Posted on 01/16/2016 1:14:01 PM PST by American Faith Today
One of the great worries and one of the great questions that many who may be on the fence have when it comes to God is, "How can a loving God torture His children who simply don't believe in Him forever and ever in hell?" Well, hopefully today I'll be able to establish for you that He does not. I'm certainly not going to claim it will be a complete rebuttal or cover all possible ground. But I'll do my best and hopefully let truth win out and reign supreme and let scripture dictate for you whether I'm correct today, or whether I'm incorrect. It may not be the most popular or joyous subject, but it is one that is important, I think, to know the truth on, and I believe as well again one that because it truly does trouble so many, again, "How can God do such a thing", well, I believe He can't and He won't. That's the show live today at 4:30 Eastern time, and archived afterward
God does not torture. Sinners torture themselves by denying His authority over their lives. If we separate ourselves from the love of God how can He show us mercy and care?
He can.
He will.
Jesus: Unless you repent, you will likewise perish.
You don’t have to go to Hell! All you have to do is confess with you mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, and believe in you heart that God raised Him for the grave. That is it.
If you don’t want to be with Jesus for Eternity, then he will accept your decision on that. However it is your decision, and you have been warned that it will not be a pleasant Eternity for you in that case.
As for those of us who will be spending Eternity with Jesus, we are told that the “former things will not be remembered”, so we won’t be worrying about those spending Eternity in Hell.
What about the two year old child who died in the Athenian plague circa 429 B.C.? Did the child go to hell?
“He who believes and is baptized shall be saved. He who does not believe shall be damned,” Jesus warns in Mark 16:16. We are not in charge of God’s judgment nor do we have veto power over it.
According to Augustine of Hippo (b. 354), unbaptized babies went straight to hell.
The point being, as always, to scare folks into dependency on the church, and keep those donations rolling in.
When a person accepts the lordship of Christ they are adopted as God’s children.
Christianity does not teach that God is universally the father of man.
The question is phrased presupposing a falacy.
No. Going to hell is a consequence of rejecting God's gift of salvation. God isn't just waiting to throw people in hell, He wants everyone to accept His salvation, but unfortunately not everyone does. The child wouldn't have been old enough to consciously make that decision so it wouldn't be held accountable.
Yeah, but I would say that’s the point.
PERISH
apollumi- destroy fully
Not to be tormented in fire forever and ever. Satan himself as it says in Ezekiel 28 is turned to ashes from within. There’s not a lot left to burn when all you have is ashes.
I do feel I differ from you on “spending eternity in hell”, although I suppose it depends on how you want to define that. Certainly anyone who goes to hell, that’s final.
And you are though certainly most correct in saying no one has to go though. Jesus Christ paid the price so that doesn’t need to be.
They’re all His children in the literal sense. He’s their Father in as much as He is the Creator of their soul. They all meet the stipulation in 2nd Peter 3:9 in which God is not willing that ANY should perish.
However, you are correct that there are those who are tares, there are those who are not spiritual children of or believers in Him.
But as far as that goes, there is always the opportunity, even for them, so long as they’re alive, or for as long as they’re alive at this time, to repent and believe.
It’s a question targeted more from the perspective of the nonbeliever than it is the believer.
Surely you’ve heard it asked. “If God loves His children why would he send them to burn forever in hell?”
One can play theological word games, that while not incorrect necessarily, nevertheless probably don’t really answer the question to their liking.
I’m not claiming I would completely either. But it’s a circular discussion.
Imagine:
“If God loves His children, how could he burn those who don’t believe in hell?”
“They’re not His children.”
“He didn’t create them?”
“Yes, but they’re not saved and they don’t accept Him. That’s why He can burn them in hell. And they’re not spiritually adopted into His family.”
“Um, okay. But why does He burn THOSE people forever in hell?”
The point isn’t to identify who is and who is not spiritually a child of God. In the literal sense, again, or at least in the creative sense, everyone created, even Satan, is, or was, at creation, a child of God. In that sense they are.
But none of that is the point. The point is do we have a God who burns ANYONE forever in hell. For me, that answer scripturally is no.
Of course, I realize that I probably have far more Christians than non christians who listen-particularly since I promote on several Christian groups on Facebook.
Real good answer Smittie.
Hell wasn’t made for man - it was made for rebellious angels. People can choose to go there if they also choose rebellion.
Jesus said that the fire is never quenched.
However, Paul said that those who do not hear the gospel are judged by their consciences. And given the Greek, “hearing” in this case implies understanding of the message and conscious rejection.
So these people, it seems to me, although it is not perfectly clear to me, end up banished to ‘outer darkness’. But is also seems to me that ‘outer darkness’ just means not in the city of God or not close to the glory of God. So while outer darkness sounds terrible - it’s actually pretty nice. Another name for it is paradise.
So one reasonable interpretation of all scripture is that really rebellious people and evil people burn.
Christians get to be close to the glory.
Nice people who lacked understanding of the gospel go to paradise.
But frankly the scripture just isn’t 100% clear.
So play it safe - do not reject Jesus but obey Him in all respects. The potential consequences, whether you agree with them or not, could be disastrous. Eternally.
Actually no.
Scripture does directly address the matter every human being created by God. In that context, it does not describe humans as children. We have been referred to as vessels made by a potter, to dispose of as is pleasing to the potter.
That isn’t a child.
I don’t know. That is up to YHWH. He will save whom He will save and condemn whom He will condemn. I could look up the chapter and verse for you, but its in the Word.
Don’t try to second guess YHWH. His ways are not you ways. That is in the Word as well. If you think He is awful, then don’t believe and take your chances.
These FLESH BODIES are clay pots, without a doubt. That’s what those verses speak to. I wouldn’t say they speak as much to the inner man, or inner person, the soul.
I can also say that those who are not right now saved by Jesus Christ are lost sheep whom God wishes to see gathered back to Him.
But I’m sorry, but AT CREATION, was every being created, including Satan, created as a child of the Heavenly Father?
I believe yes. Now, I will agree that there are children of the wicked one in this world. And we’re not one big happy family spiritually speaking. Obviously, not even close.
The bottom line to me is this. Satan was created perfect. Pride entered into him and the desire to be God rather than serve God became prevalent. He drew one third of God’s own children, yes, I’ll say CHILDREN, call them “stars” or angels if you really like, to his side, as it says in Revelation 12. God literally destroyed an entire earth age and heaven age, as it says in 2nd Peter Chapter 3, “the world that then was perished” as it says in Jeremiah Chapter 4 where it goes into details of the destruction of cities, and as we have hidden in Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 where the word “was void and without form” should have been BECAME void and without form “tohu va bohu”- everything becoming a desolate wasteland. But He did NOT destroy everything and He did NOT at that time, destroy even Satan or those who sided with him.
So this age we’re in is about regathering as many lost sheep who were deceived as we possibly can. There’s no “prodigal son” if they were not a son to begin with.
That is the problem with all the questions that people have about God that are not actually legitimate questions but are more *GOTCHA* type "questions" designed to impugn the nature and character of God by those who are looking for an excuse to reject Him.
They set these up and then whine that they can't believe in a God like that.
I've responded with *Well, if I really believed that God was like that, I wouldn't believe in Him either. If that's your perception of God, I'd reject it too. Fortunately, He's not like that at all. Get to know the real God.*
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