Rob Bell, the ear tickler!!!

[funmudder]

Well done sister, well done :hug

[Sing4Him]

From the site you suggested-- >> http://www.beliefnet.com/story/172/story_17290_2.html

Is there something that brought you to this gospel of hope? It seems that you have to have a supreme confidence in Jesus to give yourself the OK to ask really tough questions. Has this been a gradual thing for you, or an evolutionary one?

It has been a gradual realization that at the center of the Christian church for thousands of years has been this risen Christ

By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Heb 10:10

Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.Heb 8:12

I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. John 6:51

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

who invites people to trust him; trust him with life, trust him with death, trust him with sin, trust him with future, trust him with hope, trust him with every day.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord Rms. 6:23

And that this risen Christ transcends dogma and theological systems and denominations and world views.
If you are desperate to meet this risen Christ, you meet him in a way that destroys any previous categories you had.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me
That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. Rms. 5:21

I keep finding that this Christ, whatever things I've built, destroys them and shows himself to be bigger and wider and deeper and more loving.

Ultimately you enter into a very real mysticism
And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands. And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard. Mic.5:12-15

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;1 Tim. 4:1

To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood Gal 1:16

where you realize that there is this risen Christ who changes people's lives and the stuff that emerges around him and attaches itself to him, the institutions and whatever, they aren't it. They don't give life. So over the years I've found that everything but the risen Christ fails. It doesn't deliver. :scratch

That is probably where that comes out of. My own journey into wholeness and hope and health. And I think you become a mystic quite fast.

MYSTIC? Rob Bell is a mystic?

This is what the Bible says, AGAIN--

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new

That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our LordRms. 5:21

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them Rms. 6:17

[Sing4Him]

Do you have a favorite prayer or a favorite mantra that you like?

My favorite and most oft-repeated mantra is probably, "God, what are you telling me now?"
http://www.beliefnet.com/story/172/story_17290_3.html

[WhitemoonG]

Quoting directly from Rob Bell "Velvet Elvis"

Page 75 Last year some friends asked me to be the pastor for their wedding ceremony. They had been together for a while and decided to make it official and throw a huge weekend party, and they invited me to be a part of it. They said THEY DIDN'T WANT ANY JESUS OR GOD OR BIBLE OR RELIGION TO BE TALKED ABOUT. But they did want me to make it REALLY SPIRITUAL. The bride said it in her own great way. "Rob, do that thing you do. Make it really profound and deep and spiritual!" So we decided to meet the morning of the wedding to actually plan the ceremony. It was a stunningly beautiful day, and we met on a cliff overlooking a lake in the midst of a thick forest. ... ... ... ...(lots of interim blah blah )

picking up again on page 92

Let's go back to the cliff, planning a wedding with my friends. When they RESONATE WITH THE PEACE AND HARMONY OF UNSPOILED NATURE, I believe God made it unspoiled by speaking it into exsistence. And Jesus is the LIFE FORCE THAT MAKES IT POSSIBLE. So, in the deepest sense we can comprehend, my friends are resonating with Jesus, WHETHER THEY ACKNOWLEDGE IT OR NOT. And when they look into each other's eyes and there is Love there - real,passionate Love is made possible by God in Jesus. Their laying down their lives is a picture of God doing the same for every single human being in Jesus, WHETHER WE AFFIRM IT OR NOT. Jesus was up on that cliff with us that day. It is not that God is over here and real life is over there. If it is real, then it's showing us God.

It is not that passion and love and exhilaration are in one place and Jesus is somewhere else.

Wherever you find those, you are finding God.

In affirming and celebrating all that they did that day on the cliff, my friends are closer to Jesus than they could ever imagine.



(after a discussion of the value of introspection) page 119

It is so hard to look deep inside yourself. My experience has been that very few people do the long, hard work of the soul. Maybe that's why Jesus said the way is narrow.


page 143 God has an incredibly high view of people. God believes that people are capable of amazing things.

I have been told that I need to believe in Jesus. Which is a good thing. But what I am learning is that Jesus believes in me.

I have been told that I need to have faith in God. Which is a good thing. But what I am learning is that God has faith in me.


Page 109

This now leads to another danger of embracing only one dimension of salvation. When faith is defined solely in legal terms, the dominant idea often becomes "inviting Jesus into your heart," a phrase that is not found anywhere in the Bible. That doesn't mean it is not legitimate, it just means we have to be careful that we don't adopt ideas that come with it that aren't what God has in mind. The problems come when salvation becomes all about me. Me being saved. Me having my sins forgiven. Me being reconciled to God.

The Bible paints a much larger picture of salvation. It describes all of creation being restored. The author of Ephesians writes that all things will be brought together under Jesus.

Salvation is the entire universe being brought back into harmony with its maker.

This has huge implications for how people present the message of Jesus. Yes, Jesus can come into our hearts. But WE CAN JOIN A MOVEMENT THAT IS AS WIDE AND DEEP AND BIG AS THE UNIVERSE ITSELF. ROCKS AND TREES AND BIRDS AND SWAMPS AND ECOSYSTEMS. GOD'S DESIRE IS TO RESTORE ALL OF IT.


Whitemoon G comments now--- Bell also at times quotes snippets of scripture, introducing it with "as one writer put it ..." and leaving it for the reader to carefully check the back index for his source via footnote. He doesn't even say that the "as one writer put it,'" is from scripture, leaving many to possibly never know that as they read it.

Why would citing scripture fragments be referred to "as one writer put it," unless it is just a part of some big universalistic, all encompassing cosmic self discovery mindset. Doesn't this belie a mindset very foreign to searching scripture for truth, as opposed to it being just one of numerous paths to enlightenment, and improved karmic consciousness?

As to your Bell quote Grapes, really cute on Bell's part. After all, if you read his stuff, Jesus IS reality, and since we are all seeking unity with God and becoming fully aligned with reality, and the full potential we have as such, of course Jesus is PART of our salvation, as he is reality, he is the perfect example, the perfect Karma master! Yellow book, dot commmmmmmmm!

It is totally amusing to me how Bell at times quotes scripture fragments, usually without telling the reader directly the source, and it amuses me that he refers to the Apostle Paul as the "author of Ephesians,"

It is even more amusing considering his entire Chapter 2 is a slickly specious presentation on why basically scripture can mean just about ANYTHING OR NOTHING. Every READER determines what it means or doesn't mean!
So what's the point of emasculating THE WORD OF GOD so cleverly, yet acting like it has some value as source material in a discussion?!

Bell is entertaining, thought provoking, challenging, inspiring POISON.

The Apostle Paul in Galatians 1:6 states that whosoever preaches a different gospel than the one presented to the world through Jesus Christ via his specifically ordained Apostles is ACCURSED.

Bell's "gospel" is a lot of loose, inspiring flaky fluff that is as easily pinned down and defined as nailing raindrops to the wall.

Therefore, by the authority of SCRIPTURE via the Apostle Paul, Bell, you are ACCURSED!



SORRY Robbie boy, I'll stake my stance in service to the Lord Jesus Christ with the Apostle Paul over your convoluted, appealing garbage ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYWAY! Stupid FRAUD!

[Biblenuggetlady]

We've been down this road....

http://www.rr-bb.com/showthread.php?t=3258&page=8