Who shall incur the justice of eonian extermination from the face of the Lord, and from the glory of His strength.
Paul to the Thessalonians (2) 1: 9, Concordant New Testament
For centuries, Christians worldwide have associated hell as the place of eternal damnation and punishment. Hell was the place where those who never accepted Jesus or never performed up to the Lords standards ended up headed. The mainstream church has used hell as the ultimate scare tactic in order to get weak kneed believers to fall in line with the church theology. The fear of going to hell is real to a lot of people. Growing up in the mainstream church, I was taught that hell meant Gods disapproval of me. No matter how good I tried to be, the threat of an eternity in hell always hovered over my head like an axe about to fall. I would sometimes have dreams of a lake of fire, which is how the church often describes this place. So, I struggled to perform my best so as to avoid the lake of fire. But what if all we've been told about the existence of hell has been wrong? Think about this, has not God created all things?{Genesis 1: 1-31}. Has not God created the heavens and the earth? Is there anything which the Lord has not spoken into existence? So it is that even the existence of hell has been created by our heavenly Father. But why? Why would a loving Father create such a place of torment and punishment? Well, what if all we've been told about hell is wrong? What was the Lords purpose for the creation of hell? I believe that the apostle Paul refers to this in his letter to the Thessalonians. Paul speaks of those who will be faced with "Eonian extermination from the face of the Lord" {Paul to the Thessalonians (2) 1:9}. That is, being apart from the Lord. What greater punishment could there be than to be apart from God for eternity? I believe that Paul's definition of hell is the most accurate. Of course, no one has ever been to hell and lived to tell about it. All which we have to inform us of its existence are the scriptures. And the scriptures tell us to avoid the consequences of hell at all costs.
For thus God loves the world, so that He gives His only-begotten Son, that everyone who is believing in Him should not be perishing, but may be having life eonian. For God does not dispatch His Son into the world that He should be judging the world, but that the world may be saved through Him.
Johns Account 3: 16-17, Concordant New Testament
Jesus describes hell as a place of "Lamentation and gnashing of teeth" {Matthews Account 8:12}. Indeed, not someplace any believer would want to go. Jesus spends most a lot of time warning others to avoid hell at all costs. Jesus knew the truth about this place. The apostle Peter speaks of Jesus "Being gone to the spirits in jail" {Peter to the Dispersion (1) 3:19}. Some have pointed to this passage as evidence that Jesus spent time in hell speaking to those who were there. I believe that this is not only possible, but totally within the scope of love of the Father. The apostle John refers to this in one of the most iconic passages we know. That Jesus did not come to condemn the world, BUT that the world would be saved through Him {Johns Account 3:16-17}. So, why wouldn't a loving God desire for all to be saved? Does knowing this truth affect your overall view of hell? It did for me. In the film Come Sunday, bishop Carlton Pearson is expelled from his church simply for speaking to the truth that there is not a hell. Of course, this fly's in the face of the centuries old mainstream church narrative. I do not put it past God to ensure the salvation of all of His children. After all, the true nature of God is love above all else{First Epistle of John 4:8}. So, what then do we say about hell? Well, two things which I can be assured of is that there is indeed a hell and that it's nothing at all like the church told me it was.
If you could save your own father from going to hell, wouldn't you?
Bishop Carlton Pearson ~ Come Sunday
~Scott~
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