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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
In Love Wins, Rob Bell argues against the notion that hell is a never-ending place of eternal torment for all those outside the Christian faith. Bell presents a strong moral and even biblical case against the doctrine of eternal torment in hell.
Love Wins is not a rigorous theological treatise; rather, it is written in a conversational tone in the manner of a pastor, which Bell is, speaking to a parishioner. Bell liberally leavens his book with anecdotes, musings on God’s great love and grace, and Bible verses, and Bell often repeats himself—sometimes to excess—to try to drive home his points, and at times, this disrupts the overall flow of the grand argument he is making.
Were I an evangelical Christian, I would find Bell’s argument completely compelling: I simply don’t see how anyone can claim to believe in a loving God and at the same time also believe that that same God of love torments billions of people in hell forever. Bell presents his case from an evangelical perspective, but he isn’t excessively polemical: he simply shows how it is both completely biblical and absolutely in harmony with a belief in a God of love, grace, and mercy to believe that God will not torment people in hell forever simply because they did not embrace Christianity.
Love Wins is not a rigorous theological treatise; rather, it is written in a conversational tone in the manner of a pastor, which Bell is, speaking to a parishioner. Bell liberally leavens his book with anecdotes, musings on God’s great love and grace, and Bible verses, and Bell often repeats himself—sometimes to excess—to try to drive home his points, and at times, this disrupts the overall flow of the grand argument he is making.
Were I an evangelical Christian, I would find Bell’s argument completely compelling: I simply don’t see how anyone can claim to believe in a loving God and at the same time also believe that that same God of love torments billions of people in hell forever. Bell presents his case from an evangelical perspective, but he isn’t excessively polemical: he simply shows how it is both completely biblical and absolutely in harmony with a belief in a God of love, grace, and mercy to believe that God will not torment people in hell forever simply because they did not embrace Christianity.
This book asked a lot of really thought provoking questions. I grew up in a white, suburban, evangelical home, and have started to dismantle and repair what I was taught. While I’m not sure how much I agree or disagree with Rob’s points, they have certainly caused me to pause, consider, and seek answers for myself.
definitely would like to reread. i think my reading of this book before bedtime did not work in its favor as i remember very little about it and wished i remembered more.
This was not an easy read. Between his Eisegesis and twitter like writing style, I was happy to be done with it. I have many points of criticism, but I do have one point of praise. I will leave that for last.
The basis of the book is that everyone will be "saved" because God gets what he wants and there will be afterlife conversions because after all the gates in heaven are always open. God will melt every heart.
Rob Bell's exegesis of the text is either really bad or he's just deliberately lying. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Exhibit A:
He mentions Matthew 25 on how the sheep and goats are being judged. He says, "The goats are sent, in the Greek language, to an aion of kolazo..Depending on how you translate aion and kolazo, then the phrase can mean "a period of pruning" or "a time of trimming" or an intense experience of correction."
He goes on to say that most translation render it "eternal punishment" And then says, "But "forever" is not really a category the biblical writers used." Matthew 25:46 reads..
"And these will go away into eternal (aionion) punishment, but the righteous into eternal (aionion) life."
Say we give Rob Bell the benefit of the doubt and say, "yes aionion is not forever. Just a period of time", than as you can clearly see eternal life is no longer eternal life as aionion is defining both punishment and life. Exegesis facepalm folks.
Towards the end of the book, Chapter 7, he runs off a bunch of verses, though he doesn't state the verse number, regarding how God has "saved us" or "reconciling the world". It takes pronouns like us and we and makes them universal, instead of it was intended to..the elect of God.
He makes a bizarre statement regarding mansions in Chapter two. He says, "Many people think of heaven, and they picture mansions (a word nowhere in the Bible's descriptions of heaven)." Though Jesus clearly states in John 14 that, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." Umm..okay.
The worst part of the book though is his constant misrepresentation of God's wrath to sin or substitutionary atonement. He clearly hates that God of Augustine, Calvin, Luther, etc. Here are some quotes:
"Of all the billions of people who have ever lived, will only a select number "make it to a better place".."
"Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?"
"..it subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God. Let's be very clear, then: we do not need to be rescued from God."
I could go on and on. Hell is just a condition that others have caused in your life. Almost every example he gives in the book of someone who doesn't "believe", is because someone else taught them something or did something horrible to them. They are all just victims of these horrible evangelicals who preach a God who is angry against sin.
Now. On to the one point of praise that I give Rob Bell. His whole premise is that God will get what He wants. And to Rob Bell, what God wants is everyone to be saved. And at times I can understand why he gets to that conclusion. How often have I heard these things from non-reformed Christians. (My paraphrase of these verses):
"Jesus died for the sins of every individual" (John 3:16)
"God desires all people to be saved" (2 timothy 2:4)
"He wants everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
See, Rob Bell is at least consistent here. He believes in a God who desires these things AND will be the cause, eventually, of them happening. Of course it's completely unbiblical, but hey..at least he's consistent.
