HEAVEN AND HELL
However, verses 15-16 reveal that believers retain the potentiality to understand and to judge all matters. Verse 16 clearly teaches that believers possess the "mind of Christ." This means that having been "born again," believers have been spiritually reconnected to the infinite mind of God, and thus possess an infinite amount of wisdom from which to draw.
I Corinthians 2:9-13 teaches that God reveals His eternal truths to believers beginning in this life and continuing into eternity. This means that believers will eventually possess more simple true ideas and their true combinations than unbelievers can ever have. Believers can draw greater wisdom from their spiritual reconnection to Infinite Duality.
Such facts can not mean that believers have nothing to do. Believers need to spend time praying, studying God’s Word, and listening to the Holy Spirit. Believers should battle the corrupting effects of sin and confusion every day. God’s will is that believers should work hard to become more like Christ. God acquires greater glory when believers use their freedom to discover greater truths. As Jesus taught in Luke 9:23, believers should take up their cross daily and follow him.
As I Corinthians 15:42-57, Philippians 3:20-21, I Thessalonians 4:13-18, and I John 3:2 teach, some day, in the resurrection and translation of the church, all believers will be transformed into spiritual-bodies like that of the resurrected Christ. This does not mean that believes will become gods, or that they will ever be as good as Jesus. Rather, it simply means that in their eternal home, believers will be forever disconnected form all sin and confusion. Their spiritual-bodies and minds will be perfectly clear of all corrupting influences so that they will be free to spend forever in learning more simple true ideas and in creating more true combinations. Believers will spend eternity worshiping God and learning more and more about Him. Believers will never know everything at once as God does, but they will be like bookworms in an infinite library continually consuming the infinite wisdom of God. Believers will spend forever learning new and beautiful truths that they can not now even begin to imagine. Only believers will be allowed to spend eternity learning more about science, art, mathematics, wisdom, and goodness. This privilege is reserved for those who humble themselves to God.
Skeptics and atheists have long argued that Christians exaggerate the importance of man by putting him at the center of the universe. They argue that since there is no God, then mankind is merely one form of finite intelligence among many finite intelligences scattered throughout the universe. They assert that because many of these intelligences may be superior to man’s, then man is probably a relatively unimportant creature in the universe.
However, it has never been true that Christians put man at the center of the universe. Christians put God at the center of the universe. God is the only being who is truly important. As Revelation 4:11 and 5:9 teach, God alone deserves all glory, praise, and honor. Man is merely a fallen creature on whom God has bestowed His love and grace.
Actually, the skeptics and atheists are the ones who put man, or some other finite intelligence, at the center of the universe. They put their faith in finite intelligence alone. Whether that intelligence belongs to man or some other creature is immaterial to them. To their way of thinking, finite intelligence is the greatest good. Finite intelligence will ultimately save mankind, if he can be saved, from all adversity including the collapse of the universe.
Their opinion reveals the height of arrogance and pride. The destructive effects of absolute nothingness have proven far too powerful for any finite intelligence to handle. Yet man, unwilling to admit that he needs help, shakes his puny fist in the face of the absolute nothingness that will one day crush him. Absolute nothingness simply overwhelms finite intelligence.
Mankind needs true humility. I Peter 5:5-6 teaches that men must humble themselves to God in order to receive grace and exaltation. As Jesus taught in His parable in Luke 18:9-14, such humility must be an admission of complete and utter helplessness in one’s combat with sin. The repentant sinner must empty himself of all pride and any thought of self-help, and come to depend completely upon Christ for his salvation. The repentant sinner must open his absolute nothingness to the creative powers of God already accomplished through the sacrifice and resurrection of His Son.
In John 14:6, Jesus taught that He is the only way to God. He is the truth, and He is the life. This fact means that religion teaches that, to one degree or another, man can do something to help himself overcome his sin. God’s Word teaches that there is absolutely nothing that a man can do to overcome his absolute nothingness. A repentant sinner must humble himself enough to admit this fact to God. Then, he will be able to completely trust Christ for his salvation. Anything short of this is as unacceptable to God as was Cain’s offering. Thus Christianity may adopt some forms of religion, but true Christianity is not a religion, but rather, true Christianity comes into the hearts of believers through faith in the finished work of Christ. Hebrews 7:25 teaches that Christ alone saves to the uttermost.
Some believers, who are also members of some religion, may yet be saved because God will forgive their sin of trusting their religion, which amounts to a lack of faith in Christ. Probably, all those who truly love Christ will be saved regardless of their Christian religious affiliation. However, believers must love the Christ of the Bible. They must love Jesus who is God and not some phony Jesus who was invented by their religion and who is less than God. True believers do fit into many categories, but they are all destined for heaven and they all possess an eternal fellowship with Christ. Those who do not believe that Jesus is God are not true believers.
All unbelievers, whether they are atheistic or religious, are bound for hell. Because of their disconnection from the eternal Spirit, they are destined to sink toward absolute nothingness forever. Their dualities can never be broken because they were created by God. Absolute nothingness can never completely destroy anything created by God.
