In March 2011 John Piper released, “Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of
God.” In describing this work, Piper says, “Glorifying God with our minds and
hearts, however, is not either-or, but both-and.” This is a difficult concept,
at best, for many Christians to contemplate, yet it is one that goes to the
heart of the Emergent Church movement that is making headlines across the world.
Enter Rob Bell, the enigmatic former pastor of Mars Hill Church in West
Michigan. Bell is not a new face to the growing Emergent movement, though he is
arguably the most controversial spokesperson behind it. In his latest book,
“Love Wins”, Bell begins to trace the outline of his “emerging” theology, and at
one point seems to question the existence of hell. You can imagine the firestorm
this caused among Evangelicals, and even John Piper wrote on his Twitter
account, "Farewell Rob Bell." And while this is not a “Rob Bell” original
argument, his personality and audience has drawn greater attention to this and
other emerging ideas. Welcome to the conversation. In November 2012 The New
Yorker magazine did an extensive piece on Bell. You can read the article in its
entirety here: (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/11/26/121126fa_fact_sanneh)
If nothing else, Bell causes one to think, and on any level this is a good
thing. Bell and his fellow “thinkers” have started to peel back the layers of
theology that many contemporary-minded (another word for culturally minded)
believers simply take for granted. “I believe this because I was taught this in
Sunday School 25 years ago.” But when asked to outline the basic tenants of his
theology, John Q. Christian will simply point to the Bible and say, “It’s in
there,” as if the Bible is a secret recipe for Ragu Spaghetti sauce. Yet even
when it is “in there” John Christian’s ability to apply a hermeneutical argument
is hapless. Because for the most part, John Q. Public is satisfied with what he
(or his bride, Jane Q. Public) has heard over the years and sees no reason to
doubt it. To somehow go to the Bible and confirm it seems pointless.
Bell brings to the surface a measure of what Piper talks about in his book,
Think. We are not called to a Blind Faith. God designed us with the ability to
use our minds and to follow evidence. Yet this is not something that this
generation is fond of. The technological gadgets that have taken captive a great
part of our world has not skipped the Church, and instead of digging deeply into
the Word of God to discover it’s greatest mysteries, they have opted instead for
the thrill of a video game or the social isolation of FaceBook.
This is not an argument for Bell, but rather a call to begin an open dialogue
about the deep tenants of our faith. What about infant baptism? What about
social spending for the poor? What about homosexuality in the nation (instead of
in the church argument)? All of these things have answers, though many are
entwined with our cultural overlays that often skew the truth.
I am no fan of Rob Bell, but I am a HUGE fan of starting a conversation that
forces Christians to move outside the comforts of their armchairs and to step
into the dialogue that will define the great ideas of scripture. The only way to
shape the emerging conversation is to join in on the conversation. Watching from
a dark corner with a joystick will only lead to further darkness and isolation.
