The Dynamics of Worship

Wow is how I want to start this book review.    Wow!  I just got done reading The Dynamics of Worship by James P. Gills.  I will give you a link to it a bit later on if you are interested in reading it.  This book has been around a while but it is full of valuable information and insight.  I will give you a little of the things that spoke to me personally.  A lot of it was a bit hard to swallow, mainly because this book forced me to reflect on what it truly means to worship.  I know I have heard others say some of these things before but it seems as if we just don't get them. Gills does a relatively good job in my opinion of breaking down the specifics of what worship is, what it should look like, where we should be as Christians in order to worship.  He explains these things with several specific terms and how they relate to our personal relationship with God.

Gills states early in the book "The void within us is spiritual.  Yet, how often do we look to other areas of life in hope of finding the answer to or malaise?"  I thought that statement was particularly indicative of how nearly all of us go about our lives from day to day.  We long for something, many of us know that it is a close relationship with God yet we fill our lives with all shorts of things that we try to fill the void with.  I don't feel like I need to go through a list of things here..... I am sure you all get it...... suffice it to say if you get more excited about anything.... ANYTHING!.... than you do about God there is a really good possibility that you have an idol before you and you are expending your energies worshiping that thing instead of expending your energies in improving your relationship with and worshiping God. 

Gills goes on to say the following "You understand why religion was invented.  It was to keep God at a safe distance.  I used to believe that all the religions of the world were men reaching out for God.  It isn't.  All the religions of the world are there to keep God at a safe distance.  You see, man knows there's a God, but he's scared spitless of Him, so he's got to keep Him away.

I thought that was a very interesting perspective and in retrospect when I look at how religion is organized there are an unbelievable amount of similarities with church today and the very religiosity that was created by the Pharisees and the Jews in the old testament.  There seems to be a desire to compartmentalize God and worshiping Him to the point that we have control over what things are being done.  Almost to the point of us being able to say what we will do and won't do in the name of God.  Could you imagine if we made a choice to live a radical life for Christ.  One that made others in the so called current establishment uncomfortable.  A life that was focused on pleasing Christ first and others secondary.  We would be called crazy..... koookooo for coco puffs..... and many other things along the way.  I don't think we would be very popular.  ( I am used to that one)

There were several quotes used in this book to make some really great points.

Worship is the missing jewel of the evangelical church!  A. W. Tozer

I can see that.... I don't know that I have truly worshiped God in the way that he would have me worship Him, a life totally abandone to him.  (again the point here is not what the worship leader is doing, all though they should be helping the congregation understand what true worship is as well as the pastor)  It is about our relation ship with God through Christ on a day to day basis.  I have heard this given lip service also..... I am guilty as well.

To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, to devote the will to the purpose of God.  William Temple. The Archbishop of Canterbury in his book The Hope of a New World.

I often wonder while we are worshiping God, in song, in prayer, in scripture.  How many times are we somewhere else?  Are we thinking about the game, lunch, the bills, the ugly tie that Mr. Zimbart is wearing today and not focusing on worship God or the attributes of God that make him worthy of worship.

The only person justified in not worshipping is the unbeliever.  For to worship you have to have a Savior, and your Savior has to be the central figure of your life.  Chuck Swindoll

I would venture to say for most of us there are a lot of things that are the center of our lives and Christ is not one of them....... oh don't get me wrong Christ is a part of our lives...... but he is not the center of our lives.  We make choices every day that relegate Christ to the smallest portions of our lives, the little back corners, that we suppress while we engage in the futility of what we call life here in the world.   We hardly notice what Christ would have us do until there is a ............... Crisis then we pull out all of the stops, we pray with out ceasing...... we make promises to him that we don't keep.  We just go about it in the most selfishest of ways.... you know what I am talking about.

The path of wholehearted discipleship has never been crowded, or popular           A. P. Gibbs

There goes the popular thing again.   I am thinking God wants us to not worry about being popular with people.  There just might be a correlation with how popular you are in the world and with people and just how popular you are with God.  Popular with God just makes everyone else uncomfortable cause you are saying and doing the things that most everyone else does not want to hear or do.

