Eternal damnation sounds a quite unmerciful.
2007-04-25 08:49:48 · 16 answers · asked by (notso)Gloriouspipecleaner 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
There is no conflict between the mercy and justice of God.
God is not obliged to give mercy to everyone. If He were, then it would not be mercy.
It is a wonder that He has mercy on anyone. We do not deserve mercy, we deserve justice. Yet some will receive mercy. God calls everyone to righteousness and has revealed himself in the world around us, our minds and hearts, and specially in the bible. That is more than sufficient for a person to make a rational choice. That a person chooses to reject an infinite God's call to righteousness, should result in an infinite punishment.
You choose the behavior, you have chosen the consequences.
2007-04-25 08:57:49 · answer #1 · answered by Ask Mr. Religion 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Totally conflict, yet not in God. That is the great controversy of God and man. How can a righteous and just God be at the same time merciful? How can God reward evil people with eternal life? That would be unrighteous and unfair. The only reasonable answer to this question is if somehow justice is satisfied as well as mercy applied. That is why Jesus Christ had to die on the cross, so that sin could be fully paid. Then God could extend his mercy. It is said of Christ that mercy and truth have kissed in him. God can be perfectly just and righteous in forgiving the most heinous of sins because they have already been paid by Christ in those who receive his sacrifice and pardon.
As far as eternal damnation, our souls are eternal. That is what we are. If a person does not accept the offered regeneration- big word meaning a change of nature from that of a God hating sinner to that of a God loving saint- then that unregenerate person will live forever as a wicked person in rebellion against God. They will go on sinning forever, and on earth we are like acorns where in eternity, our iniquity will grow into giant oaks. So an eternal sinner is eternally punished not only for sins against an infinite God, and infinite people - sins that have eternal consequences - but also punished for their chosen path of iniquity forever. This demands eternal punishment from a righteous and just God.
Temporary punishment for eternal and infinite sin would be unrighteous of God.
2007-04-25 08:53:44 · answer #2 · answered by Frak 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A good question! Mercy and love walk hand in hand. One doesn't exist without the other. And certainly punishment will never be something else than in proportion to the crime. God will never punish someone with eternal suffering for a short time bad act. Believe me, please! This is what the Bible tells us. The eternity of the punishment is eternal death (unconscousness, non-existence) , but not eternal suffering! If you want to know more about this I can give you good Internet links for that.
2007-04-25 09:04:23 · answer #3 · answered by leech 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
God is very merciful...he gave his son to die for us, then he gave us a freewill to choose.while being merciful he is also an angry God. there has to be a punishment for the things people do wrong. its like parents when their child does something wrong they get in trouble that way they know not to do it again, they give their children warnings...well he gives us warnings while were here on earth then when we die he gives us justice weather we lived our lives according to his word or not.
2007-04-25 09:09:12 · answer #4 · answered by Jackie M 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
If he enacted true Justice then we should all die. Was it fair for Jesus to die for our sins? Mercy and Grace are at the foot of the cross. Now that Jesus has died for us by his own choice, it is in his hands to enact Justice. Mercy and Grace are at the foot of the cross.
2007-04-25 08:58:49 · answer #5 · answered by farleefarkle 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Grace: "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee": "merciful"
Law: "I will forsake you", the city, and your fathers: merciless
"Grace": God in "heaven": "higher than the heavens"
"Law": God on "high" in the (plural divided) "heavens"
Gal 5:4 if any justified by the LAW, then fallen from GRACE
Heb 10:31 it's FEARFUL to fall into "hands" of God on high
POINT: His Grace is not Law Law
Faith: Great: Law (left)
Hope: Greater: Law (right)
Charity: Greatest of 3 things: Grace (above left/right)
The GRACE of our Lord Jesus Christ with you all. Amen.
2007-04-25 09:01:34 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The narratives of the 4 Gospels are all a commentary on God's response to this apparent predicament-- and they all present the hope that hell is a very, very empty place.
2007-04-25 08:56:27 · answer #7 · answered by Timaeus 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well thats really the great thing about the Gospel is that he has offered a way out punishment that we DO deserve.
2007-04-25 08:55:28 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
According to Christianity, "All have sinned" and "the penalty for sin is death"(hell). Justice in Christianity is the appropriate hell punishment for all who have sinned, which is...everyone.
Mercy would be Jesus substituting himself for us in that punishment by taking on everyones' sins and paying the just penalty in our place.
One more step for a Christian: free will. People can choose or not choose to allow Jesus to do this for themselves. Those that don't choose Jesus as savior go to hell. Those that do choose go to heaven. Not everyone is introduced to Christianity, and in this case I believe Christians think that those people go to heaven also.
So, mercy is extended to everyone, just some refuse it and choose hell for themselves. Freewill would be violated if God didn't allow those people to go to hell as they chose.
2007-04-25 09:02:05 · answer #9 · answered by cwecksrun 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The fact that some refuse His mercy does mean that He did not offer it.
2007-04-25 08:55:19 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