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The Harrowing of Hell By Gary Amirault (From Wikipedia) On the subject of "The Harrowing of Hell," Wikipedia states: "Among Christians, descendit ad inferos is perhaps the most controversial part of the Apostles Creed; some believers are disturbed by the doctrine's assertion that when he died, Jesus went to Hell. In the New Testament, two passages of 1 Peter alone affirm the doctrine, which is otherwise unparalleled: 1 Peter 3:19-20 says that Jesus "went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah..."[1] Similarly 1 Peter 4:6 says that the gospel was "proclaimed even to the dead..." "A symptom of how few clear parallels can be found, 2 Corinthians 2:14 has been interpreted[citation needed] to include the harrowing of Hell: "But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads in every place the fragrance that comes from knowing him"[2] "The Harrowing of Hell has also been seen in the Epistle to the Ephesians 4:8-10, which says: "Therefore it says, "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men." (In saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) "The Authorized Standard Version renders 4:8 "Wherefore he saith, When he ascended on high, he led captivity captive, And gave gifts unto men." "This is a truncated paraphrase adapting Psalm 68:18, with a changed point of view: "When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious-that you, O LORD God, might dwell there."[4] The parenthetical verses 9-10 of Ephesians are widely read as an exegetical gloss that has found its way into the text. The word for "lower parts" (the comparative form: ta ?at?te?a) is similar to the word used for "hell" in the Greek version of the Apostles Creed (the superlative form: ta ?at?tata, English: "lowest [places]"). There are three views of this passage from Ephesians: 1) it refers to Jesus' burial, 2) it refers to his descent into the underworld or hell, and 3) it refers to his Incarnation as an act of deep humility." New Revised Standard Version NRSV). NRSV ESV NIV (End of quote from Wikipedia.) If we understand the purpose for Christ's death, burial and resurrection, we would find there are more scriptures proving Christ's descent into Sheol/Hades to "set the captives free," even those who "were disobedient in the days of Noah" than Wikipedia lists. The Roman Catholic church which invented the Hell of everlasting punishment as far as the Church goes, tried to make it appear that Christ only went to Sheol/Hades/Hell to deliver the patriarchs and other "righteous" people. They divided Sheol/Hades/Hell into several compartments without a shred of Scriptural support. The Roman Catholic Church also introduced key mistranslations of important Hebrew and Greek words in their "Latin Vulgate" which greatly effected the translations into the common languages of Europe during the Reformation. The Reformation Bible errors crept into most of our modern Bible translations and so Hell, according to the traditional churches, Hell has not yet been Harrowed. But harrowed it will! You can be most assured! When we focus on Christ's purpose for coming to the earth, it becomes obvious that He will accomplish what He set out to do - Harrow Hell! To "harrow" means to level or to pulverize soil as with an impliment like a disk harrow. In a sense, Jesus prophesied the harrowing of the city of Jerusalem which occurred in 70 AD. What was the purpose of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection? God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. And if anyone hears my words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world . Who comes down from heaven and gives Life to the world. The Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself. As you have given Him authority over all flesh , that He should give eternal life to as many as you have given Him. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. God, Who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, Whom He has appointed heir of all things , through Whom also He made the worlds. To take away the sin of the world: "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world . To set the captives free: Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound (Isaiah 61:1) For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. His purpose is very clear: to reconcile all things back to His Father. According to Scripture, Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, created all things, reconciles all things, is Heir of all things, has authority of all things, will have all men to be saved, His grace comes to all men, He takes away the sin of the world , He gives His flesh for the life of the world , He is the propitiation for the sins of the world , whose gifts are irrevocable of which life is one of the gifts, He manifested to put away sin, He preached to the spirits in prison and holds the keys to death and hell, who changes not, He is Lord of both the living and the dead, he will destroy all enemies of God the last one being death, Who made all things alive, Who completes the work the Father gave Him to do, Who restores all things, gave Himself a ransom for all , He takes away the curse and said He came to do the will and work of the Father who wills that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth so that God, the Father may be all in all! I could lengthen this paragraph considerably, but I think the point has been made. Jesus said He finished the work and accomplished His purpose which was also the Fathers purpose.to be the Savior of the whole world.to reconcile everyone back to His Father and our Father! Dear reader, please contemplate what I am about to say very carefully and prayerfully understanding that "God's chosen" people after 1600 years of tradition couldn't recognize their own Messiah because they had swallowed "traditions of men which make the word of God of no effect. Be humble enough to acknowledge that it is possible after 2,000 years of Church "traditions" (of which there are thousands not found in the Bible), that perhaps you, yourself, may have swallowed some traditions which prevent you from seeing what is plainly right before your eyes. Before you read the rest of the tract, look over carefully once again the purposes Jesus came to the earth. Based upon the scriptures above, if Jesus loses a single sheep, a single soul, will He have accomplished what He was sent to accomplish? As I stated, we, Christians have inherited many traditions not founded upon the teachings of Jesus and His apostles. The meaning of the word "sin" is one example. In both the Hebrew (chatah) and Greek (hamartano) the word for the English word "sin" means to "miss the mark" as in aiming an arrow at a target. The Benjamites had 700 men who could hurl a stone in a sling and not miss, not chatah, not sin. If all of the above are the purpose for Jesus coming to the earth and He loses a single human being, did He not fall short of His purpose? TO SIN-STRONG'S CONCORDANCE NUMBER 264-GREEK-HAMARTANO-"TO MISS THE MARK (AND SO NOT SHARE IN THE PRIZE), TO ERR." HEBREW-STRONG'S NUMBER 2398-FROM THE ROOT, "CHATA-TO MISS." According to what most Christians have been taught by their church leaders, Jesus is going to lose far more than a single soul, Jesus is going to lose the vast majority of mankind. Yet according to the purpose for Jesus came to the earth set up by God the Father, if He misses a single soul, Jesus cannot be the promised Messiah because He will have sinned, He will have "missed the mark" of His calling. If Jesus loses a single soul, He will have become a sinner and therefore our hope in Him would be in vain. He MUST reconcile all things back to His Father in order to accomplish His purpose for going to the Cross. "For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And he is before all things and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the ecclesia, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself , by Him whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross." (Colossians 1:16-20) Please understand that when the scriptures talk about "things" being reconciled back to God, He is not talking about rocks and trees. It was descendants of Adam who were cast out of the presence of God in the garden of Eden, remember? We need to be restored, reconciled, redeemed and the Scriptures make it abundantly clear that His purpose, goal, will and work was to reconcile all. Jesus came to "destroy the works of the devil." Satan came to "kill steal and destroy." Who did Satan steal mankind from? To whom do human beings truly belong? Satan, through deceiving Adam condemned all mankind to death. Death is separation from God in our minds. Satan cut mankind from fellowship with God by planting fear of God into our minds. "Adam where are you?" "I was afraid and so hid myself." Who was Adam hiding from? God. These above Scriptures make it abundantly clear what the goal, the mark, the target which Jesus was aiming at when He went to the Tree of Crucifixion. The majority of the church says Jesus either will not (Calvinist) or cannot (Arminianist) save all mankind due to Satan and the power of "free-will." The majority of the church says He will sin, that is, miss the mark . There has always been a minority in church history, (which used to be the majority before the dark ages) who believe the Scriptures that declare Jesus Christ the actual Savior of the whole world. This minority pays close attention to Scriptures and notices things like that fact that Paul, the apostle to the nations, never preached salvation as deliverance from our modern concept of Hell. As a matter of fact, he never used the word "Hell"! That should make one think. Go to a concordance and see for yourself. Part of the problem regarding why we can't seem to see what is plainly written is that we, particularly Americans, have injected our love of individuality and freedom to choose into our theology. We've made salvation an individual thing. While that is true in some sense, when we look at the Bible overall, God's picture of what He plans do to in the earth is much more encompassing than the narrow minded "self" centered creatures, we, Westerners have become. We like the idea that we, individually, "decided to follow Jesus," when, in fact, Jesus says that nobody decides such a thing. Apart from receiving the grace to see, we, all, like sheep have gone astray. There is NONE that seek after Him. No, not one and that, my friend, despite what you have been told and perhaps feel, is the truth. As Bibles get closer to the original languages, Hell and "eternal" punishment passages in Bibles are disappearing. The King James Bible used the word "Hell," 54 times. The best present-day Bibles such as the NIV, NASB, and NRSB, do not contain the word in the Old Testament at all, and only about a dozen times in the New Testament. Many translations do not contain the words "Hell" nor "eternal punishment." When one looks at Bible translations such as Young's Literal Translation by Robert Young, author of the famous Young's Analytical Concordance, one will find Hell completely gone and the incorrect and very pagan "eternal punishment" replaced with "age-during punishment." Other translations have "age-abiding correction," "eonian chastening," "punishment of the ages," etc. This article is much too short to get into the subject, but none of these Hell or "eternal punishment" type of phrases should ever have been brought into English translations. The Roman Catholic Church, with its "convert or die" policies, took many of the pagan and idolatrous practices of the countries it forced to convert and "christened" them, that is, incorporated them into the church. That is how thousands of pagan ideas and practices became "christianized." When one seriously studies the Reformation, we realize that Protestants did not go all the way in cleaning up all the errors the Catholic Church incorporated." They left many false doctrines in tact. One of these false doctrines which came from pagan countries is the idea of a place of eternal punishment called "Hell." A quick look into an encyclopedia should tell a person this word in its religious form comes from Norse mythology, not from the Greek and Hebrew in the Bible. The whole concept of a place of eternal torment comes from a mistranslation of the Hebrew word Sheol and the Greek words Hades, Gehenna, and Tartarus all being translated into the Anglo-Saxon word "Hell." The Reformation translators often translated from their traditions, rather than from knowledge of Hebrew and Greek. As Bible translations get closer to the original languages, our pagan concept of Hell will fade away. I understand it is very difficult to remove this hideous, Satanically inspired teaching from one's mind because it is found in many English translations. But it doesn't belong there. I have about 3 feet of shelf space in my library of English Bible translations that do not have the word Hell in them from cover to cover. In the years ahead, Bible translations will become much better - AND they will remove Satan's greatest lie that he has used so successfully to keep people in fear preventing them from coming into perfect love. "Perfect love casts our fear!" Paul never preached a place of eternal torment to anyone! That is why he could say in 1 Timothy 4:9-11, "This is a faithful saying worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men , especially those who believe." He could also say and mean, "Love never fails!" 