Concerning the reality of hell and the pleasure and desirability of Heaven · 6:39am Jul 14th, 2016
I know that this is a blog that will probably draw fire, as it touches on controversial subjects (or at least one). Some will no doubt scoff at the things which I'm about to say. Never the less, I begin.
Now, before everyone goes on about how this is a fear post, I must point out that being afraid of God is not the intent of this blog, but rather to try to change a few minds. People shouldn't be afraid of God, though they should not be irreverent, either. Since God is love, His anger is filtered through that love. All people who believe - truly believe - are not under that anger, but His love.
No. The intent of the this blog is to bring to light the fact that hell is, sadly, a real place. I don't like that thought. I don't think most people do. A lot of people would deny that such a place exists, or else try to minimize it with ideas such as annihilation (people who go to hell only suffer through it for a while, then fade from existence) or universalism (all roads lead to Heaven). The Bible makes it clear that hell is a real place, not a mild cuss word to be bandied about; the verse, "the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night" (Revelations 14:11). People who spend their lives rejecting God and His salvation will ultimately end up there. Phrases such as, "their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:48) leave little room for doubt.
To clear up a common misinterpretation, God doesn't send people to hell. People choose, by rejecting Christ, to go there. They aren't sent; they volunteer through their rebellion. Hell is not a place where Christians who struggle yet remain faithful end up. The people who go there, in effect, decide it through their lives dishonoring God. Admittedly, there's no paper or voting button where someone agrees to this, but it's the effect of the choice the person in question makes. If they don't turn to God through Christ before they die, God ultimately honors their decision. He does not force or enslave people to His will. We have the choice; accept Jesus as savior, or reject Him and suffer for eternity. As C.S. Lewis, writer of the Chronicles of Narnia put it (and yes, I know I'm really stressing things), "There are ultimately two kinds of people; those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God, in the end, says, 'thy will be done.' All that are in hell, choose it."
I ask the reader(s) to take a moment to think about the things they enjoy in life, from the laughter of children at innocent play to good songs and dinner with members of families. Anyone going to hell loses everything enjoyable, down to the very last thing taken for granted. The worm referred to by Jesus (and the prophet Isaiah, in Isaiah 66:24) made it clear that the worm, in a sense belong to the person it inhabits and eats away at (i.e., "their worm", making the host possessive of the torment, though not able to rid themselves of it). Whether or not real, hellish worms gnaw on people, or whether the worm in question is a conscience that constantly reminds the subject of what they did and how evil they were, or whether it refers to a lust of things desired that they can never again possess (such as alcohol, drugs, sex, and violence, among other things) or a combination of any or none of these is a matter that can be debated by theologians and others, but the base message is that hell is not desirable at all, to the point where Jesus said that it is better to cut off parts of your body that cause you to sin than to end up there (Matthew 5:29-30).
Naturally, people will be inclined to blame God for the whole mess of hell. What people often don't understand (or, in some cases, stubbornly refuse to) is that God has set up plenty of warning signs, as well as more pointing the way to His Son, that we might be saved; His Word, the Bible, the conscience telling us to do something right and good, the advice of good people, and many, many more. People who reject God pass by or through the warning signs (and even Thomas the tank engine had better results from falling down a mine, due to ignoring a clear warning sign) than people will have ignoring the Almighty. God provides plenty of stop signs. The fact that people keep going in spite of the warnings means that they have no one else to blame but themselves for the inextricable predicament they find themselves in in hell. To quote Max Lucado on this one;
Accuse God of unfairness? he has wrapped caution tape on hell's porch and posted a million and one red flags outside the entrance. To descend its stairs, you'd have to cover your ears, blindfold your eyes, and, most of all, ignore the epic sacrifice of history; Christ, in God's hell on humanity's cross, crying out to the blackened sky, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46). You'll more easily capture the Pacific in a jar than describe that sacrifice in words.
And another quote from the same;
Thanks to Christ, this earth is the closest you come to hell.
But apart from Christ, this world is the closest you'll come to Heaven.
And finally;
Facing fear with fear or faith, dread or joy. "Whoever believes in Him shall not perish..." God makes the offer We make the choice.
On the other hand, God is faithful to those who truly worship Him and accept Christ into their lives. When we accept Him, we are saved. His anger and punishment are removed from us. The Lord does not wish that wicked people perish, but that the repent (reform their lives) that they might experience salvation and love (Ezekiel 33:11). He also promises that, "whoever hears my words and believes Him who sent me has eternal life. He does not pass into judgment, but has passed from death into life" (John 5:24) and "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28).
