NowTHINK!AboutIt

Avoiding Hackneyed...Making Sense

Carl Trueman On Bell’s Reference to Luther

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Bell and Luther agree

Blasphemer No,
Mischievous Yes

I recently came across an article questioning one particular historical statement which Rob Bell made in his book, Love Wins.

The article was written by Carl Trueman and the offending statement is a quote from Martin Luther, which Carl says is taken out of context.

The accusation: Rob is using Luther’s remark to suggest theological ideas which Luther’s context does not entertain or allow. To use Carl’s words…

It is illegitimate to take a small quotation from a single letter and use it to extrapolate to a person’s general theology.

Carl does admit that taking remarks out of context is not an error of grave proportions and he refers to Rob as mischievous not malicious but that begs the question. If he really thinks that, then why would a notable figure such as he give public attention to a trivial issue?

Before I say more you need to know something about Carl. He is a highly qualified individual to be sure. In fact, it is his educational and professional “context” that give us pause. Why would such a highly qualified individual question Rob on an historical issue when the whole world is livid over Rob’s theology? Although qualified to do so, Carl mentions no particular theological topics and humbly bows out deferring to others:

Now, I do not wish to comment on the theology of Bell’s book. Others will no doubt do so with much greater competence and insight than I could ever muster.

False humility? Possibly.

Make no mistake about it, Carl is well informed theologically. If he wanted to speak to these issues he is more than able and since theology is the problem it makes one wonder. There may be motives behind the motive.

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Before he actually makes an argument about Rob’s contextual misstep he plainly says:

My interest…is historical and concerns a specific claim he makes relative to the thought of Martin Luther.

I’m not convinced. Read on and you will see that Rob’s remark was not misleading, did not misrepresent Luther’s belief and it didn’t ignore the elephant in the room which Carl’s criticism almost hypocritically does do.

Here’s the scoop on Carl. [Read more…] about Carl Trueman On Bell’s Reference to Luther

Evangelism’s Urgency – Why The Rush?

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Character Flaws are Resilient

A Question Many Entertain
And Some
Brave Enough To Ask

So, if Rob Bell’s Love Wins is an accurate representation of the truth about heaven and hell and we, therefore, can believe that those who die without Christ WILL have a chance to embrace God and salvation after death, why are we in such a hurry to share the Gospel?

  • Wouldn’t that possibility be a good reason for people to wait till later?
  • Shouldn’t people be allowed to find their own way to God without interference or intrusion?
  • Must we be in a hurry or make large personal sacrifices to carry the message to everyone if time is allowed for this later?

These questions may sound impressive but they don’t hold up under scrutiny. Fleshing them out with human experience proves they do nothing to diminish the Gospel’s urgency. It gives us a different, but still very good reason, to stay evangelistically focused.

For example:

  • What would have been different if Hitler had heard and accepted the Gospel before he became the chancellor of Germany? Given the social/political/spiritual climate of the day, it wouldn’t take much imagination to believe some other mad man would have filled his boots had he not come to the fore but let’s assume that Hitler’s salvation would be indicative of an overall climate change for the better. I mean if the Gospel was prevalent enough for Hitler to get saved wouldn’t that be true for others also? And wouldn’t more salvations have encouraged a different outcome?

And there are other examples to consider:

  • Who might still be alive if Ted Bundy had embraced Christ before his killing spree?
  • How many would have avoided addiction had they been influenced with the Gospel.
  • How many cases of abuse could the Gospel have averted.
  • Would it still be legal to trade slaves if William Wilberforce, having been affected by the Gospel, hadn’t spent much of his life opposing it?

And more. Who knows how many lies, thefts, and failures of all kinds could have been avoided if more people had been introduced to belief. No, I’m not suggesting the Gospel can create a perfectly sinless world but it does change hearts which in turn encourages the cultivation of soil in which life is bettered not battered, even if it can’t be made perfect.

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But all of those questions have to do with life as we live it now before we die. There is another very intriguing question we need to consider about the life we experience after death.

If a person can get saved after they die, how long will it take following death for him or her to reach the end of their prideful sinful selves and believe? This question addresses the issue of character. Character, good or bad, is ingrained over a long time and when it is bad we don’t easily see it. We become delusional. How long might it take for those delusions to dissolve? [Read more…] about Evangelism’s Urgency – Why The Rush?

“Love Wins” and the Age of Accountability

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“Age of Accountability”
Opens Door
To Different Understanding

As I mentioned in a previous post, Rob Bell’s most recent book, Love Wins, has brought on a firestorm of responses and there is good reason for it. He challenges some of our most sacrosanct beliefs about heaven and hell.