13:8) John tells us that "God is Love." (1 John 4:8) Therefore, God never fails! He never misses the mark! We, in our short-sightedness may have brought Him down to our image, that is, a sinner, but He will be vindicated. When He is, will you hang your head in shame? It is not too late to "study to show yourself approved" and see for yourself the glorious Truth that the salvation of the world does not depend upon a church that constantly contradicts itself and the Scriptures. No, the world, all of it, is in much better hands. Jesus Christ, the Savior of all mankind, Who gave Himself a ransom for all , including you, whether you presently are aware of it or not. Some people think that if everyone is going to be saved that this diminishes the cross, but just the opposite is true! If Jesus went to the cross to redeem those under the curse of Adam and only ended up with a small percentage of those He died for THAT, dear friend, is diminishing the work of the Cross. That makes Jesus the foolish builder who couldn't finish what He started. That makes Jesus the foolish king who went to war not having enough men and resources to win. "It is finished," He cried from Calvary . Ask the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, Who will lead you into all Truth, to reveal to you the full meaning of those three words. They declare Jesus hit the mark at which He was aiming. It is important for you to do this. You, also, have a mark set for you. To give God full Glory. Don't fall short by saying He will fall short in His Word, His promises, His work, His purposes, and His Love and Mercy which never fail nor end. Remember, Love NEVER fails, not for anyone including you, your friends or your favorite enemies. In the light of what we have just read, let's look at some more verses in the Bible which speak of the "harrowing of Hell" bringing the "restoration of all things" as spoken by the mouths of the prophets: Jesus Christ, Savior of the world (John 4:42, 1 John 4:14; 1 Tim. 4:9-11, a triple witness) Contained herein are two sets of Scriptures which point to the Salvation of all mankind through the work of Jesus Christ. The first list is from what is commonly called the New Testament. The list comes from the book "Every Knee Shall Bow" by Mark T. Chamberlain. The second list comes from what is commonly called the Old Testament. Jesus said the Law and the Prophets testified about Him. Their testimony reveals they expected the true Messiah to be the savior of the whole world. If the Messiah you believe in, doesn't match the qualifications of the Law and the Prophets, perhaps you should do some serious thinking and prayering: Creation ... when all things were created by Christ with full knowledge of the fall of man that was to come and a plan already in place to redeem mankind. He who created all things will "reconcile to himself ALL things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross" (Colossians 1:20). This reconciliation or restoration of ALL things was foretold by God when He "spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago" (Acts 3:21). God has appointed His Son to be the "heir of ALL things" (Hebrews 1:2) and in God's Son "shall ALL the nations be blessed" (Galatians 3:8). God has given His Son "authority over ALL flesh, to give eternal life to ALL whom He has given Him" (John 17:2). "The Father has given ALL things into the Son's hands" (John 3:35) and so "ALL flesh shall see the salvation of God" (Luke 3:6). Because of "the unchangeable character of God's purpose" (Hebrews 6:17), because His love for His enemies is unchanging and "He is kind to the ungrateful and evil" (Luke 6:35). "He desires ALL people to be saved" (1 Timothy 2:4). He "gave himself as a ransom for ALL" (1 Timothy 2:6). He "is not wishing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should reach repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). He "has consigned ALL to disobedience, that he may have mercy on ALL" (Romans 11:32) "for from him and through him and to him are ALL things" (Romans 11:36). So God's plan is "to unite ALL things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth" (Ephesians 1:10). The Father has "put ALL things under Christ's feet" (Ephesians 1:22) and has "given ALL things into his hands" (John 13:3). Jesus has promised to "draw ALL men" to Himself (John 12:32) because "the Father loves the Son and has given ALL things into his hand" (John 3:35). Jesus said, "ALL that the Father gives me will come to me" (John 6:37). Jesus says that like a good shepherd, He will search for each of His lost sheep "until he finds it" (Luke 15:4). "God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him" (John 3:37). "The grace of God has appeared bringing salvation for ALL people" (Titus 2:11). Jesus is the "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Jesus gave His flesh as bread "for the life of the world" (John 6:51). "He gives life to the world" (John 6:33). He is "the light of the world" (John 8:12). "He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2). "He is the Savior of ALL people" (1 Timothy 4:10), "the Savior of the world" (John 4:42; 1 John 4:14). "He appeared to destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8). Jesus "abolished death" (2 Timothy 1:10). "He has put away sin by the sacrifice of himself" (Hebrews 9:26). His power "enables him to subject all things to himself'" (Philippians 3:21). "The gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does" (1 Peter 4:6). He has "the keys of Death and Hades" (Revelation 1:18). He will throw "Death and Hades into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:14). "In Christ shall all be made alive" (I Corinthians 15:22). He "accomplished the work" that the Father gave Him to do (John 17:4). "He restores all things" (Acts 3:21). "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:10-11). "Every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, `To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever! "' (Revelation 5:13). "Then comes the end, when he [Jesus] delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For `God has put all things in subjection under his feet.' But when it says `all things are put in subjection,' it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all" (1 Corinthians 15:24-28). These verses have not just been thrown together haphazardly. They are the expression of that purpose that runs through the Bible, a purpose first stated in mankind's creation in the image of God, a purpose that can be traced throughout the entire Bible, in the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets, and most clearly in the New Testament. From it we learn at least three things: Christ came claiming the entire human race as His own, to the end that He would save and restore the entire race, not just part of it. He came with full power and authority over all men, having received all power in heaven and earth over all hearts, all evil, all wills. He lived and died and rose again, completely victorious, having fully accomplished the work His Father gave Him to do, which was the salvation of the world. To deny universal restoration and reconciliation is to mutilate the Scriptures. We are not dealing with a few isolated verses in which it might be possible to say that "all" was used loosely and doesn't really mean "all." We have a connected series in which link follows link-a series that teaches the actual, not potential, universality of Christ's Kingdom. Let's look closer at these passages, taking them in their natural and fair meaning, not obscured by the traditions of men. Luke 19:10: "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." The question is this: Will Jesus Christ really do what He said He came here to do? He didn't say He came to save some of the lost. He came to save the lost. And that is everybody! Apart from Christ, we are all lost, but He came to seek for us until He finds us (Luke 15:4). Luke 3:6: "All flesh shall see the salvation of God." This verse is probably taken from Isaiah 40:5, which says, "And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." Surely these verses point in the direction of universal salvation. Matthew 5:8: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." Luke 6:27-36: "But I [Jesus] say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungratefujl and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. If you are a Christian, you have probably read this passage many times to discover what kind of lifestyle Jesus expects from you. Have you ever thought of reading it as a description of God? Look at it in that light. Jesus says in the end that if you do these things, you will be like your Father, "for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil" and "your Father is merciful." Remember also that He is unchanging. If God's attitude toward sinners now is love and mercy, it will always be. Could the loving God described above really be happy knowing that even one of His children created in His image is suffering unspeakable anguish in hell forever? Matthew 12:29: "How can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house." Luke 11:21-22: "When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe; but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil." In these verses, the strong man is Satan, the stronger man is Christ, and the plunder or spoil is mankind. Jesus defeated Satan on the cross and He will eventually carry all of the spoils of that victory to be with Him. If anyone is eternally lost, Jesus' victory was only partial. In the NLT, Luke 11:22 is translated, "Until someone who is stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings." Jesus won the right on the cross to strip Satan of all his belongings, and He will! Luke 15:4: "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?" Forgive me for coming back to this passage, but it is one of my favorites. To me it is so clear. If the average shepherd would keep on looking for one lost sheep and not give up until he finds it, surely our Lord will be no less persistent in seeking out every last one of His sheep, not just until they die, but until He finds them and brings them back safely to His fold. Praise His name forever! By asking, "What man of you...," Jesus gives clear sanction to the right to argue from those feelings shared even by the outcast and sinful, to the divine feelings as I have done in chapter 2. It is obvious that that is exactly what Jesus is doing here in this passage. It is as if He said, "If a shepherd won't give up until he finds one lost sheep, how much more will God refuse to give up on His children!" John 1:6-7: "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him." That ALL might believe! That is God's stated reason for sending John, and that is His reason for all of His dealings with mankind. Dare we say that God will fail to accomplish His goal in sending John and all of the other prophets, and His only begotten Son? John 1:29: "The next day he [John] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, `Behold, the Lamb of God, who is going to try to take away the sin of the world!"' Is that what it says? Jesus is "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" The sin of the whole world, not