Love Wins

Could this be true? Could God’s ultimate plan be to save all of humanity? This and other hulking questions are the crux of Love Wins, the new book by controversial Mars Hill Bible Church pastor Rob Bell. This is not your average modern Christian taking a revolutionary stance on Jesus, heaven, hell and the restoration of all of creation. Early on he says: “A proper view of heaven leads not to escape from the world, but to full engagement with it, all with the anticipation of a coming day when things are on earth as they currently are in heaven.” If the question of heaven and hell concerns you, but you just get angry and sick to your stomach every time someone tries to tell you how much God loves you, this book may change the way you feel about Christianity. As Bell says toward the end: “This is why Christians who talk the most about going to heaven while everybody else goes to hell don’t throw very good parties,” adding, “When the gospel is understood primarily in terms of entrance rather than joyous participation, it can actually serve to cut people off from the explosive, liberating experience of the God who is an endless giving circle of joy and creativity.”