Christians: could you condemn your child to hell?

Question

If it were given to you to judge the children that you created at the end of their lives, the children that you are so concerned for and love so very dearly, can you conceive of anything-and I mean ANYthing-that your precious child could ever do that would cause you to condemn him to an eternity of torture? Everlasting agony and fear beyond belief forevermore?

Think about it, Christians. It takes very little imagination to conjure ideas that you would find punishable. Hell, you might even kill your child if he was threatening to destroy the world. But you can’t seriously conceive of any sin truly deserving of ETERNAL punishment, of endless intense physical torture for your own beloved child. So do you really think you are more forgiving, more compassionate, and more loving than God or do you concede that God couldn’t condemn his beloved children to eternal hell any more than you could? Get rid of hell and focus on the love part because if you have the love you don’t need the fear.

Answer 1

thank you
i agree
religion should be about love
not punishment
and eternal torture for past mistakes

Answer 2

First of all, it is wrong to accuse the God who is all loving to condemn anyone to being tortured. The Hebrew word Sheol and the Greek word Hades which are translated as hell actually mean a pit or a grave. The dead know nothing at all. The soul that is sinning, it itself shall die.

If you make a study of the Bible, you will find that even Jesus went to Hades, the grave, for 3 days and he was sinless.

Would you hold your child's hand in a gas flame on your cooking stove. NO NO NO NO NO!!!! Of course not. God would never do it either.

People get the idea of a burning hell from a Greek story called Dante's Inferno, and some Bible translators believed in such a place and added texts to try to prove their points. We serve a loving God. He loves us so much that if we commit the most heinous acts possible and torture people, kill them, etc., God's highest punishment is a death without a resurrection.

You may read in the Bible about a Lake of Fire. If you notice, it says that governments, death, etc. will be thrown into the Lake of Fire. This proves that it is not a literal place. Fire is a symbolic thing in the Bible a lot, and it means total annihilation, total destruction.

Also, you read in the Bible about Gehenna which was a garbage dump outside of the city walls and the garbage was thrown in there and the bodies of dead criminals, who they didn't believe deserved a burial, and it was kept burning with sulphur.

The Hebrew word Sheol, that is sometimes translated hell, is translated 61 times as pit and other times as grave. So, you see that is all you really get as a complete punishment is a death without a resurrection. Your thoughts cease, and you just rot away back to the ground from which humans were made.

Even after Jesus' death, God still gave the Jews another few years to repent and still remain His people, but they would not, so God sent Peter to preach to the gentiles and the first one to become a Christian after that was Cornelius, a Roman Centurion, and his family. Even now, God will forgive any sin if you are repentant.

To accuse a loving God of torturing His children is blasphemy. God could never ever ever do that. The idea of a burning hell is a mankind invention. You can dig as far as it is possible to dig into the earth, and all you will find is still a portion of the earth that has not cooled off up to now. The churches teach hellfire to scare people into contributing large sums of money so that they won't go to such a place. If only they would study the Bible and find out that Let God Be Found True Though Every Man Be Found A Liar.

Plain and Simple, God Is Love.

Answer 3

God doesn't send people to hell no where in the bible does it say that he does read John 3:16-18 it explains that God doesn't do that we do it to our selfs. I agree that as christians we should focus on Love because we are saved from hell and are promised eternal life. But, you can not eliminate the fact that some people are chooseing hell, we wouldn't be a true christian if we didn't try to warn others that they could go to hell if they don't chose to follow Jesus. Would you not warn someone that the bridge they were choseing to go on had a hugh hole in the middle of it. Hell can not just be forgot about because it exist. It is mentioned more times in the bible then heaven. And God is doing all he can do short of infringeing on free will to stop people from going there but because we a so vain, and self serving, we worship ourselfs and put ourselfs first. and that is what will send a person to hell. The bible says that hell has in larged herself to hold all that are going. WOW! do you really think that as a loving God and as gods people we shouldn't warn others that there road is a dead end that leaves them fling off a hugh cliff, one that once there at the edge (dead) it's to late to turn around.

Answer 4

As a mother of a currently quite rebellious teenager, I can't even condemn mine to the military - but I didn't create him either - God did - I didn't ask him to worship me and adore me - I accept the fact that right now I'm on his crap list, but God doesn't ever accept that we've put him on our crap list - and what kind of parent would I be if I set down the expectations and the consequences and then didn't follow through - God is not the type of parents we are - his ways are so above our imaginations that even as we read the scriptures and hear the interpretation through the Holy Spirit, we are still lost as to who and what God truly is in our lives. If we would spend more time trying to reach people's souls for Jesus, which isn't about love, a much abused word, it's about repentance - a true turning away from the way we live to the way Christ would have us to live - then hell wouldn't be about fear - it would be the accepted outcome of not repenting period and then never mentioned again - because our focus would be on building a relationship with the persons soul and not "their world" and trying to make it fit into any religious mold. We're so far off in America from what God wants that we can't even begin to see the clouds parting or the angels lifting the trumpets to their mouths - spirit and truth - that is Christianity in Jesus Christ and that is what he taught in the New Testament - that is what we are to be reaching out to - souls - not fixing problems and solutions or resolving peoples conflicts, but leading them to the knowledge of their souls and its needs that can only be filled by Christ and once filled by Christ then the issues of their life will begin to take care of themselves as Christ works within them.