Most Christians have read parts of the Bible.  Yet, they admit they can't understand much of it -- especially the more profound divine truth.  Only the Holy Spirit can reveal the shades of meaning.  Relying totally on His guidance, we submit our entire beings -- spirits, souls and bodies --- to Him.  That may take a while because we cherish our independence.  We surrender little by little.  When we do though, our study and prayer times, as well as our praise and worship, will produce much spiritual fruit.  James. P. Gills

I do think our independence is the biggest obstacle to a real relationship with God.  We all want to belt out a line from the Frank Sinatra song,  I DID IT MY WAY.  While we may all want to puff up with pride and say that it will get us into a lot of trouble and even a one way ticket to H. E. double hockey sticks.  I can assure you that will not be any fun.

Dr. Gills gives an example of a triangle and each of those sides being equal.  On each of those sides he places the words, Covenant, Knowledge, Worship.  He makes points specifically about anytime one of these things gets out of measure with the other it creates imbalance that ultimately effects our worship and our relationship with God.  He uses this to drive home with specific examples how it does effect our relationship with God and what Churches or people look like when they have one or more of these specific relationship points with God out of balance.  He goes in depth here and it is a real eye opener as I can see certain times in my life were specific imbalances in these areas effected my relationship with God in specific ways, I also recognize specific patterns in churches that I have attended past and present.

Finally he goes in to specifics about the obstacles to worship.  I am going to list the points here, he goes in depth and defines and describes what these obstacles look like and how they prevent us from worshiping.  (I stay away from the phrase true worship because there is only worship either you are doing it or not.)

1.  Pride
2.  Lack of Knowledge
3.  Independence
4.  Critical spirit
5.  Laziness
6.  Impatience
7.  Legalism
8.  Emotionalism
9.  Elitism
10.  Traditionalism
11.  Unforgiveness
12.  Worldly Influence

This is a good book that will help you put into perspective what a life of worship to God looks like.  It will help you identify the pitfalls that are there that would separate you from that relationship with God that he wants to have with you.  A relationship that far exceeds anything that most have ever experienced.  While there are a few things that I don't agree with it in no way takes away from the validity of this book, and those issues do not in any way do injustice to the core Christian beliefs, or doctrine.  This book can be found for a very cheap price in some cases as little as $1.  I would recommend that everyone take the time to read this book and you can start your search for a copy by going to the following link

My Book List

Here are a list of some of the books I have read in the last year or so.  I wanted to pass them along on the off chance that you might be looking for something to read.  Something that may challange your spiritual walk with Christ or that may just give you an opportunity to do something to sharpen the saw.  These books are in no particular order.  Some of them were read at the begining or middle of last year. There will be just a little infomation from me on them and a link were you can get additional information or purchase the book if you feel so inclined.

Same Kind of Different As Me By Ron Hall & Denver Moore with Lynn Vincent / Thomas Nelson Denver Moore grew up in Louisiana in the 1960's, working on a plantation as a modern-day slave. Ron Hall is an international arts dealer who moves between upscale New York galleries and celebrities. It seems unlikely that these two men would meet under normal circumstances. Until Deborah Hall, Ron's wife meets Denver and sees him through God's eyes of compassion. When Deborah is diagnosed with cancer she charges Ron with the mission of saving Denver. From this request, an extraordinary friendship forms between Denver and Ron, changing them both forever. A remarkable true story of friendship and unconditional love!

This is a really great book about loving and living the way Christ would have us to. It gives us great insight into how Christ's blessing come through us blessing others. I gave my copy away to share with others you will enjoy this book and it will challenge you.

What Difference Do It Make?: Stories of Hope and Healing By Ron Hall, Denver Moore & Lynn Vincent / Thomas Nelson Art dealer Hall and homeless advocate Moore offer new reflections on what we can learn from reaching out to people different from us. Their thoughts on faith, friendship, reconciliation, compassion, and healing will touch your heart. Includes stories from folks impacted by Same Kind of Different As Me and samples of Denver's paintings.

This is the second book from Denver Moore's story and has stories about people helping people. People stepping out on faith to make a difference. I gave my copy of this one away also to share with others.

The Way of the Master--Book with free download By Bridge-logos Publishing The Way of the Master is the flagship work of Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron's organization. It anchors their award-winning television program as well as their radio show and website. Considered by many to be the definitive text on evangelism, this book has been updated, expanded and illustrated with photographs for this edition. It is anecdotal, loaded with commentary that is more conversational than academic. It's an easy read with a hard message that has already changed the face of sharing faith. Free Audio Download available of "Hell's Best Kept Secret."

