"Split- What do you all Believe- Hell is Like?"

[MorningGlory]

Tommy, consider the following

Romans 2:12-16

For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

That looks consistent with the idea that one can be saved by acting as God would want them to act, which I take it is not the same thing as the idea of salvation through faith alone.

So, for example, God says "thou shalt not kill", but a Hindu person who abides by that commandment even though they don't recognize it as coming from God looks to meet the criterion set out in your quotation.

A Hindu worships many gods and, therefore, will go to hell when they die whether they abide by the Ten Commandments for not.

[MorningGlory]

Why do you think God would let you enter into heaven?

Because God loves me, and if I loved someone I would not consign them to an infinite amount of suffering.

Like all other relationships, it's a two way street. He requires you to love Him back and to follow Him, to confess your belief in Jesus and ask His forgiveness. God DOES love you, and all of His children, but He makes it clear what you must do to spend eternity with Him. Anyone who goes to hell does so by their own hand.

[MorningGlory]

Because if there is no Hell equal to an ever-lasting life in Jesus, there would be no point in any of it. If Hell were just a short stop to purge you of your sins before sending you skipping up to Heaven, Jesus would never have had to die for us. The consequences of the choices you make here on earth must be in balance; an eternity in damnation or an eternity in salvation.

I don't see why hell needs to be infinitely bad. Why wouldn't God forgive someone who goes to Hell and then repents, since God is capable of infinite compassion?

Tommy.....you can repent right up until your last breath but, once you're dead, it's over. There's no negotiating with God; He's God!

[Willa]

You asked what it i like to be led by the Holy Spirit of God.

It is more like the intuitive side of your nature rather than the intellectual side. Right brain, not left brain, if that makes more sense.

The fruit of the Spirit are love, joy, peace patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness and self control. They are listed in Galatians 5:22. These are the traits that you will find in the guidance of the Holy Spirit.. The Holy Spirit is "another Comfortor" whom Jesus promised to send after he ascended into heaven. He is also the advocate of the Believers, the defense lawyer.

He indwells all true believers and sheds light on the Bible so as we can better understand it. But He usually causes us to understand the passages that we need to grow to be more Christ like, rather than the ones that fill us with intellectual knowledge; the latter just causes us to be prideful and seperates us from God.

The Holy Spirit also fills us with the power and boldness to do God's will.

You cannot understand what it is to be led by the Holy Spirit without understanding Who He is. He is God Himself, part of the Godhead: Father Son Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit's guidance is always in agreement with the Bible, and it can always be confirmed by 2 or 3 witnesses. It can occur as a still small voice within you that you recognize as not being your own, but it always conveys the attributes of God. It can be an audible voice, but usually that occurrs in extreme stress or unusual circumstànces. It can be a portion of Scripture that shouts at you or stands out to you. It can be conveyed through a Christian who is mature in Christ. There are many ways in which God speaks, but when we are first learning to recognize His voice, it will reoccur several times say, during a week till it gets your attention.

People who have not given their lives to God and received Christ into their lives do not experience this. God may get their attention to understand that He exists and that He hears them, but He will then convict the person of sin, and lead the person to repentance and salvation by faith in Christ. This is always the first step. In John 16:7-11 Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit, "and He, when He comes, will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement." The person who denies these three things is not being led by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said "But you do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are ONE." John 10:26-30 NASV

Repentance is just a prayer away: ask God to forgive you, to reveal Himself to you, and to make you His own.

[Willa]

Tommy, all of us have had loved ones who have died not knowing Christ. Most of them have had a chance to know Him but turned away from the little bit they did know about God. Had they opened their hearts to what was evident to them, God would have revealed more.

We grieve for the loss of these people. Some of them were really kind and good. My best friend's dad was this way. But he was a highly educated and brilliant man who was too proud to ask God to forgive him and to admit that he had been wrong about God. He just died a few years ago, but he had become bitter toward Christians and toward God. Still, we both miss him a lot. My friend asked the same type of questions you have been asking.

[doubting_tommy]

Because if there is no Hell equal to an ever-lasting life in Jesus, there would be no point in any of it. If Hell were just a short stop to purge you of your sins before sending you skipping up to Heaven, Jesus would never have had to die for us. The consequences of the choices you make here on earth must be in balance; an eternity in damnation or an eternity in salvation.

