Erroneous Views of the Afterlife - Christian - http://www.woodrecords.com/secondlookat/Afterlife

Questions and Responses:

Since Christians have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, they will not be judged in the Afterlife
A Christian doesn’t really have to do much to get great rewards in heaven, just except Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior
If there are degrees of rewards in heaven, how can everyone be happy for all eternity?
What is the "intermediate state" like for the unsaved?
Will Unbelievers be resurrected as well as Believers?
No such thing as Hell
God doesn’t send anyone to hell
Everyone in Hell will suffer that same degree of punishment
Why doesn’t God try to reform sinners?
Is Damnation for Temporal Sins Overkill?
Hell Has No Redeeming Value
Why Did God Create People Bound for Hell?
But People Can’t Help Being Sinners.
Reasonableness of Hell
How can we be happy in heaven knowing that there are people suffering in hell?
What happens to animals when they die?
Do people who committed suicide go directly to hell.
Are you advocating suicide?
How old will we be in heaven?
Is hell utterly dark (Matt. 8:12) when there is light there (“fire”; Rev. 20:14)?
Reasons Hell Is Rejected
The Nature and Location of Hell
The Duration of Hell
Where is Heaven located?
Why can’t God just forgive everybody and let everyone into heaven?
Hell is a separation from God for all-eternity?
Where do we get our authority for saying Paradise was beneath, in explaining Ephesians 4:8-10? Please explain fully with Scripture reference.
Does the word "hell" mean grave?

Since Christians have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, they will not be judged in the Afterlife.

All believers will one day stand before the judgment seat of Christ (Romans 14:10,11). At that time each believer’s life will be examined in regard to the things done while in the body. Personal motives and intents of the heart will also be weighed.

The idea of a “Judgment seat” relates to the athletic games of Paul’s day. After the races and games concluded, the emperor himself often took his seat on the elevated throne and one by one, the winning athletes came up to the throne to receive a reward. This reward was usually a wreath of leaves, a “victor’s crown.” In the case of Christians each of us will stand before Christ the Judge and receive (or lose) rewards.

This judgment has nothing to do with whether or nor the Christian will remain saved. Those who have placed faith in Christ are saved, and nothing threatens that. Believers are eternally secure in their salvation (Ephesians 4:30) This judgment rather has to do with the reception or loss of rewards.

A Christian doesn’t really have to do much to get great rewards in heaven, just except Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

The Christian’s judgment will focus on his personal stewardship of the gifts, talents, opportunities, and responsibilities given to him in this life. The very character of each Christian’s life and service will be utterly laid bare under the unerring and omniscient vision of Christ, whose eyes are “like a flame of fire” Revelation 1:14 NASB).

Each of our actions will be judged before the Lord. The psalmist said to the Lord, “surely you will reward each person according to what he has done” (Psalm 62:12; cf. Matthew 16:27). In Ephesians 6:7,8 we read that the Lord “will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”

Also scrutinized will be our thoughts. In Jeremiah 17:10 God said, “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” The Lord “will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts” (1 Corinthians 4:5). The Lord is the one “who searches hearts and minds” (Revelation 2:23).

Finally, the scope of the believer’s judgment will include all the words he has spoken. Christ once said that “men will have to give account on the day of judgment of every careless word they have spoken” (Matthew 12:35-37). If even our careless words are carefully recorded, how much more will our calculated boastful claims, our cutting criticisms of others, our off-color jokes, and our unkind comments be taken into account.

Questions and Responses

If there are degrees of rewards in heaven, how can everyone be happy for all eternity?

It seems to be the testimony of Scripture that some believers at the judgment seat of Christ may have a sense of deprivation and suffer some degree of forfeiture and shame. Second John 8 warns us, “Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully” (emphasis added). In 1 John 2:28 John wrote about the possibility of a believer actually being ashamed at Christ’s coming.

We must keep all this in perspective, however. Christ’s coming for us at the rapture and the prospect of living forever with Him is something that should give each of us joy. And our joy will last forever. How then, can we reconcile this everlasting joy with the possible loss of reward and perhaps even some level of shame at the Judgment Seat of Christ?