Wow this book will make you think. Say what you want to say about Kirk Cameron but this book is full of truth and a healthy dose of WAKE UP and do something about it. I loaned this one out cause it is that powerful you should take a look you might think a bit differently about sharing your faith and be more bold about doing it.

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God By Francis Chan with Danae Yankoski / David C. Cook The God of the universe is crazy about you! His love is the most powerful thing in the world and He wants to give it to you, so you can live for Him. If you have made a commitment to follow Christ, then read Crazy Love to be reminded and challenged in your walk. Sharing from his own life struggles and sacrifices, author Francis Chan issues a call for selfless, Christ-like living. Let the love you have received from God impact your life like never before.

This was a bit of a slow read the first couple of chapters. Then came the heavy hitting stuff that will cause you to dig deaper into the word and give you a better understanding of what God's call is in our life. I have started keeping an eye on Chan as a result of reading this book. He is exibiting a true desire to live what he preaches. He will bring much glory to God no need to wait and see he is doing it now.

Things They Didn't Teach Me In Worship Leading School (New and Updated) By Tom Kraeuter / Ywam Publishing The insights of fifty prominent worship leaders from around the world are sure to make you smile, laugh, and think in new ways about worship leading and the limitless experiences God can use to teach you important lessons. Find out how God works in worship through: the absence of worship-band members, sound-system failures, spiritual battle, last-minute program changes, and worship leaders who "just don't feel like leading worship today." And how God works in worship to: bring joy to his people, minister to physical needs, strengthen the faith of the weary, answer prayer, and bestow grace on the unworthy.

This book and the next two are full of great information on leading worship. Being a worship leader, the ins and outs the ups and downs. I would encourage anyone that is a worship leader for a small group, Sunday School, or Church to read all of these books. They are a great reference. If you are a pastor and have a worship leader and want some insight in to things they experience and ways to help them along with guidence as you lead your congregation it would be well worth the time, effort and money to get these. I have used them as refrences many times over the past year along with Tom's web site. www.WorshipLeadingAnswers.com

The Worship Leader's Handbook Practical Answers to Tough Questions By Tom Kraeuter / Ywam Publishing The question-and-answer format makes this book immensely practical. You'll find help sections on the worship leader, relationship to the congregation and the pastor, leading worship, the worship ministry team and more. How about real-life, proven answers to questions like: What style of music is acceptable? Should I prepare ahead or be spontaneous? What about leading in a small group? How do I deal with "unstable" musicians? Can I lead worship in just 15-20 minutes? What if I don't have any musical training? Am I too old to lead worship? These and dozens of other tough questions are answered in this practical, no-holds-barred book.

Keys to Becoming an Effective Worship Leader By Tom Kraeuter / Emerald Books Learning any craft by trial and error can be frustrating. This is especially true when learning how to be effective as a worship leader. Practicing untried methods and ideas on your congregation or music team often proves discouraging. Trying unsuccessful ventures long-term can be devastating. Keys to Becoming an Effective Worship Leader is full of valuable insights gleaned from years of experience. These practical, proven ideas will benefit anyone involved in the ministry of praise & worship.

Grace For the Moment By Max Lucado / Countryman From best-selling author Max Lucado comes a wisdom-filled treasure chest for your daily quiet time - reflections to draw you closer to God as well as understand His direction and timing. Every new day brings a Scripture verse to contemplate and an inspirational thought that will feed your soul the entire year. A wonderful gift for yourself and a friend.

This is a daily devotional that I have used for the past couple of years and continue to use. There are so many pages dog eared in this book it's kind of a mess but it speaks to me and puts me in the word daily. I would encourage you to find a devotional that you can use daily. Todays devotional is from 1 Samuel 16:7 God sees our value. I am so thankful for that.... Do we see the value in others?

Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Jehovah's Witnesses By Ron Rhodes / Harvest House Publishers Cult expert Dr.Walter Martin once said the average Jehovah's Witness can make a "doctrinal pretzel" out of the average Christian in about 30 seconds. Yet it is possible for you to effectively respond with bold confidence to a Jehovah's Witness- and this book will show you how. Reading from the Scriptures with the Jehovah's Witnesses offers many outstanding features. Here's a sample of the powerful tools you will find in this complete hands-on guide to sharing the truth of God's Word in a loving, gracious way: side by side comparisons of the New World Translation and the Bible along with clear, simple answers to each doctrinal error espoused by the Witnesses. point-by-point lists of the favorite tactics and arguments used by the Witnesses- along with effective, biblical responses to each one. hundreds of penetrating questions you can ask to challenge the Jehovah's Witnesses' confidence in the Watchtower Society.