just a part of it. Will He do it? Does He work "all things according to the counsel of his will?" (Ephesians 1:11). John 3:17: "God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." Again, why would God, who is all knowing, send Jesus to save the world if He knew beforehand that most of the world would not be saved? That doesn't make sense. God sent Jesus to save the world because He knew His Son would accomplish exactly what He sent Him to do. John 3:35, 6:37-39: "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day." The false belief that salvation must take place before physical death necessitates explaining away even the clearest scriptures. If you believe that punishment after death is temporary and remedial, as I hope to show when we get to our study of the Greek words translated "eternal" and "everlasting," the above verses are crystal clear. The Father has promised the Son that everyone will eventually come to Him. He has given them to Him. Their destiny as redeemed children of God is sure! John 6:33: "For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Notice He doesn't offer life to the world-He gives it! I am not saying faith and repentance are unnecessary. I am saying that verses like Philippians 2:10 about every knee bowing and every tongue confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God look forward to a time when everyone who has ever been born has come to faith and repentance. John 12:32: "And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." We have already looked at this verse. Remember Jesus didn't say that He would draw a select group called "The Elect"! He doesn't say He will try to draw all people to Himself. He says He will do it! He says in the words of a poet: So shall I lift up in My pierced hands Beyond the reach of grief and guilt The whole creation. -E.B. Browning Matthew 11:27: "All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and ANYONE to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." This verse says as clearly as it possibly can that the only thing necessary for anyone to know God is for Jesus to choose to reveal Him to them. Why would Jesus choose not to reveal the Father to anyone for whom He died? In what has become known as the High Priestly Prayer, just before His betrayal and arrest, Jesus says in John 17:1-3: "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over ALL flesh, to give eternal life to ALL whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." Who has the Father given to Jesus? All flesh. Or as John 3:35 says, "all things," or as John 12:32 says, "all people," the salvation of every person has been predestined from before the foundation of the world. The Father has given ALL mankind to Jesus, and He will draw them ALL to Himself in His time. John 19:30: "When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, `It is finished."' J.C. Ryle writes, "Our Lord meant that His great work of redemption was finished. He had as Daniel foretold, `finished transgression, made an end of sin, made reconciliation for iniquity, and brought in everlasting righteousness' (Daniel 9:24). After thirty-three years, since the day when He was born in Bethlehem, He had done all, paid all, performed all, suffered all that was needful to save sinners and satisfy the justice of God. He had fought the battle and won it, and in two days He would give proof of it by rising again." If the salvation of all men was not secured on the cross but only made available, it would have been far from finished. The battle would have just begun. The hard part would have been getting people to receive the salvation made available to them. People do need to receive it, but Jesus died knowing that they all eventually will because the Father had given them all to Him. It is finished! 1 John 2:2: "He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world." So much for limited atonement! Jesus made atonement for the sins of the whole world. Would He who knows all things, who knows the beginning from the end, die for anyone unless He knew His death would have the desired effect of reconciling all people to God? 1 John 3:5: "You know that he [Jesus] appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin." Did Jesus really come just to take sin to hell and leave it there like a toxic waste dump, or did He come to annihilate it? Our next verse answers that question. 1 John 3:8: "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." What is sin? The works of the devil. Jesus came not to keep sin in hell forever but to destroy it. That is why 2 Peter 3:13 says, "But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells." Some day the entire universe will be completely devoid of sin, and God will be all in all! There won't be a place called hell that is full of sin forever, because according to Revelation 20:14, "Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire," presumably for destruction. 1 John 4:14: "And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the few who receive him in life, and to throw the rest into everlasting torment." Is that what it says? No, it says, "The Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world." Will He succeed, or will He fail? Revelation 1:18: "I [Jesus] have the keys of Death and Hades." How can death eternally separate anyone from Christ when He has the keys of Death and Hades and He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance? Revelation 5:13: "And I [John] heard EVERY creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and ALL that is in them, saying, `To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"' How can people be left in hell weeping and wailing and gnashing their teeth if they are ALL gathered before the throne of God and the Lamb, worshipping them and ascribing to them blessing and honor and glory? Ephesians 1:9-10: God's "purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time," is to "unite ALL things in him [Christ], things in heaven and things on earth." What other meaning could these verses possibly have than the clear meaning that is right there? In the fullness of time, ALL things ("all people," according to the context) will be united in Christ and God will be all in all! That is why Paul talks in verse 12 about "we who were the first to hope in Christ." We who are believers now are the firstfruits. The rest will follow in due time. Acts 3:21 (NLT): Jesus "must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of ALL things, as God promised long ago through the prophets." Again, what else could this refer to but the complete restoration of every child of God created in His image to a right relationship with Him? Acts 24:14-15: "I [Paul] worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, having a hope in God ... that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust." This is the same man who said in Romans 9:3: "I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers." Would he hope for the resurrection of the unjust knowing that they were being raised only to be thrown body and soul into a place of torment forever? We have been looking mostly at the Gospels and Acts. Now we turn to the letters of Paul. We will find in them the stream of promise still widening, the universal nature of redemption indicated with a precision of language and a variety of illustrations that seem impossible to reconcile with endless evil. I don't mean that every passage quoted is in itself conclusive. I do mean that all are relevant, as links in the great chain of promise, which taken together make a very strong case for universal restoration, which brings up an important question: If we are to believe in endless evil and endless suffering, how can we account for such passages that, taken in their natural meaning, obviously point to the wider hope? That the Bible holds out the hope of universal restoration and reconciliation cannot be denied (Acts 3:21; Colossians 1:20). If this will never take place, why is it in the Bible? Why does the Bible raise expectations that will never be fulfilled? Paul's writings deserve special notice. His writings are the closest thing to a systematic theology in the Bible ranging over the whole field of the divine purpose and human destiny. I want to draw your attention to two points: Not only does Paul assert the sovereignty of God, but it also lies at the center of his teaching. He sees everywhere a purpose slowly but surely fulfilling itself, a purpose that can be resisted but not defeated. He gives striking prominence to the resurrection as a spiritual and redemptive force. It is the climax of Christ's work for man. In Romans 4:13, he says that God promised "Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world." God chose Abraham not for Abraham's sake only, but also that he might inherit the world. This is a spiritual inheritance, not physical. In verse 17, Paul cites Genesis 17:5: "As it is written, `I have made you the father of many nations."' Romans 5:18: "Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for ALL men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for ALL men." This passage couldn't be more explicit. Everyone who was condemned by Adam's sin will be justified by Christ's death. If the word "ALL" means "all mankind" in the first part of the verse, it means "all mankind" in the second part. I highly recommend studying the entire passage (Romans 5:12-21) without a commentary. Commentators will just try to explain away the clear teaching of this passage, which is that grace is always stronger than sin. Romans 5:15: "If many [everyone] died through one man's [Adam's] trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift [salvation] by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many [everyone]." This verse is another example of those who believe in eternal hell changing the meaning of a word in the same sentence. In the first part of the verse, they say the word "many" refers to all men because Adam's trespass brought death on all mankind, but when Paul uses the same word in the second half of the same sentence, they say it refers only to those who are born again before they die, because they refuse to believe that God's grace will reach every man. Paul clearly says in this verse that the grace of God and the free gift of salvation abounds for everyone! Romans 11:11-31: "So I ask, did they [Israel] stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean ! Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree. Lest you be wise in your own conceits, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob; and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins." As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. Study this passage carefully and prayerfully and see how God, the Master Strategist, is working everything together toward a goal that cannot fail! What is that goal? The next verse tells us. Romans 11:32: "For God has consigned ALL to disobedience, that he may have mercy on ALL." God chooses this person or nation and hardens that person or nation not to save a select group called "the elect" as Calvinists would have us believe, but so that "he may have mercy on all." Romans 11:36: "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen." Look at each part of this declaration one at a time. "For from him ... are all things." This obviously means that all things have their origin in Him. He created every thing. "Through him ... are all things" Everything is sustained by Him. "To him are all things." As all things had their origin in Him, so they will return to Him. To Him be glory forever!! Amen! Romans 14:11: "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God." The margin of the ESV says, "Or shall give praise." The NASB translates it: "Every tongue shall give praise to God." The CEV: "Everyone will kneel down and praise my name!" The words are self-explanatory. Everyone will praise God! 1 Corinthians 15:22: "As in Adam ALL die, so also in Christ shall ALL be made alive." The Message translates it: "Everybody dies in Adam; everybody comes alive in Christ." Again I would ask you, Does it really make sense to take the first "all" to mean everyone and confine the second "all" to those who die in Christ? It is obvious that Paul has the same group in mind in both halves of the verse. 