Since the publishers of Rob Bell’s Love Wins first began to promote the book as a “vision for rediscovering a richer, grander, truer, more spiritually satisfying way of understanding heaven, hell, God, Jesus, salvation, and repentance”  a cloud of controversy has engulfed the book and its author.  I refused to buy the book, not wanting to add to its marketing success, sensing that Bell had intentionally sensationalized his newest offering.  But then someone gave me a copy and I felt compelled to examine its teaching for myself.  The cloud of controversy gets dispersed quickly enough with a careful reading of what Bell has written.  His version of heaven and hell is, in my view, not richer, grander, truer, or more spiritually satisfying - it is just different - a perverted message at odds with the biblical teaching offered in the Old and New Testament Scriptures about man’s fate in the life to come after death. It is also dangerous in that it offers hope outside the gospel of Jesus Christ for eternal life with God.  

We have seen this before

Bell’s teaching is not a new addition to the orthodox foundations for the Christian faith. It is rather, a rehash of old heresies that have been raised for centuries and consistently refuted by men and women careful to follow the word of truth instead of the cultural trends peculiar to their era.  Pluralism is one of those trends in our day and Bell has become its champion.  His readers need to be cautious, to read with both their Bibles and their eyes wide open, and to maintain their hold on the established truths concerning the gospel with a firm grip.  They need to be like the Berean Christians in Acts 17:11, hearing this teaching eagerly enough, but examining the Scriptures to see whether what is presented is actually supported by the word of God.  Over the few days, I will offer three more posts that will give you a theological backdrop for evaluating Bell’s message and a summary of the points I find most objectionable in his book.  I’ll also give you a link to the best detailed review I have found for Love Wins. I hope you’ll stay tuned and keep reading!