I think Herman Hoyt’s explanation is the best I’ve seen: “The Judgment Seat of Christ might be compared to a commencement ceremony. At graduation there is some measure of disappointment and remorse that one did not do better and work harder. However, at such an event the overwhelming emotion is joy, not remorse. The graduates do not leave the auditorium weeping because they did not earn better grades. After, they are thankful that they have been graduated, and they are grateful for what they did achieve. To overdo the sorrow aspect of the Judgment Seat of Christ is to make heaven hell. To underdo the sorrow aspect is to make faithfulness inconsequential.”

We should also note that the very thing (along this aspect) that would make us sorrowful in heaven, is such sins as pride, envy, and jealousy . Those are things our new self will not possess.

What is the "intermediate state" like for the unsaved?

The state of the ungodly dead in this intermediate state is described in 2 Peter 2:9: ”The know the how to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.” The word “hold” into this verse is a present tense, indicating that the wicked (nonbelievers) are held captive continuously. Peter is portraying them as condemned prisoners being closely guarded in a jail while awaiting future sentencing and final judgment.

While God holds them there, He is said to be “continuing their punishment.” The word “continuing” in this verse is also a present tense, indicating the perpetual, ongoing nature of the punishment. But this punishment in the intermediate state is only temporary. The wicked dead will eventually be resurrected and then judged at the Great White Throne judgment, after which time their eternal punishment will begin in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).

Will Unbelievers be resurrected as well as Believers?

Those who participate in the Great White Throne judgment (the unsaved) are resurrected unto judgment. Jesus Himself affirmed that “a time is coming when all who are in their grave will hear his voice and come out – those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned” (Jon 5:28, 29).

Scriptures indicate that there are two types of resurrection – respectively referred to as the “first resurrection” and the “second resurrection” (Revelation 20:5, 6, 11-15). The first resurrection is the resurrection of Christians, while the second resurrection is the resurrection of the wicked.

The “second” resurrection will be an awful spectacle. All the unsaved of all time will be resurrected at the end of Christ’s millennial kingdom, judged at the Great White Throne judgment, and then cast alive into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15). They will be given bodies that will last forever, but bodies that sre sinful and subject to pain and suffering. Like the devil and his angels, they will exist forever in the lake of fire.

No such thing as Hell

The Scriptures assure us that hell is a real place. Human beings who reject Christ will join Satan and his fallen angles in this infernal place of suffering.

One of the more important New Testament words of hell (in Greek) is “Gehenna” (Matthew 10:28). This word has an interesting history. For several generations in ancient Israel, atrocities were committed in the Valley of Ben Hinnon – atrocities that included human sacrifices, even the sacrifice of children (2 Kings 23:10; 2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6; Jeremiah 32:35). These unfortunate victims were sacrificed to the false Moabite god Molech. Jeremiah appropriately called this valley “the Valley of Slaughter” (Jeremiah 7:31-34).

Eventually the valley came to be used as a public rubbish dump into which all the filth in Jerusalem was poured. Not only garbage but also the bodies of dead animals and the corpses of criminals were thrown on the heap where they – like everything else in the dump – would perpetually burn. The valley was a place where the fires never stopped burning. Ad there was always a good meal for a hungry worm.

This place was originally called (in the Hebrew) Ge[gen]hinnom (the valley of the sons of Hinnom). It was eventually shortened to the name of Ge-Hinnom. The Greek translation of this Hebrew phrase is Gehenna. It became an appropriate and graphic term for the reality of hell. Jesus Himself used the word 11 times as a metaphorical way of describing the eternal place of suffering of unredeemed humanity.

The Scriptures use a variety of words to describe the horrors of hell – including fire, fiery furnace, unquenchable fire, the lake of burning sulfur, the lake of fire, everlasting contempt, perdition, the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, eternal punishment, darkness, the wrath to come, exclusion, torments, damnation, retribution, woe, and the second death. Hell is a horrible destiny.

God doesn’t send anyone to hell.

This one is partly true God doesn’t want to send anyone to hell. That’s why He sent Jesus – to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross (john 3:16, 17). Unfortunately, not all people are willing to admit that they sin and ask for forgiveness. They don’t accept the payment of Jesus’ death for them. So God lets them experience the results of their choice (see Luke 16:19-31).