This book and the next one came out of necessity. They are deep and require some attention and a bible to refer to while reading. We all should be able to defend our faith. Seems like a lot of people don't even know that it is under attack but I will tell you the amount of distortion that is out there is amazing. I am not talking about the little theological things that are minor and not significant to the Core of Christianity... you do have to be careful of some of those things but I am talking about the big things that are disgised as little things that will damn you to hell. Start looking its going to get worse..... A personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the first step to all wisdom and knowledge to ensure you are not lead astrey. Second step read the bible..... Third step read some other books that will help you in your understanding.

10 Most Important Things You Can Say to a Jehovah's Witness By Ron Rhodes / Harvest House Publishers Are Jehovah's Witnesses knocking on your door and asking you questions? Do you have a friend or family member involved with the Jehovah's Witnesses? Are you unsure of what to say to them? Looking for a little certainty, a little confidence? Then you will really enjoy this book. Cult expert Ron Rhodes has compiled a list of ten pivotal issues that need to be brought up with Jehovah's Witnesses. Though short (concise), this book is accurate, and fair, and offers all the relevant information to make you more confident in your dealings with the Jehovah's Witnesses. Rhodes' goals for this book? Simple: To identify the ten most critical issues/problems To examine the exact nature of each doctrinal error To contrast the cultic teachings of the Jehovah's Witnesses with the truth revealed in the Bible To review basic principles of Bible interpretation (with a view toward showing how the Jehovah's Witnesses do not follow them) To explain the correct meaning of the numerous Bible verses that the Jehovah's Witnesses (and other cults) cite incorrectly or out of context Does Rhodes achieve these goals? Quite admirably so. His exposition of the history, doctrine and practices of the Jehovah's Witnesses is truly eye-opening, and will greatly encourage all who seek to reach out to Jehovah's Witnesses with the truth. His strong biblical stance, and his passion for the truth are infectious, and will aid anyone in their conversations with Jehovah's Witnesses (and other cults as well). With an easy-to-use layout, and clear, concise descriptions, this book is great for quick referencing. After reading this book, not only will you be able to stand your ground against the arguments of the Jehovah's Witnesses, you will also be able to more effectively share the gospel with them.

The Love Dare By Stephen Kendrick & Alex Kendrick / B & H Publishing Group The Love Dare, featured in the new movie Fireproof starring Kirk Cameron, is a forty-day guided devotional experience that will lead your heart back to truly loving your spouse while learning more about the design, nature, and source of true love. Too many marriages end when someone says "I don't love you anymore." The Love Dare discusses how such a statement reveals a lack of understanding about the fundamental nature of true love. Each reading includes Scripture, a statement of principle, the day's "dare," and a journaling area and check box to chart progress. Dare to take The Love Dare, and see your marriage change forever. Paperback. Focus on the Family recommendation.

This is a good book. It is easier said than done. I have picked this up and done parts of it and put it back down. It has been an on going process for some time now. I think it is worth it... just have to stay motivated to complete the tasks.

My Utmost for His Highest, Updated Edition By Oswald Chambers, edited by James Reimann / Barbour Publishing A priceless classic at an affordable cost! Jim Reimann's modernization of the beloved devotional My Utmost for His Highest has introduced tens of thousands of new readers to this classic work from Oswald Chambers. Now you can bring the challenging, life-changing insights of the updated My Utmost for His Highest to even more readers--through this special promotional volume. Featuring helpful Scripture and subject indexes, in an attractive softcover, this volume is an incredible value.

This has been a great devotional for me and I have had multiple copies that I have given away. My current copy is the devotional addition. I can not speak more highly of this book. Next to to Bible this is the one book I would not want to be with out. It is deep and meaningful and worth what ever amount of money you spend on it. Today's devotional is on Does He Know Me with readings out of the following Bible verses. John 10:17, John 10:27 and John 21:15 - 17 I can't say enough good things about this devotional. Everyone should have a copy.

I have used this book read and re-read it over the years and refrenced it many times over the past year. If you are into live sound, or a musician and have had enough of others messing up the sound then this book is for you. If you run sound or media at your Church. Get it you will not be dissappointed

What books have you read over the past year or so.

