Rob Bell's Book "Sex God"

[Buttercup]

Rob Bell is the producer of the "Nooma" videos that are especially popular among the emergant church. He is soft on sin, prefering rather to teach on God's love. He is the pastor of Mars Hill Church in Michigan (The name should give you a clue into the church's all-inclusiveness/ tolerance) and proudly sponsors "Doubt Night"s at his church where anyone can take the microphone and air dirty laundry/ ask questions/ raise doubts/ deny the faith/ whatever...

He promotes New Age contemplative spirituality techniques (breath prayers) and endorses New Age books/ authors. http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/robbell.htm

He himself has written a new book called Sex God.

Here's a CNN interview about the new book:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2007/12/02/galanos.rob.bell.sex.god.cnn

[Johnboy]

As I have said these are the "days" Paul told us would come, where I believe the [church] leadership falls away from the truth.

Johnboy

[Buttercup]

I agree with you Johnboy. :cry:

Our Lord is good for warning us, huh? These are the days to keep our eyes open and expose error whenever it rears it's ugly face.

[momof23goats]

I also Agree, completely.

[Johnboy]

I also believe the "pouring out of God's Spirit" in the these days will be His Word, His truth being revieled to those who have the "ears" to hear it and the "eyes" to see the deception being taught by pastors who teach mans theology.

"Soft on sin" ? How about "new age" thinking that includes ecumenicalism in its teaching. The catholic church is pushing for this bringing the Muslums and any other perverted doctrine in with it.




Johnboy

[momof23goats]

Well, it is all of the cevil, I think.

[kelee877]

Is it to late to jump on this little train and say I agree also, we see alot of it in the churches up here..a falling away..practice what you preach

[Buttercup]

Some important info about the "Rob Bell/ Nooma" phenomena:


http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/index.php?p=905&more=1&c=1

Time Magazine Touts Rob Bell - Christians Should Be Warned

In a December 6th article by Time magazine titled "The Pastor's No Square," emerging church guru Rob Bell is described as "becoming a national brand." The article reminds readers of a previous Chicago Sun-Times article that suggests Rob Bell could be the next Billy Graham. But in a rebuttal article by Lighthouse Trails titled "Will the Next Billy Graham be a Mystic?" it is brought out that Bell's mystical proclivities would mark him more for a New Age Christian than a Billy Graham type evangelist. Still, secular and Christian media alike (like Time magazine this week) continue propagating the message and the movements of Bell. And it is no secret that his Nooma films and his book Velvet Elvis can be found on the bookshelves of Christian bookstores, Christian high schools and on pastor's shelves across North America in particular.

While few could argue that Bell has "an appeal to the young" as the Time article states, what is so troubling is that it is being packaged as Christian appeal. Nothing could be further from the truth. Rob Bell is a New Age evangelist as he has so clearly shown on many occasions. For instance, and perhaps one of the most indicting statements from him, in his book Velvet Elvis he resonates with New Age Buddhist follower Ken Wilber. Bell tells readers to spend three months studying Wilber and promises them it will be a "mind-blowing introduction to emergence theory and divine creativity" (p. 192). Wilber's "emergence theory" incorporates everything from tantric sex (sexual experience mixed with mysticism), Yoga, Reiki, Zen, Kundalini Yoga, centering prayer, and magic.1In fact, studying Wilber for three months (as Bell suggests) in a favorable light would easily turn the student into a Buddhist practitioner! And yet Bell's book is being used by Christian high schools and churches as a resource for spirituality. How incredible!

For those who may not understand what Bell and other emergents mean by "divine creativity," it is another way of saying that we, as humans, are co-creators with God (he clarifies this on page 157 of VE). That's quite a declaration by these New Age evangelists given the fact that a human can't even create a speck of dust. But that is what they believe - co-creators. Why? Because like all New Agers, they believe that divinity resides in all creation, including every human being - thus if we are divine we can also create. And if this is the case, as the New Age teaches, there can be no Hell, and of course no salvation needed by a Savior. New Ager Neale Donald Walsch (a favorite of Oprah's) goes so far as to say that even Hitler would be part of the kingdom of God. By the way, Walsch also says Hitler did the Jewish people a favor by killing them (see p. 166 FMSCN). This is the culmination of where all New Age thought ends.