As Christians, we should recoil from the idea that MAN can alter the eternal plans of God. If God sent his son to die for every single person that has ever lived, we ALL should be universalist. Rob Bell touches in an important doctrine of Christians that is just assumed. We don't make the connection between what Christ did on the cross and is intercession for us. It's a consistent work. It's a work that does not fail. To that, despite his heresy, I say kudos to you Rob Bell..
The basis of the book is that everyone will be "saved" because God gets what he wants and there will be afterlife conversions because after all the gates in heaven are always open. God will melt every heart.
Rob Bell's exegesis of the text is either really bad or he's just deliberately lying. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Exhibit A:
He mentions Matthew 25 on how the sheep and goats are being judged. He says, "The goats are sent, in the Greek language, to an aion of kolazo..Depending on how you translate aion and kolazo, then the phrase can mean "a period of pruning" or "a time of trimming" or an intense experience of correction."
He goes on to say that most translation render it "eternal punishment" And then says, "But "forever" is not really a category the biblical writers used." Matthew 25:46 reads..
"And these will go away into eternal (aionion) punishment, but the righteous into eternal (aionion) life."
Say we give Rob Bell the benefit of the doubt and say, "yes aionion is not forever. Just a period of time", than as you can clearly see eternal life is no longer eternal life as aionion is defining both punishment and life. Exegesis facepalm folks.
Towards the end of the book, Chapter 7, he runs off a bunch of verses, though he doesn't state the verse number, regarding how God has "saved us" or "reconciling the world". It takes pronouns like us and we and makes them universal, instead of it was intended to..the elect of God.
He makes a bizarre statement regarding mansions in Chapter two. He says, "Many people think of heaven, and they picture mansions (a word nowhere in the Bible's descriptions of heaven)." Though Jesus clearly states in John 14 that, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." Umm..okay.
The worst part of the book though is his constant misrepresentation of God's wrath to sin or substitutionary atonement. He clearly hates that God of Augustine, Calvin, Luther, etc. Here are some quotes:
"Of all the billions of people who have ever lived, will only a select number "make it to a better place".."
"Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?"
"..it subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God. Let's be very clear, then: we do not need to be rescued from God."
I could go on and on. Hell is just a condition that others have caused in your life. Almost every example he gives in the book of someone who doesn't "believe", is because someone else taught them something or did something horrible to them. They are all just victims of these horrible evangelicals who preach a God who is angry against sin.
Now. On to the one point of praise that I give Rob Bell. His whole premise is that God will get what He wants. And to Rob Bell, what God wants is everyone to be saved. And at times I can understand why he gets to that conclusion. How often have I heard these things from non-reformed Christians. (My paraphrase of these verses):
"Jesus died for the sins of every individual" (John 3:16)
"God desires all people to be saved" (2 timothy 2:4)
"He wants everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
See, Rob Bell is at least consistent here. He believes in a God who desires these things AND will be the cause, eventually, of them happening. Of course it's completely unbiblical, but hey..at least he's consistent.
As Christians, we should recoil from the idea that MAN can alter the eternal plans of God. If God sent his son to die for every single person that has ever lived, we ALL should be universalist. Rob Bell touches in an important doctrine of Christians that is just assumed. We don't make the connection between what Christ did on the cross and is intercession for us. It's a consistent work. It's a work that does not fail. To that, despite his heresy, I say kudos to you Rob Bell..
This was not an easy read. Between his Eisegesis and twitter like writing style, I was happy to be done with it. I have many points of criticism, but I do have one point of praise. I will leave that for last.
The basis of the book is that everyone will be "saved" because God gets what he wants and there will be afterlife conversions because after all the gates in heaven are always open. God will melt every heart.
Rob Bell's exegesis of the text is either really bad or he's just deliberately lying. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Exhibit A:
He mentions Matthew 25 on how the sheep and goats are being judged. He says, "The goats are sent, in the Greek language, to an aion of kolazo..Depending on how you translate aion and kolazo, then the phrase can mean "a period of pruning" or "a time of trimming" or an intense experience of correction."
He goes on to say that most translation render it "eternal punishment" And then says, "But "forever" is not really a category the biblical writers used." Matthew 25:46 reads..
"And these will go away into eternal (aionion) punishment, but the righteous into eternal (aionion) life."
Say we give Rob Bell the benefit of the doubt and say, "yes aionion is not forever. Just a period of time", than as you can clearly see eternal life is no longer eternal life as aionion is defining both punishment and life. Exegesis facepalm folks.
Towards the end of the book, Chapter 7, he runs off a bunch of verses, though he doesn't state the verse number, regarding how God has "saved us" or "reconciling the world". It takes pronouns like us and we and makes them universal, instead of it was intended to..the elect of God.
He makes a bizarre statement regarding mansions in Chapter two. He says, "Many people think of heaven, and they picture mansions (a word nowhere in the Bible's descriptions of heaven)." Though Jesus clearly states in John 14 that, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." Umm..okay.