Velvet Elvis: A Few More Thoughts

I have often wondered why there is such a high tolerance for false teaching in the Christian world, it's as if we have such a week foundation on what scripture actually says that we are willing to accept nearly anything.  I know that each of us are wrapped up in the business of our day to day lives that we just don't have time to do one more thing.  Well I think it comes down to what we make time for, and we seem to make time for the things that are most important to us.  How important is your relationship with God.  Is it first on your list?  I am not talking about Church, and all the things that go along with that.  Church is important but I am talking about your core relationship with God.  Steven R. Covey wrote a book call 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: 15th Anniversary Edition - Unabridged Audiobook on CD By Stephen R. Covey / Simon & Schuster Trade Sales

This book has some very good points and would be of great benefit to nearly anyone.   One of his points is Sharpen the Saw and what he means by that is what are you doing to improve?  Are you reading, listening, watching video, going to seminars, practicing, furthering your education?  The point is there are many different ways that you can sharpen the saw.....  question is are you.  This is a leadership book that can be applied by anyone regardless of what your chosen vocation is, or what position you hold.  It has principals that were set by God first but in the book it has limited focus on God if any.  However, you can apply the principles from a Christian viewpoint, just remember the original source of many of these standards.  Are you sharpening the saw where your relationship with God is concerned.  I encourage everyone to be plugged in to a local Church and attend regularly but what else are you doing?  Take some time to sharpen the saw and maybe listen to the sermons below as a way of doing that....... you might find something you needed to hear.

Here is a sermon from John MacArthur that talks about myths of salvation it is in three parts and has some great insight in to some of the things that pertain to the book Velvet Elvis.  You cant go wrong listening to John MacArthur preach  you can listen or download for free just click on listen or download when page pops up.  It will take about 1 hour per part that is three hours of your time, you can break it up over several days but I implore you to listen to these sermons as it is critical that each of us be able to identify and avoid false teachers on our own with the help of the Holy Spirit so here ya go:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Velvet Elvis

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine....about Church and several sub-topics about Church when he asked have you read Velvet Elvis?  I hadn't and was a bit resistant to the idea because I am familiar with some of the authors (Rob Bell) work.  I had seen several of the NOOMA videos and had heard a few of his sermons via podcast / youtube etc.  While Rob seems to be making a rather large impact in his Church and now in many other Churches via his videos, his preaching, and theology  philosophy are bad medicine.  I have read other books that are theologically corrupt and figured that if this was one big expanded NOOMA video that it would pretty much be the same.  I purchased the book (do yourself a favor if you just have to read it because you are confident that I am dead wrong about this you can borrow mine)  If you just have to have your very own copy.... cause mine has all kinds of little notes written in the columns and a bunch of HIGHLIGHTED stuff (mostly the stuff that he got wrong).  Do yourself another favor and save yourself some money and get it from the link below at Christianbook.com  I paid a little over $14.00 for the paperback and they have it for $11.99 so either way it saving you a bit and after you read it I am sure you will be glad that you didn't pay anymore for it.

Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith By Rob Bell / Zondervan We know there's something more. We sense it, we feel it, and we want it. But how do we find it---a spirituality that stands up to the questions of an honest, searching mind? "This book is for those who need a fresh take on Jesus and what it means for us to live the kind of life he teaches us to live," writes Rob Bell. "This pursuit of Jesus is leading us backward as much as forward ... I am learning that what seems brand new is often just the discovery of something that has been there all along---it just got lost somewhere and it needs to be picked up, dusted off, and reclaimed." Velvet Elvis offers original and refreshingly personal perspectives on what Christianity is really about.

Again let me make this clear......... I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.  There are to many questions asked and almost none of them answered.

There are many examples that I could list it starts almost from the very beginning.  I am going to start with this one from page 26 of Velvet Elvis. 

Somebody recently gave me a video tape of a lecture given by a man who travels around speaking about the creation of the world.  At one point in his lecture, he said if you deny that God created the world in six literal twenty-four-hour days, then your are denying that Jesus ever died on the cross.  It's a bizarre leap of logic to make, I would say.  

But he was serious.

