Guy’s 4 objections to hell

The idea of hell is detestable to an unbeliever. He thinks it is very unfair that the Bible teaches the horror of an eternal lake of burning sulphur. Yet hell was specifically designed for the devil and his demons, ‘…the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his 
angels.’ ¹  God doesn’t want people to go there. That is why He let Jesus suffer the punishment for our sin so that we can escape it and go free. In the following 4 points we discuss Guy’s objections:

 

1. Without Jesus as your God, it’s off to the lake of fire for you, no exceptions.² Guy wants to give the impression that God is a tyrant who sends people to hell who had no chance to believe in Him, because they didn’t have Bibles. Romans 2:14-15 teaches that people without Bibles will be judged according to what they knew and acted upon. God is all knowing and will judge fairly. Sceptics are often worried about others, instead of looking at themselves.
2.  The ideas that God/Jesus forgives and that Christianity is a religion of love are very important to Christians. However, the concept of hell seems to contradict these claims. ³  No, the idea of hell supports God’s love. He went to a great deal of trouble to send His Son to die for the sins of the world. God will only judge when there is a safe way out, which is through Jesus. Salvation comes before condemnation.  Since many scorn salvation, they can’t complain about condemnation.
3.  I just don’t think hell is real, nor do I believe that the supernatural claims of Christianity have been proved.⁴  Most countries do not want criminals on the street, but in jail. Why can’t God have a jail, called hell? God’s eternal Kingdom will have no ‘criminals’ like rebels, the disobedient, blasphemers, et cetera. They refused to accept Jesus’ gracious offer to wipe their ‘criminal’ slates clean, as He does for all who ask Him. Those who refuse have only themselves to blame. The atheists’ war against the Bible proves that the supernatural claims of the Bible are true. They are influenced by the devil who knows the claims are real.
4.  Does the punishment fit the crime? ⁵  Why does God call the man who believes there is no God a ‘fool.’  Because he refuses the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, which is free. No wonder such a person is called a fool.  He wants to pay the wages of his sin, namely death (eternal hell) himself, instead of letting Jesus do it.  God went to great trouble to plan this global rescue operation through His Son, and those who reject it, know the consequences beforehand. Yet they wilfully choose to cruise down a river with a lethal waterfall after they were warned. That is deliberately looking for trouble. The punishment does fit the crime.

 

As the Bible is about real life, and since God plans a Kingdom of peace, it makes sense that all the rebels, the disobedient and those who refuse to swear allegiance to the King, will be confined in God’s jail. As they are a ‘security risk’ they will be kept in jail, as in most countries. God’s Kingdom is eternal, so jail is eternal.

 

References

1. Matthew 25:41
2. Kindle location 3747 of 5739
3. Kindle location 3802 of 5739
4. Kindle location 3812 of 5739
5. Kindle location 3823 of 5739

 

 

 

 

Guy Harrison’s theology

In the first chapter of his book, 50 Simple Questions for Every Christian,

Guy Harrison discusses the essence of the Christian belief. He asks, Does Christianity make sense? The following is his summary of what Christians believe: ‘God sent His Son, Jesus into the world so that He could die for us. His sacrifice was a pardon from our sins that allows us to be saved from death and enjoy eternal life in heaven. Without Jesus we would all be doomed because of our inherently sinful nature. In this great act of mercy, God saved us from ourselves. And all we have to do in return to accept this gift is to repent our sins and embrace Jesus as our only lord and saviour.’ ¹

 

His summary is accurate, but is this ‘abridged’ version the complete gospel? Can we only acknowledge the basic principles that Jesus saves from sin, people are inherently sinful, et cetera? Why does he give no attention to the Bible’s main message of the Kingdom? God’s kingdom will consist of Him as the Ruler, the elect as the citizens and the renewed earth as the country. This is where God is heading to. At present He is gathering the citizens.

 

Matthew, Mark and Luke teach about the forgiveness of sins, but the Kingdom of God is mentioned many more times.

• John the Baptist preached: ‘Repent for the Kingdom of God is near.’ ²
• Jesus preached, ‘Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.’ ³ NB! The expression, Kingdom of Heaven is synonymous with Kingdom of God. In the rest of the book of Matthew, we find the word ‘Kingdom’ many times.
• Mark says that Jesus began by preaching the good news, ‘The time has come…. The Kingdom is near. Repent and believe the good news.’ ⁴
• In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus said, ‘I must preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.’ ⁵  Jesus was specifically sent to establish His Kingdom. 
• The apostle Paul, a prisoner in Rome, also preached about the Kingdom, ‘Boldly and without hindrance he preached the Kingdom of God – and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.’ ⁶ 

 

To summarise 

Jesus was sent to establish His Kingdom and open the way for people to become part of it. Salvation is the entrance into the kingdom, but it is not the whole gospel. From Genesis to Revelation the Bible deals with different aspects of the Kingdom. If you limit the many functions of Jesus to salvation from sins, you are in a sense taking away from the glory that is due to Him. Salvation fits into the wider context of the Kingdom.

 

Conclusion

We are of the opinion that the version of the Gospel that Guy presents is not the core of the Bible. The Bible reveals God’s plan for the establishment of His Kingdom on earth. That cannot be done without Jesus, because the Old Testament demonstrates that people cannot obey God. Yet obedience is necessary to make the Kingdom of peace a success. Jesus makes it possible for those who accepted His offer to become obedient. He changes hearts, gives the Holy Spirit, and much more. The Kingdom of God is the main message.  Disregarding it leads to a disjointed, illogical understanding of the Bible.

 

References

1. Kindle Edition, Location 168 of 5739
2. Matthew 3:2
3. Matthew 4:17
4. Mark 1:15
5. Luke 4:43
6. Acts 28:31