Love Wins

I don't think I would be a good Christian blogger if I didn't touch on Love Wins, the new book coming out by Rob Bell. I'm really excited for its release - not because I think Rob Bell is the world's greatest teacher (he's certainly compelling and emotional, but sometimes that doesn't give you pause for thought - which can be dangerous) but because this man knows how to start a conversation.

If Rob Bell completes nothing else in his lifetime (and I think he has completed quite a lot for Christians that are tired of Christianity), this man gets people talking. Through his Nooma video series, he's opened up debate and discussion; through his speaking tours, he's gotten hundreds together in a room only to leave them with too much to talk about on the way home; his books have shaken people up, encouraging them to ask "what is Christianity and what do we need for it to survive?". And now, well, "Love Wins".

People have had quite a lot to say about "Love Wins". Let's call it the new "The Shack". Evangelical Christianity Today has offered their two cents; author Tim Challies has termed him an exegetical gymnast; and The Gospel Coalition has accused him from moving farther and farther away from Biblical Christianity.

All based on the video below.

So of course, my friends and I have decided to embark on a Love Wins study of the Bible, of Christianity and of what Jesus means when he says in Matthew 7: 14 "small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it" - or when he says in Matthew 7:21 "“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." - how do we know "who gets there"? And, as Bruxy Cavey of The Meeting House has pointed out dozens of times, is it up to us to know? (Seriously, can we take this load off our shoulders yet?)

To compliment our study, I'm really hoping to use the work of Walter Brueggemann in a House Church Studio / Work of the People study called "Psalmist's Cry: Scripts for Embracing Lament". This book / DVD set shares, "We all live in a constant state of denial. Culture tells us all problems are solvable... we simply need to try or buy the right solution. Our self-help, pop-a-pill culture is prone to masking symptoms and calling that mask a cure. But as long as we deny our pain [in this case, the issue that hell exists, that's painful to think about] we lose the danger of the gospel - the part where we give up and allow God's mystery to unfold in our lives - and in doing so, we lose the depth of its goodness."

By pairing two texts which tell us God is in control, and may come to slightly different conclusions based on this, I think we'll have some pretty excellent discussion. I hope to blog about it.

In the meantime, check out what all the fuss is about: