Christian in the 21st century

One can be forgiven for being confused about Christians, Christ followers, the Emerging Church and other phrases and buzzwords used to describe those who believe in Jesus as the Son of God. Bible commentators have spotted in 1 John certain tests which one can apply to decide if a person is a true Christian. They can be sorted into three main groups, namely moral (keeping God's commands), social (loving one another) and doctrinal (believing Jesus is the Christ).

There are other Bible passages which back up the claim that God expects his people to have those three traits. Paul wrote that faith, hope and love will remain even after knowledge passes away. (1 Corinthians 13:13) According to John we overcome the world by our faith (1 John 5:4). He links our hope to having good morals (1 John 3:3) and love is at the heart of his letters. Those who are “of the devil” are marked by their evil deeds and lack of love. Liars and antichrists deny that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became a human being. (1 John 2:22)

On the one hand John wrote his first letter to encourage Jesus followers that they can know they have eternal life. On the other hand he did not want those who are deceived to be soothed by a false sense of security. Everyone reading it can ask the question: “Do I believe in Jesus, do I keep God's commands and do I love other believers?”

The letter also serves the purpose of recognising false teachers. Those who teach are judged more strictly. (James 3:1) Every believer must ask the question: “Whom do I listen to? Are they walking like Jesus walked?” In a world where information is available at the touch of a screen or keyboard these questions are of the utmost importance.

We were made to have company. Before the second human being was created Adam had only the company of animals. God said Adam was alone until Eve was formed out of his rib. It is God's will that his children love one another. No normal father would enjoy the company of children who are fighting each other.

In the post-modern world bad relationships among members of families have become common. Jesus predicted that it would happen. (Matthew 10:21 & Luke 21:16) Biblical marriage is not the norm in our society. To be self-centred is not regarded as wrong. Paul predicted that that would be typical of the last days. (2 Timothy 3:2) But it is common sense that any two or more self-absorbed people are unlikely to get along well. A person who must always have his/her own way is likely to end up alone. In some cities of Europe more than half the population live in a household of one person.

The gap which arises because of the absence of flesh and blood company is mostly filled by phones and screens. These can be switched on or off so that one's independence is assured. The lack of intimacy is often made up by voyeurism because the human soul longs for companionship. This pastime creates unrealistic expectations which further eat away at relationships.

In stead of changing the prevailing culture many influential leaders are propagating the acceptance of values which mirror this broken community. That is why abortion on demand and same sex marriages have become acceptable, even common place. Morality is regarded as relative to the occasion and the people involved. Absolute values and objective truth are not acceptable to someone who is used to making his/her own rules. 

The popular culture accepts as fact those ideas which can be “scientifically proven”. The rest is regarded as speculation. The leaders of this world are opposed to a Christian world view in which sin and salvation are accepted as objective realities. Against this background John uses two Greek words which are translated “know” 40 times in his 3 short letters.

We know objectively that our sins are forgiven and we have eternal life because of the witness of John and and the thousands of Christians who lived before us. Subjectively we have the witness of the Holy Spirit and have come to know the Father and the Son. We are in a relationship with our Creator. We are responsible for our actions and there are no secrets to attaining power over sin or sickness.

Against the pressure of the dominant culture to compromise our values John urges his readers to love one another. It is not our mission to bash other Christians. (James 4:11-12) If they confess Jesus they are on our side. (Luke 9:49-50) He warns his readers against idolatry, that is loving the pleasure, pretty things and prestige of this world. Idolatry will damage one's faith and make one insensitive to those in need. (Ezekiel 16:49-50)

God's requirements

God's commandments can be summed up in the the words: "Love God and love people". (Luke 10:27) Loving anonymous "people" is often a cop-out because it cannot really be tested. When celebrities say: "We love people", they are probably thinking about their fans. That is why the command refers to a "neighbour"; that is an individual like my husband, wife, colleague or someone who crosses my path. It also takes for granted that I love myself.

According to Micah 6:8 we are merely required to do what is right, have compassion and acknowledge God in our actions. John applied these same criteria to distinguish between real and fake Christians. His letters were written to Christians who experienced challenges to their faith. John encouraged them to apply these tests to themselves and to those who tried to deceive them. Those "antichrists" were perverting the original message by which they were saved:

In the first place genuine believers live righteously. (1 John 2:3-6) Secondly, they love one another. (1 John 3:14) The third characteristic of those who belong to God is that they believe that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. (1 John 5:1)

Paul wrote that faith, hope and love "remain". (1 Corinthians 13:13) Our faith is in Jesus who saved us. (John 1:12) The hope we have that Jesus is coming soon helps us to live clean lives. (1 John 3:3) By the love we have for one another everyone can see we belong to Jesus. (John 13:35)

Rob Bell's LOVE WINS

I read the book with a mind open to what the author wanted to say. Bell's worldview was not completely foreign to me since I have looked at a number of Nooma DVDs. He is clearly reacting to the "turn or burn" style of evangelism. He does not condemn that style but contends that "love wins" is a better style.