1 Corinthians 15:22-28: "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For "God has put all things in subjection under his feet." But when it says, "all things are put in subjection," it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all. At the end, there is no place for sin, evil, or hell, for God is all in all! If God has to cast some people into everlasting hell, it means that He was unable to get them to submit themselves to Him. They won't be submitting themselves to Him in hell; they will be hating Him and cursing Him for all eternity. What kind of subjection is that? All will willingly subject themselves to Jesus and to God the Father after He has purged them of all sin and rebellion. The same word is used of Christ's subjection to the Father, and of the subjection of Christ's enemies to Him. Obviously Christ's subjection to the Father is out of love. How can endless evil and torment be described as subjection to Jesus? Such an interpretation is excluded by the last statement in this passage: "that God may be all in all"! 1 Corinthians 15:55: "0 death, where is your victory? 0 death, where is your sting?" If the majority of mankind will go to everlasting hell after death, it would seem that death will have won a gigantic victory! I urge you to study this entire section of scripture (1 Corinthians 15:12-58) and notice Paul's increasing rapture as his argument expands, as the prospect opens up to him of a universe yet to be, from which all sin and death are wiped out. Paul's words give only an imperfect expression of the absolute triumph of Christ, of the flood of glory that will fill the universe in the widest possible sense. God will be all in all! 2 Corinthians 5:19: "In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself." Note that it doesn't say God was trying to reconcile the world to Himself. He was doing it! Study this whole passage carefully (2 Corinthians 5:11-21). God's reconciliation of the world to Himself is an accomplished fact. When we tell others about Christ, we are just telling them to embrace what has already been accomplished. And if they don't do it in this life, they will in the life to come when EVERY knee shall bow and EVERY tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God! Ephesians 1:9-10: "His purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time," is "to unite ALL things in him, things in heaven and things on earth." If all things in heaven and earth are to be united in Christ, how is there any possibility of an endless hell or a creation permanently divided? Ephesians 1:22-23: "And he [the Father] put all things under his [Jesus'] feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all." The Greek verb used here for all things being under Christ's feet is used in 1 Corinthians 15:28, referring to the subjection of Christ to the Father. As we saw in looking at that verse, Christ's subjection of Himself to the Father is willing submission out of His love for the Father. That is the same submission Jesus will someday have from "all things." Notice the last phrase of verse 23: "the fullness of him who fills all in all." God fills everything in every way. The idea of a place existing for all eternity where people are forever shut out from the presence of God doesn't fit in a universe where God fills all in all. Ephesians 4:8: "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men." Who are these captives? Luke 11:22, which we have already looked at, tells us. When Christ, the stronger man, broke into the strong man's (Satan's) house, he carried away all his belongings. 1 Peter 3:19, 4:6 tells us that Christ went and proclaimed the gospel to the spirits in prison (Hades) that they might live in the Spirit as God does. Ephesians 4:10: "He who descended is the one who ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things." As we saw in looking at Ephesians 1:23, if Christ fills all things, how can there be an everlasting hell where people are forever shut out from the presence of Christ? The doctrine of eternal hell totally contradicts so many verses of scripture. The day is coming when God will completely eradicate sin from existence, not just keep it tucked away in a dark corner of the universe called hell forever! Colossians 1:19-20: Through Christ "God was pleased ... to reconcile to himself ALL things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross." If God's goal in sending Christ was to reconcile everything to Himself, nothing can thwart that goal because He "works all things according to the counsel of his will" (Ephesians 1:11). Philippians 2:10-11: "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Don't let that word "should" throw you. The NASB, NLT, NCV, CEV, The Message, and other translations all say "will." The key phrase is "to the glory of God." If people are just bowing outwardly out of fear or awe while their hearts remain unbowed, that doesn't glorify God. Some day, every creature everywhere will willingly bow in worship and adoration as it says so clearly in our next verse, Revelation 5:13: "And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, `To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"' This is so obviously genuine worship! Would God who loves all mankind really cast anyone into everlasting torment who worships Him like this? Obviously John is looking past the judgment to a time when everyone everywhere has at last been reconciled to God and God is all in all! Hallelujah!! In my church we sing a song called "Ancient of Days," which quotes this verse almost verbatim. It goes, "Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto Him who sits on the throne. From every nation all of creation bows before the Ancient of Days. Every tongue in heaven and earth shall declare your glory. Every knee shall bow at your throne in worship." Too bad I seem to be the only one in my church who believes the words as they're being sung. Philippians 3:20-21: "But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject all things to himself." The way that the subjection of all things to Christ is to be understood is clear from the context, "who will transform our body to be like his glorious body." No believer doubts that Christ is able to subdue all things to Himself, but this passage shows decisively what that means. It is making them like Himself, not casting them into everlasting torment! 1 Timothy 2:3-6: "This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time." There are basically three ways this passage can be interpreted: The Arminian-God desires all people to be saved. He gave His only Begotten Son to save everyone. But He can't save anyone except those who are willing to be saved. The Calvinist-God has two wills that "appear" to contradict each other-His revealed will and His secret will. Even though His expressed will is for all people to be saved, He really doesn't want anyone to be saved except for the elect whom He chose before the foundation of the world, and whom He effectually calls to Himself. They call this "apparent" contradiction a paradox or an antinomy. But if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck. In other words, if it looks like a contradiction and sounds like a contradiction, it probably is. The Universalist-God wants all men to be saved. He sent Jesus to die for all men. God is sovereign. Therefore all will eventually be saved. Unfortunately these are not straw men. I have heard and read each of these views from those who hold them. Which one sounds most plausible? 1 Timothy 4:10: "We have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe." The meaning is so clear it's transparent! God IS the Savior of everyone! He is the Savior of believers now and He will save everyone else in due time. 2 Timothy 1:10: "Our Savior Christ Jesus ... abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." Jesus has abolished death, and with death what it implies in scripture--sin and evil. Death abolished and death in its worst form, the second death, maintained forever, are plain contradictions. Titus 2:11: "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people." How is God's grace bringing salvation for all people consistent with the eternal damnation of anyone? 1 Peter 3:19: Christ "went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison." 1 Peter 4:6 tells us what was preached to them. Was it their eternal damnation? No, it was the Gospel. It says, "The gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does. J.C. Ryle says, "Some theologians hold that, between His death and resurrection `He went and preached to the spirits in prison' (1 Peter 3:19) and proclaimed the accomplishment of His work of atonement." Although he himself considered this "doubtful," he says this view was held by Athanasius, Ambrose, Zwingle, Calvin, Erasmus, Calovius, and Alford. This is the most natural way to interpret these verses if you don't have to try to prove the unbiblical teaching that all chance for salvation ends at death. 2 Peter 3:9: "The Lord is ... not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." The NIV translates it: "The Lord is ... not wanting anyone to perish." If the Lord does not want anyone to perish, we can rest assured no one will. We have already shown in chapter 2 that God is able to change people's hearts and make them willing to come to Him even if they come "kicking, struggling, and resentful" as C.S. Lewis so eloquently put it in his testimony. Hebrews 1:2: "He [God] has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things." What sort of things do you suppose Jesus Christ is interested in inheriting? Mankind! Psalm 2:7-8: "The Lord said to me, `You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession."' This verse is used in missions textbooks all the time. God has promised to give His Son all the nations as His inheritance, and He will do it! Hebrews 2:5-9: "Now it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere, "What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you care for him? You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet." Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left NOTHING outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for EVERYONE." Here is one more passage to add to the many that speak of Christ's kingdom being destined to extend over all things. I have already shown that subjection to Christ means not the subjugation of slaves, but perfect harmony and peace in the New Testament. The subjection of mankind will be like Christ's subjection to the Father, done out of love. (See notes on Philippians 3:21 and 1 Corinthians 15:25.) Christ has tasted death for everyone! Therefore all will be saved in due time. Hebrews 2:14-15: "Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver ALL those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery." If Jesus' death destroyed the devil as to his having the power of death, how can death continue forever in hell? If Christ's death delivers ALL from the fear of death, how can eternal death be waiting for anyone? Hebrews 6:17 (NIV): "Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath." We see God's unchanging purpose clearly in 2 Peter 3:9 where it says that God is not willing for anyone to perish. The word translated "willing" there is a variant of the word translated "purpose" in Hebrews 6:17. If God's purpose or will is unchanging, and He is not willing that any should perish, we can be sure that God's purpose will come to pass in His time! Hebrews 9:26: "He [Jesus] has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." The NIV translates it, "To do away with sin." That is the question: Did Jesus come to completely do away with sin or just to safely contain it in hell forever? If sin exists forever, Christ's victory is incomplete, because He came to do away with it completely! Amen! Hebrews 13:8: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." The same Lord Jesus Christ that loved sinners when He was here in the flesh, who prayed for those who nailed Him to the cross, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do," that same Jesus will love sinners forever because He is unchanging! A few words of caution must be added here. I hope I have made it clear that in teaching universal salvation, I have not tried to minimize sin, nor have I taught that sinners will be saved while still clinging to their sins. I believe that many people have terrible sufferings awaiting them after they leave this life-how long and how severe I leave