A former student (from that great 8am class in the Fall of 2001) sent me a Facebook message this morning asking about what I think of Rob Bell’s new book Jesus Wants to Save Christians: A Manifesto for a Church in Exile. Specifically, this minister wanted to know about Bell’s use of typology, since he knows I think typology is a crucial factor in understanding the Scripture.
I haven’t read Bell’s book yet, but I have it on my shelf and promise to do so right away, so watch here for some reaction. My doctoral student Phillip Bethancourt tells me he thinks it’s “biblical theology gone wild.” I’ll see if I agree (and whether he thinks that’s a positive or a negative; maybe he can comment here about that).
In the meantime, I’m glad to see a Rob Bell book about Jesus. I was really disappointed when I attended a stop of his “Everything Is Spiritual” a couple of years ago in which Jesus was presented as a rabbinical presence and not much else. So if “Christ is proclaimed,” then, “in that I rejoice.”
Have you read it? Give me a preview. Helpful? Dangerous? Mixed?
