In Rob Bell Says “All-ee In Free…Almost” here at Apprising Ministries we showed you that Rob Bell preaches a universal atonement where everyone is already forgiven.

In Velvet Elvis the Emergent Church leader writes:

So this is reality, this forgiveness, this reconciliation, is true for everybody. Paul insisted that when Jesus died on the cross, he was reconciling “all things, in heaven and on earth, to God.” All things, everywhere.

This reality then isn’t something we make come true about ourselves by doing something. It is already true. Our choice is to live in this new reality or cling to a reality of our own making. (146, emphasis mine)

Pastor Benji Magness gives us his impression of the mushy message of Rob Bell in his post The Gods Are Not Angry {But I Am}:

Just got back from seeing Rob Bell on his “The Gods Are Not Angry” tour. I went as a pastor precisely because I was concerned that he would end up saying that God was not angry at sin. Bell lived up to my expectations. His closing words were:

“God is not angry because God is love.”

Sounds like John Lennon to me. Sounds like Oprah to me. Doesn’t sound like the Bible to me… His message was simple: Don’t feel bad about yourself and all your shame and guilt because you have peace with God. This message was offered to all without the mention of repentance, trusting Jesus as the sacrifice for our sins and satisfying God’s wrath.

I feel like I was at an Oprah taping {but I did not get any free gifts!}. I go to bed thankful that I am saved from the coming wrath of God because Jesus died in my place, taking my sins, imputing His righteousness, declaring me righteous based solely on the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, and indwelling me by His Spirit. These wonderful truths were sadly left out by Bell. (Online source, emphasis mine)

In the comments section of the “Watcher of Watchdogs” website CRN.Info Dave Marriott makes an excellent point as he mentions AN INTERVIEW WITH ROB BELL, which ran on the well known emerging church website The Ooze:

I am fairly sure that if Rob Bell said in his next Nooma “I am a universalist that doesn’t believe in a literal hell” that some of you would still say, “Rob is amazing, stop criticizing him for doctrine you radicals!”

That being said, I doubt anyone will take this seriously. But, in a recent ooze interview, Rob said when questioned about hell…

“Well, there are people now who are seriously separated from God. So I would assume that God will leave room for people to say “No I don’t want any part of this.” My question would be, does grace win or is the human heart stronger than God’s love or grace. Who wins, does darkness and sin and hardness of heart win or does God’s love and grace win?” (Online source)

You can read Marriott’s deconstruction of Bell’s interview at the Seeing Clearly piece Rob Bell and Hell ooze interview. And finally we have the following quote which dispels any further doubts about Bell preaching a type of universalism. It comes from the Saturday December 8, 2007 article—the title tells us much—by Charles Honey called “God has already made peace with us, pastor says.” It appears at MLive, the online version of the Grand Rapids Press:

“[Jesus is] essentially saying the system is corrupt,” Bell said. “There’s a new thing happening.” The new thing culminated in his Crucifixion, in which Jesus did away with the old sacrifices and God reconciled himself to humanity, Bell said.

“Everyone thought it was your job to make peace with the gods. This God has made peace with humanity.” (Online source, emphasis mine)

A lovely story for sure; but, it is absolutely not Biblical theology. While Christ Jesus did make the way to peace with God, this salvation from the coming wrath of God is only to be found by those who have been born again by God’s grace alone; through faith alone, in Christ alone.

The emphasis above is on the word in; as in one must be regenerated by God the Holy Spirit and then baptized into Christ to have this peace with God because the Bible clearly says:

The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.

And if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He Who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. (Romans 8:6-11)

So Rob Bell is left with an irreconcilable problem: If all men already have peace with God, then according to the above from Holy Scripture all men would have to have the Spirit of God already dwelling within them. And if this is true, then all men are already saved; and so, Rob Bell would have to be preaching a type of “opt out” universalism ala another emerging church leader Spencer Burke.

See also:

ROB BELL IN A NUTSHELL: THE BIBLE

ROB BELL IN A NUTSHELL: CONTEMPLATIVE SPIRITUALITY/MYSTICISM

ROB BELL: “TRAMPOLINIANITY” AND THE VIRGIN BIRTH

ROB BELL NOOMA EXPOSE STIRS UP DUST

ROB BELL SAYS “ALL-EE IN FREE…ALMOST”

ROB BELL AND NEW AGE GURU MARIANNE WILLIAMSON