Directory of Contemporary Worship Musicians - Way of Life Literature

“e love of God will melt every hard heart, and even the most‘depraved sinners’ will eventually give up their resistance andturn to God. And so, beginning with the early church, there isa long tradition of Christians who believe that God willultimately restore everything and everybody” (Love Wins,location 1339-1365).Bell even claims that Sodom and Gomorrah will berestored (location 1057-1071, 1071-1082).Bell has nothing but ridicule for the gospel that Jesus diedfor man’s sins and that those who repent and believe (andonly those who repent and believe) will be saved.“What happens when a fieen-year-old atheist dies? Was therea three-year window when he could have made a decision tochange his eternal destiny? Did he miss his chance? ... Whatexactly would have had to happen in that three-year window tochange his future? ... Some believe he would have had to say aspecific prayer. Christians don’t agree on exactly what thisprayer is, but for many the essential idea is that the only way toet into heaven is to pray at some point in your life, asking Godto forgive you and telling God that you accept Jesus, youbelieve Jesus died on the cross to pay the price for your sins,and you want to go to heaven when you die. Some call this‘accepting Christ,’ others all it the ‘sinner’s prayer,’ and stillothers call it ‘getting saved,’ being ‘born again,’ or being‘converted” (Love Wins, location 129-143).In a 2005 interview with Beliefnet, Bell said “the churchmust stop thinking about everybody primarily in categoriesof in or out, saved or not, believer or nonbeliever.”In his influential book Velvet Elvis, which is popular withthe contemporary worship crowd, Bell described a weddingthat he conducted for two pagan unbelievers who told himthat “they didn’t want any Jesus or God or Bible or religion tobe talked about” but they did want him to “make it reallyspiritual” (p. 76). Bell agreed with this ridiculous request andsaid that his pagan friends “are resonating with Jesus,whether they acknowledge it or not” (p. 92).67