C.S. Lewis once said that in the end there are two groups of people. One the group of people says to God, “Thy will be done.” These are those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ and will live forever with God in heaven. The second group of people are those to whom God says, sadly, “Thy will be done!” These are those who have rejected Jesus Christ and will spend eternity apart from Him.

Everyone in Hell will suffer that same degree of punishment.

No. The degree of punishment will be commensurate with one’s sin against the light which one has received.

One good passage that indicates degrees of punishment is Luke 12:47, 48: “That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (emphasis added). Other verses on this issue include Matthew 10:15; 16:27; Revelation 20:12, 13; 22:12.

Why doesn’t God try to reform sinners?

God does try to reform people; the time of reformation is called life. Peter declared that "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9; cf. 1 Tim. 2:4). However, after the time of reformation comes the time of reckoning (Heb. 9:27). Hell is only for the unreformable and unrepentant, the reprobate (cf. 2 Peter 2:16). It is not for anyone who is reformable. If they were reformable, they would still be alive. For God in his wisdom and goodness would not allow anyone to go to hell whom he knew would go to heaven if he gave them more opportunity. As C. S. Lewis observed, the soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will never miss it. Those who seek find. To those who knock it is opened (Lewis, Great Divorce, 69).

God cannot force free creatures to be reformed. Forced reformation is worse than punishment; it is cruel and inhumane. At least punishment respects the freedom and dignity of the person. As Lewis insightfully notes, "To be ‘cured’ against one’s will... is to be put on a level with those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals" (Lewis, God in the Dock, 226). Humans are not objects to be manipulated; they are subjects to be respected because they are made in God’s image. Human beings should be punished when they do evil because they were free and knew better. They are persons to be punished, not patients to be cured.

Is Damnation for Temporal Sins Overkill?

On closer examination it turns out to be not only just but necessary. For one thing, only eternal punishment will suffice for sins against the eternal God. The sins may have been committed in time, but they were against the Eternal One. Furthermore, no sin can be tolerated as long as God exists, and he is eternal. Hence, punishment for sin must also be eternal.

What is more, the only alternative to eternal punishment is worse, namely, to rob human beings of freedom and dignity by forcing them into heaven against their free choice. That would be "hell" since they do not fit in a place where everyone is loving and praising the Person they want most to avoid. Or, God’s other choice is to annihilate his own image within his creatures. But this would be an attack of God on himself.
Further, without eternal separation, there could be no heaven. Evil is contagious (1 Cor. 5:6) and must be quarantined. Like a deadly plague, if it is not contained it will continue to contaminate and corrupt. If God did not eventually separate the tares from the wheat, the tares would choke out the wheat. The only way to preserve an eternal place of good is to eternally separate all evil from it. The only way to have an eternal heaven is to have an eternal hell.

Finally, if Christ’s temporal punishment is sufficient for our sins eternally, then there is no reason why eternal suffering cannot be appropriate for our temporal sins. It is not the duration of the action but the object that is important. Christ satisfied the eternal God by his temporal suffering, and unbelievers have offended the eternal God by their temporal sins. Hence, Christ’s temporal suffering for sins satisfies God eternally (1 John 2:1), and our temporal sins offend God eternally.

Hell Has No Redeeming Value

To the objection that there is no redemptive value in the damning of souls to hell, it can be pointed out that hell satisfies God’s justice and glorifies it by showing how great and fearful a standard it is. "The vindictive justice of God will appear strict, exact, awful, and terrible, and therefore glorious" (Edwards, 2.87). The more horrible and fearful the judgment, the brighter the sheen on the sword of God’s justice. Awful punishment fits the nature of an awe-inspiring God. By a majestic display of wrath, God gets back the majesty he has been refused. Those who give God no glory by choice during this life will be forced to give him glory in the afterlife.

All people, thus, are either actively or passively useful to God. In heaven believers will actively praise his mercy. In hell unbelievers will be passively useful in bringing majesty to his justice. Just as a barren tree is useful only for firewood, so the disobedient are only fuel for an eternal fire (ibid., 2.126). Since unbelievers prefer to keep at a distance from God in time, why should we not expect this to be their chosen state in eternity?

Why Did God Create People Bound for Hell?

Some critics of hell argue that if God knew that his creatures would reject him and eventuate in such a horrible place as hell, then why did he create them in the first place? Wouldn’t it have been better to have never existed than to exist and go to hell?