Answer 5

Wow ! I thought I was the only one who believes this. I got rid of hell, at least the one men have conjured up. Hell means grave or Gehenna, and only once tarterus in the new testament. In the old testament it is written that Gehenna would burn forever. But if you go to Jerusalem today its a beautiful park like setting with trails for people to walk on. Lots of trees and foliage. Wheres the fire? Most people don't understand that forever in the bible can mean continually during the age. We are now living in the church age ( from Calvary to when Christ comes again). So when we say we will do something forever, we are talking about continually, during our life, in this age. ( for instance, I'll give to a charity once a year forever.) After this age is the millennial age when Christ reigns for a thousand years with all overcomers. Then the ressurection and punnishment, and reward age (the great white throne). Then theres the age when Christ must put all his enimies under His feet (subjection), and He says, "Behold, I make all things new." And after completing this, He turns the authority that was given to Him by the Father, back over to His Father so that God will be all in all. God will be all in all, your children, my children, all children, even the disobediant ones. Saul, (Paul) who claims to be the chief sinner, was turned around in a few seconds of bright light, and the voice of Jesus. That fast, before you can say the word "saved". Is it a coincidence that those who have died on the operating table, and brought back by the paddles, also saw a bright light and a feeling of love and peace. It happened to my sister, and she was a changed person. She said she saw Jesus and I believe her. She went on to die a few days later, but I have never saw anybody who was ready to go as she was. She actually looked forward to it. And no, she was not a Christian. Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. God's grace and mercy abounds. Even over His wrath. Jesus said in John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me......Look up the word "draw" in the Strong's Bible dictionary. It means " to drag", I kid you not. Number #1670.

Answer 6

Your question is legitimate, but your logic is misguided. Firstly, God does not condemn His children to hell. Hell was created for the devil and for the angels that followed the devil in rebellion against God.

Hell is not a literal fire and physical torture either. Fire refers to the judgment of God, and the torture of hell, the hell of hell, is realizing that you could have made better choices in your life, you chose not to, and now you have no one to blame but yourself for your eternal predicament. The other torture of hell is complete and utter separation from God and His love.

God respects us as intelligent people and loves us enough to let us make our own decisions. He could have created a Stepford race, you know, but He didn't. He created us with love and dignity, which is why we can do what we want. If we don't want to commune with Him while we are on earth for just a few short years, usually less than 100, then why would He force us to commune with Him in Heaven for eternity?

I am not afraid of hell, and I hope you aren't either. While we are here, hopefully we can show others how much God loves us and they will be motivated to give their hearts to Him, including their hopes and dreams and pains and burdens. But no matter how a person chooses to conduct his/her life on earth, God is the judge and only He decides where people spend eternity. It's not our call to make, which to me is a comfort, not a fear. I trust Him to do what's right and fair and just with all of us.

God will bless you and help you as you search for answers.

Answer 7

In your own words "beloved child"

I am indeed a parent, and i try to instill in my children consequences. God has given us entirely too many instructions and directions on what it is we, as His children, need to be doing.

It is actually like any other punishment that a parent would give Thor child. Just like here in earth, you have the child that will try and test you. The thing about this test is that when you time comes, there is no second chance. He shows us mercy on a daily basis. You just have to stop pussyfootin' around and do what it is that god has called you to do!!!

Answer 8

One thing you have to know is that we are not all God's children. We ARE all His creation, but not all his children.

When speaking to the hypocritical religious leaders, Jesus said, "Ye are of your father, the devil." John 8:44

Adam was the son of God, until he disobeyed. Then Adam became the son of whom he did obey, which was the Devil. Satan is called "the god of this world." Because all who are not reconciled to God through Jesus Christ are still under the authority of the Devil, and not under the authority of God. Therefore, those who are not in Christ Jesus cannot rightly pray, "Our heavenly Father...." Apart from Christ Jesus, thus apart from being subject to, and reliant upon God's authority, one is not a child of God. So the question is moot. God does not send his children to hell, but rather unbelievers and the wicked.

And please don't listen to the guy above me. He is a "Jehovah's Witness" cult member who reads a bible built on corrupt manuscripts. Hell has a lake of fire, and don't let any JW moron who, as you can see, wants to enlist you as a new member, tell you differently. I'm praying in Jesus' name right now that you don't fall for that false, satanic garbage.

Answer 9

God does not condemn you to hell because of your sins. He condemns you to hell for you not wanting him to be your savior. You have to ask God into your heart for you to be saved and you really have to mean it too. If you don't do that then you go to hell. The whole thing is that if you are not saved then you cannot be forgiven of your sins. If you are saved then if you commit a sin then all you have to do is ask for God's forgiveness and you are forgiven but you are not supposed to commit the same sin again. But that is why God died on the cross for everyone so he could wash away their sins. All you have to do is ask. GOOD LUCK I hope this helps someone.

Answer 10

It isn't that God wants to condemn any of His children, that's why there are things like, "Go and make disciples of all nations," etc. But, God did give us free choice, and we can choose to reject Him as we please, and if we reject Him, we get hell.

Furthermore, if God didn't punish those who went against Him, people would complain that He was weak and complacent.

What's better anyways? A God who says, "Okay, you rebelled against me all your life, scorned me, committed atrocities. You don't even like me. But that's okay, you must have had a rough day." or a God who does punish those who reject Him and His word. Not like it matters anyways, because our opinions don't change a thing either way.

Answer 11

Being a Christian, I do not question my Father's authority. If I am sent to Hell it will be because I chose that path. It's called free will. He has given this to all of us. If you dislike how you end up remember that you have only yourself to blame. You were told well in advance what the outcome would be.