Rob Bell, a prominent evangelical pastor and writer, has been accused of heresy and Universalism due to the trajectory of his teaching, and his latest book Love Wins. Controversy started as a response to a promotional video created for the book, and a number of interviews in which he denies the existence of Hell. Bell claims, in the end, God’s love wins everyone over, and those who don't choose Christ in life will be won over after death.
My prayer is that instead of jumping to conclusions, people would view his work and teaching through the lens of the Bible, keeping in mind the central tenets of our faith. Namely: Jesus is the Christ, fully God and fully man, and all scripture is inspired by God and was recorded accurately through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Having established this, it is important to be aware that Jesus discusses Hell more than any other person in scripture. In Luke 16:19-26 Jesus tells a story about a righteous beggar who goes to heaven, and self-indulgent rich man who goes to hell. In Matthew 10:28 Jesus says not to fear man, but to fear instead the judgement of a God who can “destroy both soul and body in hell.” In Matthew 13:41-42 Jesus says “The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
These are just a few of the many recorded instances where Jesus discusses Hell. If we accept Jesus as the Christ, and as the incarnation of the trinitarian God of the Bible, then we cannot doubt His words. Jesus says that sinners go to Hell, and in John 14:6 and several other places in the gospels he says that He is the only way to Heaven. Those who will not put there faith in Him face the “wrath of God against unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18).
It is in this that Christianity separates its self from the rest of the world, and this belief is far from socially acceptable. But the reality that “whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life" (John 3:36) rules and shapes the Christian worldview. The Bible teaches that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Furthermore, Romans 6:23 tells us that “the wages of sin is death,” but goes on to tell us that there is hope, “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
In every instance, the Bible is very specific in saying that Hell is a reality, and the only way to avoid it is through a saving, persevering faith in Christ Jesus. Given this, are the claims Bell makes in his book and teaching heretical? Having not read Love Wins myself, I do not wish to contribute to that controversy. In fact, I sincerely hope that despite the publisher's description and promotional video Bell's book does have its roots in biblical truth. However, based off of the responses by pastors I love and respect, and reviews of the book, that does not seem to be the case. If his claims are what they seem to be, then he is teaching a false gospel.
My prayer for you who are reading this, and the main purpose of this letter, is that you would not join in the condemnation of this man whose teaching has served to edify many, including myself and many in my home church. Instead I encourage you to pray for him, that he might find his way home to the Father. And, that if you choose to read Bell's book, that you would view its claims in light of Biblical truths, and in the context of the core Christian doctrines.
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