Bryan Chapell - What Is Hell?

Questions answered.

[matthelion]

To forgive someone who has “sinned” is not Justice. If a rapist went before a judge and the judge forgave him, would you call that justice? No.
Giving sinners a “way out” is not justice either. At least, it’s not justice in the way human beings understand it.
Think about the wife of Lot. She looked back and as a punishment god turned her to salt. He didn't turn her to peanut butter because that would be ridiculous. His justice was swift and unforgiving. It was instant death. There was no mercy

[TrueTaike]

Search earnestly..that all you have to do. "search and you will find, knock on the door and it will be open onto you"

[adstanra]

As a parent, i have to teach my children things that are going to increase their happiness, even if temporarily they feel sad. i might punish them if I believe that I am teaching them a lesson that will increase happiness or minimise suffering. I take my kids to get immunisations because I want to minimise the risk of them getting ill..because I know that causes suffering.
There is no breaking of the definition.

[TrueTaike]

"Man's desire to be a sheep has gotten us into alot of trouble." I don't believe..its is that we have been like sheep..i think it because...we tend to walk off were we shouldn't... away from our owner..and ..tend to walk into ditches.

[TrueTaike]

Love is a choice..so I'm going to say everyone that chooses to love. God gives us the choice to be his sons/daughters.. or not..simple as that. People choose not to ..then they can deal with their own lives..by themselves. God doesn't need us..its we that need him.

[matthelion]

You do realize that Justice directly contradicts Mercy? Mercy is the suspension of justice. Justice is about fairness and consistency. Mercy is about forgiveness. If god is perfectly just then he cannot forgive your sins because he must remain fair and consistent.

[tmarsh]

I find this response dishonest. Chappell is a Calvinist. Calvinism teaches that those who are in hell are there because God wants them there - they are non-elect. Calvinism teaches that those who "do not want God" cannot want God until God awakens in their mind the ability to respond to God and want God.

[StrumstickJoe]

"Hell" is a human contrivance invented for the purpose of imposing fear and control on children and vulnerable adults.
Those who need and therefore believe in eternity use the concept of heaven/hell to force moral behaviour on themselves.
But morality and human decency are not derived from religion. They precede it.
Peace on earth to all my readers! That's what we got, that's all we need!

[gromby]

"...those who don't want me, they don't get me." Of those who end up in hell, how many do you think believed god or hell exists? How many said "God, I know you are the truth and I want nothing to do with you"? Where can one find god if he searches in earnest?

[gromby]

And how long must one knock before he decides there is no one home, indefinitely?

[TrueTaike]

faith (fth)
n.
1. Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing.
2. Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. See Synonyms at belief, trust.
3. Loyalty to a person or thing; allegiance: keeping faith with one's supporters.
4. often Faith Christianity The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will.
5. The body of dogma of a religion: the Muslim faith.
6. A set of principles or beliefs.

[adstanra]

Man's desire to be a sheep has gotten us into alot of trouble. We are too easily lead.
Whether man chose to bite the apple, or God wanted it this way, or we naturally evolved this way, humans are going to have to figure things out for themselves.Like a good parent, I want my kids to become individuals, striving, learning, sometimes failing.I don't want them to faithfully fall prey to some dogma that claims to know the mind of God and demands submission.Can you imagine an eternity as a sheep?

[adstanra]

If God is the source of all goodness and hell is the absence of God, then hell is the absence of goodness. Goodness refers to anything that increases happiness. The biblical descriptions of hell do not depict anyone happy there and it is absurd to say that anyone would wish for it!

[Drooblemeister]

There is a reason the idea of God sending people to hell bothers you, because it's not the case at all. God gave us free-will, and out of love, He wanted relationship with us, but the choice we all have to make is to die to ourselves and let God mark out our destiny, or shut God out of our lives and create our own destiny. 1 day, God will allow every human have exactly what they want, hell is just God allowing people to choose their own destiny and giving them over to their own desires.

[matthelion]

The bible also says that rabbits chew cud....
"In heaven there is no death, mourning, crying, or pain." - What if your son or daughter was forever suffering in hell? Wouldn't that taint the 'perfection' of heaven? How could you be happy knowing that literally billions of people were being needlessly tortured?

[YourDarkAffected]

Well, the Bible says that in Matthew 13:50 that hell is a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. A place of eternal torment will probably not be a place where ANY relief, enjoyment, or comfort is found. I don't see how you could be with your friends and loved ones. Or interact with them. Heaven is a place of paradise and joy. It is sad to think of your friends and family not being with you if you have accepted Jesus and they haven't, but in heaven there is no death, mourning, crying, or pain.

[OccultThinkTankOFFICIAL]

@CarlosMarti123
That response was based on CHRISTIAN ideas.

The idea in Christianity is that their God is Omnipresent. Which if that would be the case it would be impossible for that God to be separate from anything since it is present everywhere.
Then there is Revelation 14:10 that clearly states this Torment in fire is in the PRESENCE of Jesus not separate from him.

However what REALITY tells us is THERE IS NO GOD!

Since God is a general term not one that only means YOURS!

[Drooblemeister]

I'm a Christian and I believe in a literal heaven and hell, but I disagree with the traditional view of hell that describes it as an 'eternal torture chamber.' I think it sadly misrepresents the character of God and the message of Christ on the cross. The biblical image of God (misrepresented today by the church) is a good shepherd that leaves 99 sheep behind, at his own expense to go after the 1 sheep that wandered off and is then more excited about the 1 sheep that returned than all the others

[adstanra]

"Goodness" refers to anything that increases happiness which is a mental state.Naturally we create an archetype of "goodness" and because humans are similar, my understanding of the term is going to be similar to yours, in the same way my archetype "Dog" is similar to yours.If we want to maximise happiness and minimise suffering, we are going to have to work together.If notions of good ness were hugely dissimilar we could never cooperate, and when they are (say Nazis) wars will likely ensue.

[TrueTaike]

"And how long must one knock before he decides there is no one home, indefinitely?" Good question..how much do you want it?