Squabbles in the Family of God

Christians are a lot like oil companies—we all think our brand is the best, even though any one of them will get us where we want to go, whether we’re talking about fuel to get our cars to the grocery store, or faith to get our souls to heaven. But once in a while we get all in a dither about the specifics of our beliefs and when that happens, the greatest arguments usually come, not from those who are farthest apart, but from those who are closest. A recent example is the book Love Wins, by Rob Bell, former pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church near Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The media, who love Rob Bell, jumped on his latest book and the fact that he is a bit wishy-washy about whether or not anyone will go to hell. His rationale for questioning this is that the Bible makes it clear God does not want anyone to go to hell, so Rob’s thinking is that since God is God, he can always get whatever he wants and since he wants all people to be saved, maybe they will be. His conclusion is that since the Bible talks a lot more about grace than eternal damnation, maybe we should preach more about grace and eternal damnation, not so much. The media then acted as if Pastor Bell didn’t believe in hell and as if he were a Universalist, who believes that everyone can be saved in any religion. (Sort of like how it would be if our cars would run on any liquid instead of just any gasoline.)

The biggest criticisms seemed to come from Rob’s Reformed “friends”, such as Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr. who has been quoted as saying Bell’s “Love Wins” book was “theologically disastrous”. While his Reformed and Calvinist friends seem to think Bell is a heretic, we Arminians have always thought God was more about salvation than condemnation (even though our preaching has not always made that clear) but when Rob says God wants all people to be saved, we say, “Welcome to the Wesleyan-Arminian world of Christian theology.”

The problem, of course, is that if you accept the concept that God wants all people to be saved (as is clearly stated in 2 Peter 3:9 which tells us God doesn’t want anyone to perish, but instead, wants everyone to come to repentance. Or, I Timothy 2:1-4 where we are urged to pray for everyone because God wants everyone to be saved. Then you begin to have serious reservations about “unconditional election”, the concept that before the world was created God chose some people to be saved and others to be eternally lost with no hope of salvation. I don’t know if Rob Bell considers himself to be among those with this Calvinist-Reformed theology, but I think they have always claimed him and now this revelation in “Love Wins” stirs up a plethora of  squabbles among our Calvinist brethren. It will be interesting to see where it leads, if it goes anywhere at all, or if it just flutters out and disappears.

Rob’s writing also suggests we need to be open to the possibility that an opportunity for salvation may exist after death. He sees this as a possibility that can be found in scripture rather than an anti-biblical heresy. On the Mars Hill website they have FAQs about the book “Love Wins” and it is written “Love Wins helps us have a biblical imagination that leaves room for the hope of the redemption of all while recognizing humanities free will to continue to reject God.” That definitely requires imagination, but I’m not convinced it is biblical.

What I do know is that our faith should be big enough for us to love each other even when we don’t fully agree on the details. I thank God for all those in the family and out because I believe we are all created in the image of God and all valid subjects of His amazing grace and love. I thank God for Rob Bell even when I’m not sure I fully agree with him. I even thank God for those Christians with whom I greatly disagree. As Bill Gaither wrote, “There’s plenty of room in the family” and I do greatly love the family of God even in the midst of and in spite of our family squabbles.

I'm Rick Blumenberg . . . and that's My View from Tanner Creek.

Jeremiah's Prophecy

In Jeremiah we read a prophecy of the Christ and of the times in which we now live. The key verse is 34, which reads “No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

This is a prophecy of our time—a prophecy of Christ and of the times in which we live—the time from his resurrection to his return in glory. The prophecy has not been fully fulfilled but it is our task (the task of the people of God and our privilege) to help usher in the fullness of the Kingdom of God by the prayers of the saints, the witness of the risen Christ in our lives and in our testimonies, and, by the power of his Spirit fully revealed in the life and witness of the people of God!

Sometimes our hellfire and brimstone preaching sounds as if God is rubbing his hands in glee, thinking about the time when he can cast all those lost sinners into the lake of fire. But God’s word clearly states that his desire is for our salvation and for the salvation of the whole world. The Bible clearly states that hell was prepared, not for people, but for the devil and his demons. It is no place for people and God doesn’t want anyone to go there. Only Satan desires such and sin is the only thing that will put us there—not God.