up to a loving and just God. But I believe that God never punishes for punishment's sake. He always has the sinner's repentance and restoration in view, and in His wisdom He knows exactly what it will take in each case to bring about the desired results! I am opposed to the popular creed partially because I believe that it in fact teaches men to make light of sin in two ways: first, because it teaches a plan of retribution that is so unjust as to make people secretly believe its penalties will never be inflicted; and next, because it asserts that God either will not, or cannot, overcome and destroy evil and sin, but will bear with them for ever and ever. I repeat that not a single word has been written in these pages that would indicate that God is just a "good of boy" who winks at sin and considers it a light matter when someone violates His holy law! God forbid that I should teach such shallow theology! It is in the light of Golgotha that we see sin as exceedingly sinful, so sinful that nothing less than the death of God incarnate could pay for it. But let us be careful, lest in thinking we are honoring the atonement we are actually dishonoring it by limiting its power to save by teaching that Christ failed in His mission as Savior of the world, making Him a liar. Because He never said, "If I am lifted up I will draw SOME men to myself," or "I will TRY to draw all men to myself," but, "I WILL draw ALL MEN to myself!" Old Testament Scriptures related to Universal Reconciliation: GENESIS 12:3 In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. (NKJV) GENESIS 18:17, 18 And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? GENESIS 22:18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. GENESIS 26:4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. GENESIS 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 1 SAMUEL 2:6 The Lord kills and he gives life, he sends down to Sheol, he can bring the dead up again. ( NEB ) 2 SAMUEL 14:14 For we will surely die and become like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away a life; but He devises means, so that His banished ones are not expelled from Him. (NKJV) JOB 5:17-18 Happy the man whom God rebukes! Therefore do not reject the discipline of the Almighty. For, though he wounds, he will bind up; the hands that smite will heal. ( NEB ) PSALM 10:15 Break the power of wickedness and wrong; hunt out all wickedness until thou can't find no more. ( NEB ) PSALM 13:5 I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. PSALM 16:10 You will not leave my soul in Sheol. (NKJV) ...abandon me to Sheol. ( NEB ) PSALM 17:7 Show me how marvelous thy true love can be. ( NEB ) PSALM 18:30 The way of God is perfect. ( NEB ) PSALM 30:2-3 0 Lord my God, I cried to thee and thou didst heal me. 0 Lord, thou has brought me up from Sheol and saved my life as I was sinking into the abyss. ( NEB ) ...spared me from going down into the pit. PSALM 30:5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. (NKJV) PSALM 31:7 I put my trust in the Lord. I will rejoice and be glad in thy unfailing love. ( NEB ) PSALM 40:4-5 Happy is the man who makes the Lord his trust ... Great things thou hast done, 0 Lord my God; thy wonderful purposes are all for our good. ( NEB ) PSALM 49:15 But God will redeem my life [soul] from the grave [Sheol]; he will surely take me to himself. PSALM 66:10-12 For you, 0 God, have proved us; You have refined us as silver is refined. You brought us into the net; You laid affliction on our backs. You have caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us out to rich fulfillment. (NKJV) PSALM 68:18 When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train. PSALM 72:17-20 His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen. The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended. PSALM 86:9 All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, 0 Lord; trey will bring glory to your name. PSALM 86:13 For thy true love stands high above me; thou hast rescued my soul from the depths of Sheol. ( NEB ) PSALM 88:10-12 Do you show your wonders to the dead? Do those who are dead rise up and praise you? Is your love declared in the grave, your faithfulness in Destruction? Are your wonders known in the place of darkness, or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion? PSALM 100:5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues to all generations. PSALM 102:19-21 The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners and release those condemned to death. PSALM 103:8-14 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, nor will He keen His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. (NKJV) PSALM 103:22 Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion. PSALM 107:43 Let the wise man lay these things to heart, and ponder the record of the Lord's enduring love. ( NEB ) PSALM 116:3-8 The cords of death bend me, Sheol [Hell] held me in its grin. Anguish and torment held me fast; so I invoked the Lord by name. "Deliver me, 0 Lord, I beseech thee..." Gracious is the Lord and righteous, our God is full of compassion ... I was brought low and he saved me ... He has rescued me from death. ( NEB ) PSALM 118:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. PSALM 119:71 How good it is for me to have been punished, to school me in thy statutes! ( NEB ) PSALM 119:75 I know, 0 Lord, that thy decrees are just and even in punishing thou keepest faith with me. ( NEB ) PSALM 138:8 The Lord will accomplish his purpose for me. Thy true love, 0 Lord, endures for ever, leave not thy work unfinished. ( NEB ) PSALM 139:8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. PSALM 145:3-17 Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.. I will meditate on your wonderful works. They will tell of the power of your awesome works, and I will proclaim your great deeds. They will celebrate your abundant goodness ... The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. All you have made will praise you, 0 Lord ... They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, so that all men may know of your mighty acts... Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. The Lord upholds all those who fall ... The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. ECCLESIASTES 3:14 Everything God does will endure forever. ISAIAH 1:25 I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities. ISAIAH 14:24, 27 The Lord Almighty has sworn, "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand"... For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back? ISAIAH 26:9 When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. ISAIAH 46:9-10 I am God, there is no other, I am God, and there is no one like me; I reveal the end from the beginning, from ancient times I reveal what is to be: I say, "My purpose shall take effect, I will accomplish all that I please." ( NEB ) ISAIAH 48:10 See, I have refined you ... I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. ISAIAH 45:22-24 "Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, `In the Lord alone are righteousness and strength.'" All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. ISAIAH 54:7-8 "For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you," says the Lord your Redeemer. ISAIAH 55:1, 3, 5, 8-11 "Come, all you who are thirsty ... I will make an everlasting covenant with you ... Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations that do not know you will hasten to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel ... For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourishes is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. JEREMIAH 23:16-22 Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you ... They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord ... But which of them has stood in the council of the Lord to see or hear his word? Who has listened to and heard his word? See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a whirlwind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until he fully accomplishes the purposes of his heart. In days to come you will understand it clearly. I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied. But if they had stood, in my council, they would have proclaimed my words to my people. JEREMIAH 30:24 See what a scorching wind has gone out from the Lord, a sweeping whirlwind. It whirls round the heads of the wicked; the Lord's anger is not to be turned aside, tit he has finished and achieved his heart's desire. In days to come you will understand. ( NEB ) JEREMIAH 31:34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, "Know the Lord," because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. JEREMIAH 32:27, 32, 37, 40 I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me? The people of Israel and Judas have provoked me by all the evil they have done ... I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furies anger and great wrath ... I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them. LAMENTATIONS 3:31-33 For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. (NIV) Though he may punish cruelly, yet he will have compassion in the fullness of his love; he does not willingly afflict or punish any mortal man. ( NEB ) EZEKIEL 18:23 Have I any desire, says the Lord God, for the death of a wicked man? Will I not rather that he should mend his ways and live? ( NEB ) EZEKIEL 33:11 As I live, says the Lord God, I have no desire for the death of the wicked. ( NEB ) EZEKIEL 34:11-16, 30-31 For these are the words of the Lord God: Now I myself will ask after my sheep and go in search of them. As a shepherd goes in search of his sheep when his flock is dispersed all around him, so I will go in search of my sheep and rescue them, no matter where they were scattered ... I will bring them out from every nation, gather them in from other lands, and lead them home ... I will search for the lost ... They shall know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they are my people Israel , says the Lord God. You are my flock, my people, the flock I feed, and I am your God. This is the very word of the Lord God. ( NEB ) EZEKIEL 37:12 I will open your graves and bring you up from them, and restore you to the land of Israel . You shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them, 0 my people. ( NEB ) HOSEA 6:1 Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us and will heal us, he has struck us and he will bind up our wounds. ( NEB ) HOSEA 14:4, 9 I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them .... Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them. JOEL 2:28, 3:21 And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people ... Their bloodguilt which I have not pardoned, I will pardon. AMOS (selections up to ch. 9): I will send fire ... I will send fire . will send fire ... I will send fire ... I will send fire ... Seem the Lord and live, or he will sweep through the house of Joseph lime a fire ... the Lord will smash the great house into pieces ... I will spare my people Israel no longer ... The time is ripe for my people Israel; I will spare them no longer ... Are not you Israelites the same to me as the Cushites ... I will destroy it from the face of the earthen that day I will restore David's fallen tent ... I will bring back my exiled people Israel . I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted. MICAH 7:18-20 Who is a god like thee? Thou takest away guilt, thou passes over the sin of the remnant of thy own people, thou dost not let thy anger rage for ever but delightest in love that will not change. Once more thou wilt show us tender affection and wash out our guilt, casting all our sins into the depths of the sea. ( NEB ) HABAKKUK 1:5 Loom ... and watch-and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you weld not believe, even if you were told. HABAKKUK 2:3 The revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. HABAKKUK 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. ZEPHANIAH 2:11 The Lord will be awesome to them when he destroys all the gods of the land. The nations on every shore will worship him, every one in its own land. ZEPHANIAH 3:8-9, 15, 17, 19-20 I have decided to assemble the nations, to gather the kingdoms and to pour out my wrath on them-all my fierce anger. The whole world will be consumed by the fire of my jealous anger. Then will I purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him shoulder to shoulder .... The Lord has taken away your punishment... he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love ... I will ... gather those who have been scattered ... At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. ZECHARIAH 13:9 This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. MALACHI 1:11 In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name. MALACHI 3:2-3 Who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a laundress's soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver, he will purify the Levies and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness. MALACHI 3:6-7, 10 "I the Lord do not change. So you, 0 descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed ... Return to me, and I will return to you," says the Lord Almighty..." Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." MALACHI 4:1-2 "Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire," says the Lord Almighty. "Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings." For further information, write to: Tentmaker-118 Walnut, Hermann , MO 65041 E-mail Address: info@tentmaker.org Web site: http://www.tentmaker.org
