by Tad Lindley
Sometimes you run into people who are looking for a way to discredit the Bible. They ask this question: How could a loving God send people to Hell? The motivation behind the question is to catch Christians in contradiction. If the Bible says God is love, it must be wrong, because doesn’t it also say that God will send people to Hell?
First off, what is Hell?
Hell is a place of torment. It was never designed for human beings, it was designed for the devil and the other angels that rebelled against the Lord in the distant past. We understand from the teachings of Jesus that it is a place of flames and of intense thirst. When the rich man found himself in Hell, he could see the saved in a place called “Abraham’s bosom”, and he cried out to Abraham, “Have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue, for I am in torment in this flame.” (Luke 16:19-31) Hell is a place where those who are lost go when they die. It is there they stay until the judgment before the great white throne in Revelation 20:11-15. At that point Hell and its occupants are cast into the lake of fire.
Why Hell?
It seems from scripture that Hell was designed as a temporary residence for the devil and the angels that rebelled against God. Jesus describes the lake of fire as, “everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:41) So presumably the same applies to Hell, it was not created for humans, but for demons. It was never the Lord’s intent for man to fall in sin, and yet so many centuries ago, our great grandparents rebelled against God with the encouragement of the fallen angel the devil (see Genesis 3). Because of that, our world is fraught with trouble, and sinners die to go to a devil’s Hell.
Hell is a choice
When people go to jail, it is usually because they made a choice to violate the laws of the great State of Alaska. They decided to commit a crime, and they got caught. Although they blame others, except in rare cases, it was the accused who made the bad choices that landed them in the clink. The State of Alaska is not sending troopers out to randomly throw people into jail. Just like jail, Hell is a choice. In John 3:19, Jesus very clearly tells us that Hell is a choice: And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. Hell is the final outcome for every life lived by a person who rejects Jesus, because they love darkness more than light. Which one are you choosing, light or darkness?
God doesn’t send, we choose
So the fact is this, Hell is a choice we make. God does not want a single human being to end up in Hell. He is pushing off the judgment as long as he can. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. (II Peter 3:9 BSB) He is delaying his return, because he wants more people to choose salvation. Listen readers, Jesus is on our side. He wants all of us to come out of darkness into his marvelous light!
Right Question: How could human beings…
…who know that Jesus offers freedom and forgiveness from sin reject that and choose to go to Hell instead? If you are living a life of secret darkness, or perhaps wide open public darkness, you probably are telling yourself, “Jesus doesn’t want me. I have gone too far, my sins are too gross for God.” That is exactly what Hell wants you to believe, because Hell wants company.
The good news about Hell
Now the good news about Hell is this: no human ever has to go there. In John 3:1-7, Jesus talks about how we can be born again to avoid the penalty of our past. We can be born of water (baptized in Jesus’ name) and of the Spirit (filled with the Holy Ghost). We can become new in Jesus, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (II Corinthians 5:17) If you are on the highway to Hell, it’s time to do a 180 and turn toward Jesus!
Revered Tad Lindley is a minister at the United Pentecostal Church in Bethel, Alaska.