All the name calling aside though, there is very little substance to the responses, positive or negative.

Those who agree with Rob do so because “it just seems so right.” They don’t say exactly what they agree with or why, so they don’t give us much to chew on.

Those who disagree are too busy expressing righteous indignation to actually engage Rob’s arguments. Their enthusiastic, vehement opposition is easily heard but difficult to respect.

Deliberate thoughtfulness, which should be evident, is missing in both cases.

So, this post is written with one purpose in mind: to point out an argument which gives substance to Rob’s ideas, the “Age of Accountability” (A-of-A). Rob neither endorses nor denies the concept but he does mention it and it is one that most Bible believers accept:

Some Christians believe that up to a certain age children aren’t held accountable for what they believe or who they believe in, so if they die during those years, they go to be with God. But then when they reach a certain age, they become accountable for their beliefs, and if they die, they go to be with God ONLY (emphasis mine) if they have said or done or believed the ‘right’ things. Among those who believe this, this age of accountability is generally considered to be sometime around age twelve. p4

Rob then mentions a 15 year old atheist who died in a car accident and points out that conventional thinking says that the three year span of accountability means he has no hope.

He’s in hell and his destiny is sealed.

What makes that explanation so distasteful is the fact that there are many in heaven today who spent an entire lifetime hearing and resisting the Gospel before coming to faith. Why do they get so much time and others get so little.

And that made me think about others who may die very soon after the point of accountability, even a few seconds after. What about them?

Would dying one second after reaching the A-of-A mean the non-Christian person has no hope of heaven? Would God take into consideration their situation or dismiss them with no regard for several variables?

  • Did they live in a Christian country or community?
  • Had they heard the Gospel?
  • Did the guardians in their lives disallow their going to church or reading the Bible?
  • Were they being exposed to teachings that were anti-Gospel?

And so on…

And even if they had heard the Gospel, would they have had enough time to process it properly? [Read more…] about “Love Wins” and the Age of Accountability

Rob Bell’s “Love Wins” – Review Chapter 8

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Rob’s Urgency
Chapter 8
The End Is Here

Before reading Love Wins I asked a friend if he had read the book. I didn’t ask what he thought about the book but only if he’d read it.

I figured if he’d read the book he could then mention some particular arguments Rob makes in the book, which he thought were interesting, and we could talk about them. I was asking for details, observations or interesting tidbits to look out for when I got around to reading the book myself.

However, that wasn’t to be.

His immediate response was:

“Rob opens the door to universalism.”

And his tone of voice made it clear that he wasn’t open to discussion on the matter. He wasn’t saying no to universalism he was saying no to discussion!

Talking about it wasn’t allowed. Reading the book was akin to having tea with the Devil and discussion was outright blasphemy.

He never said he had or hadn’t read the book, or that he liked it or didn’t like it. His statement was a warning not to read it as if doing so would put me within the contagion range of a deadly disease. It was clearly a never-to-be-brought-up-again topic.

His remark also carried a sense of superiority. It was as if he was saying…

I can read the book and not be affected but most can’t.

That is, if he had bothered to read it at all.

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Just to be clear, although universalism is a four-letter-word in conservative theology today, it has been entertained by Bible believing Christians throughout history.

Some Christian churches still teach a form of it and most non-Christian religions teach a version of it too. Ignoring it isn’t smart. The best way to answer it is to engage it and that is what I was hoping to do.

Universalism Broadly Defined

But to get on with the conversation, universalism has two extremes: [Read more…] about Rob Bell’s “Love Wins” – Review Chapter 8

Rob Bell’s “Love Wins” – Review Chapter 7

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Rob’s Gospel
Chapter 7
The Good News Is Better Than That

In chapter 7 of Love Wins Rob begins with a well known, often read and universally endearing story, The Prodigal Son (Luke 15).

Everyone loves this story but interpretations are diverse. Rob’s interpretation fills the entire chapter.

The characters and themes are:

  • One father and two sons.
  • The father was respected, sort of, but misunderstood by both sons.
  • One son, the younger, was impulsive, wasteful and self-indulgent. The other son, the older, was slavishly dutiful, arrogantly reliable but self-satisfied.
  • The father is the God figure and the two sons represent different types of sinners.

Those are the obvious details. Rob makes the following observation.

There is only one story being told but each character in the story sees it differently. Rob calls these different perspectives, not sub plots, but different interpretations on the main plot. Each person puts a different emotional and spiritual spin on what was happening and it clearly reveals what’s in the hearts. [Read more…] about Rob Bell’s “Love Wins” – Review Chapter 7