It is important to note that nonexistence cannot be said to be a better condition than any kind of existence, since nonexistence is nothing. And to affirm that nothing can be better than something is a gigantic category mistake. In order to compare two things, they must have something in common. But there is nothing in common between being and nonbeing. They are diametrically opposed.

Some one may feel like being put out of a life of misery, but such a one cannot even consistently think of nonbeing as a better state of being. True, Jesus said it would have been better if Judas had never been born (Mark 14:21). But this is simply a strong expression indicating the severity of his sin, not a statement about the superiority of non-being over being. In a parallel condemnation on the Pharisees, Jesus said Sodom and Gomorrah would have repented had they seen his miracles (Matt. 11:20-24). This does not mean that they actually would have repented (or God would surely have shown them these miracles—2 Peter 3:9). It is simply a powerful figure of speech indicating that their sin was so great that "it would be more tolerable" (vs. 24) in the day of judgment for Sodom than for them.

Further, simply because some will lose in the game of life does not mean it should not be played. Before the Super Bowl ever begins both teams know that one of them will lose. Yet they all will to play. Before every driver in America takes to the road each day we know that people will be killed. Yet we will to drive. Parents know that having children could end in great tragedy for their offspring as well as for themselves. Yet the foreknowledge of evil does not negate our will to permit the possibility of good. Why? Because we deem it better to have played with the opportunity to win than not to have played at all. It is better to lose in the Super Bowl than not to be able to play in it. From God’s standpoint, it is better to love the whole world (John 3:16) and lose some of its inhabitants than not to love them at all.

But People Can’t Help Being Sinners.

The Bible says we are born sinners (Ps. 51:5) and are "by nature the children of wrath" (Eph. 2:3). If sinners cannot avoid sinning, is it fair to send them to hell for it?
People go to hell because they are born with a bent to sin, and they choose to sin. They are born on a road that leads to hell, but they also fail to heed the warning signs along the way to turn from destruction (Luke 13:3; 2 Peter 3:9).

While human beings sin because they are sinners (by nature), their sin nature does not force them to sin. As Augustine correctly said, "We are born with the propensity to sin and the necessity to die." Notice, he did not say we are born with the necessity to sin. While sin is inevitable, since we are born with a bent in that direction, sin is not unavoidable.

The ultimate place to which sinners are destined is also avoidable. All one needs to do is to repent (Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30; 2 Peter 3:9). All are held responsible for their decision to accept or reject God’s offer of salvation. And responsibility always implies the ability to respond (if not on our own, then by God’s grace). All who go to hell could have avoided going there if they had chosen to. No pagan anywhere is without clear light from God so that he is "without excuse" (Rom. 1:19-20; cf. 2:12-15.) As God sent a missionary to Cornelius (Acts 10:35), so he will provide the message of salvation for all who seek it. For "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Heb. 11:6).

Reasonableness of Hell

While many believe hell is unreasonable, following Jonathan Edwards, a good argument can be made for its rationality:

It is a most unreasonable thing to suppose that there should be no future punishment, to suppose that God, who had made man a rational creature, able to know his duty, and sensible that he is deserving punishment when he does it not; should let man alone, and let him live as he will, and never punish him for his sins, and never make any difference between the good and the bad.... How unreasonable it is to suppose, that he who made the world, should leave things in such confusion, and never take any care of the governing of his creatures, and that he should never judge his reasonable creatures. [Edwards, 2.884]

How can we be happy in heaven knowing that there are people suffering in hell?

The presupposition of this question is that we are more merciful than is God. God is perfectly happy in heaven, and he knows that not everyone will be there. Yet he is infinitely more merciful than are we. What is more, if we could not be happy in heaven knowing anyone was in hell, then our happiness is not in our hands but someone else’s. But hell cannot veto heaven. We can be happy in heaven the same way we can be happy eating knowing others are starving. But there are some scriptural considerations that help us keep this question in perspective.

First, God himself has promised that He will take away all pain and remove all our tears (Revelation 21:4). It is in His hands. We can rest assured that God has the power and ability to do as He has promised. It is a fact that we will be happy in heaven. God has promised it.