This is truly a horrible fate, to sink forever toward destruction without ever being completely destroyed. Yet, one must remember that they descend into hell because they chose to put their faith in finite intelligence. For the most part, religious beliefs are in what man can do, which also amounts to belief in finite intelligence. In pride, unbelievers choose to believe in themselves rather than to humble themselves enough to ask God to save them. Even if God were to accept them into heaven, their condition would be far more horrible for them than hell itself. In heaven they would be compelled to admit that there is an Infinite Power far greater than themselves. Since they do not love God, they would be forced to live in constant humiliations. In time, they would beg to be sent back to hell. No doubt, all those in hell believe that someday their finite intelligences will devise a plan to get them out of there. They will always have a kind of hope.
Thus, for those who have faith in finite intelligence, heaven would prove a far worse punishment than would hell. Yet, there exists a finite punishment that is far worse than even the eternal punishment of hell. This punishment is the same kind that the Apostle Peter suffered shortly after denying Jesus. This is the punishment of believers’ remorse.
Imagine the depth of agony that Peter must have felt as recorded in Luke 22:61-62. Yet, he faced his remorse and allowed it to carry him to repentance, and as always, the forgiveness of Jesus. Jesus wanted Peter to know that he was forgiven in John 21 when Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. Vestiges of shame would not allow Peter to reply with the strongest word for love; that is, the word "agape."
In contrast, Judas Iscariot also felt remorse for his betrayal of Jesus. Yet, pride kept him from allowing himself to be guided to the humility of repentance. Instead, he chose the lesser punishment of killing himself and going to hell. He would have to suffer many terrors in hell, but at least, he would not have to suffer the humiliation of having to repent. Because those in hell become demonic, in time, he would come to be glad that he betrayed Jesus.
Believers who commit suicide and those who die while living in deliberate disobedience suffer a tremendously profound remorse and subsequent repentance before the judgment seat of Christ that proves to be a worse punishment than all of the fires of hell could ever inflict. Yet, they can not lose their salvation and go to hell because God wills it so. They are predetermined to be conformed to the image of Christ because God wills it. In conflict with God, believers always lose. God wills that they suffer punishment worse than that of hell until such time as they repent.
The doctrine of purgatory is not taught in scripture. Purgatory would be a form of temporary hell in which the prideful could expiate their own sins. Only Christ can expiate sin, which accounts for the need for humility within believers.
As II Timothy 2:13 indicates, for Christ to deny His believers; He considers to be the same as denying Himself. Because He is literally their death, their life, and their righteousness, Jesus considers believers to have the same level of acceptance with the Father as He does, even if they quit believing. He can and will correct them, but He will never deny them. Note what Jesus said to Saul in Acts 9:4: "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me"?
II Corinthians 5:10 and I Corinthians 3:12-17 teach that there will be a judgment of believers. I Corinthians 3:15 indicates that this judgment is for the saved. In this judgment, sinful believers receive a far greater punishment than they would ever have received in any temporary hell.
Verse 15 teaches that a believer’s evil works will be burned. Verse 17 indicates that God will destroy him. Yet, verse 15 states that he will be saved. This is not a contradiction. Apparently, that part of the believer’s personality that still clings to sin will be destroyed along with his evil works. This requires a depth of remorse and agony unknown to those in hell. Those in hell are punished forever, but at least they are allowed to remain what they are. Having a part of oneself destroyed would require a greater agony in finite time than could the fires of hell in infinite time.
Jesus evidently referred to believers’ punishment in Matthew 5:25-26, and in His parable recorded in Luke 12:41-48. This parable refers to a judgment of servants, and scripture never refers to unbelievers as servants of God. Jesus taught in His parable that faithful servants will be rewarded and unfaithful ones punished. What divides those who are punished from those who are rewarded? This judgment belongs to Christ alone. Eventually, Christ will bring all punished believers out of their agony upon repentance, forgive them, and restore them to fellowship with God and their fellow saints. This happens because God’s perfection of believers is unchangeable and inevitable. This is what God has done, and is doing, and He can not fail.
Chapters 21 and 22 of Revelation describe heaven as being unimaginably beautiful. This constitutes an apt environment for believers; they being directly connected to the infinite creativity and wisdom of God. The greatest joy of heaven is that believers will see Jesus and will forever praise and worship Him. Believers are also those of the human race who will enjoy progress forever. Believers will spend eternity in education and creativity, and all for the glory of God.
Hell is the appropriate place for unbelievers. Their suffering will prevent them from thinking about how to concoct any more evil. Eventually, as Revelation 20: 14-15 and Revelation 21: 8 indicates, hell and death and all unbelievers will be cast into the lake of fire where they will be thoroughly purged of all possibility of devising any more evil at all. God fully intends to eliminate all sin and evil from His universe. However, if any unbeliever will simply put their faith in Christ's power to save them, then He cannot refuse them as He has promised in John 6: 37.
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