Rob urged us to cultivate a sacramental imagination. Using the example of Jacob at Bethel, who famously said “Who knew God was in this place” he reminded us that its not a matter of God showing up, its a matter of us becoming aware that God is already in the place, and we need to have our radar on to catch the vibe, hear the still small voice, etc. He drew as well on the example of Moses at the burning bush, and the observation that ‘in Moses, God found someone slow enough to actually notice the bush was always burning. God found someone who didn’t have a short attention span.
Rob stressed that Jesus wanted to have the first word, not the last word. After speaking, one must create space so the Spirit can do his work. He then observed that liturgy is like building a cathedral of words and inviting people to come in and look around.
In the Hickman lecture, entitled the Heaviness and Lightness of Following Jesus. Here Rob discussed a eucharistic paradox at the heart of the Gospel. It is both serious and fun, it involves euphoria but it also involves suffering. Example of heavy— ‘take up your cross and follow me’. Example of light— ‘Take my yoke upon you for my yoke is easy, my burden is light’. Of course anyone who starts talking about light burdens is already dealing in paradox.
As Rob says, sometimes ministers settle for less that what God wants of them in preaching, teaching, pastoral guidance etc. They signed up for a revolution and ended up being spiritual managers or spiritual P.E. teachers. And there is a danger of getting addicted to the ministry buzz, and the need to be needed. He went on to stress that the wise proclaimer knows: 1) he is not in control of what happens, and so you need to be able to just let it go, and hold the outcome loosely; 2) you need to realize that nothing is wasted in God’s economy, he works it all together for good, including the failures; 3) you need to remember that what determines what you say should not be what the audience wants or prompts you to hear. You are not there to meet their perceived desires, nor to talk in a way that makes them love you even more. Any way, you find out after a while that though they may be sheep, they have teeth.
There is much more that could be said about Rob’s sessions which you can get from the download at the Duke Div Convo website in about two weeks. Consider this a preview of coming attractions.
posted October 16, 2010 at 11:02 am
Hello Ben -
I’ve been reading your posts for quite some time now, and have also read a good amount of your work in general – and I have respect for what you bring forward in terms of your scholarly work and theological standpoints. To read now a posting that paints Rob Bell in a positive light, however, is of great concern.
With all the talk over the years since the inception of Saddleback and the move towards “leadership,” “vision,” “culture,” and now – “emergence” – people like Rob Bell (also Doug Pagitt, Rick Warren, just to name two others) have meticulously dismantled the gospel and now come right back to the cultural determination of what church should be – rather than the church militant moving forward with the gospel – “…and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
As followers of Christ Jesus we are bound to present the gosepl message at all costs – whether it falls within popular opinion or not (normally, not) – and it does not matter if your preference is a Van Tillian presuppositionalism or Schaefferian “love as the final apologetic” – the gospel must never – EVER – be sacrificed.
And that is exactly what Rob Bell does. This is not ‘hate speech’ or ‘speaking against the Lord’s anointed’ (?) – but speaking the truth in love that Rob Bell – as a professing Christian – is subject to the discipline of the Church (Biblical “binding and loosing”).
May God continue to bless you as you seek Him in all things.
posted October 16, 2010 at 3:17 pm
Rob Bell gets slandered, unfairly, a lot. The presentation of the Gospel is _always_ shaped by culture and historical circumstance. The Apostle Paul said as much in his “I have become all things to all people” passage.
Bell is more sensitive than are many evangelists to the need to communicate the Gospel in ways understandable to one’s target audience. He has developed brilliant ways to reach two generations (X and Millennials)who have been turned off by church and by a thou-shalt-not Gospel that imprisons rather than liberates. Regrettably, many, especially those of the Baby Boomer generation and older, simply don’t understand Bell.
As a Boomer, I thank God for evangelists like Bell who are touching millions who otherwise would be lost.
posted October 17, 2010 at 2:57 am
@Bob
i see you’ve never actually read any of Rob’s books or listened to anything he has to say.
You keep saying “gospel” but Rob not only DOESN’T dismantle the gospel, he fleshes it out and explains it in a much fuller way than the people who define gospel as “you deserve hell, but jesus took your penalty because God was so “Just and holy” that he had to expend the wrath somewhere, and so he put it all on jesus instead of you so you don’t have to go to hell, and now you’re main job is to convince others of this, so they don’t go to hell.”
How would you define gospel? How much different is your understanding of “Gospel” from that message?
posted October 19, 2010 at 1:17 am
Who will preach the Gospel to the Bob’s out there, fighting for a faith which brings no peace to the individual or justice to the cosmos? Who will save Christians from the aftermath of the Reformation?
posted October 21, 2010 at 9:39 am
HI Folks I tried to find these mysterious messages that are supposed to be on the Mar’s hill site re Preaching and I can’t find them. Can anyone help me?
posted October 21, 2010 at 11:29 am
Dave Eadie,
You can purchase sessions from last years Poets, Prophets, and Preachers conference on http://www.robbell.com
posted October 24, 2010 at 11:06 pm
I was at the Convocation and heard Bell’s talk. It was as encouraging a talk as I’ve heard on preaching. Very powerful.
That said, the reaction to @Bob is atrocious. The fact that someone disagrees with Bell’s theology – finds it unbiblical – does not imply they are fear driven nor that they don’t recognize the gospel does have to be presented in the culture.
The easy acceptance of all of Bell’s theology swing from other extremes is problematic. The answer to the Pharisees “traditions” is not easy Athenian acceptance of the next new thing.
Two extremes are going on – one is holding to theological traditions with unquestioned fervor; the other is holding to postmodern “newness” with unquestioned fervor.
However popular Bell is – in large part due to his phenomenal communication skills – there are still issues with Bell’s theology. His critiques of modernistic biblical perspectives are effective but he has overdone it on several points.