This is an argument about the literal interpretation of the Bible and the creation story.  It is a very slippery slope to be on when we choose to negate the literal creation story in scripture and begin teaching or contemplating that six days means something other than six days.  If we take it figuratively that each day could have been an indeterminate period of time we open the door for millions of years or the very foundation of what evolutionist build their theory on, that it took millions of years for humans to evolve.  Rob goes on to say this on the same page #26 very next paragraph

 It hit me while I was watching that for him faith isn't a trampoline; it's a wall of bricks.  Each of the core doctrines for him is like an individual brick that stacks on top of the others.  If you pull one out, the whole wall starts to crumble.  It appears quite strong and rigid, but if you begin to rethink or discuss even one brick, the whole thing is in danger.  Like he said, no six-day creation equals no cross.  Remove one, and the whole wall wobbles.

Okay here in the next paragraph is where he starts to express his example of how we as Christians should be flexible and by being flexible like a spring and not rigid like a brick wall we actually are better Christians.  Hold on to your hat cause this is were you are going to say huh?  (or you should be saying huh?)

 What if tomorrow someone digs up definitive proof that Jesus had a real, earthly, biological father named Larry, and archaeologists find Larry's tomb and do DNA samples and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the virgin birth was really just a bit of mythologizing the Gospel writers threw in to appeal to the followers of the Mithra and Dionysian religious cults that were hugely popular at the time of Jesus, who's gods had virgin births?  But what if as you study the origin of the word virgin, you discover that the word virgin in the gospel of Matthew actually comes from the book of Isaiah, and then you find out that in the Hebrew language at that time, the word virgin could mean several things.  And what if you discover that in the first century being "born of a virgin" also referred to a child who's mother became pregnant the first time she had intercourse?

 What if that spring was seriously questioned?

 Could a person keep jumping?  Could a person still love God?  Could you still be a Christian?

 Is the way of Jesus still the best possible way to live?

Yep that is what he says in the book......this is just one of many things that he is willing question and allow his readers to question.  Rob gives inaccurate information about Mithra and Dionysus, he fails to include that they are not real, they are mythical and that Jesus is actually a historical person that is recorded as fact, having lived and died and been resurrected.  These facts having been recorded by sources outside the biblical account.  If we can take liberties with these claims in the Bible and if there were false things written in the Bible to appeal to people of other beliefs.  Well Rob the answers to your questions are:  NO a person couldn't keep jumping.......Yes we could continue to love God but he now becomes a liar.....Yes you could still be a Christian but it would mean nothing more than being a Tampa Bay Bucs fan and we know how far that will get you these days.  (MAN!!! those Bucs are really starting to make it hard to even watch)....and finally he asks is the way of Jesus still the best possible way to live?.... well Rob in light of what you just brought up that makes him just a dude, like Mohammad, Buddha, and all of the other so called deities.  We might as well follow Larry his fictional father!  I hear he was a pretty nice person that didn't really break a whole lot of rules  ( he did have that weird thing about biting his toe nails but we could all set around and do that as a ritual or something).  Maybe we should just follow him we could all be Larry-ans and live good and right. 

Rob is trying to say that Christianity has evolved from the beginning, it will continue to evolve and that we should be willing to be flexible and evolve with it.  Bottom line the core of the Gospel cannot be flexible, it is made clear in the scripture and it is not open for debate.....even though many will and do just that.  The fundamentals of Christianity (I know the use of that phrase will draw debate as to what those are but I am going to use it anyway)  have not evolved they have stayed the same and will continue to stay the same.  People have tried to put a new spin on them since the beginning and will continue, Rob Bell is on that road. 

Take a look at 1 Corinthians 15 Paul exhorts the Corinthians about preaching anything other than the Gospel as it has been given.  (by the way at the end of the book Rob Bell calls in to question the validity of the uniqueness of the Resurrection by stating that the church didn't even discuss the Resurrection because it wasn't unique that no one would have refuted it because he says everyones god had risen from the dead in the first century)

Bottom line Rob Bell is willing to muddy all of the lines of Christianity to appeal to nearly anyone of any religion.  He is compromising in order to appeal, it is an A le' carte Christianity that lets you take what you want and mash it in to what you want to make it.  He has made it humanism among other things and disguised it as Christianity.

I could go on, give many more examples but I am not.  I will leave you with a couple of links that will give you insight into this book from individuals that are much more qualified than I am to say your wrong Rob.  You have come this far check out the links and put the notion of wasting any time reading this book to bed.

Discerning Reader <-----take a look here for another review

Barnabas Ministries <----- you can click here too.

Well there you have it, after reading it I feel like I have been talking to a dishonest car salesman for the past week!!!  Ever had to deal with one of those?