I've been a christian for 10 years and have really started to struggle with this idea. The Bible very clearly states that people who don't believe in Jesus will go to hell and be eternally tortured. If God is love (1John), then why would he do such a thing that seems so cruel? I'm not trying to be confrontation. I really need help understanding this. I need answers.
2007-09-02 12:40:31 · 28 answers · asked by dixiechic 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Its a choice...you can choose your eternal destiny....
God has done everything possible to keep men OUT OF HELL...yet some still choose to reject Christ and choose hell anyway....
why blame God?
2007-09-02 12:44:45 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 8⤋
First, there is no eternal torture. Hell is separation from God. I would not see that as a happy place myself, but if you don't like God, he's not going to force himself on you or pollute Heaven with those who don't like or rebel against God's ways. Thousands of Gods? If you look at the major world religions, you will notice that there's not very many with a significant amount of worshipers. The majority of the people in the world practice one of the Abrahamic religions, Hinduism, and it's offshoot, Buddhism. The rest are either non religious or practice remote religions which are not recognized by very many people. Only 12% of the world population recognizes gods that are neither Brahma or the God of Abraham.
2016-05-19 21:49:21 · answer #2 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I understand how you feel.
How did this all start.
Lucifer thought himself to be better than God, he wanted to exalt his throne above the Most High.
God made the earth and people to love Him with out having to see Him.
He gave all people of the earth the choice to accept the sacrifice of Jesus. The bible says that few will believe and more will not. So it is up to the believer to tell others about Jesus. It is up to the individual to accept the salvation of Christ.
The bible makes it clear that Hell is reserved for Satan and his angels, it was never designed for humans.
Look at it this way, God is a Holy Spirit. He cannot tolerate sin in his presence. We all are guilty of the blood of Christ. Those that belong to Jesus are covered by his blood. When God looks at them, he sees the blood, not the sinner person.
Now if a person stands before God who has not the blood applies to them, pardon the analogy, it is like they are covered in crap.
If a person came into your house covered in crap, would you let them sit on your furniture and eat at your table?
I would doubt it. They would stink. You would send them outside.
That is how it is with God.
Now why God did not make a flowery nice place for sinners and non believers to go, I cant say. But it could have something to do with the rejection of what Jesus did and in many cases the loathing of it.
You know what I mean, say the name Jesus and you get either Yays or Boos, very few are indifferent.
And the bible says that God the Father judges no man. ALL judging is done by the Son. Why? He is the one who walked this earth, He is the one that is rejected.
I dont know if that helps but keep the faith, there is more to it than most realize.
Obey Acts 2:38
2007-09-02 13:01:06 · answer #3 · answered by plowmscat 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm not so sure that people who reject God do get eternal torture. There are 3 "Hells" in the English language Bible. The first is the grave, the second is where demons/fallen angels will be held pending judgement and the third is a future place of punishment by fire (after the judgement).
The Bible specifically says 3 people will suffer eternal torture in that future place of judgement and they are Satan, The Antichrist and his lieutenant the False Prophet. Nowhere does it say that anyone else is tortured for ever. Everyone else either gets eternal life or they die, are instantly cremated in the fire and simply cease to exist.
Seems to me they got what they deserved and they were treated humanely.
The 3 who do suffer, 1 is the prince of darkness - the king of all the demons and the other 2 are more demon than they are human so what happens to the 3 of them is just and proper.
So while the Bible does teach that the wicked will be punished by fire—it is not the mythical hell taught by many churches some of who sincerely believe it while others have their own agenda for frightening people into obedience and submission.
God is a God of mercy and love. Those who wilfully and willingly reject His way of life, characterized by obedience to His law of love (Romans 13:10), will die, not suffer forever. They will be consumed by fire and forgotten. They will not be tortured for all eternity, nor will God grant His priceless gift of eternal life to those who persist in rebellion against Him.
Even the quick and humane final death of the incorrigibly wicked in a lake of fire is an act of justice and mercy on God's part. To allow them to continue to live on in unrepentant, eternal rebellion would cause themselves and others only great sorrow and anguish. God will not grant them eternal life, neither will He torture them for all eternity.