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Iskrena pitanja i odgovori na temu pakla Iskrena pitanja i odgovori na temu pakla autori: Mercy Aiken i Gary Amirault Znate li da postoji solidan biblijski temelj koji svjedoči protiv ideje pakla? Mnogi nekršćani ne prihvaćaju ideju pakla, no možda će vas iznenaditi kad čujete da sve veći broj kršćana, onih koji vjeruju u Bibliju i drže ju Božjom riječju, također odbacuje ovu ideju - ne unatoč Bibliji nego baš zbog nje! Svrha ovog kratkog poučavanja je postaviti neka pitanja na tu temu i pružiti kratke odgovore. Za dublju pouku, molimo pogledati linkove na kraju ovog članka. Otvoreno i nepristrano proučavanje Biblije, uključujući proučavanje mnogih grčkih i hebrejskih ključnih riječi, kao i povijesti Crkve, otkrit će nam neke iznenađujuće stvari. Na primjer, jeste li znali da… "Pakao“ NIJE Starozavjetna doktrina Popularni je mit da je Pakao doktrina utemeljena na Bibliji i da ga nalazimo u njoj od početka do kraja. To naprosto nije istina! Dvije trećine Biblije (Stari zavjet) uopće ne spominje pakao. Riječ „sheol“ iz Starog zavjeta, koja se na nekim mjestima prevodi kao „pakao“, doslovo znači „grob“ tj. mjesto na kojem svi starozavjeti ljudi završavaju nakon smrti - bilo da su dobri ili zli, Židovi ili pripadnici drugih naroda. Dakle, Stari zavjet ne sadrži ideju pakla. Razmislite o ovome… Ako pakao postoji, zašto Bog na to nije upozorio ljude od samog početka tj. u knjizi Postanka? Bog je rekao da je kazna za jedenje sa stabla spoznaje dobra i zla smrt, a ne „vječno“ bivstvovanje u ognjeno-sumpornom jezeru! Ako pakao postoji, zašto Kain nije bio upozoren na to, kao ni Sodoma ni Gomora, niti bilo tko od onih koji su u Bibliji zabilježeni kao počinitelji najranijih grijeha? Ako pakao postoji, zašto Mojsije nije upozorio na njega u Deset zapovijedi, zapravo ni u jednom dijelu Mojsijevog zakona, u kojem nalazimo preko 600 zakona, odredbi i upozorenja? Mojsijev zakon naprosto navodi blagoslove i prokletstva ovoga života. Ako pakao postoji, zašto njegove korijene nalazimo u poganskim religijama, a ne u Bibliji? Mnogi narodi koji su okruživali starozavjetni Izrael vjerovali su u svojevrsnu kaznu u zagrobnom životu koja bi sličila današnjoj ideji pakla - ta oni su se klanjali krvožednim i zlim „bogovima“, dok je Izrael jednostavno priznavao odlazak u grob (sheol) i imao nadu u uskrsnuće. Ako pakao postoji, zašto je otkrivenje o njemu dano poganskim narodima, a ne Božjem izabranom narodu? Zar je Bog očekivao da će Izraelci naučiti nešto o zagrobnom životu od poganskih naroda? Ako je tako, zašto je stalno upozoravao Izrael da se kloni poganskih običaja svojih susjeda? Ako pakao postoji, zašto je Bog rekao Židovima da mu se gadi običaj žrtvovanja vlastite djece u vatri kao prinos lažnom božanstvu Molehu (u dolini Geheni)? Bog je rekao da on na takvo što nikada „nije ni pomislio“ (Jer 32:35). Kako je Bog mogao to izjaviti ako je sastavni dio njegovog plana „prženje“ velikog dijela vlastitog stvorenja u duhovnoj i vječnoj Geheni koju je sam zamislio? ČINJENICA: Prijevod Biblije engl. kralja Jakova (King James Version) pogrešno prevodi riječ „sheol“ kao „pakao“ ukupno 31 put u Starom zavjetu i tako postavlja temelje doktrini o paklu u Novom zavjetu, kao i u većini prijevoda Biblije koji su uslijedili nakon ovog prijevoda tj. temeljili se na njemu. Unatoč tome, većina najnovijih prijevoda u potpunosti je uklonila riječ „pakao“ iz Staroga zavjeta, kao što su iskreniji i učeniji poznavatelji biblijskih rukopisa tražili. Židovska verzija Staroga zavjeta (Tanak) ne sadrži u sebi ideju pakla! Ne možemo dovoljno naglasiti ovu činjenicu. Ako se sjeme neke doktrine ne nalazi ni u Zakonu, ni u Prorocima, ni u Psalmima, ona ne može biti naučavana kao legitimna biblijska doktrina - ako se uopće može nazvati biblijskom!! Pakao nije Novozavjetna doktrina Rašireni mit je sljedeći: Isus je više govorio o paklu nego o raju. Opet netočno! Isus je mnogo puta upozoravao Židove na propast koja im je prijetila, i kao narodu i kao pojedincima. Koristio je nekoliko različitih termina za kaznu/propast, od kojih su neki pogrešno prevedeni riječju „pakao“. Ne negiramo činjenicu da će Bog doista suditi cijelom svijetu, niti želimo olako shvatiti njegove sudove, međutim dovodimo u pitanje vjerovanje da je Božja presuda za grijeh i nevjeru vječna muka/pakao i vječna odvojenost od Boga. Dakako, Isus je velik dio svoje službe pozivao ljude na obraćenje kako ne bi snosili posljedice (u prvom redu „Gehenu“). No je li moguće da iščitavamo u njegovim upozorenjima nešto čega nema i što uopće nije bila Isusova namjera? Razmislite o ovome...... Ako pakao postoji, zašto je većina upozorenja o kazni/Geheni upućena Izraelu, pogotovo Isusovim vlastitim učenicima, kao i farizejima? Prvu grupu navoda koji se tiču Gehene nalazimo u propovijedi na Gori (Mt 5:22, 29, 30), Isusovoj velikoj propovijedi u kojoj je upozorio svoje učenike da se onaj tko drugoga s prezirom nazove budalom nalazi u opasnosti od Gehene.To je jako daleko od današnjih evangelizacijskih interpretacija koje kažu da neprihvaćanje Isusa za osobnog Spasitelja šalje ljude u pakao! Jesmo li promašili izvorni smisao i simboliku Isusovih riječi? Ako pakao postoji, zar ne izvlačimo stihove iz konteksta kada grešnike ne-židove, ljude koji nisu dio Mojsijevog saveza koji je Bog sklopio s Izraelom, upozoravamo na posljedice grijeha - posljedice koje ih se zapravo i ne tiču budući da nisu dionici tog saveza? Budući da ideja pakla ne postoji u Starom zavjetu, kako su Isus i njegovi učenici mogli poučavati da „spasenje“ znači izbavljenje od mjesta koje uopće ne nalazimo u Svetom pismu? A ako je Isus prvi uveo poučavanje na temu pakla, zašto je to činio tako usput, kao da njegovi slušatelji već dobro znaju o čemu govori? Ako pakao postoji, i s obzirom na to da neki engleski prijevodi Novog zavjeta koriste riječ „pakao“ umjesto grčke riječi „Gehena“, zašto se to isto mjesto (Gehena) ne prevodi riječju „pakao“ na mnogim mjestima u Starom zavjetu gdje nalazimo hebrejski oblik riječi Gehena tj. „ga ben Hinnom“ (dolina Hinomova sina)? Ako Židovi nisu shvaćali Gehenu kao mjesto vječnih muka, nego kao mjesto srama, prljavštine i onečišćenja (jer tamo je Izrael doista sudjelovao u najgorem obliku idolopoklonstva), zašto moderni teolozi ovoj riječi daju smisao koji ona nema u svom izvornom značenju? Shvaćanje Gehene se u židovskim poučavanjima s vremenom doista promijenilo i kazna u zagrobnom životu je postala njegov sastavni dio, no čak ni danas Gehena za Židove ne predstavlja vječnu kaznu! Ako pakao postoji, kako je apostol Pavao (kojeg je Bog posebno pozvao da propovijeda nežidovima) mogao izjaviti da im je iznio sve što mu je Bog naložio da im kaže (Djela 20:27), kada zapravo ni u jednoj od svojih poslanica ne upozorava na pakao? Ako pakao postoji, ne bi li apostol Pavao bio prvi koji će opetovano upozoravati na njega? Ako pakao postoji, onda Adamov grijeh, čija je posljedica smrt, ima daleko snažniji učinak na svijet nego Kristovo uskrsnuće! Pa ipak, u 5. poglavlju poslanice Rimljanima Pavao izjavljuje da Kristova pobjeda nadilazi Adamov prekršaj! Promotrite Pavlovo pouzdanje u Kristovo djelo! Da je Pavao vjerovao u vječni pakao u kojem će završiti dobar dio čovječanstva, bi li napisao sljedeće stihove: "Kao što je posljedica jednog čina prestupa (Adamovog) bila osuda svih ljudi, tako je posljedica jednog čina pravednosti (Kristovog) bilo opravdanje koje donosi život svim ljudima. Jer kao što su neposlušnošću jednoga mnogi postali grešnici, tako će poslušnošću jednoga mnogi biti učinjeni pravednima (nevinima, oslobođenima osude).“ (Rimljanima 5:16-19). "Budući da je po čovjeku došla smrt, također je po čovjeku došlo uskrsnuće od mrtvih. Jer kao što u Adamu svi umiru, tako će u Kristu svi uskrsnuti.“ (1 Kor 15:22). "Zato se trudimo i podnosimo sramotu jer se uzdamo u živoga Boga, koji je spasitelj svih ljudi, osobito onih koji vjeruju.“ (1 Timoteju 4:10). (Gore navedeni stihovi samo su neki od mnogih u kojima Pavao piše o Kristovoj nadmoći koja daleko nadilazi tradicionalno kršćansko gledanje. U ovom članku naći ćete još mnoge Pavlove primjedbe u kojima jasno iznosi svoj pogled na Krista: konačnog pobjednika, svemogućeg, neograničenog, koji nadvladava sve i odnosi konačnu pobjedu!) Ako pakao postoji, kako to da Pavao spominje riječ „pakao“ jedan jedini puta u svim svojim poslanicama - i to onda kada proglašava Kristovu konačnu pobjedu nad njim? (1 Korinćanima 15:55). Riječ „grob“ u ovom odlomku je grčka riječ „hades“ (podzemlje). Ako pakao postoji, kako to da se u Djelima apostolskim o njemu ne govori ni u jednoj od evangelizacijskih propovijedi koje su zabilježili prvi apostoli? Ako pakao postoji, kako to da neki od najboljih poznavatelja i učitelja Biblije tvrde da on ne postoji ni u grčkom ni u hebrejskom tekstu? (William Barclay, John A.T. Robinson, Lightfoot, Westcott, F.W. Farrar, Marvin Vincent itd.) Ako pakao postoji, zašto ta riječ u engleskom jeziku (hell) dolazi od teutonske riječi „Hele“ koja označava Božicu podzemnog svijeta „pakla“ u koji su vjerovali stari narodi sjeverne Europe? Opis tog drevnog mitološkog mjesta nema mnogo sličnosti s današnjim kršćanskim shvaćanjem pakla. Za više informacija o porijeklu riječi pogledajte u neku enciklopediju ili riječnik. ČINJENICA: Apokrifne knjige iz perioda između Starog i Novog zavjeta imale su velik utjecaj na Židove u Kristovo vrijeme. Upravo iz tih knjiga, pogotovo Enohove knjige, potječu mnogi židovski mitovi i legende koji govore o paklu, nebu, demonima, anđelima i mnogim drugim temama, a iz judaizma su se prenijeli u kršćanstvo. Te priče i mitovi dolaze od poganskih utjecaja, pogotovo Zoroastrizma, tokom Babilonskog progonstva i nakon njega. U stvari, Zoroastrizam mnogo više sliči današnjem kršćanstvu nego drevni judaizam! Ako pakao postoji, kako to da je Pavao opetovano upozoravao Timoteja da se drži podalje od židovskih mitova i priča koje su imale utjecaj na mnoge u ranoj crkvi? No umjesto da Pavao podrži te doktrine, on ih proglašava svjetovnim („bapskim“!) pričama (1 Timoteju 1:1; Titu 1:14) Pakao je kontradiktoran Mesijinom djelu: Popularni je mit da je Isus došao na zemlju kako bi spasio grešnike od pakla. Nije točno! Židovi se uopće nisu nadali da će biti spašeni od pakla, budući da nisu niti vjerovali u njega! Ali doista su trebali biti spašeni od svojih grijeha i njihovih posljedica, dakle smrti. Isus je došao kao Pomazanik (Mesija) kako bi ispunio Božji plan za zemlju - da kroz njega dođe spasenje, izbavljenje od grijeha, mir, Božje kraljevstvo i sve ono što je Bog obećao u Starozavjetnim pismima. Mnogo je toga što bismo o ovome mogli napisati, ali radi kratkoće zadržat ćemo se samo na nekim ključnim odlomcima. Molim vas da sami pročitate stihove koji se navode. Razmislite o ovome... Ako pakao postoji, zašto u 22. psalmu (jednom od „proročkih“ tj. onih koji govore o Mesiji) nalazimo obećanje da će se, zbog križa „svi krajevi zemlje sjetiti i obratiti Gospodinu i sve će se obitelji na zemlji klanjati njemu. Jer Gospodinu pripada kraljevska vlast i On vlada narodima. Svi oni koji prosperiraju na zemlji jesti će i štovati ga, svi oni koji odlaze u prah poklonit će se pred njim, svaki onaj tko ne može sačuvati na životu svoju dušu.