Posted on 02/21/2015 7:50:13 AM PST by RnMomof7
We have often heard statements such as “War is hell” or “I went through hell.” These expressions are, of course, not taken literally. Rather, they reflect our tendency to use the word hell as a descriptive term for the most ghastly human experience possible. Yet no human experience in this world is actually comparable to hell. If we try to imagine the worst of all possible suffering in the here and now we have not yet stretched our imaginations to reach the dreadful reality of hell.
Hell is trivialized when it is used as a common curse word. To use the word lightly may be a halfhearted human attempt to take the concept lightly or to treat it in an amusing way. We tend to joke about things most frightening to us in a futile effort to declaw and defang them, reducing their threatening power.
There is no biblical concept more grim or terror-invoking than the idea of hell. It is so unpopular with us that few would give credence to it at all except that it comes to us from the teaching of Christ Himself.
Almost all the biblical teaching about hell comes from the lips of Jesus. It is this doctrine, perhaps more than any other, that strains even the Christian’s loyalty to the teaching of Christ. Modern Christians have pushed the limits of minimizing hell in an effort to sidestep or soften Jesus’ own teaching. The Bible describes hell as a place of outer darkness, a lake of fire, a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, a place of eternal separation from the blessings of God, a prison, a place of torment where the worm doesn’t turn or die. These graphic images of eternal punishment provoke the question, should we take these descriptions literally or are they merely symbols?
I suspect they are symbols, but I find no relief in that. We must not think of them as being merely symbols. It is probable that the sinner in hell would prefer a literal lake of fire as his eternal abode to the reality of hell represented in the lake of fire image. If these images are indeed symbols, then we must conclude that the reality is worse than the symbol suggests. The function of symbols is to point beyond themselves to a higher or more intense state of actuality than the symbol itself can contain. That Jesus used the most awful symbols imaginable to describe hell is no comfort to those who see them simply as symbols.
A breath of relief is usually heard when someone declares, “Hell is a symbol for separation from God.” To be separated from God for eternity is no great threat to the impenitent person. The ungodly want nothing more than to be separated from God. Their problem in hell will not be separation from God, it will be the presence of God that will torment them. In hell, God will be present in the fullness of His divine wrath. He will be there to exercise His just punishment of the damned. They will know Him as an all-consuming fire.
No matter how we analyze the concept of hell it often sounds to us as a place of cruel and unusual punishment. If, however, we can take any comfort in the concept of hell, we can take it in the full assurance that there will be no cruelty there. It is impossible for God to be cruel. Cruelty involves inflicting a punishment that is more severe or harsh than the crime. Cruelty in this sense is unjust. God is incapable of inflicting an unjust punishment. The Judge of all the earth will surely do what is right. No innocent person will ever suffer at His hand.
Perhaps the most frightening aspect of hell is its eternality. People can endure the greatest agony if they know it will ultimately stop. In hell there is no such hope. The Bible clearly teaches that the punishment is eternal. The same word is used for both eternal life and eternal death. Punishment implies pain. Mere annihilation, which some have lobbied for, involves no pain. Jonathan Edwards, in preaching on Revelation 6:15-16 said, “Wicked men will hereafter earnestly wish to be turned to nothing and forever cease to be that they may escape the wrath of God.” (John H. Gerstner, Jonathan Edwards on Heaven and Hell [Orlando: Ligonier Ministries, 1991], 75.)
Hell, then, is an eternity before the righteous, ever-burning wrath of God, a suffering torment from which there is no escape and no relief. Understanding this is crucial to our drive to appreciate the work of Christ and to preach His gospel.
Summary
Biblical passages for reflection: Matthew 8:11-12, Mark 9:42-48, Luke 16:19-31, Jude 1:3-13, Revelation 20:11-15.
Well said!
Amen to all you said, but I may, emphasis on may, differ slightly on one point if I correctly understand your position in re water baptism.
As a long time Baptist descended from a long line of Baptist pastors and horseback evangelists I fully agree that baptism by immersion is the biblicaly correct follow-up to acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Savior. However, and here's where may have to agree to disagree, I don't believe that it's necessary in order to gain salvation. For just one well known example,the thief on the cross wasn't baptized in water because of his horrible situation, but he had the Lord's promise of Heaven that very day.
OK, perhaps he was granted an exception by Jesus himself due only to his horrible situation. But I have trouble believing that because there are quite a few New Testament passages in which the writer states the essential requirements for salvation, Romans 10: vs 9&10 for one and verse 13 for another, and water baptism is not mentioned.
To put it as briefly as I can, I firmly believe that everyone who comes to Jesus Christ for salvation should by all means be baptized by immersion after attaining salvation through faith alone. However, if circumstances make water baptism impossible or extremely difficult to perform, or if the new convert is taught otherwise, he or she is still a born again child of God from the moment he or she came to faith in Jesus Christ and entrusted his/her eternal life to Him.
I think we can probably agree on the essentials of salvation, and I'm not interested in arguing with a brother or sister in Christ. I just wanted to make it clear to other possible readers that salvation comes by faith alone, not by any works of righteousness that we may do after that decision, water baptism included.
BTW, my belief on this subject may have been fostered by the beliefs of my old-time bible believing Methodist paternal grandparents. No two people who I have ever known were any more devout born again Christians than those two saints, and they were sprinkled, not immersed. My devout Baptist grandparents who knew them very well would heartily agree with my rock solid conviction regarding their salvation without immersion.