Second, we will be aware of the full justice of God’s decisions. We will clearly see that those who are in hell are there precisely because they rejected God’s only provision for escaping hell. They are those to whom God ultimately says, “Thy will be done.”

The attitudes and feelings of the saints in heaven will be transformed and correspond more to God’s. Hence, we will love only what God loves and hate what he hates. Since God is not miserable at the thought or sight of hell, neither will we—even if it holds people we loved in this life. Edwards devoted a sermon to this: "The End of the Wicked Contemplated by the Righteous." In Gerstner’s digest of it, "it will seem in no way cruel in God to inflict such extreme suffering on such extremely wicked creatures" (Gerstner, 90).

Third, we will recognize that there are degrees of punishment in hell, just as there are degrees of reward in heaven. This gives us an assurance that the Hilters of human history will be in a much greater state of suffering than, for example, a non-Christian moralist (Luke 12:47, 48)

God is perfectly wise and just. He knows what He is doing! You and I can rest with quiet assurance in God’s wisdom and justice.

For more information read a book entitled "One Minute After You Die" by Erwin Lutzer

What happens to animals when they die?

Within the Christian church there are different schools of thought on this issue. Some people believe that animals simply disintegrate; they pass into nothingness and are annihilated, which is based on the premise that animals don’t have souls that can survive the grave. However, nowhere does Scripture explicitly state that animals do not have souls.

The Bible tells us that we have the image of God in a way that animals do not. Now is the “image of God” what diffentiates between a soul and a nonsoul? Those who take a Greek view of the soul – that it is this substance that continues indestructibly forever – may want to restrict that to human beings. But again, there’s nothing in Scripture that would preclude the possibilities of animals continued existence.

Scripture does not exclusively tell us whether our pets will make it to heaven. However, the Bible does provide us with some significant clues that animals will inhabit the new heaven and the new earth.

First, the Garden of Eden was populated by animals, thus there is a precedent for believing that Eden restored will also be populated by animals.

Furthermore, the Scriptures --from first to last-- suggest that animals have souls. Both Moses in Genesis and John in Revelation communicate that the Creator endowed animals with souls (see Gen. 1:20, 24; Rev. 8:9). Throughout the history of the church, the classic understanding of living things has included the doctrine that animals, as well as humans, have souls.

“Ask the animals, and they will teach you...In God’s hand is the life of every creature, and the breath of all mankind.” (Job 12:7 and 10)

God loves all His creation and has made plans for all His children and the lesser creatures to enjoy His eternal Kingdom.(Psalm 145:9-10,13,15-21)

"...the lesser creatures await Christ's return to redeem the sons of God so they, too, will be released from physical death to eternal life."(Romans 8:19)

"Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now" (Romans 8:21-22)

"...all creatures recognize Jesus as the Savior of the world and praise God right along with redeemed men.(Revelation 5:8-13)

"The Bible does give us some reason to hope that departed animas will be restored. We read in the Bible that redemption is a cosmic matter. The whole creation is destined to be redeemed through the work of Christ (Rom. 8:21), and we see the images of what heaven will be like; beautiful passages of Scripture tells us about the lion and the lamb and other animals being at peace with one another. Whenever heaven is described, though it may be in highly imaginative languages, it is a place where animals seem to be present." (R.C. Sproul)

What happens to animals when they die?

Theologian John Piper writes:And as I knelt beside the brook
To drink eternal life, I took
A glance across the golden grass,
And saw my dog, old Blackie, fast
As she could come. She leaped the stream—
Almost—and what a happy gleam
Was in her eye. I knelt to drink
And knew that I was on the brink
Of endless joy. And everywhere
I turned I saw a wonder there.

In her excellent book, Holiness in Hidden Places, Joni Eareckson Tada says, "If God brings our pets back to life, it wouldn't surprise me. It would be just like him. It would be totally in keeping with his generous character … Exorbitant. Excessive. Extravagant in grace after grace. Of all the dazzling discoveries and ecstatic pleasures heaven will hold for us, the potential of seeing Scrappy would be pure whimsy—utterly, joyfully, surprisingly superfluous. … Heaven is going to be a place that will refract and reflect in as many ways as possible the goodness of joy of our great God, who delights in lavishing love on his children."