2007-09-02 13:52:55 · answer #4 · answered by jeffd_57 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If people genuinely cared about their soul and the horrors of hell then they would conduct their lives appropriately and do whatever they had to do to not go there. But as Scripture says "because sin will abound, the love of many will wax cold" ( Matthew24:12 ). Meaning, an unbelievable casting off of moral restraint and an intense rebellion against God's ways will characterize the last days. Look around, the last moments are here. Quit blaming / doubting God. He made a way of escape, Jesus Christ. He loves you with immeasurable love. Be wise enough to grab hold of Him and don't let go ever! That way of escape is available for every single person because God is love.
2007-09-02 12:56:20 · answer #5 · answered by HeVn Bd 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You should know that those who do not adhere to the principles of Love and Truth but who live in perpetual addiction, violence and abuse bring misery and pain to themselves and those around them; hell on earth. It is no stretch then to assume that this misery follows such people into judgement after death where there are no secrets but everything will be known about everyone including intentions. It is only by a change of heart that we can receive mercy and healing from such pain which would otherwise follow us in death. Heaven is the promise to those who admit such cruelty and apathy and who receive this mercy from God as promised by Christ and who follow the way of Truth and Love, to face the truth about ourselves and others and to show love and mercy towards ourselves and others. Mercy will be shown to those who show mercy but to those who are cruel and abusive, there will be immense suffering, misery and pain. Forgiveness to those who forgive but damnation to those who are judgmental. So then, Heaven and Hell are an eternal equivalent of our present condition. While we live, there is still a choice.
2007-09-02 15:23:45 · answer #6 · answered by TheNewCreationist 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The doctrine you are describing is called "exclusivism." Many people have a problem with this, esp since not all are given an opportunity to accept or reject Christ. You might try reading "the Fifth Dimension" by John Hick. Also "The Jesus Mysteries." I can also refer you to a paper I wrote on religious pluralism in grad school if you are interested. Unfortunately, too many so-called religions believe they have an inner track to the divine. It simply defies logic, love , benevolence and all the rest of what they teach. Do you really think God is intolerant?
2007-09-02 12:50:48 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Do not think of Heaven and Hell as places but positional, Heaven is close to God and Hell is distant from God. If a person has chosen their entire life to be sepersted from God, God is merely giving that person his/her desire for eternity. Is this not a more loving thing than to force a person who has tried to be seperate from God to be with Him for eternity? The torment is when the individual realizes the consequences of those choices.
2007-09-02 13:22:25 · answer #8 · answered by David F 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Shouldn't you be asking your pastor this question instead of turning to strangers on the Internet? If you don't want to be "embarrassed" by talking to your pastor, don't you have a friend who you can ask who is a mature Christian? Please do one of those things, but I will answer you here.
God cannot live with sin. He cannot put up with it. He is all good and hates sin. If you or I were to come in to contact with him with only our own sinfulness we would be destroyed. However, because of Jesus's death and resurrection, being a holy and pure sacrifice, fulfilling the law set down by God in the Old Testament, then he paid the price for sin, which is death, and if we take on Christ, by believing in him, his blood covers us and cleanses us from all unrighteousness, so we can be in the presence of God.
If God did not provide Hell, which is just a place without God (therefore a place of suffering because there is no influence of God there) then people who were sinful would be totally destroyed in God's presence. He will not destroy a spirit because he has decreed that they will last eternally, so the only option is to put them away from his presence, into the area which we call Hell.
2007-09-02 12:53:09 · answer #9 · answered by William D 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
That is the one main problem with christianity - that god would send someone to enternal torture just for guessing wrong implies that he would be evil. Many Christians have a hard time getting their mind around this and jump to conclusions saying "you have the choice, you condemn yourself". But what if someone didn't know any better and grew up with another religion? It doesn't make sense, does it? That's why I became an atheist.
2007-09-02 12:52:31 · answer #10 · answered by Uliju 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I don't think the Christian god is a loving god. He seems like a jealous god if you ask me. The whole ego trip of you must worship only me (one of the earlier numbered commandments) it's just a little too insecure.
I think your mistake is thinking the Christian god is loving.
Granted, I am not a Christian....so take it as merely an opinion.
2007-09-02 12:58:40 · answer #11 · answered by csucdartgirl 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