Come to think of it, I'm sure they all four now agree on every point of doctrine. They have been closely associating with each other in Heaven for well over one half century, and I can hardly wait to be reunited with them along with my parents and the rest of my born again family. I'm now well into my 78th year on this sin-cursed ball of dirt with quite a few health issues, so I probably don't have long to wait. And that prospect frightens me not one whit, just the opposite. And that's only because my beloved Savior waits for me with open arms.
There are lots of mysteries awaiting us with His Kingdom..
Ezekiel points to new moons, Sabbaths and feasts and animal sacrifices that have not been performed with David the Prince in the Kingdom..
It may feel like science fiction but with study and testing and proving all things, I have been able to see what the world sees as ‘truth’ (savior born on December 25, killed on good Friday and raised on easter sunday ) are really ‘christian fiction’..
And His Word can prove it.
The Bride can know everything about Her Bridegroom. Just ask..
We can know His birthday, the day He was circumcised, the day He was dedicated in the temple, the day He was baptized, and of course the true day the Lamb laid His life down and the true day the First Fruits was raised from the grave.
And none of that is Christian..
It would sound too ‘Jewish’ for christendom,. Heck, it is too Jewish for Jews..
His Kingdom will have new moons, Sabbaths and feasts.. maybe for the same reason prophecy says animals will be sacrificed again..
As a memorial for what those days really pointed to when Israel was taught them:
His Son and the Kingdom..
A mystery even to those who claim to be His virgin Bride haven’t fully understood..
Paul even told us they were shadows of ‘things’ to come..
Not what had passed..
Even though that is how He works..
He shows us things that point back and point ahead. We are called to watch and to be sure we’ve got enough oil for our lamps..less we get locked out..
So you are one of the bridesmaids and not part of the bride?
But which i did not say, but said "the latter confessions do not earn you salvation, but testify, justify that you are of faith..." One most have the kind of faith that will confess the Lord Jesus, but it is the faith behind it that obtains it. (Acts 10:43-47; 15:7-9)
Click on my profile page for more guidelines to the Religion Forum.
Thank you for serving our country.
Affirmative sir. Whether or not people in Hell will be able to communicate with each other, is unclear. I know the rich man was able to talk to Abraham, but you are right. They will be so caught up in their own misery, it won't matter. All the misguided, bodyless souls, who were recruited by Satan's minions, will have their part in the lake of fire. I think the reason Hell continues, is because SIN continues in Hell. They are still committing sins in Hell. My own opinion, (just an opinion) is we all know the heart is desperately wicked. My guess is, that for all eternity, they will grow more wicked as the eons roll on, and never reach the end of their potential for wickedness. I am pretty sure, that trillions of years of utter, total agony, will not make them happy campers. They will gnash their teeth against God, which is sin.
Indeed. Strange seems an insufficient word to describe it.
Bookmark.
Indeed. Strange seems an insufficient word to describe it.
Yes, I was trying to be nice, but I was just shaking my head, from some of the stuff I was reading. Some weird ideas out there.
Here’s a start: Stop reciting passages from your story book and show me that you have a working brain. Explain what YOU think.
Allow me to pose a good question to you: Do you believe in God only because scripture tells you to believe in God?
If so, you only believe in scripture.
I’ve attended churches for years and have listened to people who puff with pride in their ability to cite scripture — instead of arguing their theological case. If you can do no better, I understand. You’re in good company.
Got it. I’ll try to keep my response threshold temperate.
Semper Fi
Apparently there's no significant difference in our understanding of the scripture passages in re salvation by grace through faith alone. Have a blessed Lord's day my friend.
One of the messages in True Life In God spoke of Satan and Lucifer as two different beings. This was a surprise to me as I had thought those are two different names for the same being.
Lucifer is a fallen archangel, so who/what is Satan?
What more does one have to believe in order to be saved other than God's inerrant, infallible, indestructible Word? The bible is our ONLY guide to salvation. Any and every other "guide" to salvation is nothing more than another man's opinion.
Virtually every tyrannical dictator or government in history has tried to keep His Word out of the common people's hands, but it was all in vain. Why was that? Because those who would rule us by tyrannical force hate the liberating Word of God that guided and directed the majority of the founders of our once-bible believing, God honoring America. The bible is like no other book ever composed, because it wasn't composed by mortal man, but by Almighty God of the bible who created all that was, is, or ever will be. His holy book is the only true guide to eternal life, nothing else in print, electronic simulation, or spoken word can compare to it's eternal truth and wisdom. Every human being's eternal life depends on the truth and validity of His word, and nothing else in print or any other medium is comparable in the slightest degree.
You're making a good point and one I've tried to see beyond on the many religious threads that eventually turn into the usual PvC battle.
"PvC" can be taken as "Protestant versus Catholic", as is the impression and claim of the participants, or as "Pharisee versus Christian", since by words, appearance and "feel" that is the impression they leave with the observer/spectator.
In those battles, one can observe a difference between mental and memory based religion and the belief and faith that seems more heart-felt than head-based but still combines both head and heart.
I usually find myself wondering what blocks them from moving from the first to the second.
I think I experienced hell...I don't know why.
Was the deepest darkest place. Wailing, crying and screaming...Could not escape. Stuck there, forever.
Continually falling...the deepest black you will ever know.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.