“ (Ps 22:27-29). Ako pakao postoji, nije li onda, u konačnici, Isusovo poslanje neuspjeh? Jer Isus je rekao: „nisam došao suditi svijetu, nego ga spasiti“. Ako pakao postoji, i mnogi završavaju u njemu, nije li Isus lagao kad je rekao da će, kad bude uzdignut (razapet), sve ljude privući k sebi? (Ivan 12:32) U originalnom grčkom tekstu, za riječ „privući“ nalazimo riječ "helkyo", koja znači „povući silovito“ (koristi se još u smislu „izvući, isukati mač iz korica“). Ako pakao postoji, i vječan je, kako to da Sveto pismo govori da će sve stvoreno u konačnici biti objedinjeno u Kristu? Ako pakao postoji, i vječan je, kako će to onda sve biti podloženo Kristu? (1 Korinćanima 15:28, Filipljanima 3:21, Hebrejima 2:8). Ako pakao postoji, i vječan je, kako onda Sveto pismo obećaje da će se svako koljeno pokloniti i svaki jezik priznati da je Isus Krist Gospodar? (Izaija 45:23, Rimljanima 14:11, Filipljanima 2:10). Ako pakao postoji, i vječan je, kako će onda Isus vidjeti plod patnje svoje duše i biti zadovoljan njime (Izaija 53:11)? Ako je tradicionalno shvaćanje ispravno, mnogi od onih koje je Isus došao spasiti neće nikada iskusiti njegovo spasenje. Zar doista vjerujemo da će Isusu to predstavljati zadovoljstvo? Ako pakao postoji, a Bog je poslao Isusa da spasi ljude od pakla, možemo li zaista reći da je „Kristovom rukom izvršena Božja volja i uspjelo ono što je Bogu ugodno“ (Izaija 53:10, 55:11) ako će, prema tradicionalnoj teologiji, samo malen dio čovječanstva biti spašen? Ako pakao postoji, a đavao je taj koji zavodi ljude tako da završe u njemu, nije li on konačni pobjednik u ratu za ljudske duše? U konačnici, zar tradicionalno tumačenje Biblije ne kaže da će više ljudi završiti u paklu nego na nebu. Ako je tako, možemo li zaista nazivati sotonu pobijeđenim neprijateljem, a Krista pobjednikom? Ako pakao postoji, i većina čovječanstva će ostati zarobljena u stanju smrti i muka bez mogućnosti pokajanja ili izbavljenja iz njega, kako da shvatimo činjenicu (i radujemo joj se) da je Isus uništio smrt i onoga tko je u svojim rukama imao vlast nad smrti, tj. sotonu? (Hebrejima 2:14-15, 1 Ivanova 3:8, Hošea 13:14, 1 Korinćanima 15:55, 1 Korinćanima 15:26 itd.) Ako je pakao vječan, kako će se ostvariti proroštvo da „proširenju Kristove vlasti i miru neće biti kraja“? ČINJENICA: Izraz "spašen" s vremenom je u kršćanstvu poprimio značenje koje nije imao za izvorne slušatelje i čitatelje Svetog pisma. Grčke riječi "sozo" i "soteria" imaju široko značenje koje obuhvaća pojmove poput biti izbavljen, iscijeljen, spašen od neke opasnosti. Te riječi su posvuda u Novom zavjetu primjenjivane za raznovrsne situacije. Kristovo spasenje je mnogo više od onoga što većina kršćana poznaje. Na žalost, većina Crkve je orobljena za puninu spasenja tako što je prihvatila ograničen i futurističan pogled na samu suštinu pojma (čitaj: „ići ću u nebo kad umrem“). Popularni je mit: "Vječnost" je tema koju nalazima posvuda u Bibliji, uključujući i vječnu kaznu. Nije baš tako! Ne negiramo činjenicu da je Novi zavjet pun upozorenja o sudu i da se riječi poput „vječno“, „zauvijek“, „u vijeke vjekova“ itd. često pojavljuju u većini prijevoda. Pažljivije proučavanje izvornih riječi, međutim, otkriva da su one pogrešno prevedene. Nije upitno hoće li Bog kazniti grijeh i pobunu protiv njega, već kako On to čini, sa kojom svrhom te koliko dugo njegovo ispravljanje traje. Razmislite o ovome... Ako je pakao vječan, zašto se hebrejska riječ „olam“ (koja je prevedena tako da znači „vječno/zauvijek“) pojavljuje u mnoštvu stihova koji očito ne znače vječno trajanje? Nekoliko primjera: "vječno“ je izraz koji se pripisuje Aronovom svećenstvu, Mojsijevim propisima, „vječne“ su planine i brda, vrata Hrama, „vječno“ je vrijeme koje će Židovi provesti u poniženju i sramoti. Riječ „zauvijek“ nalazimo u stihovima koji govore o zemaljskom trajanju čovjekova života, o vremenu koje dijete treba provesti u hramu, o trajanju Gehazijeve gubavosti, o trajanju kraljeva života, o vremenu koje sluga treba provesti uz svoga gospodara, o postojanju Hrama u Jeruzalemu, o trajanju Davidova kraljevanja nad Izraelom, o Solomonovom prijestolju, o kamenju postavljenom u Jordanu, o vremenu koje je Jona proveo u utrobi velike ribe. U svim ovim primjerima očito je iz konteksta da se „olam“ odnosi na neko neodređeno vremensko razdoblje - ali ne znači „zauvijek“. Aion i ostale riječi uz nju vezane (aionian i aionios) su grčki ekvivalenti za riječ olam . Aion doslovno znači „doba“ i od nje potječe engleska riječ "eon." Aion/eon (engl. „age“) je naprosto vremenski period. "Aionian and Aionios" riječi su koje se odnose na doba, razdoblja (množina). Dokle god govorimo o mjerenju vremena, ne možemo istovremeno govoriti o „vječnosti“, koja je vanvremenska stvarnost. Ako pakao traje zauvijek, zašto ga se opisuje riječima koje se tiču trajanja u vremenu? Ako grčka riječ „aion“ i njezine izvedenice znače vječno trajanje, na čemu neki biblijski stručnjaci inzistiraju, zašto u novozavjetnom grčkom jeziku, u njegovoj svakodnevnoj upotrebi, ta riječ ne nosi značenje vječnosti, beskrajnog trajanja? (u radovima Platona, Aristotela, Homera, Hipokrata i mnogih drugih te riječi se koriste za opis ograničenog trajanja). Ako je pakao vječan, kako objasniti činjenicu da izvornim piscima i slušateljima Svetog pisma aion/olam nije značio vječan/beskrajan? ČINJENICA: Neki će tvrditi da ako aionian i njegove izvedenice ne znače „vječan“, onda ni Bog ne može biti vječan jer i Njega opisuju te iste riječi. Na to ćemo odgovoriti sljedeće: samo zato što je Bog opisan kao Bog vjekova (eona), ne znači da On ujedno ne nadilazi vjekove. Na isti način, samo zato što je nazvan Bog Izraelov, to ne znači da nije i Bog svih drugih naroda. Osim toga, postoje druge grčke riječi koje se odnose na beskrajnost Božje sile i života. To su aptharsia/apthartos, što znači nepropadljivost i besmrtnost, amarantinos/amarantos što znači neizbljedivost; i akatalytos, što znači neuništivost. Te se riječi obično prevode kao besmrtan, nepropadljiv. Molim pogledajte sljedeće stihove: Hebrejima 7:15-16, 1 Petrova 1:3-4, 1 Petrova 5:4, 1 Timoteju 1:17, Rimljanima 1:23, 1 Korinćanima 9:25, 1 Korinćanima 15:51-54, Rimljanima 2:7, 1 Korinćanima 15:42, 2 Timoteju 1:10, and 1 Timoteju 6:16. Popularni je mit: Sudbina pojedinca zapečaćena je u trenutku njegove smrti. Ako je to istina, što ćemo napraviti sa sljedećim stihovima koji ukazuju na suprotno? Razmislite… "Sigurno moramo umrijeti i kao voda smo, koja se prolije na zemlju i koju se više ne može skupiti; a Bog ne odstranjuje život nego misli na to da prognanik ne ostane prognan od njega." (2 Samuelova 14:14) "Gospodin ubija i oživljuje; on spušta u grob (šeol) i izvodi iz njega.“ (1 Samuelova 2: 6) "Vidite sada da sam ja, koji jesam, da nema boga pored mene. Ja ubijam i oživljujem, ja ranjavam i iscjeljujem, nitko ne može izbaviti iz moje ruke.“ (Ponovljeni zakon 32:39) "Od sile groba (šeola, pakla) otkupit ću ih, osloboditi od smrti! Smrti, ja ću biti tvoja pošast! Grobe (šeole, pakle), ja ću biti tvoje uništenje!“ (Hošea 13:14). "Jer Gospodin ne odbacuje zauvijek; jer ako rastuži, on se također smiluje po veličini svoje dobrote. Jer ne zadaje bol rado i ne žalosti sinove čovjeka.“ (Tužaljke 3:31-33) "Brzo se izmiri sa svojim protivnikom, dok si na putu s njim; da te protivnik ne preda sucu, a sudac ovršitelju i da ne budeš bačen u tamnicu. Zaista, kažem ti, nećeš izaći odande dok ne platiš i posljednji novčić.“ (Matej 5:25-26). Ako je pakao mjesto iz kojega nema povratka, kako to da je rana crkva naučavala da je Isus otišao u pakao (Had) propovijedati i da je „zarobio zarobljeništvo“ ? (Efežanima 4:8,9; Psalam 68:18; 1 Petrova 3:18-20) Ako pakao traje vječno, zašto psalmista s punim uvjerenjem opetovano govori o izbavljenju iz njega (iz šeola)? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako je Salomon mogao reći da se duh čovječji vraća Bogu koji ga je dao? (Propovjednik 12:7). Ako nam grob tj. naša smrt zauvijek „zacementira“ sudbinu, kako to da su rani kršćani upućivali Bogu molitve za umrle? Kako to da su se krstili za umrle? (1 Korinćanima 15:29). Pakao NIJE bila doktrina rane Crkve: Popularni je mit da se univerzalizam (sveopće spasenje, spasenje cijelog svijeta po Kristu) počeo uvlačiti u Crkvu tek u 19. stoljeću kako je crkva postajala liberalnija i modernija te počela napuštati svoje istinske biblijske temelje. To nije istina! Vjerovanje u sveopću obnovu bilo je standardno gledanje rane crkve koje je imala većina prvih kršćana, no to je također bilo gledište manjine kroz čitavu crkvenu povijest, uključujući mračni srednji vijek. Razmislite.. Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da prvo cjelovito izlaganje kršćanske doktrine (Klement Aleksandrijski 180 g. n. e.) sadrži univerzalno spasenje? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da prvi sustavni prikaz kršćanstva (Origen, 220 g. n. e.) sadrži doktrinu o univerzalnom spasenju? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da niti Apostolsko vjerovanje niti Nicejsko vjerovanje - dvije temeljne doktrinarne izjave rane crkve - ne sadrže ideju pakla? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da su crkveni vođe sve do 4. st. n. e. priznavali da većina kršćana vjeruje u spasenje cijelog čovječanstva? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da je rana crkva imenovala Grgura Nazijanskog (330.-390. n. e.), osvjedočenog univerzalistu, predsjedateljem 2. općeg crkvenog sabora u Carigradu? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da nijedan crkveni sabor u prvih pet stotina godina crkve ne osuđuje univerzalizam i ne smatra ga herezom, ako uzmemo u obzir da su mnoga druga učenja proglašavali herezama? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da Epifanije (315-403 n.e.), po nadimku „malj za heretike", koji je naveo 80 hereza svoga vremena, među njih ne ubraja univerzalizam? Većina povjesničara će se danas složiti da je Origen možda najistaknutiji predstavnik univerzalizma u crkvi. Ako je pakao stvaran, kako to da Metodije, Euzebije, Pamfilije, Marcel, Eustatije i Jeronim nisu uvrstili univerzalizam na listu Origenovih hereza? Ako je pakao stvaran i ako se nalazi u originalnim grčkim biblijskim rukopisima, kako to da su zagovornici ideje o paklu bili upravo oni crkveni prvaci koji ili nisu poznavali grčki jezik (npr. Minucije Feliks), ili su prezirali sve grčko (Augustin)? A oni rani crkveni vođe koji su poznavali grčki i hebrejski (originalne biblijske jezike) u biblijskim su rukopisima vidjeli univerzalno spasenje. Razlog leži u tome da su zagovornici pakla izveli svoju doktrinu iz latinskih prijevoda, a ne iz originalnih tekstova na grčkom i hebrejskom! Što mislite, je li vjerojatnije da su u pravu oni koji su znali čitati izvorne biblijske tekstove ili oni koji su čitali latinski prijevod koji je sastavio jedan čovjek, Jeronim? Ako je pakao stvaran kako to da četiri od šest teoloških škola od 170 g.n.e. do 430 g. n. e. naučavaju sveopće spasenje dok samo jedna uči o paklu, a to je ona u Kartagi, na sjeveru Afrike, gdje je službeni jezik bio latinski, a ne grčki? Ako je pakao stvaran, a univerzalizam hereza, kako to da se tek u 6. stoljeću, za vrijeme Justinijana, polu-poganskog cara, univerzalizam pokušalo proglasiti herezom? Zanimljivo je i to da je Justinijan bio jedan od najokrutnijih i najbezobzirnijih vladara, s čime se slaže većina povjesničara. *Povijesne činjenice navedene u gornjim odlomcima mogu se naći u sljedećim knjigama "Universalism, the Prevailing Doctrine of the Early Church for the First 500 Years" (Sveopće spasenje, prevladavajuća doktrina rane crkve u prvih pet stotina godina), autor J. Hanson i "The History of Opinions on the Scriptural Doctrine of Retribution" (Povijest mišljenja o biblijskoj doktrini kazne), autor Edward Beecher. Pakao ne odražava Božje srce: Popularni je mit da Božja pravda iziskuje postojanje pakla kao mjesta na kojem će zli biti vječno kažnjavani za svoje grijehe. Neistina! Božja pravda zahtijevala je savršenu žrtvu za grijeh, a to je bio Isus Krist! Božja pravda će bez sumnje doći do svakog čovjeka; Bog se možda oštro odnosi prema našim grijesima sve dok sve stvoreno ne bude podloženo Kristu, no beskrajno trajanje kazne za zlo počinjeno u kratkom ljudskom životu protivi se svakoj logici i pravdi. Kakva je to pravda koja traži kaznu vječnog trajanja za grijeh učinjen u vremenski ograničenom životu? Razmislite.... Ako je pakao stvaran, a sve stvoreno upravo je stvoreno