Here’s where I’m at with Bell’s book: the whole thing is a house of cards. Actually, perhaps a more fitting analogy would be that it is a brick wall. Each brick represents an argument that Bell makes in favor of a limited hell. With this bricks, he’s constructed a wall, and it should be clear [...]
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Book Review, Christianity, Eschatology, Gospel, Heaven, hell, Jesus, Redemption, Rob Bell, Salvation, Scripture, Theology | 1 Comment »
First, watch this: C.S. Lewis once observed that, in a world where we’re likely to be so self-focused that we ignore God completely, pain has the ability to soften our hearts and open our eyes to the reality we often ignore. For many, no doubt, this reality hit closer to home than they [...]
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There’s an underlying assumption that goes mostly unnoticed which dramatically affects the nature of so-called Christian preaching: That Christians don’t need to hear the Gospel. At least not with any degree of regularity. They already know the Gospel, many say. Why continue to preach something that they already know?!?! A few rhetorical questions in response: [...]
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I’ve been having an ongoing conversation with someone about the need for preachers to point to Christ in their sermons and I realized that while we both affirmed preachers should do so, we disagree rather emphatically about what it means to do it. So, I thought I’d offer a few thoughts on the matter. To [...]
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When attempting to distinguish between the Law and the Gospel, things can get tricky for those who are not very familiar with these categories. As a general rule of thumb, in my experience, we tend to call the Old Testament “the Law” and the New Testament “the Gospel.” But the delineation is not so clean [...]
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Christians have favorite Bible verses. They’re the ones you find on posters with pictures of eagles and mountains; on coffee cups or bumper stickers; and underlined and memorized. Jeremiah 29:11 is one such verse. It reads, For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to [...]
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What now? As post-conversion people – that is, Christians – how should we live? And how do we know how to live? Do we strive to be as authentic as possible, being true to who we really are as humans at the core of which is the image of God? Or do we strive to [...]
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My friends compose a multitude of theological belief systems. While some are much more conservative, others are much more liberal. And among some of these more liberal friends there is a question about what makes the Gospel good news. The contention is this: given that Scripture teaches more will be in hell than in heaven, [...]
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Click below to listen to the sermon I gave to the Tri-Lakes Chapel high school youth group on May 2nd, 2009 entitled “Not of This World.” To view the slides used for the powerpoint, please click here. I would love to get some feedback from you on what you thought. Feel free to leave comments [...]
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