I don't see why hell needs to be infinitely bad. Why wouldn't God forgive someone who goes to Hell and then repents, since God is capable of infinite compassion?

Do you have a Bible?

Can you please look in the book of John and read chapter3:16 and tell me what you think it means?

Or you can google it online---

Thanks:)

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

I don't really understand what it means, to be honest, though I recognize it as a central, perhaps the central tenet of Christianity.

[doubting_tommy]

Why do you think God would let you enter into heaven?

Because God loves me, and if I loved someone I would not consign them to an infinite amount of suffering.

Like all other relationships, it's a two way street. He requires you to love Him back and to follow Him, to confess your belief in Jesus and ask His forgiveness. God DOES love you, and all of His children, but He makes it clear what you must do to spend eternity with Him. Anyone who goes to hell does so by their own hand.

Not all relationships are "two way streets". Some love is unconditional. I think God probably loves me unconditionally. I find it difficult to imagine how one would love someone unconditionally and refuse to save them if they were asked to save them. It's not the going to Hell part that seems strange to me - rather, it's the fact that you can't escape once you're there.

[doubting_tommy]

Tommy.....you can repent right up until your last breath but, once you're dead, it's over. There's no negotiating with God; He's God!

I don't think of it as negotiating. I just don't see why the last breath should be the point at which you can no longer redeem yourself. If a person suffers in Hell for a thousand years and asks God to forgive them their sins and so on, then I don't see why God wouldn't simply look into their heart, see that they are truly repentant and then say "Okay, you've suffered enough, you can come to Heaven now."

[doubting_tommy]

You asked what it i like to be led by the Holy Spirit of God.

It is more like the intuitive side of your nature rather than the intellectual side. Right brain, not left brain, if that makes more sense.

The fruit of the Spirit are love, joy, peace patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness and self control. They are listed in Galatians 5:22. These are the traits that you will find in the guidance of the Holy Spirit.. The Holy Spirit is "another Comfortor" whom Jesus promised to send after he ascended into heaven. He is also the advocate of the Believers, the defense lawyer.

He indwells all true believers and sheds light on the Bible so as we can better understand it. But He usually causes us to understand the passages that we need to grow to be more Christ like, rather than the ones that fill us with intellectual knowledge; the latter just causes us to be prideful and seperates us from God.

The Holy Spirit also fills us with the power and boldness to do God's will.

You cannot understand what it is to be led by the Holy Spirit without understanding Who He is. He is God Himself, part of the Godhead: Father Son Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit's guidance is always in agreement with the Bible, and it can always be confirmed by 2 or 3 witnesses. It can occur as a still small voice within you that you recognize as not being your own, but it always conveys the attributes of God. It can be an audible voice, but usually that occurrs in extreme stress or unusual circumstànces. It can be a portion of Scripture that shouts at you or stands out to you. It can be conveyed through a Christian who is mature in Christ. There are many ways in which God speaks, but when we are first learning to recognize His voice, it will reoccur several times say, during a week till it gets your attention.

People who have not given their lives to God and received Christ into their lives do not experience this. God may get their attention to understand that He exists and that He hears them, but He will then convict the person of sin, and lead the person to repentance and salvation by faith in Christ. This is always the first step. In John 16:7-11 Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit, "and He, when He comes, will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement." The person who denies these three things is not being led by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said "But you do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are ONE." John 10:26-30 NASV

Repentance is just a prayer away: ask God to forgive you, to reveal Himself to you, and to make you His own.

Thanks for this explanation; I'll have to think about it.

[angels4u]

Because if there is no Hell equal to an ever-lasting life in Jesus, there would be no point in any of it. If Hell were just a short stop to purge you of your sins before sending you skipping up to Heaven, Jesus would never have had to die for us. The consequences of the choices you make here on earth must be in balance; an eternity in damnation or an eternity in salvation.

I don't see why hell needs to be infinitely bad. Why wouldn't God forgive someone who goes to Hell and then repents, since God is capable of infinite compassion?

Do you have a Bible?

Can you please look in the book of John and read chapter3:16 and tell me what you think it means?

Or you can google it online---

Thanks:)

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

I don't really understand what it means, to be honest, though I recognize it as a central, perhaps the central tenet of Christianity.

What do you think it could mean...can you google this too? Look for John 3:16 and the Bible...

Do you have a Bible?