One thing is certain: Scripture provides us with a sufficient precedent for suggesting that animals will continue to exist after the return of our Lord. Isaiah 11:6-9 provides a particularly stirring image.

"The soul is the same in all living creatures, although the body of each is different." - Hippocrates

"You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us." - Robert Louis Stevenson

Yeah, but that’s sin, a sin you can’t repent of. Because dead people can’t ask for repentance.

Have you repented of every sin you have ever did in your life? Think about that for a while. The answer is no. Trust me you’ve forgotten a couple, or you didn’t think it was important enough to bring them up.

Are you advocating sucide?

No, suicide is a sin like any other. My advice before anyone tries this is to speak to a “Christian” Friend, then to a mature Christian friend. If one is still having problems, they should speak to their own pastor. (If the person does not belong to a church, that person needs to go look for one.)If even after talking to the pastor, the problems are still serious “Christian counseling” should be tried.

What the person needs to realize is that, there is no quick solution. The person has to understand that God is in control. And leave it all in the hands of God. Whatever happens will happen. But in reality, the person needs to know that there are people out there who care for them very much. And that they are not alone.

It hard to see God in dark situation. That’s why God uses us (Christians). We are God’s instruments on earth. (What an honor!)

How old will we be in heaven?

When God created Adam and Eve in Eden, he created them with apparent age and in the prime of their life. When Jesus died, he was resurrected at the prime of his life. So we can justifiably believe that whether we die in infancy, in our prime, or in old age, we will be resurrected physically mature and perfect, as God originally intended.

Our DNA is programmed in such a way that at a particular point we reach optimal development from a functional perspective. For the most part, it appears that we reach this stage somewhere in our twenties or thirties. Prior to this stage, the development of our bodies (anabolism) exceeds the devolution of our bodies (catabolism). From this point on, the rate of breakdown exceeds the rate of buildup, which eventually leads to physical death. So looking at the blueprints of our DNA, it would stand to reason that our bodies will be resurrected at the optimal stage of our development determined by our DNA.

Jesus described hell as a place of “utter darkness”(Matt. 8:12; cf. 22:13 and 25:30). By contrast, the Bible says hell is a place of “fire”(Rev. 20:14) and “unquenchable flames”(Mark 9:48). But, fire and flames give off light. How can hell be utterly dark when there is light there?

Both “fire” and “darkness” are powerful figures of speech which appropriately describe the unthinkable reality of hell. It is like fire because it is a place of destruction and torment. Yet, it is like outer darkness because people are lost there forever. While hell is a literal place, not every description of it should be taken literally. Some powerful figures of speech are used to portray this literal place. Its horrible reality, wherein body and soul will suffer forever, goes far beyond any mere figure of speech that may be used to describe it. But, it is a serious mistake to take a figure of speech literally. By doing so, one can conclude that God has feathers, since He is described as having wings (Ps. 91:4)! There are other figures of speech used to describe the eternal destiny of the lost that, if taken literally, contradict each other. For example, hell is depicted as an eternal garbage dump (Mark 9:43–8), which has a bottom. But, it is also portrayed as a bottomless pit (Rev. 20:3). Each is a vivid depiction of a place of everlasting punishment.

Reasons Hell Is Rejected

As surveys show, people are far more willing to believe in heaven than in hell. No good person wants anyone to go to hell. But, as Sigmund Freud would say, it is an illusion to reject something simply because we wish not to believe in it. Indeed, as even some atheists have observed, the belief in hell eliminates the charge that it is merely an illusion. Whether there is a hell must be determined on the basis of evidence, not desire. The evidence for the existence of hell is strong.

If the evidence for hell is substantial, why then do so many people reject it? Edwards listed two main reasons for the unwillingness to accept hell: (1) It is contrary to our personal preference; (2) we have a deficient concept of evil and its deserved punishment.

Actually, a denial of hell is an indication of human depravity Edwards draws attention to our inconsistency. We are all aware of the heinous nature of wars and acts against humanity. Why are we not equally shocked at how we regularly show contempt for the majesty of God (Edwards, 2.83). Our rejection of hell and God’s mercy are an indication of our own depravity—and therefore we are deserving of hell. Edwards wrote, "Doth it seem to thee incredible, that God should be so utterly regardless of the sinner’s welfare, as to sink him into an infinite abyss or misery? Is this shocking to thee? And is it not at all shocking to thee that thou shouldst be so utterly regardless as thou hast been to the honour and glory of the infinite God?" (ibid., 2.82).

