Back in January 2008 I made a blog post about counterfeit repentance entitled, “The Damned in Hell Would be Most Penitent”. Below I am posting the most recent comment and my reply to it. My hope is that you would be encouraged by this post to stay the biblical course, or be challenged and corrected by scripture.
Comment -
For those of you who do not believe in God, and have bought into the religious concept that God is wrathful and has set us up to fail, I would encourage you to read Sylvia Browne’s book, “Temples on the Other Side.” This books (sic) speaks only of a God of love and forgiveness, and explains why God allows up (sic) to have the experiences that we have here on Earth. This book denounces the concept of Hell and hellfire. Once you read this book, your view of the “True God” will totally change. I guarantee it.
Response -
I agree that reading Sylvia Browne’s book Temples on the Other Side will cause you to change your view of God. The change coming your way is this; you will create a god in your own image, one that is conformed to your own desires. Reading this book is a sure fire way of discovering how to become an idolator.
You state: “This books (sic) speaks only of a God of love and forgiveness.” And, “This book denounces the concept of Hell and hellfire.”
For these statements (your comments on what Browne’s book is about) to be true, one has to throw away certain key doctrines found in scripture. Namely: the doctrine of God’s wrath, and the doctrine of hell.
It is true that God is a god of love and forgiveness (Rom 5:8; John 3:16; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 4:9-10) but it is equally true that God is a God of wrath. The picture painted for us in scripture is a God who has the attributes of holy love, and holy wrath. To worship a God that is a God of love and forgiveness only is to worship an idol. You have created a god to suit your desires and to justify your sins. Who wouldn’t want a god that is only love and forgiveness. A god of love and forgiveness only would have to love you while you live for your sin and find pleasure in your sin alone, and gives you no reason to weep over your sins, have sorrow over your sins, confess your sins, or repent of your sins.
First, the statement, “This books (sic) speaks only of a God of love and forgiveness” has to get around these scriptures in order to be true:
The day of God’s wrath will be a day of great astonishment to the wicked and ungodly.
”The Lord will strike you with madness and blindness and confusion of mind.” Deuteronomy 28:28
The day of God’s wrath will be a day of great distress to the wicked.
“I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.” Proverbs 1:26-27
God’s great wrath will tear them in pieces like a lion!
”For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear and go away; I will carry off, and no one shall rescue.” Hosea 5:14.
”Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver!” Psalm 50:22
God’s great wrath will consume them like fire!
”For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” Malachi 4:1
God’s great wrath will swallow up all His enemies!
”Your hand will find out all your enemies; your right hand will find out those who hate you. You will make them as a blazing oven when you appear. The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath, and fire will consume them.” Psalm 21:8-9
God’s great wrath rests upon all mankind.
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked . . . among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” Ephesians 2:1-3
God’s great wrath abides upon the sons of disobedience.
“For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” Ephesians 5:5-6
God’s great wrath abides upon all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” Romans 1:18
Scriptural salvation is salvation from the wrath of God.
“Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” Romans 5:9
God’s wrath is coming because of sin.
“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming.” Colossians 3:5-6
Second, the statement, “This book denounces the concept of Hell and hellfire” has to get around these scriptures in order to be true:
Hell is the final abode of those condemned to eternal punishment.
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:41-46
“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-15
Hell is described as a place of fire and darkness.
“Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire . . . wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.” Jude 7, 13
Hell is described as a place of “weeping and gnashing of teeth”.
“While the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Matthew 8:12 “Throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:42, 50
“Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” Matthew 22:13
“Cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 24:51
“Cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” Matthew 25:30
Hell is described as a place of destruction.
“While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” 1 Thessalonians 5:3
“And to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.” 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9
“But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” 2 Peter 3:7
Hell is described as a place of torment.
“And in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.” Luke 16:23
“And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” Revelation 20:10
Jesus teaches us that if sin is not renounced your reward will be hell.
“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’” Mark 9:42-48
There is overwhelming evidence for the support of God as a god of love and wrath, and there is overwhelming evidence for the support of the doctrine of hell. Terry, you are in error and you are believing a lie. I can tell you are a spiritual person, but just being spiritual is not enough. Your sins can not be atoned for by your spirituality. They must be atoned for by the shedding of blood (Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” Hebrews 9:22). The christian scriptures speak clearly that it is the blood of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, and his blood alone that can atone for sins.
The purpose of the Bible’s teaching about hell and the wrath of God is to make us turn with gratitude to the grace of Christ. For this reason God’s warning to us is merciful. God has, “no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11).
Therefore I, “Implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake (God) made (Jesus) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:20-21).
Filed under: Theology
Have you ever heard the story of the father and daughter who went to the beach, and she would not get in the water because it was so cold? To convince his daughter to get in, he got a pan of water, heated it up, and threw it into the waves. Then he said, “Now try it. It’s warmer now!” And sure enough, the little girl bought the idea, and jumped in.
Similarly, you’ve accepted the idea that God intends to torture billions of people without ever stopping simply because someone with a very authoritative manner pointed to some writings that were tossed in with all the rest of the sayings of Jesus, but like the little girl, you haven’t really stopped to take a real measurement of the alleged difference it makes.
The fact of matter is that you cannot reconcile the core message of Jesus with the idea that God would ever cause anyone to suffer! Jesus message, over and over again, was that God wanted to STOP human suffering, not make it worse!
I’ve actually written an entire book on this topic–”Hell? No! Why You Can Be Certain There’s No Such Place As Hell,” (for anyone interested, you can get a free Ecopy of my book at my website: http://www.ricklannoye.com), but if I may, let me share one of the many points I make in it to show why.
If one is willing to look, there’s substantial evidence contained in the gospels to show that Jesus opposed the idea of Hell. For example, in Luke 9:51-56, is a story about his great disappointment with his disciples when they actually suggested imploring God to rain FIRE on a village just because they had rejected him. His response: “You don’t know what spirit is inspiring this kind of talk!” Presumably, it was NOT the Holy Spirit. He went on, trying to explain how he had come to save, heal and relieve suffering, not be the CAUSE of it.
So it only stands to reason that this same Jesus, who was appalled at the very idea of burning a few people, for a few horrific minutes until they were dead, could never, ever burn BILLIONS of people for an ETERNITY!
True, there are a few statements that made their way into the gospels which place Hell on Jesus lips, but these adulterations came along many decades after his death, most likely due to the Church filling up with Greeks who imported their belief in Hades with them when they converted.
Mr. Lannoye,
Could you help us out by providing some kind of documentation about the adulterations you mention?
I didn’t think so, Mr. Lannoye. I beg you to repent of your sin of distorting the Word of God and give God thanks for His mercy.