Heaven is not the boring place that Far Side cartoons and movies like All Dogs go to Heaven 2 make it out to be. Jesus referred to responsibilities that people would have in heaven (Luke 19:11-27, Parable of the Minas), as well as the rewards the faithful would receive for their love and faith and trust in Him (as in, their motivations are selfless and they are moved by love of God, not attempting to use God's name to promote themselves on this earth or anything like that) (Matthew 6:19-21, 13:44-46). The eleventh chapter of Max Lucado's book 3:16, The Numbers of Hope, provides some interesting speculation (as he often does :D), such as overseeing solar systems, designing cities, or being a cook on Saturn (Pg. 110) (note; I'm not sure whether this is figurative or not). Regardless of whether or not Mr. Lucado is correct on these speculations, Heaven is not boring. God will renew His creation and breath new life into it, erasing the stain of sin and ushering in new life, and a new kingdom, the capital of which dwarfs anything out there today; supposedly the New Jerusalem will be 1,400 miles in length, width, and height. That's 600,000 story buildings, and enough land to fit forty Englands.
What's more, the things that often make us say, "yeah, I'd love to do this, but..." on this earth will be gone; "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there will be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things will have passed away" (Revelations 21:4). No exhaustion. No aches. No conditions. No bum legs or arms, and no negatives of any kind (a bunch of people will probably point out that I've just said no five [six, counting the one just before the number 5] times, but that's beside the point) will remain. To be not only perfectly functional but running without becoming weary (Isaiah 40:31) and perhaps performing other activities without any sort of hold back sounds really good to me. God also promises to be with us forever; "When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you may always be with me where I am." (John 14:3)
The question is, which will way will you decide? The choice is yours. It's not too late. I implore the reader(s) to make the right decision, but I acknowledge that I cannot force anyone. Nor will I try to force anyone. I ask that readers be respectful to one another in the comments below, and you all have a nice day 
Resources;
My copy of the NKJV Bible
3:16, The Numbers of Hope, by Max Lucado
http://www.gotquestions.org/
http://biblehub.com/
Question: what about other religions? Will people who belong to a different religion go to hell? For example: will a person who is a muslim go to hell or heaven? They believe in a different god. But are they wrong in their belief?
This is not an easy question but what people who have a different religion?
Can you answer this?
And if god doesn't choose atleast some who deserve hell, then what about those who are Christian but are criminals who do dark deeds like rape, slavery, murder and drug trafficking? Will they still get to heaven despite their deeds as long as they believe and accept God and His son who came down to save us?
And no offence but do people like that be welcomed to heaven or will they get booted straight to hell?
Just some questions and things that need some clarification.
And i do believe and accept god and christ but my personal belief is different as i believe that we will be reborn in a different world or the same world we are in. I believe that one day i will live in Equestria and see it with my own eyes. But for now i will do what i can to better this world before i go to Equestria.
4090628
Yep
They will go to Hell; they are wrong in their belief
Not many Christians are hardcore criminals, because Christians seek to avoid sin. Those that do commit crimes should be repentant and genuinely distraught over it. Those that sin and ask forgiveness (and who believe in Jesus Christ) will go to Heaven.
You claim to follow Christ and the Bible, and yet you contradict the Bible. Why is this?
"And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,"
Hebrews 9:27
"And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it."
Ecclesiastes 12:7
"We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and he devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast."
2 Samuel 14:14
4091003 no, i don't claim to follow the bible but accept it and what it teaches but i still have my personal belief which is different. I have a code that i follow. Easy to understand it but not so easy explain without first understanding myself and my mind.
You say that not many are hardcore criminals but out of the few who are, how many do repent and are genuinely distraught? Hard to answer i think.
4091003 I apologize that you've had to take fire here, and thanks for coming, man.
4091147 I do not wish for other people to perish in the sense of going to hell, and neither does God. But there are big differences between Christianity and the other religions of the world. Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism, along with most religions, teach that you can save you. Christianity claims that only Jesus can save you. Our sins are grievous; even one is enough to send us to hell, and the actions that we take to save ourselves are considered "filthy rags" apart from the saving grace of the gospel. I do not want other people to perish, nor to cling to hostilities. Jesus said, in John 3:16, that ANYONE who believes in Him will see eternal life "For God so loved the WORLD". He extends that hand to you. But as I said, you have the liberty of making your own choice.
4091535 oh no no no.... i didn't mean to shoot flak at anyone, sorry if it came out like that. I'm very sorry if it sounded like that.
And you clarified the point i was looking for. The difference between religions. While some sins are very grievous, some sins are hard to avoid. For example, if you need to steal some food from a store just to survive. That is an act done out of necessity, not sin outright but a minor sin done because of hunger. The invidual would be ashamed because of it but without it one would go hungry and possibly sick.
But luckily nowadays that is fixed with community centers where there is food for those unfortunate who are homeless and without a source of money. If i could, i would go and give a bit of money or food to the people who need it. But sadly i cannot do so because i need to get my own life in gear. Finish school and get a job and a house.
The basics.
And also, i would rather use friendship than violence but i will use violence if i need to protect those cannot protect themselves. If i can, i will always resort to peaceful ways but sadly sometimes it is not possible.
And lastly, i thank you for respecting what i believe in. I also respect and accept your own with an open heart and mind.
With great respect,
Wild Balance.
4091617 Okay, thanks buddy. I'm glad you're being respectful, and I appreciate that.