The Nature and Location of Hell

The Bible describes the reality of hell in forceful figures of speech. It is said to be a place of darkness (Matt. 8:12; 22:13), which is "outside" [the gate of the heavenly city] (Rev. 22:14-15). Hell is away from the "presence of the Lord" (Matt. 25:41; 2 Thess. 1:7-9). Of course, these are relational, not necessarily spatial, terms. God is "up" and hell is "down." God is "inside" and hell is "outside." Hell is the other direction from God.

The nature of hell is a horrifying reality. It is like being left outside in the dark forever (Matt. 8:12). It is like a wandering star (Jude 13), a waterless cloud (Jude 12), a perpetually burning dump (Mark 9:43-48), a bottomless pit (Rev. 20:1, 3), a prison (1 Peter 3:19), and a place of anguish and regret (Luke 16:28).

To borrow the title of the book by Lewis, hell is the "great divorce"—an eternal separation from God (2 Thess. 1:7-9). There is, in biblical language, a great gulf fixed" between hell and heaven (Luke 16:26) so that no one can pass from one side to the other.

Nowhere does the Bible describe it as a "torture chamber" where people are forced against their will to be tortured. This is a caricature created by unbelievers to justify their reaction that the God who sends people to hell is cruel. This does not mean that hell is not a place of torment. Jesus said it was (Luke 16:24). But unlike torture which is inflicted from without against one’s will, torment is self-inflicted.

Even atheists have suggested that the door of hell is locked from the inside. We are condemned to our own freedom from God. Heaven’s presence of the divine would be the torture to one who has irretrievably rejected him. Torment is living with the consequences of our own bad choices. It is the weeping and gnashing of teeth that results from the realization that we blew it and deserve the consequences. Just as a football player may pound on the ground in agony after missing a play that loses the Super Bowl, so those in hell know that the pain they suffer is self-induced.

Hell is also depicted as a place of eternal fire. This fire is real but not necessarily physical (as we know it), because people will have imperishable physical bodies (John 5:28-29; Rev. 20:13-15), so normal fire would not affect them. Further, the figures of speech that describe hell are contradictory if taken in a physical sense. It has flames, yet is outer darkness. It is a dump (with a bottom), yet a bottomless pit. While everything in the Bible is literally true, not everything is true literally.

The Duration of Hell

Many unbelievers would be willing to accept a temporary hell, but the Bible speaks of it as everlasting.

Hell Will Last as Long as Does God. The Bible declares that God will endure forever (Ps. 90:1-2). Indeed, he had no beginning and has no end (Rev. 1:8). He created all things (John 1:3; Col. 1:15-16), and he will abide after this world is destroyed (2 Peter 3:10-12). But God, by his very nature, cannot tolerate evil (Isaiah 6; Hab. 1:13). Hence, evil persons must be separated from God forever. As long as God is God and evil is evil, the latter must be separated from the former.

Hell Will Last as Long as Heaven Does. Heaven is described as "everlasting" in the Bible. But the same Greek word (aionion), used in the same context, also affirmed that hell is "everlasting" (Matt. 25:41; cf. vs. 46; 2 Thess. 1:9; Rev. 20:10). So, if heaven is forever, so is hell. There is absolutely no ground in Scripture for supposing that hell is temporal and heaven is eternal.

Nor is there a possibility of getting out of hell. A great gulf is fixed so no one can leave (Luke 16:26). Judgment begins immediately after death (John 8:21; Heb. 9:27). This is not unlike the fact that some decisions in life are irreversible. Suicide is a one-way street.

People are conscious after they die, whether they are in heaven (2 Cor. 5:8; Phil 1:23; Rev. 6:9) or in hell (Luke 16:23). The Beast was still conscious after a thousand years in hell (Rev. 19:20; 20:10). It makes no sense to resurrect unbelievers to everlasting judgment (Dan. 12:2; John 5:28-29) before the Great White Throne (Rev. 20:11-15) unless they are conscious.

Where is Heaven located?

