accountable? How can they be eternally doomed to Hell? I have a hard time believing a loving God would do this. I am not saying that he is not a just God, because he most certainly is. But being that he is a just God (according the the dictionary just meaning honorable and fair) I don't know if I necesarily believe he will condemn the non-believers who never had a chance to know God.
As I have continued reading, I have came across some things that I absolutly do not agree with, but I can't say that I fully disagree so far with some things he is saying. By the end of the book, I pray that I have a clear understanding of exactly what I believe on this subject. I do not want to be left confused. As I am reading this book, I most definatly am referring back to the bible. For anyone who reads this book, I would strongly recomend doing so. Do not depend soley on the book for your opinion on this subject. Ultimatly, the bible has all the answers. Books written by ministers or even the best theologians still have flaws in them because they are written by imperfect humans. One thing we know is that the bible has no flaws and is 100% truth.
I would appreciate any imput and insight by anyone who has studies up on Rob Bell :)
Romans 1:20
ReplyDeleteRomans 8:8-9
Romans 10:9-10
I know it sucks but it is what it is. If you don't accept Christ into your heart, you are not saved, and are thus doomed to Hell. Yes that's sad and it sucks, but that's why we as Christians are called to witness and evangelize. You cannot blame your lack of salvation on your circumstances. It doesn't matter if your parents were the worst people in the entire world. I believe God will present himself to you in some way. It may not be in a church. Only God knows how it will all work out. Look at the life of Paul. He was a Jew who hated Christians and was doomed to Hell before he accepted Christ. And yes it's hard to believe that such a loving God would do that. But you have to remember He is also just, and as such, for Him to allow someone into Heaven who did not accept him and was not saved would be unjust. God cannot lie, and He cannot be unjust. It doesn't matter if you are a good person who does good works. If you are not saved you will not go to Heaven.
But God doesn't want us to go to Hell. He wants us to be saved. 1 Thessalonians 5:9
And we as Christians need to be very careful what we let into our hearts. It's easy to want to believe that good people who aren't Christians might still go to Heaven, but it just isn't so. It isn't true. It's sad to believe that there are good people in this world that aren't going to Heaven. We must guard our hearts and minds against false teachings.
Colossians 2:8
2 Timothy 4:3-4
Titus 1:9
And just a side note, I have read a bit of this book, and I want to read it all b/c I do believe it's important to read things by people you don't agree with just as much as reading things by people you do agree with. B/c that's how we really find out what they believe and that's how we learn about different teachings that are out there. I've also read some stuff from his other books, and I've also seen a few interviews with Rob Bell over the past few months. And the words from his own mouth are what have led me to my conclusion that his philosophy is false.
If you get the chance study Emergent Church and the Ecumenical Movement. Both are pretty dangerous movements. I studied them in college and have done research on my own. But it's pretty interesting stuff if you ever have the chance to look it up. =)
Thanks Melissa for your comment. You brought up some excellent points as well as excellent scripture.
ReplyDeleteI am not saying that I completly agree with this idea of thinking at all. It is something that I do struggle with. You gave me Romans 1:20, which is a very godo scripture but to me it is still left with a question. It says that his eternal power has been cleary seen. I completly agree with that. But it does not give a specific time of when each of us will see this eternal power. For some of us, it comes at a early age because we are raised in a good home. But for the tribes out in Uganda who the missionaries have not yet been too, how do we know that he doesn't end up revealing himself after death? It never says that the devine power is revealed while still on earth. I know that is an out there way of thinking about it but I think it is still very possible.
I have an extremly hard time thinking that people who have not had Christ revealed to the on this earth will be forever doomed to Hell. To me that would not be a just God, because that does not seem fair. I agree that we are supposed to evangalize because that is what we are called to do as Christians. It is our duty to share Christ with others. If we do not and claim to be christians, then we are dilibertly disobeying Him. But there is still that one person that still never had the chance to come to know God before they died.
Like I said though, I am not going 100% on this thought, it is just something that I struggle with and decided to blog about it. I have said, there are a lot of things that Rob Bell has said that I do not agree with, so I am not certainly not going by what he is saying soley. I am doing intense bible study along with reading the book.