God never changes, nor do the central truths of Christianity. But our understanding of those truths is in constant flux. Christians will always be exploring and discovering what it means to live in harmony with God and each other. Now in softcover, Velvet Elvis offers original and refreshingly personal perspectives on what Christianity is really about.
"God doesn’t change, but times do, and Rob Bell, founding pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan, believes new times call for us to remain open and flexible, living with passion and conviction….An advocate of a postmodern approach to faith, Bell is vulnerable about his own struggles with doubt and understanding Scripture. Joy, awe, raw honesty, and an appreciation for the mystery of faith permeate the pages." — Christianity Today
"Rob Bell is able to draw more depth out of the New Testament than I thought possible….I would have finished this book in record time if I didn’t have to put it down so often just so I could sit back and process what I was learning. Buy two copies, one for you and one to pass around." — YouthWorker Journal
Average Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars(3.5 out of 5 stars)
8 of 25 Reviews Showing:(View All Reviews)
0.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Michael (California, U.S.A.), August 15, 2009
I was uneasy about the information Rob Bell preaches. Rob Bell fails to mention that our only salvation is through the only begotten son of God, Jesus Christ. Scripture tells us to be discernful. I would not recommend this or any Rob Bell's teachings for it falls short to pointing his readers to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviuor. The bible said in the last days there will be many deceivers: 1 John 2:18,22; 1 John 4:3 and 2 John 1:17. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. I pray you will not be deceived.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Bethlehem Lutheran Church (Minneapolis, MN), October 20, 2008
One of my all time favorites. It is especially good for young adults but even us older adults can appreciate Rob Bell's writing. I am amazed at his ability to take complex ideas and make them so understandable. He creates modern parables through his study of scripture. LOVE IT!
1 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Kelly (Colorado), October 13, 2008
Was encouraged to read this book by my son. I was discouraged by alot of it. I applaud the passion with which Rob Bell writes but feel that he leads astray on much of his beliefs.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Monica Henriksen (Bothell, WA), October 05, 2008
THIS BOOK IS AMAZING!!! I read about 3/4ths of it and got distracted in to reading something else but will commit to re-reading it. Very rarely does a book come along that makes you think like this one does. I was raised in kind of a legalistic home and this book totally goes against that grain - thankfully!
0 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Mary Ward (Roanoke, VA), August 30, 2008
Rob Bell leads the reader in a very artful way through a web that he has woven of questions, doubts and falsehood that strike at the very core of the gospel message. In his conversational tone he comes alongside the reader and disarms him if he is unaware of Bell's underlying presuppositions and the direction he is moving. In the final chapters he claims that "heaven is full of forgiven people ... hell is full of forgiven people," redefining the gospel and nullifying the cross. His final chapter literally tells Christians that we should party more because the present is where we should focus, not on some future heaven promised somewhere else. His lies are so close to the ones told by Satan in the Garden that it is chilling. The popularity of this book and Bell's videos should be a warning that the Church has fallen asleep. No true believer needs to read this book and no one should recommend this to anyone who is searching for truth; he will not find it here.
0 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Pastor Adam (Juneau, AK), August 12, 2008
I almost ran out of ink noting the fallacies Bell sets forth in his emergent view of Christianity. Within the first few "movements", he can't stand to call them actual chapters, he redefines the Trinity and takes sides with an early heretical view of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He denies the existence of a literal place called heaven and decides that heaven is what we are to create here on earth and not a place where those who have trusted in Christ will go when they die. There are more issues with this book to speak of than space allows. Review this with the magnifying glass of Scripture. Just because something is produced by a Christian publisher or appears on the shelf in a Christian bookstore does not make it truthful.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Janice Trammell Cannon (Dallas, NC), May 30, 2008
How wonderful to find a Christian pastor who proclaims that Jesus isn't about religion, but rather about reality! Bell is unafraid to admit he doesn't have all the answers, or even that he had a mental breakdown by trying to do and be too much as his newly formed church grew rapidly. He demonstrates the importance of always being true to one's inner self while practicing Christianity (Chrisitanity in the sense of following Jesus Christ to the depth of the reality of how things are.) I applaud Rob Bell and look forward to reading his book, SEX GOD.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Shirley Giver (Peru, IN), April 01, 2008
My husband and I have longed for a better understanding of what Jesus' words and actions meant to his contemporaries, and therefore, what they should mean to us. Rob Bell explains the culture of Jesus' time so vividly. There were many "aha" moments as I learned just how radically Jesus engaged his culture - not only Him, but the early church, too. I am looking forward to reading more of his works, and also many of the books he referred to in the bibliography. I recommend this book for anyone regardless of how much you already do or don't know. I wish I'd come across it years earlier!
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