A very simply response would be just on the other side of death. But now let’s add a little physics and hopefully you can follow me. For it appears that it found something….

Back in 1984 Michael Green and John Schwarz using the superstring theory found that there is actually a total of 10 dimensions. When you subtract our four dimensions ( three dimensions plus time equal the fourth). We have two sets of three dimensions (without time). So the question is what are these other two sets of dimensions. They could very well be one for heaven and the other for hell. In short, our dimension would be in right angles to the other dimension (heaven). Though not seen, but occupying them same space, but in another dimension. The same could be said with our dimension and hell, or the dimension of heaven and hell.

This would also explain things like when the disciples were together in a room in Jerusalem with the door closed. The suddenly He (Jesus) was with them, "And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and said unto them, Peace unto you"(Luke 24:36). Jesus had suddenly appeared! He had entered a room through either the walls or a closed door. Or according to the superstring theory, He entered the room by passing from the dimension of heaven to the dimensions of our world. His body was no longer restricted by the limitations of our earthly bodies, but could pass from one set of dimensions to another. The bible tells us of the sudden appearance of angels. Mary and Gabriel. Zacharias and the angel of the Lord within the temple. So, to answer your question heaven (or hell) is right here, but in another dimension (at right angles to us).

Why can’t God just forgive everybody and let everyone into heaven?

I think Michael Green said it best: “If your heart takes more pleasure in reading novels, or watching TV, or going to the movies, or talking to friends, rather than just sitting alone with God and embracing Him, sharing His cares and His burdens, weeping and rejoicing with Him, then how are you going to handle forever and ever in His presence...? You'd be bored to tears in heaven, if you're not ecstatic about God now!” Think about it imagine someone like Karl Marx. Who wished God was dead! What would life be for someone like him in heaven? Doing everything God told him to do 24 hours a day, praying to God 24 hours a day, worshipping God 24 hours a day, obeying God 24 hours a day, singing God’s glory 24 hours a day. Heaven would indeed be a hell for someone like him. Even though we would like to see everyone in heaven, not everyone really wants to go there and to him or her it would be hell.

Hell is a separation from God for all-eternity?

People who believe that forget one thing and that is to be separated from God for eternity is no great threat to the impenitent person. The ungodly want nothing more than to be separated from God. Their problem in hell will not be separation from God, it will be the presence of God that will torment them. We have a doctrine which states that God is omnipresence. In hell, God will be present in the fullness of His divine wrath. He will be there to exercise His just punishment of the damned. They will know Him as an all-consuming fire.

There are six things we need to know about Hell:
1. The suffering of hell is beyond any experience of misery found in this world.
2. Hell is clearly included in the teaching of Jesus.
3. If the biblical descriptions of hell are symbols, then the reality will be worse than the symbols.
4. Hell is the presence of God in His wrath and judgment.
5. There is no cruelty in hell. Hell will be a place of perfect justice.
6. Hell is eternal. There is no escape through either repentance or annihilation.

Where do we get our authority for saying Paradise was beneath, in explaining Ephesians 4:8-10? Please explain fully with Scripture reference.

This question involves the study of the Greek word “Hades” and the Hebrew word “Sheol.” Hades, “the unseen world,” is revealed as the place of departed human spirits between death and resurrection. The word occurs, Matthew 11:23; 16:18; Luke 10:15; 16:23 Acts 2:27, 31; Revelation 1:18; 6:8; 20:13, 14 and is the equivalent of the Old Testament “Sheol.” The Septuagint invariably renders “Sheol” by “Hades.”

Hades before the ascension of Christ. The passages in which the word occurs make it clear that Hades was formerly in two divisions, the abodes respectively of the saved and the lost. The former was called “Paradise” and “Abraham’s bosom.” Both designations were Talmudic, but adopted by Christ in Luke 16:22; 23:43. The blessed dead were with Abraham; they were conscious and were “comforted” (Luke 16:25). The believing malefactor was to be, that day, with Christ Paradise.” The lost were separated from the saved by a “great gulf fixed” (Luke 16:26). The representative man of the lost who are now in Hades is the rich man of Luke 16:19-31. He was alive, conscious, in the full exercise of his faculties, memory, etc., and in torment.

Hades since the ascension of Christ. So far as the unsaved dead are concerned, no change of their place or condi