1. Do you really believe an eternal hell has kept people morally in line? Has it actually been an effective restraint for sin in the Church? Aren’t we told that we love because He first loved us and that it’s “the GRACE of God that teaches us to say ‘no’ to ungodliness” (Titus 2:12)?
2. If to know the truth sets us free and, “if the Son sets you free you will be free indeed,” could we honestly describe ourselves as “free”?
3. Would the world describe us, the Church as a whole, as free? Are we known for our freedom? Do we feel free? Do we act free? Does the following verse describe you?
“…but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. ? They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isa. 40:31)
4. If we worship a God who is weak because He cannot save all, or limited because He cannot override man’s will, or unmerciful because we believe He simply has chosen to save only a few, do we not begin to reflect what we worship?
5. Would the world describe us (and might we honestly describe ourselves) as weak? or as limited in our impact in this world? or as unmerciful? Are we not viewed as unmerciful in the way we judge others and condemn them for things we don’t do while harboring other toxic sins like greed, covetousness and gossip?
6. Why is it the Church is known for its pride and arrogance? If it is based on grace “so that no one can boast” (especially among those adhering to the “doctrines of grace” or Calvinism) why is there so much pride?
7. If Christianity is a faith based on forgiveness why do we as a whole generally have such a difficult time forgiving? Could we be reflecting the God we believe will refuse to forgive most of mankind?
8. Why are most Christians actually “functional universalists” meaning they do not live, speak, or spend their time and money as if they believed in an eternal hell? How is it that many who do live as if it is true are considered strange, unbalanced, or morbid?
9. Why are we all of a sudden fighting feverishly to defend a doctrine we seldom talk or preach about? And why are we teaching a more sanitized watered down version when we do? Why the vague, indecisive and commonly evasive approach? If it is indeed true why not unleash it in the manner of Jonathan Edwards? Is it utterly and terrifyingly horrific or is it not?
10. What do you think about Keller’s assessment of the Church in relation to who we are attracting …?
“Jesus’s teaching consistently attracted the irreligious while offending the Bible-believing, religious people of his day. However, in the main, our churches today do not have this effect. The kind of outsiders Jesus attracted are not attracted to contemporary churches, even our most avant-garde ones. We tend to draw conservative, buttoned-down, moralistic people. The licentious and liberated or the broken and marginal avoid church. That can only mean one thing. If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then we must not be declaring the same message that Jesus did.”