What the Heck is Hell?
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What the Heck is Hell?
What the Heck is Hell?
Today, we are going to take a look at two core thoughts about a destination that we don’t like to talk about.
Some of you might not want to think about it!
But, there are references to it in scripture, and we don’t shy away from those, so here we go.
What the Heck is Hell?
Let me tell you up front, if you are looking for a straightforward or easy answer, it does not exist.
When we take the entirety of scripture, there are several options that emerge.
Purgatory (A holding place people are rescued from)
Eternal Conscious Torment (exist forever)
Annihilation (cease to exist)
Here is what we know...
The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 2-3) does not exist in New Creation
The Tree of Life does exist in New Creation (Revelation 21-22)
More on that later...
We WON’T spend much time on Purgatory. It requires some biblical gymnastics that would be hard to pull off in 30 mins.
AND…I am not as convinced of this position.
Let’s look at some...
Eternal Conscious Torment (exist forever)
From an evangelical perspective, this is by far the most common view. It might be a view some of you have held or hold today.
For some, THEY WANT it to be TRUE
For others, THEY WANT it to be UNTRUE
It has been used to convince people they should choose faith in Jesus to avoid the “Fire of Hell!”
There have been movies made about this.
We have been influenced by Dante’s Inferno (not biblical)
So, we have, in part, been CONDITIONED to hear certain versus and think, “Eternal Torment.”
Example:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
That word PERISH
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
That word DESTROY
Perish and Destroy, we assume that means something that continues to that person or entity, over and over again, for eternity.
But WHAT IF…the word PERISH and DESTROY mean just that?
The STRONGEST and ONLY CLEAR argument for ECT is found in Matthew.
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
For some time I thought this was ONE of MANY verses that supported ECT, but I NEVER KNEW it was the ONLY one in the whole of scripture.
For Annihilation, there are many passages that, if ready directly with no presuppositions, would mean CEASE to EXIST.
Death: Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, James, 1 John, Revelation
Destruction or Perish: Matthew, John, Acts, Romans, Philippians, 1&2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, Hebrews, 2 Peter,
End: Romans, 2 Corinthians, Philippians, 1 Peter
Disintegration: Galatians, 2 Peter
Second…the GIFT of IMMORTALITY belongs to believers in Jesus.
2 Timothy 1:10 (ESV)
(the grace of Jesus) has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
For immortality to occur, people need access to the Tree of Life.
And THIS VERSE teaches the DEATH of DEATH.
The wicked will have no access to the tree of life.
Here is a PARADOX
To live in Eternal Conscious Torment...
You must be living.
For some, this is not enough.
No matter how much biblical evidence is presented, you may be fixed into your view. You reject all others, regardless of the source.
That is sad.
Here are the facts. ECT and Annihilation can both be supported in scripture. It is not fair to throw one or the other out.
Now, Personally, I have a slightly different view.
I believe there is....
A single TIME of judgement coming
But there are MORE THAN ONE judgements on that day
The term is The Day of the LORD.
But there are battles and judgements in HEAVEN
And there are battles and judgements on EARTH
There is a verse in Genesis that nobody every uses in either view, but I think it is important.
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
בְּזֵעַ֤ת אַפֶּ֙יךָ֙ תֹּ֣אכַל לֶ֔חֶם עַ֤ד שֽׁוּבְךָ֙ אֶל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה כִּ֥י מִמֶּ֖נָּה לֻקָּ֑חְתָּ כִּֽי־עָפָ֣ר אַ֔תָּה וְאֶל־עָפָ֖ר תָּשֽׁוּב׃
Unless someone or something intervenes, HUMANS will return to the Adamah (ground) as dust.
But WHAT ABOUT DIVINE BEINGS...
I said, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.”
It would seem that for even the divine council who is in rebellion, they too will die. Not in some special way, but like Adam (that is the word used in the verse)
While the divine beings were not made from dust, they will become dust.
Allusion to the Serpent in Genesis 3, he is cursed to EAT DUST all the DAYS of HIS LIFE. Again when his LIFE is TERMINATED, he too will be judged and become DUST.
Jesus said, “I saw SATAN falling to the ground.”
THERE ARE TWO JUDGEMENTS happening on the SAME DAY.
I believe there is....
A single TIME of judgement coming
But there are MORE THAN ONE judgements on that day
But WHAT ABOUT REVELATION, all the FIRE, the LAKE OF FIRE!?
Yes, that is why I say there can be support for both.
However, I can also see all the punishment in the context of “EVIL,” and “WICKEDNESS.”
It is the EVIL that is punished and dies, that includes THOSE human and divine beings that ALIGN with EVIL
Slide
When we talked last week, you saw an image of Hell outside the New Holy City when God brings New Creation to its fulfillment.
I believe, and this is just me, the image of Hell outside the Holy City, outside New Creation, is the biblical authors way to saying, “Evil and Wickedness WILL NEVER AGAIN be an issue for God’s good world.”
Now, what does this mean for us...
Those who hold that there is nothing when you die, they may be correct.
I have been heard to say that, “I believe everybody spends forever somewhere.”
I still hold to that, but I have ADJUSTED the somewhere to include the DUST, nothingness.
Some will ARGUE about the NEPHESH, but even the ANIMALS have the BREATH of GOD.
This all boils down to PARTICIPATION.
It is a decision that each person MUST MAKE.
Will you participate in a life where there is no suffering, no tears, no evil, and live as God intended in Genesis 1?
Or, will you not participate.
As I said before, there are all kinds of details about HELL that we want to know that scripture does not define.
What scripture does define is the HOPE of a FULL and ETERNAL life with our creator when we believe and trust in Jesus Christ.