The question orthodox evangelicals have to ask themselves when reading this book is: "Would Jesus evangelise like we do?" Jesus endorsed the orthodox theology of the scribes and Pharisees but warned his followers against the example they set (Matthew 5:20; 23:2-4). When Jesus read from Isaiah 61 in Nazareth, he stopped short of mentioning God's wrath (Luke 4:18-19). Anyone who has assimilated from the gospels the spirit in which Jesus taught the "good news of the Kingdom" (Matthew 4:23) will acknowledge that the "sinners" of the day gladly heard him (Mark 12:37). In his own imperfect way Bell is attempting to make the gospel attractive to those who are, for whatever reason, uncomfortable in the average conservative evangelical church.


In the preface Bell says there are millions of people who find it abhorrent to believe that the majority of human beings will spend eternity in hell. Here he finds himself in good company. Paul was so distraught by the unbelief of his kinsmen, the Jews, that he would change places with them, which would render him an "object of wrath" (Romans 9:1-3; 9:22).


The first chapter deals with those who have never heard the gospel. This question has been asked by enquirers into Christianity from the earliest days of its proclamation. Atheists have been known to say they would crawl over glass to reach everyone with the good news of salvation if only they believed it. We have not been appointed to speculate on the eternal destiny of young children or those who have never heard. But Jesus did pronounce severe judgement on those who heard and rejected the good news (Luke 10:10-12).


I found Bell's chapter on heaven refreshing because of his emphasis on the fact that eternal life starts on earth (John 5:24). He also places the question of the rich young ruler in perspective, taking into account the man's background (Luke 18:18-25). However, as a premillennialist I find his eschatology muddled.


Bell's idea of hell is similar to that of the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Seventh Day Adventists. They do not believe that there is a place where evil people will be tormented forever. Bell claims that there is a long tradition of Christians who rejected the idea eternal punishment by a good God, including church fathers like Origen. However, Jesus intimated that some people will be "thrown into hell" and suffer in "eternal fire" (Matthew 5:29; 25:41). When Bell calls everybody a brother or sister, what must we make of John 1:12-13 or of 1 Peter 2:9; 4:18? His political and religious explanations of what Jesus meant by "judgement" are illuminating but they don't tell the whole story. By using passages from the old testament to bolster belief in the reconciliation of all things he reveals more of his bias against the idea of God having a chosen people. Furthermore, if the Greek word "aion" in Matthew 25:46 does not mean "eternal" when referring to punishment, then what does it mean when referring to life?


Bell does not explicitly state that God's desire for all to be saved, as expressed in 1 Timothy 2:4, will come to pass.  But he makes out as if it is ludicrous to believe otherwise. He asks if the image of God in a human being can be so degraded that it "ebbs away" completely. The Bible teaches that people can become like beasts (Matthew 7:6; Jude 1:10; Revelation 19:20). Bell's worst flaw is possibly his conviction of God giving every human being what she wants. A good father will not give his child anything he can harm himself with. Nor will he allow the child to hurt others. God instructed the Israelites to stone a son who who was stubbornly disobedient (Deuteronomy 21:18-21).


Rob Bell's treatment of Jesus as the ultimate Sacrifice is superficial despite its intellectual sophistication. He neglects to mention that Christ died for our sins "according to the scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:3). The sacrifices of heathens to their gods was and is idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:20). But John saw in heaven those who were bought and those who overcame their accuser with the blood of the Lamb (Revelation 5:9; 12:11). Maybe we "want to know that the universe is on our side" but Jesus clearly stated that the world hated his followers (John 17:14). The story of the Bible, and Israel in particular, is that people are evil by nature. Jesus does not "save us from God" but from our sins (Matthew 1:21) which would lead us to death if left unattended (James 1:14-15).


No Christian who has read a few missionary stories, or even spread the good news in her own community, will deny that God speaks in all sorts of ways to all sorts of people. Even people like Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar heard from God. But to say "none of us have cornered the market on Jesus" is to forget that he gave his apostles power to bind, loose and forgive sins (Matthew 16:19; John 20:23).


When Rob says "the good news is better than that" he gets closer to what dedicated Christians can agree on. We don't want people to become Christians just to escape hell. Jesus deliberately told the good news in parables to exclude those who would jump on the bandwagon and hijack his church (Matthew 13:10-11; 13:15). This did in fact happen. In the Middle ages the official church persecuted true believers in the same way the Jewish religious authorities persecuted Jesus. We have to agree with Bell that serving Jesus is not onerous (Matthew 11:28-30). But to say "we shape our God and then our God shapes us" is to speak like an atheist.

Finally, Rob Bell acknowledges that he prayed a prayer "to get in", as he calls it. Before passing judgement I advise his critics to read Romans 10:12, 1 John 4:2, 15-16 and James 4:11-12. I believe the book is of value to those who have never heard the good news as it can make them interested in finding out more. Mature Christians can also learn from the book but the inexperienced can get confused and/or lulled into a lax lifestyle leading them to destruction. Bible teachers need to be extra careful when expressing their convictions because they affect all those who accept their doctrine as truth (James 3:1). In the early twentieth century Harry Emerson Fosdick propagated his liberal ideas in the USA to the detriment of the true church. Jesus did tell his followers to watch and pray (Luke 21:36).