Overheating and Hell

I am totally washed out, or I think I am.

I mowed the yard this morning. It was stinking hot - in the mid 90s with high humidity. I had a Cub Cadet riding tractor so it was not too bad, I thought...I did have a wet towel around my neck to give me some comfort while mowing. I quit at 12, went to make lunch for my husband and me. When I sat down exhaustion settled in. Utterly exhausted. Feel like doing nothing, absolutely nothing but I will recover if given enough time.

Whenever I experiece exhaustion due to overheating I am always reminded of hell. Those victims will never get any reprieve from their misery. Never. Not in 24 hours, or a year or a hundred years or a million - it will go on forever. Lord! have mercy! And he did show mercy by subjecting himself to the most inhumane manner in order to redeem mankind. If anyone chooses to spurn that sacrifice, they ask for that torture. But do they even begin to realize how bad it would be?

Maybe it would help for them to work out in the hot Missippi sun for several hours?? Unfortunately, that does not seem effective either.

Anyhow, this is where my thoughts go to when I overheat. Glad for the lesson.

Sandra Miller

"If anyone chooses to spurn that sacrifice, they ask for that torture."

That might be overstating the case a tad.

Hell is a real enough place. Where the worm does not die and the flames are never quenched.

Would that people would come to Christ, as the only way of escape, for His mercy and His grace.

The existence of hell is not the issue; I was simply questioning the statement that I quoted.

Numerous millions of people have no idea there is sacrifice to spurn, much less are they asking to be tortured for all eternity.

Brother Todd, I think you may be taking the sisters words out of their intended context as she states those "that spurn" the sacrifice, meaning they certainly heard but rejected it and so in effect they do in fact ask for it.
As for those who are "without the law", Paul seems to address them in Romans 2:14-16.... but I am aware there are differing takes on that scripture.
In any case I am generally edified by your posts and really appreciate your contributions here on SI as you clearly have a heart for the lost and it is most encouraging quality! (And your sense of humor:)

Point well taken Fletcher.

One thing that exasperates me somewhat is how quick most evangelicals are to consign non-believers to eternal torment. It is a very easy thing to do from a position of comfort. I grew up in a solid Christian home so I had a distinct advantage in coming to faith. But there are countless others who grow up in Jewish homes, or Hindu or Muslim homes. Or homes that are full of debauchery and no faith at all. It is not a child's fault they are born into those homes and may never have a realistic expectation of hearing a presentation of the gospel that would not be tainted by their own faith and what has been drilled into their heads their whole life. For that matter, it is very hard for even a child in a CHRISTIAN home to come to true faith. Look at how many preacher kids go bad.

My only consolation as to what happens to sinners is Abraham's rhetorical question in Gen 18:25-- "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

TMK,

It's promised in Scripture that whoever seeks the truth will find it (Jeremiah 29:13, Matt 7:7-8).

So I believe that regardless of our background, everyone who desires the truth will eventually arrive at the same destination - that's Jesus Christ Himself. It's like scaling a mountain - there's only one peak, but many routes up the mountain. The question is whether it is our human responsibility to seek the truth?

As for the fate of those who died without having heard about the Christian faith - I'm contend to leave that to God, whom I trust will judge with righteous judgement.

We can certainly be bound by our natural understanding in such matters. Who are we to judge God? (Romans 9) Nonetheless, I believe on judgement day, everyone will find His judgements to be irreproachable and satisfying.

Quote: Who are we to judge God? (Romans 9) We can certainly be bound by our natural understanding. Nonetheless, I believe on that day, everyone will find His judgements to be irreproachable and satisfying.

Agreed. But since we are not exactly sure how God will work it out, maybe we should sound a little less certain of what that final fate will be.

So what's your position?

I have no idea, but I can narrow it down to three possibilities but don't want to discuss that here.

Here are some short essays (by Dustin Horstmann) which might speak to those who are struggling with the notion of hell and eternal torment (Mark 9:42-48):

1. http://on.fb.me/1LGLROp
- "(Some) years ago I *deeply* struggled with the doctrine of eternal suffering in Hell..."

2. http://on.fb.me/1IgdsqU
- "Well, why is Hell *eternal*?"

3. From a separate comment thread:

"The reason that people are sent to eternal punishment is seen in Romans 1: God is making Himself known as the Creator through creation, and instead of acknowledging Him, man worships and serves things He made as gods, whether that be man, bird, fish, etc. Notice that Paul didn't say that God is judging people because no one is religious. In fact, he says the opposite: everyone is religious in that everyone is worshipping and serving something created. Some people worship money, others sex, others their own righteousness. In Paul's, much creature worship was expressed through carven idols. The same idol worship exists today, but is facilitated differently.

...

So, I would not say that Jewish people who reject Christ are worshipping God. People reject Christ because they love their works, and those who love their works more than God, seek to worship the creature (of those works) and not the Creator, which brings us back to Romans 1 again.

So there are many faces to creature worship and that is the reason, according to the Bible, that men are damned. And sometimes (or often) religious people are closer to damnation that prostitutes and harlots because their worship of self is so profound, though they use much language about God. Make sense?

I'm just weary to hallow religious people as less idolatrous as others, and somehow more deserving of heaven."

Those are very well written but start from an assumed premise.

I have made a prior promise to Greg G not to debate this issue on the forum, so I really can't go into great detail.

But I can tell you this much: I believe hell is both real and miserable beyond imagining.