Rob Bell - Velvet Elvis quote
Labels:
authenticity,
music
This is my 250th post!
Just finished Velvet Elvis, and I loved it. Here is one of my favorite excerpts:
It is possible for music to be labeled Christian and be terrible music. It could lack creativity and inspiration. The lyrics could be recycled cliches. That "Christian" band could actually be giving Jesus a bad name because they aren't a great band. It is possible for a movie to be a "Christian" movie and to be a terrible movie. It may actually desecrate the art form in its quality and storytelling and craft. Just because it is a Christian book by a Christian author and it was purchased in a Christian bookstore doesn't mean it is all true or good or beautiful. A Christian political group puts me in an awkward position: What if I disagree with them? Am I less of a Christian? What if I am convinced the "Christian" thing to do is to vote the exact opposite? Christian is a great noun and a poor adjective.
Gonna go to the library now and see what other stuff I can find.
More on Rob Bell.
Rob's new book.
2 comments:
I like much of Bell's perspective too, parrticularly his approach to questions. We have to get the conversation started somewhere. But there is one aspect that bothers me. It has to do with what the Bible is about.
Rob says, “…this is why the Bible loses its power for so many communities. They fall into the trap of thinking that the Bible is just about things that happened a long time ago. / But the Bible is about today. / These stories are our stories. They are alive and active and teaching us about our lives in our world, today.” These words express a very dangerous perspective on salvation, our right standing before God. Let me clarify.
Jesus was clear in saying that the entire Bible was about Him (Luke 24:25-26). There is a reason for this. Our salvation; our right standing before God, eternal life, fellowship with God, and everything else that goes with it; was earned for us in the past. Earned by Christ. Accomplished 2,000 years ago on a hill outside Jerusalem. We add nothing to this work. We through our faith are credited with what Christ did, and He is credited with our sin to suffer for (Romans 3:21-4:8). If the Bible is not primarily about what happened in the past, then it is not about what Christ did for us in the past. If the Bible is about our here and now, it is not about those things which earn our salvation.
J. K.
Hey,
I've just posted the first of a multi-part series on Rob's book "Velvet Elvis".
Join me in conversation at:
http://ascenttotruth.blogspot.com/
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