The worst part of the book though is his constant misrepresentation of God's wrath to sin or substitutionary atonement. He clearly hates that God of Augustine, Calvin, Luther, etc. Here are some quotes:
"Of all the billions of people who have ever lived, will only a select number "make it to a better place".."
"Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?"
"..it subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God. Let's be very clear, then: we do not need to be rescued from God."
I could go on and on. Hell is just a condition that others have caused in your life. Almost every example he gives in the book of someone who doesn't "believe", is because someone else taught them something or did something horrible to them. They are all just victims of these horrible evangelicals who preach a God who is angry against sin.
Now. On to the one point of praise that I give Rob Bell. His whole premise is that God will get what He wants. And to Rob Bell, what God wants is everyone to be saved. And at times I can understand why he gets to that conclusion. How often have I heard these things from non-reformed Christians. (My paraphrase of these verses):
"Jesus died for the sins of every individual" (John 3:16)
"God desires all people to be saved" (2 timothy 2:4)
"He wants everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
See, Rob Bell is at least consistent here. He believes in a God who desires these things AND will be the cause, eventually, of them happening. Of course it's completely unbiblical, but hey..at least he's consistent.
As Christians, we should recoil from the idea that MAN can alter the eternal plans of God. If God sent his son to die for every single person that has ever lived, we ALL should be universalist. Rob Bell touches in an important doctrine of Christians that is just assumed. We don't make the connection between what Christ did on the cross and is intercession for us. It's a consistent work. It's a work that does not fail. To that, despite his heresy, I say kudos to you Rob Bell..
The basis of the book is that everyone will be "saved" because God gets what he wants and there will be afterlife conversions because after all the gates in heaven are always open. God will melt every heart.
Rob Bell's exegesis of the text is either really bad or he's just deliberately lying. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Exhibit A:
He mentions Matthew 25 on how the sheep and goats are being judged. He says, "The goats are sent, in the Greek language, to an aion of kolazo..Depending on how you translate aion and kolazo, then the phrase can mean "a period of pruning" or "a time of trimming" or an intense experience of correction."
He goes on to say that most translation render it "eternal punishment" And then says, "But "forever" is not really a category the biblical writers used." Matthew 25:46 reads..
"And these will go away into eternal (aionion) punishment, but the righteous into eternal (aionion) life."
Say we give Rob Bell the benefit of the doubt and say, "yes aionion is not forever. Just a period of time", than as you can clearly see eternal life is no longer eternal life as aionion is defining both punishment and life. Exegesis facepalm folks.
Towards the end of the book, Chapter 7, he runs off a bunch of verses, though he doesn't state the verse number, regarding how God has "saved us" or "reconciling the world". It takes pronouns like us and we and makes them universal, instead of it was intended to..the elect of God.
He makes a bizarre statement regarding mansions in Chapter two. He says, "Many people think of heaven, and they picture mansions (a word nowhere in the Bible's descriptions of heaven)." Though Jesus clearly states in John 14 that, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." Umm..okay.
The worst part of the book though is his constant misrepresentation of God's wrath to sin or substitutionary atonement. He clearly hates that God of Augustine, Calvin, Luther, etc. Here are some quotes:
"Of all the billions of people who have ever lived, will only a select number "make it to a better place".."
"Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?"
"..it subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God. Let's be very clear, then: we do not need to be rescued from God."
I could go on and on. Hell is just a condition that others have caused in your life. Almost every example he gives in the book of someone who doesn't "believe", is because someone else taught them something or did something horrible to them. They are all just victims of these horrible evangelicals who preach a God who is angry against sin.
Now. On to the one point of praise that I give Rob Bell. His whole premise is that God will get what He wants. And to Rob Bell, what God wants is everyone to be saved. And at times I can understand why he gets to that conclusion. How often have I heard these things from non-reformed Christians. (My paraphrase of these verses):
"Jesus died for the sins of every individual" (John 3:16)
"God desires all people to be saved" (2 timothy 2:4)
"He wants everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
See, Rob Bell is at least consistent here. He believes in a God who desires these things AND will be the cause, eventually, of them happening. Of course it's completely unbiblical, but hey..at least he's consistent.
As Christians, we should recoil from the idea that MAN can alter the eternal plans of God. If God sent his son to die for every single person that has ever lived, we ALL should be universalist. Rob Bell touches in an important doctrine of Christians that is just assumed. We don't make the connection between what Christ did on the cross and is intercession for us. It's a consistent work. It's a work that does not fail. To that, despite his heresy, I say kudos to you Rob Bell..
challenging
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
I thoroughly disagree with Bell's conclusion: "given enough time, everybody will turn to God and find themselves in the joy and peace of God's presence. The love of God will melt every hard heart, and even the most 'depraved sinners' will eventually give up their resistance and turn to God." I disagree not because I dislike his conclusion. I actually like it, but his conclusion is opposed to the teaching of the Word of God. That said, Bell is a good writer, and he did raise some questions that evangelicals like me should thoughtfully and graciously consider and answer. Although I disagree with Bell, I did benefit from reading his book.