Back to Bell. To further understand Bell's spirituality and why his material should not be considered Christian, he also refers positively to Marcus Borg in Velvet Elvis. Borg denies many of the basic tenents of biblical Christianity, including the virgin birth. Roger Oakland discusses this:

Borg explains in his book The God We Never Knew that his views on God, the Bible, and Christianity were transformed while he was in seminary:
I let go of the notion that the Bible is a divine product. I learned that it is a human cultural product, the product of two ancient communities, biblical Israel and early Christianity. As such, it contained their understandings and affirmations, not statements coming directly or somewhat directly from God.... I realized that whatever "divine revelation" and the "inspiration of the Bible" meant (if they meant anything), they did not mean that the Bible was a divine product with divine authority.
This attitude would certainly explain how Borg could say:
Jesus almost certainly was not born of a virgin, did not think of himself as the Son of God, and did not see his purpose as dying for the sins of the world.

If what Borg is saying is true, then we would have to throw out John 3:16 which says God so loved the world He gave His only Son, and we would have to dismiss the theme of a blood offering that is prevalent throughout all of Scripture. (Faith Undone, pp. 196-197)

The Time magazine article this week states that Bell has just finished with two national tours. The names of those tours say it all: The God's Aren't Angry and Everything is Spiritual. In straightforward language, this is the emerging way of saying that a loving God would never send His Son to a violent death on a Cross to take the place of sinners3 AND a loving God wouldn't send people to Hell in the first place. In addition, everything is spiritual, meaning everything is connected to one another and all is divine (this is the essence of Thomas Merton's beliefs). Rob Bell's message is contrary to biblical Christianity, and it is most unfortunate that secular media, like Time and Chicago Sun-Times, considers Bell a Christian evangelist. But while the world's assessment of Bell is unfortunate, the assessment by Christian leaders is shocking. As to date, Velvet Elvis is being sold by numerous Christian bookstores, like Southern Baptist Lifeway Stores2, read by countless Christian teens in their schools and youth groups, and still has yet to be exposed by Christian leaders. But how could they expose him? Bell's spirituality is the same as Richard Foster's and Henri Nouwen's. If Christian leaders exposed Bell, they would have a terrible dilemma on their hands, for then they would logically have to expose Foster, Nouwen, Merton, Gary Thomas, John Ortberg, Brennan Manning and the host of other contemplatives who are in the same camp as Bell. This they do not seem to have the courage or the wisdom to do. And that is a tragedy that Time magazine or the world cannot understand.

[Johnboy]

This article just shows how the flock is deceived!

As for me and my household we will serve the Lord!

Johnboy

[kelee877]

Sometmes I wish I could pack my little blue suitcase and take me and my family off this planet...don,t want to live here anymore, things are all going to pot(but I won,t..I want to be here at the last trump when the Lord returns).....and the toughest thing is to try and keep the young impressonable minds that the good Lord has given me to care for....away from this Chit....
I am so glad we got rid of our cable tv, children are not allowed to watch the programs, not good for them...and then I see this new age christian stuff being toted by Oprah and she has what a zillion followers(she suggets a book and it makes the writter an overnight millionare).

We may be seeing a revival of the wrong kind, false prophets have always been around, but with the way that things are heating up in this word so quickly(as a women having birth pangs) things get closer and closer together and more painfull both to watch and feel....

[Buttercup]

I am so glad we got rid of our cable tv, children are not allowed to watch the programs, not good for them...

We did the same thing. We now get our news online and ocassionally watch the local news with fuzzy reception...don't regret it one bit...the kids only see TV when they visit their grandmother's...they are learning discernment about what is appropriate to let into one's spirit.

Yes...looking forward to seeing the Lord's return!