I have started reading Love Wins by Rob Bell, which has stirred up the Evangelical World by the author's proposition that there is no Hell. Instead of waiting until I finish, I thought I would try a different track and give my impressions as I progress through this work.
The first question that strikes me is if there is no Hell where does that leave Osama Bin Laden?
Next, how is Bell's theology different from that of a John Shelby Spong? Certainly his writing style is different. Reading this book feels like watching an over elaborated PowerPoint presentation without pictures. Another difference from Spong is the complete lack of references to other sources. His biblical exegesis appears to be entirely his own impression without any foundation. In his theology those verses that apply to Israel specifically are implied to mean the whole world.
Bell 's theology is ultimately of the Arminian stripe: eventually everybody will be saved. Is that truly what God wants? According to Bell, God will continue to try and save us even after we are dead. No sheep left behind. Is eternity waiting for the last person to be saved? The implication is that it really doesn't matter at all what you do in this world because God will give you an infinite amount of chances. This takes the idea of last minute baptism before death to have all your sins forgiven to a new level.
If everybody is saved eventually, what is justice? Is justice tied in to forgiveness?
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