Thursday, 1 January 2009
Rob Bell is an interesting man. His take on the Christian faith is very subtly different from anything I can recall reading - he is highly missional whilst being quite soft - not in a effeminate way, but in a way that says 'I don't need to be loud and shouty, I don't need to be controversial and difficult - come, look at Jesus through what I'm trying to do, and hopefully I'm following Him close enough that you find Him attractive'.
And this is an interesting contrast to my current favourite author - Mark Driscoll.
A few months ago, I described my walk with God as a tunnel that had opened out - it's like when you go through a cave in a mountain somewhere in South America, only to find that the scraping and squeezing that it took to get you down this cave then opens out into a massive cavern in which you could place Canary Wharf. And part of that 'opening out' is the major realisation that walking with God isn't about shouting at people, forcing them to believe that my veiw is right - instead, it's about walking close enough behind Jesus that i get the dust from His sandals all over me, and loving people where they are. But in addition to that, it's also a massive series of balances - and I find I can only stand on those balances if I've got God holding me up.
And this book? It provides yet another vision of God's church - another facet of the jewel, and provides more opportunities for growth. If you're an open person - an open seeker trying to get your head around God's church and His ways, then you will probably never finish that journey this side of death - and I don't think that Jesus would want us to. This book is another opportunity to learn, seek and grow.
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