Francis Chan on Hell and Humility
/
Francis Chan is working on his newest book, Erasing Hell. It could be a response to Rob Bell's book, Love Wins, but that may not actually be the case. Hell, it seems, tends to be a topic of conversation inside and outside the Church lately. In one of his promotional videos, Chan discusses the importance of having the humility to sit under the magnitude, authority, and truth of Scripture. And he's right.
As I watch this video, I realize that at times I could certainly stand to have some humility. But I also realize that as we are lumps of clay telling other lumps of clay about the Potter, we can and should do so boldly, with confidence derived from the Word of God. Acts 13 shows Barnabas and Paul speaking boldly to the Jews in Antioch in Pisidia (specifically Acts 13:46). And again, Barnabas and Paul spoke the Word of God "boldly for the Lord" in Iconium (Acts 14:3, ESV). Peter and John, ordinary men, were seen as bold, having been with Jesus (Acts 4:13ff).
But please don't get me wrong; I feel Chan is representing this kind of boldness in his video. It takes boldness to say, "Hey, we need to approach this with some humility to submit to a God that's bigger than ourselves." That being said, there are many who feel that saying an idea may be wrong because it does not line up with the biblical teaching is a bad thing. Some may feel that this is what Chan is saying. But I don't think that's Chan's point. These days, some will defend their claim by arguing that the counter-claim maker is not humble. Some may desire that all ideas dwell equally in a state of coexistence and that's also not Chan's claim. Chan is rightly claiming that we need to make a careful study of the entire Word of God and then submit ourselves to its teaching. This is the humility Chan seems to be getting at. This is the humility we should all desire to seek.
As I watch this video, I realize that at times I could certainly stand to have some humility. But I also realize that as we are lumps of clay telling other lumps of clay about the Potter, we can and should do so boldly, with confidence derived from the Word of God. Acts 13 shows Barnabas and Paul speaking boldly to the Jews in Antioch in Pisidia (specifically Acts 13:46). And again, Barnabas and Paul spoke the Word of God "boldly for the Lord" in Iconium (Acts 14:3, ESV). Peter and John, ordinary men, were seen as bold, having been with Jesus (Acts 4:13ff).
But please don't get me wrong; I feel Chan is representing this kind of boldness in his video. It takes boldness to say, "Hey, we need to approach this with some humility to submit to a God that's bigger than ourselves." That being said, there are many who feel that saying an idea may be wrong because it does not line up with the biblical teaching is a bad thing. Some may feel that this is what Chan is saying. But I don't think that's Chan's point. These days, some will defend their claim by arguing that the counter-claim maker is not humble. Some may desire that all ideas dwell equally in a state of coexistence and that's also not Chan's claim. Chan is rightly claiming that we need to make a careful study of the entire Word of God and then submit ourselves to its teaching. This is the humility Chan seems to be getting at. This is the humility we should all desire to seek.