Jesus Wants to Save Christians
Rob Bell has a new book slated for October 2008 entitled, Jesus Wants to Save Christians.
Here’s the synopsis:
There is a church not too far from us that recently added a $25 million addition to their building. Our local newspaper ran a front-page story not too long ago about a study revealing that one in five people in our city lives in poverty. This is a book about those two numbers.
I’ve attended services in both churches mentioned above, and this is something I struggle with internally as well. I can see both sides to this issue (although I lean more towards Rob’s angle), but I’m excited to see what Rob brings to this discussion.
(ht: Flowerdust)
April 10, 2008 at 8:47 pm
That message resonates with me. I may develop more on this issue on Semper Fi.
April 11, 2008 at 9:34 am
It is wrong to assume that churches are spending millions on concert hall sanctuaries out of greed and extravagance. It is about church relevancy. I believe Jesus has no problem with these churches. If the message of Jesus is not presented in a way that is relevant to our culture, it will get suffocated.
$25 million sanctuaries are going to be the norm, not the exception for the church. Any church that does not make itself relevant and attractive to younger generations is going to die out. Also, these same churches do more for poverty in their communities than government agencies.
Anyway, the book looks like an interesting read.
April 11, 2008 at 10:36 am
@peak9: I’m not sure Rob is assuming anything. I think he’s probably seeking the truth (through scripture) on whether or not those $25 million structures should be the norm.
Personally, like I mentioned above, I see a whole lot of good that comes from a whole bunch of them. However, I also see a stark contrast to what the church looked like in the New Testament.
Again, I’m really looking forward to Rob’s thoughts.
April 11, 2008 at 2:43 pm
The same thoughts come to my head whenever I see churches spend thousands of dollars on things such as smartlights and video games but not contributing to their community at all…but that opens another can of worms all together…
Obviously isn’t a simple issue (”you’re wrong for building a $25 million dollar building!”), but something that deserves our attention…I’m looking forward to Bell’s perspective.
I agree with you, there is a disparity between the NT church and today’s church — there’s also a drastic difference in the culture as well….
April 11, 2008 at 7:26 pm
I live on a pretty modest, fixed income (around $800.00 per month). For a single person with no dependents this isn’t exactly being totally destitute — but my finances do get stressful at times. Compared to the “poorest of the poor” in most parts of the world, I got ir pretty easy.
From my perspective I get REAL fed-up with churches trying to impress the world with fancy buildings and all sorts of high-tech equipment. Isn’t it interesting that Jesus and his early followers met in pretty simple surroundings and yet had a profound influence on their culture.
I’d love to know if the $25 million church building could have been built for less (much less)? I’d like to know if the church insisted on the contractors who worked on the building project went out of their way to hire minorities and individuals who were financially desitute. Did they offer job training to help some folks learn better-paying construction skills?
And one other question…Would Jesus wear a Rolex instead of a made-in-China import watch for just $10.00?
April 13, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Check out the “Jesus Wants to Save Christians | Rob Bell & Don Golden” Facebook Group for updates & news on this book in the coming months:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=12053387658
April 13, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Also, Shane brought this up earlier this year.