Hell is a Fitting Place for the Condemned of God
As beings existing in time, we cannot fully fathom the nature of eternity. The Bible gives us tantalizing views of everlasting life with the Father in heaven; likewise, we are warned with torturous visions of hell. Often images of eternal torment come from the lips of Jesus, our good and loving Shepherd. The doctrine of eternal damnation is one that is often challenged, both from those within Christianity and those without. However, taking the Bible at its word would seem to necessitate a belief in eternal condemnation, just as it necessitates belief in eternal life. See, for instance, Matt. 10:28, Matt. 25:41 & 46, John 3:16-18, John 5:28-29, 2 Thess. 1:9, Heb. 6:2, Jude 7, Rev. 14:9-11, Rev. 20:14-15, Rev. 21:8. Besides accepting the truth of these scriptures and what they imply, there are also philosophical and theological reasons that support the idea that hell is indeed a fitting place for those who do not choose to serve the Lord.
One of the most common objections to the doctrine of hell is that the punishment doesn’t fit the crime. A finite number of bad deeds, the argument goes, should not equal infinite torment. Those raising this issue have a point, but the point they make reveals a misunderstanding about the nature of salvation through Christ—and not by works.
One might notice that very few people object to the idea of being granted eternal life. But why should my less-than-infinite number of good deeds add up to an infinity of eternal rewards? It shouldn’t. The grace of God is understood to be at work. My paltry good works could never equal the value of eternal reward. But God the Father, through Jesus, supplies the grace I need to receive his richest blessings—the blessings that he will give to His Son, which will be shared with all those who take on the name of his Son. Judgment is more a matter of identity (are you “in Christ” or “of Christ”?) than it is about tallying good or bad deeds.
The opposite side of identity in Christ can be seen dramatized in Revelation 14. People who reject the Son of God take on the name of his adversary, or receive “the Mark of the Beast.”
Let’s extend this thought on the “opposite side” of God’s grace. A holy God will not abide the presence of sin. Eternity, in fact, could not be perfect if sin or any impurity would be allowed to enter (Rev. 21:27). It would be subject to decay just as this earth decays because of corruption. It would not be a fitting place for the Son’s eternal reign, nor a fitting reward for the overcoming this world of woe if we go on to a world with yet more evil within it to overcome. In short, eternal life demands God’s holy perfection. Such perfection can be obtained only by God’s perfect grace, given by Jesus’ holy blood—not by our imperfect works. Eternal life, or reward, is then balanced by eternal “death,” or torment. God’s grace provides the access to eternal life; rejection of his grace means accepting eternal condemnation.
Eternity is not a matter of adding up good deeds and subtracting the bad. If it were, the opponents of the doctrine would have a valid point since infinite condemnation would not be suitable for finite deeds. However, rejection of God’s infinite grace through Jesus does necessitate infinite torment—at the very least it is the torment of knowing the final separation of one’s soul from the source of all mercy, life, and love.
But there is another reason why hell is fitting: we are everlasting souls. The soul is the inner-being of the person—mind, will, emotion. It’s what we know, what we want, what we love. The body falls apart and decays over time. The soul—the mind, will, and emotions—remains. It is God’s will that, with the help of the Holy Spirit, the soul will grow into a stronger version of what it was in our spiritual infancy. The body will inevitably fade into dust while the soul can grow more and more into the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29).
Part of what God provided for us in making us in his image and likeness (Gen. 1:27) is this everlasting soul. Solomon says, “He has put eternity into man’s heart” (Eccl. 3:11). Would it be fitting to give an everlasting being a temporary reward? The choices we make on this earth are shaping the soul toward an everlasting destiny. Choices that are selfish, lustful, prideful, and violent shape the soul toward desiring those things which oppose God’s truth and life. The soul that desires such things will reap the sting of the loss of all that is most lasting and most meaningful. The soul, on the other hand, that consistently chooses the holy, the righteous, the peaceful, the loving is shaped toward God’s truth and life. Such a soul will not be satisfied by anything temporary. The only proper reward is an everlasting one, fitting for an everlasting soul. The opposite is the case for the soul who does not desire the things of God.
In short, eternal hell is fitting place for those who reject the Lord because human beings exist as everlasting souls to serve an eternal God. The choice to identify with God, through his Son, is a decision that has everlasting consequences.
First printed in Words of Life Bulletin
-Nick Boone