Ministry News

Functional Universalism

Details: Monday, 25 April 2011 09:10

The release of Love Wins, by Michigan pastor Rob Bell, initiated a firestorm of blog posts, news articles and even mainstream media attention on the topic of hell. The controversial pastor's book, which suggests that everyone will eventually be saved and challenges the traditional Christian view of hell as eternal punishment, has been met with criticism in the evangelical community. But a recent study from The Barna Group reveals that the functional universalism of Love Wins may be held by many professing Christians.

"Despite their own personal faith convictions, many born again Christians embrace certain aspects of universalist thought," the April 18 report, titled "What Americans Believe About Universalism and Pluralism," stated. "One-quarter of born again Christians said that all people are eventually saved or accepted by God (25 percent) and that it doesn’t matter what religious faith you follow because they all teach the same lessons (26 percent). An even larger percentage of born again Christians (40 percent) indicated that they believe Christians and Muslims worship the same God."

A 2008 Pew Forum survey found similar universalist leanings among evangelicals, revealing that that 57 percent of evangelicals agreed with the idea that other religions than their own can lead to eternal life. After tweaking the definition of "evangelical," however, a subsequent study by LifeWay Research found that only two out of 10 evangelicals agreed with the statement that eternal life can be obtained through religions other than Christianity.

Pointing out an unexpected—and encouraging—outcome of the Barna study, Barna Group president David Kinnaman noted that younger born again Christians stand in stark contrast to their peers, being much less open to inclusive or universalist views of eternity. Still, while they are holding firm on many matters of orthodoxy, young Christians also expressed less certainty than previous generations did about what will happen to them when they die.

“The difference between the Christian community and the cultural norms is even more pronounced among the youngest generations than the older generations," Kinnaman said. "In other words, younger born again Christians’ attitudes about religious inclusivity and exclusivity are more divergent from their peers than is currently true of their parents’ generation."

— Christian Post, Barna Group, LifeWay Research

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Comments

0 #6 B.J.Stone 2011-05-10 02:30

The "PRESENCE" of God is knocking upon the hearts of individuals (who especially are young, but remain extreemly interested in these coming 'last days' for this planet, rather than just living out their live in pleasure seeking only). Just as the 'drug' induced can find out they have NOW 'two bodies', the "PRESENCE" coming of God brings the Word of God to our sober young people in 'revivals' individually, to assure them when this 'dust body' begins return to this earth's dust, they have ALREADY now a 'soul body' assured of 'travel' far FROM HERE!

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0 #5 B.J.Stone 2011-05-07 03:07

The "LIGHT" of "gospel" (which is "good news") is "resurrection" (also for those who had actually died and are in Hades, who had the 'gospel' preached, proclaimed unto them by Christ Jesus, post resurrection of Him). If a person loves 'darkness' of this world (evil suggestions vs. Word of God, His commandments, or in less sophisticated childlike, of the primative, in suggestions of 'godlessness' vs a creator, origens of eternity in everyone's inner being) or has simply denied the LORD (Jesus Christ) openly, the "resurrection" (with no exceptions) is alignment with the enemies of God, even unto 'loosing' of God's 'archenemy' post 'millenium', then UNTO Hell's Fires. The 'righteous' AND the 'intermediaries' are separated, and both either 'grow in grace' or 'decline in grace' unto eternal appropriate separations.

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0 #4 B.J.Stone 2011-05-07 02:41

The older generation of 'christians' were not as acquanted with 'near death' experiences AND 'drug related' out of body experiences (as did many of their 'spiritualist' peers) explaining why the 'younger' generations of today have greater interests into what happens when LEAVING this earthly body down here. Jesus died for all, therefore ALL will be "resurrected", some to everlasting life, others to everlasting damnation. The greatest interest remains in the catagory 'inbetween' "life' and "damnation" ETERNALLY. The greatest error religiously is those 'intermediaries' may be 'anhiliated' by God? God knows NOW who gravitate unto loving 'darkness' over 'light', but He is not willing that ANY who have shown 'tendancies' to the 'light' should NOT as yet PERISH. Resurrection is in same 'dna' in 'flesh and blood' but from another planet's dust FAR from HERE, each in their own order and assignment!

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0 #3 nicola 2011-05-06 23:25

In that case an awful lot of people are going to hell when they die. This man is very evil and must be stopped from spreading these lies :cry:

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0 #2 B.J.Stone 2011-04-26 02:49

"and the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved". Alot of these folk "should be", but for many other reasons, as well, are NOT yet saved from their sins! "SAVE YOURSELVES FROM THIS UNTOWARD GENERATION" (Acts 2:40). "Come out from among them and be ye separate, sayeth the LORD"

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+1 #1 Peggy Hansford 2011-04-25 23:36

Remember the narrow way is against the flesh, Jesus is the only way, He took our sins when He died in our place for us ahead of time knowing all things being perfect. We can only live for ever eternally in Him in Heaven His way. God said Jesus is the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except by Him. This means that all man made religions with labels have to unite as one under God in CHRISTianity. There is no other name which you can be saved. JESUS

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