Love Wins, I Can Breathe Now

  Last week at a restaurant in Grand Ledge, Michigan, I talked with another church refugee, a retired steelworker named Tim who spoke of a spiritual journey that was characterized by perpetual fear.  As young boys he and his twin brother had been adopted by a stiff Baptist woman and her husband, and her modus operandi for raising children was to instill the fear of God in them at an early age.  And then hold that thought for a lifetime.  
  Down through the years Tim was always afraid.  Afraid of doing anything wrong.  "I felt like if I even brought a pencil home from work and didn't return it, I would go to hell," he told me, and in his eyes I could almost see that look of worry returning even as he shared his experiences with me.
  But things had changed for him later in life, and I asked him what made the difference.  Without a word he pointed at his wife, Carol.  She was actually his second wife, who he had married in his late forties, and she brought with her grace and confidence in the Lord that he had not seen before.  Her family was conservative evangelical as well, but there was an abiding sense of acceptance and peace in that family, and lots of love.  And it seemed to carry over, or carry down, if you will, from a source not only deep within them, but also from somewhere above.  
  Though Tim's life has been slowly evolving from a sense of condemnation to a place of acceptance by God and the people closest to him, the journey has taken awhile.  The most recent additive that really boosted his sense of spiritual well-being was his reading of Rob Bell's book, Love Wins.*
  "I feel like I can breathe now," he told me, and a look of enthusiastic relief crossed his face as he recalled Bell's ideas about heaven and the great love of God from this popular new book.  "We are now invited to live a whole new life without guilt or shame or blame or anxiety.  We are going to be fine," says Bell (Love Wins, p. 172), and Tim looks like he finally believes it.
  Coming away from my conversation with Tim I felt a sense of relief for him and the growing numbers of exiles who have left a land of emotional and spiritual imprisonment perpetuated by a judgmental religious empire.  I recall the words of my friend after visiting the traditional conservative church that we had left awhile earlier saying, "The guards are still there, but the prisoners have left!"  Wow, that says it.
  But there are still multitudes left within those walls.  Why is it that so many continue to live their entire lives under Old Testament law, when Christ's freedom is waiting for them?  One of my favorite stories that depicts the contrast between the Law and Grace is the one about the woman who was caught in the act of adultery and brought to Jesus (John 7).  Those who wanted to stone her had the Law on their side.  And Jesus, as God, had the power and authority to order her to be stoned to death.  But he didn't condemn her.  He had the right to, but he didn't.  Grace prevailed.
  And I think that's the difference that Tim has discovered between living under the Law or living under Grace.  God has the right to condemn us, but because of Christ and the cross, mercy prevails.

Tim & Carol

  Now Tim's going to hold that thought.  For a lifetime.  Because love wins, he can breathe now.




* Rob Bell, Love Wins, A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. 2011, Harper Collins Publishers
  
  
  

Coming Evangelical Split

  It seems to me that the uproar over Rob Bell's book, Love Wins, is quieting down now.  There hasn't been so much buzz about it in recent cyberspace activity.  But the underlying realities are not fading, they are growing.  I think there is a movement going on, and it will gain momentum in years to come.

  Jimmy Spencer, Jr. has very accurately assessed this undercurrent in his recent blog, Digging Deeper,The Coming Evangelical Split.  He says the two "sides" will more clearly define themselves in days to come.  Read about it at: 

  http://www.redletterchristians.org/digging-deeper-the-coming-evangelical-split/?

The Baby & the Bathwater

  "Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater" is a common saying that expresses one's concern that those who are questioning or re-adjusting their beliefs may go too far and jettison essential core truths and put their salvation in jeopardy.  It can be rather scary, both to the questioner and especially to his on-looking fellow believers.
  So how does one make sure that, if he does leave the spiritual house, at least he doesn't leave the neighborhood?  If he departs from some of the theological distinctives of his denomination, what constitutes crossing the line into heresy?  Who decides things like this?  Should we rely on our spiritual leaders, or can we decide for ourselves based on our own reading and understanding of the Bible?
  After reading Rob Bell's latest book, Love Wins, I found myself agreeing with him on certain points and not on others.  Some of his thoughts are outside the conventions of mainstream evangelical Christianity in America.  So who decides if he's a heretic?  I went back and reviewed the Apostles' Creed to see about the essentials.  Hmm, no problem there; looks like Bell is still in the theological neighborhood if the Apostles' Creed describes the neighborhood.  

  1. "Sticking to the Bible" isn't always a reliable method of establishing one's beliefs.  There are a thousand denominations out there, and they are all based on solid interpretation of the Word-- albeit, many different interpretations.  

  2. Trusting the Holy Spirit won't work; there are innumerable instances of people hearing exactly opposite revelations from the Holy Spirit, resulting in many a divergent pathway.

  3. How about safety in numbers?  I mean, if we stay within the mainstream of belief are we safe?  Martin Luther didn't think so.  There are beliefs that evolve and devolve, some espoused by individual scholars, some by denominational conferences, and others that just sort of happen to become popular without a champion and who knows how, rather like urban legends that become widely accepted but are not backed by a stitch of truth.  And some are really a stretch.

  As an example, a couple of years ago a friend of mine expressed grave concern that a fellow who was questioning authority within his church was in danger of judgement because he had removed himself from his "spiritual covering".  Even though the doctrine of "covering" was virtually unknown fifty years ago and has only come into widespread acceptance recently, partly through the efforts of ultra-conservative speaker Bill Gothard in the 1980's (the same guy who announced that rock music is of the devil).
  Even more widely accepted is the idea that when human beings die and go to heaven they turn into angels with wings who float on clouds and play harps.  Really.

  Anyway, though I think doctrines are generally arrived at (1.) in community by groups of like-minded people who base their conclusions on their dead-level-best understanding of (2.) the scriptures while seeking revelation from God through (3.) the Holy Spirit, it seems that individual believers often make their judgements on who's a heretic by one simple method:
  Anybody who doesn't believe what I believe is a heretic.