Rob Bell and Rain

Rain. It has rained for the past two or three days. I do not care for this. I am a very active person and I hate being cooped up in the house. I need the option of going outside and building furniture into the RV or cleaning my truck or raking the lawn. I do not mind the summer rains. Ten minutes and it is done! This all day rain is annoying though. Ok, that was my initial warm-up thought.

I have some thoughts I want to throw out there about Rob Bell. I know this is a point of great controversy in the Christian world. After seeing the Christian community call Rob Bell a heretic before anyone had read it, I defended him publicly. I do not regret or apologize for that. That was a completely unfair and ignorant attack. Read the book. And please shut up until you have.

Now, after reading most of it, I have not come away with a fiery condemnation, nor have I felt a resounding, wholehearted agreement in my heart. I am not going to talk about whether or not "Love Wins" is totally doctrinally sound. It has challenged me to read, research, and talk to many people (who have read the book) in an effort to find balance and truth. But all that, while it is good, pales in comparison to the bigger work that is being done: I am finding a better understanding within myself of who I think and feel God is. More on that in a minute.

Growing up, church and pastors were a point of contention for me. I had the ridiculous notion that in order for me to be in a church, I had to agree with the pastor's views on theology and life. Not so. I realized through the years that I am not going to agree any more on theology than I will agree with someone on politics. I can sit through a sermon and appreciate a pastor's viewpoints, even if I do not agree with all of them.

But is that not the point?

If every person out there is created as an individual with a special mind, unique thought process, and a spirit and soul that is distinctly their own, where is the disconnect between that train of thought and the Biblical truth that we were all created in God's image? Every individual relationship with God challenges me to know a different part of of Him. If every persons' relationship with God is different and displays a different beautiful facet of who God is, then unless we intimately know every person who ever has, is, or will live, we cannot claim to know how He draws each heart to Himself.

There are some basic characteristics of God that He laid out explicitly in the Bible. But after I have gotten through that, and different passages have struck me certain ways based on my experiences and my personal relationship with Him, then the rest of my journey with Him becomes something that is distinctly my own. My life and viewpoints and witness will draw certain people to Him. But some people will not be drawn by my story and words...they may be drawn to Him by my pastor's.

Do you see what I am getting at?

God's Spirit will draw all men, but am I all of who God is? No. I am human. I cannot possibly embody more than a tiny glimpse of small parts of the infinite depth of my God. My life is a journey and process to become more like God. The good parts of my personality mirror certain characteristics of God. But the church is made up of every different personality that believes on Christ. It spans from liberal to conservative viewpoints. So are they all right? No. Not any more than every political view is.

I am a man. I am flawed. I know if I dig deep enough, my theology is a little off too. Somewhere there is a thought process or belief that is simply not true. This is why the "great balance" that is the Body of Christ exists. I need the "black and white" pastor, that I disagree with at times, to remind me that God is everything that is just, holy, and right. He is perfect love. He is order. His view of right and wrong is black and white. There is no compromise in Him. There is no gray area. I need Rob Bell and his splendid view of infinite grace and deep mercy to remind me that God knew mankind was flawed and needed a Savior to bridge the gap between justice and mercy.

Then, the thing all three of us agree on comes into view and shines brighter than any arguments ever could:

God, in His infinite love, made the ultimate sacrifice to come and die for the sin of mankind, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.

That is my bottom line. God can and will use whatever He feels like using to draw every heart to Himself. If that is Rob Bell's book, fine. If that is this blog, fine. If that is a pastor preaching order and justice, fine. Whatever vehicle of His grace He uses to capture someone's heart with His love and set their lives in perfect order, I am fully believing that He is bigger than any theological flaws in one man's opinion.