Hell by Cloudwalker Hell! Not a very popular subject. One we try to avoid. One few, if any, churches preach or teach about. On any given Sunday morning (or Saturday, or Friday, whenever you choose to worship) I dare say few, if any, preachers will even mention hell, let alone make it the subject of their sermon. But it's not a subject that Christ avoided, In fact 13% of his teachings refer to eternal judgment and hell, and 2/3rds of his parables relate to resurrection and judgment. So let’s be clear on things. First, let's have none of this "there is no hell" or "a loving God wouldn't send anyone to hell" nonsense. Hell is a very real place and some people will find themselves there. Not because God sent them there, but because they chose to go there themselves. In spite of all Christ did to prevent it. So, what is hell like. First it is a real place and those in it have real bodies and they experience real pain. The story of the rich man and Lazarus makes that clear. Note, I did not call it a parable, because it has none of the marks of a parable. It is a real story about real people. Hell is described as a place of "everlasting destruction" and "weeping and gnashing of teeth" and "darkness." It is also described as "outside." But outside what. For one thing outside heaven. Even when paradise and hell were close enough that they could communicate to each other there was no way for someone to reach from paradise to hell, or from hell to paradise. (I use paradise because there are reasons to believe that heaven and paradise at one time were different places) Hell is also outside escape. EVER!!! People try to say that the torment will end. But Rev. 14:11 and other places show clearly that hell and it's torments last for as long as heaven lasts (because the same language is used to describe the length of both). As Max Lucado puts it "Much perishes in hell. Hope perishes. Happiness perishes. but the body and soul of the God-deniers continue outside. Outside of heaven, outside of hope, and outside of God's goodness." Max has described it well "Hell is the chosen home of insurrectionists. . . Hell is reserved, not for those souls who seek God yet struggle, but for those who defy God and rebel...So in history's highest expression of fairness, God honors their preference Fortunately, we have hope. We have a way out. We do not have to go to hell. We can accept the gift God has given us and take Christ as our savior and join Him in the home he has made for us in heaven. And what is heaven like? That's for another blog.
Yeah, I often hear some believers say that hell is merely existence apart from God. But they also say people that go there are annhilated and just don't exist anymore. I used to study the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses many years ago, and they believed in annhilationism. I never believed that explanation. Too many scriptures portray hell as a place of everlasting torment, not a place of quiet non-existence apart from God.
I don't really agree with the OP. I still see the eternal aspect as being completely over the top and cruel and unusual punishment. There is no justice being served. If it does exist I hope as stated, I pray that we get a full brain wipe over those that we care about here and now that may end up there. As it stands right now (obviously without the full picture) that would make for an interesting eternity knowing others are existing in that state (eternal death?).
I've heard it suggested that our view of God's holiness is so weak and our view of depravity is so lame that when we are actually with God and in the full presence of His holiness and seeing God as he truly is in his glory and then see the rebellion of those who wouldn't follow Him for what that rebellion really is, that we will have no problem with Hell at that point. That sounds very plausible to me. Even the most humble of us has his vision greatly marred by his pride I suspect.
That may be. I'm not particularly happy with whatever. It's probably one of the biggest struggles for me personally.
My view is always tempered by the cross. I think we collectively fail to comprehend in depth all that took place there. But it is sufficient to compel me to completely trust that eternal punishment is warranted. "He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son." 1Jn 5:10
Right, but if you think about YOU being there...then, suddenly, it's not "ok" that people can go to such a place. I hear ya, though. I often struggle with the idea that people can go there for eternity with no chance of release or escape. Honestly, there have been times in my life that I've been so depressed that I contemplated suicide and the ONLY thing that stopped me from killing myself was the fear of going to hell. I knew that whatever problems I faced in the here and now, no matter how bad, paled in comparison to eternal torment.
I hope so. Speaking strictly for myself, I don't feel it's a matter of pride, I understand hell, it's about justice and punishment. What I don't understand is the duration. On that I see a glimpse of hope in the sense that everlasting and its synonyms can mean age-lasting. With some gymnastics and wishful thinking one might derive that from Matt 5:26 and Luke 12:59. Other than that (and contrary to the OP) I believe the story of the rich man and Lazarus is a parable, too much Greek paganism in the description of that hell, the origin of the story is Egyptian paganism, the bosom of Abraham is another myth, in other words, Jesus (IMO) was scolding the Pharisees for their love of money (v14) them being the rich man according their own false pagan belief system about hell. I can look up the historic Greek and Egyptian references.
They like it for other people, though; they wouldn't like it for themselves, and so they don't really like it.
Could it possibly go on forever also because they never stop sinning? In their continual rebellious mindset would sin cease or would they keep adding to their transgression and so the debt is never ever finished being paid?
I don't think hell has anything to do with paying for sins, but is all about God acknowledging the relationship choice that man makes. But I surely don't want to forumcate this thread into a Calvin/ARminius debate... there's enough of that in the world writ large!!! Let's just that hell? I ain't going, and have made provisions through the grace of God to avoid the trip.
Also, Luke 16 assures me that the rich man suffers, no doubt, but not the type of torment one would associate with burning, per se. There is a proximity to flames, thus torment and thirst. Since the parable suggests that this destiny is final, there is no distinction between hell and the lake of fire. While not holding to anhillationism, I don't consider it the awful heresy ascribed to it.
I'm a bit of a Thomist on this one. I'm inclined to think that if you choose to reject God, then you're 'locked' into that choice for eternity: you are, literally, hell-bent. If you choose to accept God, then you're locked into that choice for eternity: you are forever God's own. There is no deviating from either choice; the hell-bent person is incapable of choosing otherwise, and at that point 'person' probably isn't the right choice of word; the person who is God's own doesn't want to choose otherwise, and is as incapable of doing so, as they are of sinning (and are no less free for not being able to do so). So actually, my view would dovetail with yours, though rather than a continual piling on of sin, it is a continual rejection / hatred of God.