Božjom voljom i za nju (Otkr 4:11) /u engl. tu stoji za „Božju ugodu, zadovoljstvo“/, je li uopće moguće pojmiti da bi Bogu predstavljalo ugodu (zadovoljstvo), vječno promatranje svoga stvorenja kako se muči? Bog sam kaže da mu smrt bezbožnika ne pričinjava zadovoljstvo (Ezekiel 33:11). Ako je pakao mjesto vječne muke, a Bog nije želio da itko ondje završi, zašto jednostavno nije ubio Adama i Evu i tako „skratio muke“ njihovim potomcima prije nego što se uopće uspostavio taj lanac smrti? U konačnici, Sveto pismo kaže da su svi umrli u Adamu (Rim 5:18). Ako je pakao stvaran, a Bog ljubi svoje neprijatelje sada, zar ih neće uvijek ljubiti? Je li Bog promjenjivo biće? (Jakovljeva 1:17) Ako je pakao stvaran, i ako biste vi imali na raspolaganju svu silu i moć, ne biste li sve ljude izbavili od grijeha? Ako Bog želi spasiti sve ljude, a ne može, je li svemoćan? Ako je pakao stvaran, i Bog može spasiti sve ljude, ali to neće učiniti, jesu li njegova dobrota i milost vječne? Ako je pakao stvaran, a budući da je Božja volja da se svi ljudi spase i dođu do potpune spoznaje istine (1 Timoteju 2:3-6), znači li to da Bog nije dovoljno moćan da provede u djelo svoju vlastitu volju? Ako je pakao stvaran, a Isus nas uči da opraštamo sedamdeset puta sedam puta, no On sam neće nikome ponuditi oprost nakon fizičke smrti, zar ga to ne čini licemjerom? Ako je pakao stvaran, a Božji gnjev će vječno biti nad milijunima ljudskih bića, zar je to u skladu sa Svetim pismom u kojem stoji da Njegov gnjev ima svoj kraj? Ako je pakao stvaran, a Bog ljubi samo one koji zauzvrat ljube Njega, po čemu je Bog bolji od grešnika? Ako je pakao stvaran, a budući da neki ljudi imaju mnogo prilika u životu da budu „spašeni“, nekima se pruži samo nekoliko prilika, a mnogi nisu imali nijednu, ne čini li to Boga pristranog prema ljudima (Djela 10:34, Jakovljeva 3:17). U konačnici, milijuni ljudi bili su rođeni i umrli na ovoj zemlji, a da nikada nisu čuli za ime Isus, „jedino ime pod nebom po kojemu se čovjek može spasiti“. Ako je pakao stvaran, i sudbina svakog grešnika (što smo svi mi) je da završi u njemu ukoliko ne prihvati izbavljenje iz njega, zar to ne šalje direktno u pakao svu nerođenu i nekršćansku djecu? (Iako mnoge denominacije naučavaju tzv. „dob zrelosti“ u kojoj dijete postaje odgovorno za sebe i svoje odluke, taj nauk ne nalazimo nigdje u Bibliji; on je samo ljudski pokušaj da Boga učine „humanijim“ nego što ga prikazuje učenje o vječnoj kazni.) Ako je pakao stvaran, znači li to da je majčinska ljubav jača i trajnija od Božje ljubavi? Znate li ikojeg normalnog roditelja koji bi beskonačno mučio većinu svoje djece? Zašto vjerujemo da bi naš nebeski Otac, koji ima beskrajno više ljubavi nego svi mi ljudi zajedno, mogao učiniti takvo zlodjelo? Ako je pakao stvaran, zašto se ljudski duh užasava pri pomisli na ratove, logore, sobe za mučenje i diktatore? Kako možemo reći da je sve to zlo, ako je pakao stvaran? Ako sve ljudske muke na ovoj zemlji imaju svoj kraj, onda pakao daleko nadilazi mučenja koja čine najgrešniji i najzvjerskiji pripadnici ljudskog roda. Kažemo da Boga žalosti nasilje i nepoštivanje ljudskog života, pa ipak vjerujemo da će On provoditi iste nehumane principe kroz cijelu vječnost! Ako je pakao stvaran, kakvu će korist i satisfakciju donijeti Svemogućemu beskonačne muke i jad njegovih stvorenja? Kakvu će korist od njih imati sveti, kao promatrači? Kakvu će korist od njih imati grešnik, kao onaj tko podnosi kaznu? Ako je pakao stvaran, kako prijetnja beskonačnog mučenja jača našu vjeru da nas Bog ljubi i da ga mi trebamo ljubiti svim srcem, dušom, umom i snagom? ČINJENICA: Dok se crkva navikla na razmišljanje o Bogu kao o nekome tko je bio prisiljen dizajnirati grandioznu kaznu zvanu pakao, i protiv svoje vlastite volje poslati u njega većinu svog stvorenja, ta ideja o Bogu kao onome tko je „učinio sve (najbolje) što je mogao“ je potpuno nebiblijska! Božja riječ kaže da je Bog apsolutni suveren, moćan, apsolutno mudar i apsolutni pobjednik! On nikada nije morao smišljati plan B, ili plan C, jer Isus je Janje Božje zaklano od početka svijeta. Vrijeme je da mu damo slavu koju zaslužuje, jer naš Bog je uistinu veličanstven, daleko iznad ljudskih, humano-centričnih pogleda na Njega! Popnimo se više! Ljubljeni, kroz koju "leću" tumačite Božju riječ? Tradicionalne doktrine uče nas da interpretiramo „pobjed-ničke“ stihove u svjetlu stihova o sudu. Što ako Bog želi da gledamo na drugi način? Što ako trebamo interpretirati stihove o sudu u svjetlu stihova o pobjedi? Nije li Kristova pobjeda najveće biblijsko otkrivenje? Ako ćemo stajati na tom najvišem vrhu, svršenom djelu križa, vidjet ćemo dalje i panorama Božjeg vjekovnog plana bit će ljepša i jasnija. Ne odbacujmo jedan dio Božje riječi u korist drugoga, nego nastojmo ih uskladiti. Čovjek živi o svakoj riječi koja izlazi iz Božjih usta. U vrijeme dok je Krist hodao zemljom većina Izraelaca je propustila prepoznati Riječ Božju koja je prebivala u njihovoj sredini. Bili su prezauzeti proučavanjem Svetog pisma da bi prepoznali Riječ samu koja je živjela i hodala među njima! Mnogi Židovi su se bojali povjerovati Isusu, jer je većina njihovih vođa (pismoznanci, farizeji, saduceji, svećenici itd.), koji su poznavali Sveta pisma bolje nego oni, bila uvjerena da Isus nije Mesija, Krist. U ranim danima crkve vjera u Isusa Krista bila je hereza, a priznati vjeru u Njega značilo je navući na sebe porugu i odbacivanje. Današnji kršćani upiru prstom u Izraelce, a ne shvaćaju da hodaju njihovim stopama. Većina nas „igra na sigurno“ i svrstava se uz „svoju“ denominaciju ili pokret. Iako je mudro i časno poštivati svoje duhovne očeve, nikada ne smijemo dozvoliti da oni zauzmu mjesto Duha Svetog kao našeg duhovnog učitelja. Činjenice iznesene u ovom članku trebale bi barem ponukati svakog čitatelja, koji je doista gladan Boga, da sam istražuje Božju riječ ne bi li vidio je li ovo istina ili nije. Ako smo iznijeli laž, pronaći ćete dokaze za to. Ako smo iznijeli istinu, ona ne može ostati ignorirana. Vrijeme je da prestanemo preskakati one dijelove Biblije koji se ne uklapaju u našu teologiju. A ako naša teologija, poput one židovskih vođa Isusovog vremena, nije dovoljno velika da obuhvati cjelovito Sveto pismo, možda je vrijeme da proširimo svoju teologiju, u suprotnom ćemo opet propustiti prepoznati Boga koji hoda među nama! Stoga, draga braćo, pozivam vas da se upitate: Ako je tradicionalno učenje o paklu istinito… Kako to onda milost trijumfira nad sudom? (Jakovljeva 2:13) Kako onda može biti istinita izjava da "tamo gdje je grijeh obilovao, milost je obilovala još više“? (Rimljanima 5:20) Kada će dakle s v a k o tijelo doći k Bogu? Kada će to Bog osvetiti i utješiti zemaljske siromahe? (Ps 113:7, Ps 140:12, Izreke 14:31, Izreke 19:17, Izreke 31:9, Izaija 11:4, Izaija 61:1, Jeremija 22:16 itd.) (Vodite računa da, kroz povijest ljudskog roda, većina ovozemaljskih siromaha nije imala priliku prihvatiti Isusa kao svog spasitelja). Kada će se obistiniti ona "Na ovoj će gori Jahve Gospodin, Bog Svemogući, pripremiti svim narodima bogatu gozbu, gozbu s najboljim mesom i najboljim vinima. Na ovoj će gori uništiti koprenu koja pokriva sve narode i veo, koji je raširen nad svim narodima; progutat će smrt zauvijek. Gospodin će obrisati suze sa svakog lica; sramotu svog naroda s cijele zemlje. Jer Gospodin je tako rekao.“(Izaija 25:6-8). Kada i kako će "svi narodi" slaviti Boga, doći k njemu, služiti mu, biti blagoslovljeni u njemu i pokloniti mu se“? Kako je to Bog pomirio svijet sa sobom? (2 Korinćanima 5:19, Rimljanima 11;5, Rimljanima 5:10). Zašto bi apostol Pavao uopće izjavio da je cilj Božjeg plana stvaranja da u konačnici bude „sve u svemu“? (1 Korinćanima 15:28) Kako onda može biti istina da će Bog, koji čini da sve radi prema planu Njegove volje, u punini vremena sakupiti u Kristu sve stvoreno? (Efežanima 1:9-11) Kako onda Pavao može inzistirati na tome da "iz Njega, po Njemu i za Njega sve je stvoreno“? (Rimljanima 11:36). Kako onda može biti istinita ona često ponavljana izreka o Bogu "Vječna je milost njegova“ ? (Doslovno: "njegovo milosrđe/dobrota puna ljubavi traje kroz vjekove"). Zasigurno, dok god postoje vjekovi, i ljudi kojima je potrebna Božja milost - Božja milost traje. Kako i kada će se ikada ostvariti "sveopća obnova?" (Djela 3:21) Konačni test Testirali smo doktrinu o paklu uspoređujući je s mnogim biblijskim temama i idejama i pronašli joj manjkavosti. U svjetlu cjelovitog Svetog pisma, doktrina o paklu je puna rupa. Ako ju pak podvrgnemo testu vlastitog srca vidjet ćemo stoji li ili pada. Molim vas, uzmite si vremena i u molitvi pokušajte naći odgovore na sljedeća pitanja: Ako pakao postoji i ako će, prema većini kršćanskih denominacija, većina čovječanstva tamo završiti, hoćete li zaista moći uživati u nebu znajući da vaša majka, otac, djeca ili najbolji prijatelji pate u vječnim mukama, u usporedbi s kojima se užasi Holokausta čine sitnicom? Ako je pakao stvaran, hoćete li donijeti presudu kojom ćete prepustiti paklu svoju majku, sina ili bilo kojeg drugog nevjernika? "Zar ne znate da će sveti suditi svijetu?“A ako ćete suditi svijetu, zar ste nedostojni donositi presudu u sitnicama? Zar ne znate da ćemo suditi anđele? Koliko više u stvarima ovoga života?“ (1 Korinćanima 6:2-3). Ako je pakao stvaran, i mjesto užasnih muka kojima nema kraja, biste li životinju mogli poslati na takvo mjesto? Ako je pakao stvaran, a univerzalizam je hereza, kako to da oni koji vjeruju da Bog ljubi i spašava sve ljude nekako lakše iskazuju ljubav svima od onih koji vjeruju da većina ljudi završava u paklu? Ako je pakao stvaran, možete li zaista iskreno uživati u pobjedi, ljubavi i mudrosti Božjoj znajući da će negdje u kutku Njegova stvorenja uvijek postojati sramotna crna rupa puna mučenih duša koje više nemaju nikakvu mogućnost utjehe i oproštenja, čak ni konačne smrti, kao kraja njihovih muka? Čak i kada bi postojala samo jedna osoba u tom stanju muka, kako bi se nebo moglo radovati cijelu vječnost znajući da negdje egzistira, i pati u samoći, jedna duša koju Kristova pobjeda još nije obuhvatila? Je li dobro željeti da se svi ljudi spase? „Jer ovo je dobro i ugodno pred našim Spasiteljem Bogom, koji hoće da se svi ljudi spase i dođu do potpune spoznaje istine.“(1 Tim 2:3,4). Imate li žarku želju da se svi ljudi spase? Je li istina da Bog "otvara svoju ruku i siti želje svakog živog bića?“ (Ps 145:16) Molite li žarko za spasenje svih ljudi? Molite li u vjeri, bez sumnjanja? (Jakovljeva 1:6) Jeste li svjesni da "što god nije po vjeri je grijeh“? Bi li Bog tražio da molimo za sve ljude, molimo u vjeri, ukoliko ne namjerava doista spasiti sve ljude? Ako vjeruješ da je beskonačna muka istina koja će se neminovno ostvariti, zašto bi uopće želio i molio da se pokaže neistinitom? Nadamo se da je ovaj članak potaknuo u vama neka pitanja koja će vas motivirati da nastavite proučavati ovu temu. Za više informacija o doktrini o paklu, ognjenom jezeru, proučavanju biblijskih izraza koji su često prevedeni kao „vječan“, „vjekovni“ i sl. te mnogih drugih poučavanja na ovu temu, posjetite stranicu http://tentmaker.org/ScholarsCorner.html Neka od ovih pitanja preuzeta su sa mnogo šireg popisa koji se nalazi u članku pod naslovom: Is Salvation a Deliverance From Hell or Eternal Death? " (Je li spasenje izbavljenje od pakla ili vječne smrti), autor Gary Amirault . Slika na naslovnici ovog letka je scena iz Mikelanđelove freske „Posljednji sud“. Njegov prikaz pakla i osuđenih ljudi, poput većine kršćanske umjetnosti toga vremena, više je pod utjecajem grčke mitologije o podzemnom svijetu, nego pod utjecajem Božje riječi. Tko smo mi? Tentmaker Ministries and Publications je kršćanska služba posvećena tome da najbolje što zna i umije širi razumijevanje Božjeg vjekovnog plana da po Isusu Kristu pomiri sa sobom cjelokupno stvorenje. (Taj pogled na svijet također je poznat pod nazivom „sveopće pomirenje“ (obnova, spasenje) ili „kršćanski univerzalizam“, što je vrlo različito od unitarijanskog univerzalizma. Mi vjerujemo da je Isus Krist, jedinorođeni Sin Božji, Spasitelj svijeta i jedini put k Ocu te da nema drugog puta u vječni („aionian“) život nego kroz Njega. Vjerujemo da je On Kralj Svemira, vlasnik svega stvorenog i da je Njegov cilj dovesti sve stvoreno pod svoju vlast i pomiriti sa sobom. "…jer se zato trudimo i podnosimo sramotu, jer se uzdamo u živog Boga koji je Spasitelj svih ljudi, a osobito onih koji vjeruju. “(1 Timoteju 4:10 ).