Jesus asked us to pray for God’s kingdom to come and God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Now we know that in heaven everyone loves God and lives to praise him, so if the Lord ’s Prayer is answered, that means the time should come when everyone on earth loves God and serves him with all our hearts. I’m not talking about a future millennial age—I believe this is a prophecy for this present age.

The Jeremiah prophecy in chapter 31 verses 31-34 and especially verse 34, speaks of a time when everyone will know the Lord, when God will forgive our wickedness and no longer remember our sins. This can be nothing else but a prophecy of the Christ and his present kingdom.

It would appear that God’s heart is blessed more by vibrant faith than anything else and I think the reason is that it is God’s plan, through the faith, prayers, and witness of his people, to fulfill the kingdom as he saves lost souls through Christ and in so doing, transforms society, one life at a time. He is doing that now, all over the world! What a marvelous and exciting time we live in!

Just as God has poured out his Spirit into the lives of his people who have been saved through faith in Christ, he wants this same blessing for every human being on the face of the earth. God prophesied it long ago through Jeremiah and it is our glorious privilege to live in the time when the prophecy is being fulfilled. But it is not happening as fast as it ought to be!

It is not only our privilege, but our task, and our calling, to pray, as Jesus taught us, for God’s kingdom to come and God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. It is our privilege to be Christ’s witnesses as we live transformed by his Spirit to do good works and thus glorify our Father in heaven.

I am told approximately one-third of the people on our planet are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is marvelous when you think that Jesus began with twelve not very competent disciples only about 2,000 years ago! But it’s not good enough! God loves everyone on earth! May the prophecy of Jeremiah be fulfilled in our day and may we each be privileged to join God in what he is doing and hopefully, see this prophecy fulfilled in our lifetimes!

I'm Rick Blumenberg . . . and that's My View from Tanner Creek.

How can a loving God send someone to hell?

God doesn't send anyone to hell. Hell is real, but it is a result of humanity rejecting God. Scripture shows us how to escape hell and spend eternity with God. God's perfect plan is that we, though conceived on earth, are eternal souls who live eternally with him.

Sin separates us from God and that is hell—to be eternally separated from God—whereas in heaven we live in the eternal presence of God. God wants to save us from hell so he sent Jesus to redeem us from sin and bring us back into His glorious Presence. In a sense, our physical bodies and earthly existence separate us from God because he is Spirit and we are flesh. We have a taste of hell when we cannot see God face to face because our earthly eyes cannot see spirit, whether the Spirit of God or the spirit of a brother or sister in Christ. In heaven we will see the glorified bodies of our brothers and sisters, as well as God and His holy angels, as easily as we see earthly bodies here.

Satan’s desires oppose God. Satan wants to separate humanity from God eternally and have them with him (not because he loves us) because he wants to destroy God’s creation. The human heart is good and beautiful and true only when totally surrendered to God. Without God we, like Satan, can be vile and capable of every kind of evil. The prophet Jeremiah warns (17:9) "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked." Without God, the heart’s deceitfulness runs rampant, so Satan succeeds when he separates us from God.

When God created humanity, we were designed for God. We cannot live without him. While on earth, we can survive physically without God but only because of his loving kindness and generosity. He continues to give life and breath even when we reject him. However, when our physical bodies die (and they do because our bodies were not created for eternity) we are homeless and separated from God. Satan has accomplished his desire—to separate us eternally from our Creator and his unconditional love.

Hell is a "place" for Satan and his demons. They want no part of God and probably prefer where they are, to heaven. We, on the other hand, were not created to be separated from God and we perish without him. Because our souls are eternal, the death of the soul is not like the death of a physical body, which will eventually be complete so our earthly bodies find rest in death. Without the redeeming power of God, once sin enters our lives we are condemned to eternal death—prolonged and eternal—absent from a loving God and in the presence of Satan and his demons.

If such a thing sounds horrible to us with our limited understanding, imagine how it grieves God that those he created to live eternally as his children instead experience eternity without him and his goodness. The Bible is clear God doesn't want that to happen to anyone—"not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9NIV). “God wants everyone to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.” (I Timothy 2:1-4NIV). “God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the whole world, through him, might be saved.” (John 3:17).

You are God’s child. He loves you and wants you to experience the full blessing of His unconditional love. I urge you to open your heart to him now and invite him in. If you need help, call a pastor or Christian friend. Help is available.

I'm Rick Blumenberg . . .
and that's My View from Tanner Creek.