I mean, I can see if god made you do a million pushups or something like that in order to pass into heaven. But the concpet of hell makes no sense whatsoever.
2007-01-18 05:53:04 · 19 answers · asked by mullah robertson 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
OK, maybe for me it would be more like a billion.
2007-01-18 05:55:03 · update #1
Well, wouldn't it be just great if we could all sin as much as we wanted and never have to account for it. How ridiculous. There are consequences to poor choices in life so why would it or why should it not carry over into death?
It is extremely simple to be admitted to heaven. All you have to do is acknowledge Jesus Christ as Messiah, Lord and Savior. God wants your heart and your love. When you surrender to Him, your life completely changes and you are on a journey like you would never imagine. It all ends up in heaven with rewards you cannot even fathom. There's nothing complicated about it.
2007-01-18 07:28:01 · answer #1 · answered by Punky 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's why a lot of denominations HAVE done away with the concept, or at least have stopped talking about it. Preachings of hellfire move only the very lowest types of idiots and degenerates. They're for people who are incapable of true morality, and require threats to keep them in place; "slaves, whom stripes may move, not kindness."
That said, it IS true that the bible dwells on the concept of hell at length, in morbidly specific detail; so if you believe that the bible is to be taken literally, wholesale, as a received, inspired text, you are basically required to believe in hell in the good old fashioned sense. Nothing is much more irritating than when people insist that Christianity is a religion of love and forgiveness, and Jesus himself was a big communist hippie ball of sunshine, and it's all just been "misinterpreted" by all the preachers of hellfire through the centuries. Jesus frequently threatens hell as the punishment for those who refuse to believe in him, in typical revenge-fantasy terms - particularly throughout Matthew.
2007-01-18 06:00:19 · answer #2 · answered by jonjon418 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In Christianity, specifically the bible, it's important to keep in mind that some of what is written is a metaphore.
Take the book of revelations for example, it talks about different color horsemen and beasts that will destroy the world, it doesn't mean that some mythical beast will rise from the depths of the earth to swallow us up.
Hell (in my opinion) has two purposes:
1. Christianity created it as a means to put fear into people as a way to motivate them to do good. (A scare tactic)
2. Every person will define hell differently, it's a personal concept. Think of the expression "My life is hell".
Personally I don't believe hell exists, we create our own so-called hell based on our experiences in life. There's a bit more to that but I don't want to make this too contraversial.
Others might feel differently..
2007-01-18 06:06:07 · answer #3 · answered by JD 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
God says you can choose what ever you want, now if yo do something with what God has given to you then is great but not necesary to enter in heaven. and as far i know you dont go to hell either.
When do you go to hell? I don't really know when.
I'm christian and I have no answer for this, I'm christian not because I m afraid of the hell. I even think of the hell when i converted, I haven't think much about hell lately :)
2007-01-18 06:00:45 · answer #4 · answered by JUST ME 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont really belive in hell, i am getting back into the spiritual thing (i am sticking with my Atheism though) i am learning about Buddhism :) and in Buddhism they believe in Reincarnation, unfortunatly there is a hell in Buddhism aswell :( but i just refuse to believe that anyone could go to such a place, if this devine spirit guy truely loves us :)
i dont really believe in such a spirit (maybe more like an energy/life force but not what others believe to be a God)
2007-01-18 06:10:43 · answer #5 · answered by Bobby The Wolf 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Let me ask you a question.
I do not know if you have children or not- but if you do or if you did have children ( so imagine you do if you do not)
You would love them unconditionally right? That is how God loves "HIS own" those who believe in Him....
Now say you made a place for kids to play- like a fun place with big toys and obstacle courses- and say some of those children would abuse it and run crazy saying horrible things and spitting on other kids and damaging the place...would you just say "Oh that is ok" --NO! I know this analogy is not the best one- but there is punishment for sin. God is all good, and He is merciful now, Do you understand WHAT he did so that you would be saved from hell? He is giving us a free gift! Salvation through Jesus Christ- when you believe and repent of sin and follow Him. One who is not redeemed by the blood of the Lamb (Christ Jesus) will not inherit the kingdom of God- just like someone here on earth who commits a crime and is sent to prison will not be set free just because the judge should forgive him- Does that make sense, prison on earth for people who commit crimes? Yes! Do you want those people to just be set free everytime and of course they will go on sinning and committing crimes- why should God let us into heaven when we have all sinned against him! (Romans 3:23) Just like our justice system God too has His own justice system and it is PERFECT! It is ONLY through Jesus Christ we are forgiven...Praise be to Him!
Matthew 12:31
And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
-(and that is rejecting Jesus Christ, that will not be forgiven)
Matthew 26:28
This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
2007-01-18 06:14:30 · answer #6 · answered by Mandolyn Monkey Munch 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well, when you see hell the way God sees it, it actaully is a pretty loving act. If you aren't happy to follow his laws on this earth, why would you be happy following them in Heaven? He gave you free choice: life in his universe or death. Hell does not burn forever and ever, that is a concept the Bible doesn't support, but the Bible does say that the ones who don't want to follow God's laws will be burned up or destroyed.
2007-01-18 06:00:40 · answer #7 · answered by Freedom 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Yes the concept of jails and prisons on earth make no sense to me as well, why would God do that too?
2007-01-18 06:01:40 · answer #8 · answered by Sirius 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In the origin of things, hell was never designed as a place for man to go. It was designed for Satan and the fallen angels.... but then man fell too...and because of his choice in the garden, it was necessary to have a place of eternal punishment. So many who do not read or understand the Bible think that Hell is just an awful place, created by God to punish mankind...and that He, God, sends us there. But in truth, because Jesus made a way of escape for man, through forgiveness, man never has to go there. That is what blows me away... for even though there is a way to keep from going to hell, man still chooses to do so. Ending up in hell is MAN's choice.....not Gods. By rejecting His forgiveness, by choosing to continue in sin... man sends himself to this place. So don't blame God if you end up there... It's your own fault....for not asking and accepting forgiveness...and then choosing to live for God.
2007-01-18 06:03:56 · answer #9 · answered by rejoiceinthelord 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Those who wrote the Bible, then those who taught it, made up the concept of hell to keep less intelligent followers "in-line"...
Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
2007-01-18 06:05:58 · answer #10 · answered by Not so looney afterall 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