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Hellfire?
Is "hellfire" the greatest blasphemy ever spoken
against divine mercy? Where did it originate? From misinterpreting three
scriptures? Let's review them.
1. Jesus said to the pharisees,
"Woe to YOU, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! ..... YOU are
sons of those who murdered the prophets. Serpents, offspring of vipers,
how are YOU to flee from the judgment of Gehenna? For this reason,
here I am sending forth to YOU prophets and wise men and public
instructors. Some of them YOU will kill ..." Mt23:26
Gehenna
was the city dump, outside Jerusalem, which burned day and night by
adding sulfur. Refuse, including the dead bodies of criminals were
completely destroyed, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Nothing in Gehenna
was alive.
2.
Likewise, God gives advance warning about judgment day at Armageddon.
"If anyone
worships the wild beast and its image, and receives a mark on his
forehead or upon his hand, he will also drink of
the wine of the anger of God that is poured out undiluted into the cup
of his wrath, and he shall be tormented with fire and sulfur in the
sight of the holy angels and in the sight of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever, and
day and night they have no rest, those who worship the wild beast and
its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name."Rv14:9
Why is
putting "faith" in the world's military commanders, instead of our
creator, so condemned? Pledging God's due allegiance to them, gave them
authority to build our nuclear guillotine, which is on a countdown to
inevitably backfire, leading to an extinction level event for mankind. "
"....... for then there will
be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world?fs
beginning until now, no, nor will occur again. In fact, unless those
days were cut short, no flesh would be saved; but on account of the
chosen ones those days will be cut short." Mt24:21
The "smoke of their torment ascending forever and ever" does
not mean those executed have been given everlasting life, in pain, it
symbolizes eternal death, they will not be given a second chance in the
resurrection.
3. Is there fire in hell (English), Hades in Greek)?
"And I saw a great white throne and the one
seated on it. From before him the earth and the heaven fled away, and no
place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small,
standing before the throne, and scrolls were opened. But another scroll
was opened; it is the scroll of life. And the dead were judged out of
those things written in the scrolls according to their deeds. And the
sea gave up those dead in it, and death and Hades gave up those dead
in them, and they were judged individually according to their
deeds. And death and Hades were hurled into the lake of fire. This
means the second death, the lake of fire. Furthermore, whoever was not
found written in the book of life was hurled into the lake of fire."
Rv20:11
Notice there is no fire in hell, no punishment,
rather it is a place of safe keeping until the dead are resurrected
(Jo5:28) and given a second chance during the 1,000 year reign of
Christ. This is when Jehovah's kingdom comes and his will is done, on
earth as it is in heaven. Mt6:9
Death is not a doorway to punishment for sin, it IS the
punishment.
"That is why, just as through one man sin
entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to
all men because they had all sinned... " Ro5:9
" For he who has died has
been acquitted from sin." Ro6:7
" I, even I, have said in my heart
with regard to the sons of mankind that the [true] God is going to
select them, that they may see that they themselves are beasts. For there is an eventuality as respects the sons of mankind
and an eventuality as respects the beast, and they have the same
eventuality. As the one dies, so the other dies; and they all have but
one spirit, so that there is no superiority of the man over the beast,
for everything is vanity. All are going to one
place. They have all come to be from the dust, and they are all
returning to the dust. Who is there knowing the
spirit of the sons of mankind, whether it is ascending upward; and the
spirit of the beast, whether it is descending downward to the earth? And I have seen that there is nothing better than that the
man should rejoice in his works..." Ecs3:18
What will life be
like under Jehovah's benevolent kingdom to come?
"And just a little while longer, and the wicked one will
be no more;
And you will certainly give attention to his place, and
he will not be.
But the meek ones themselves will possess the earth,
And they will indeed find their exquisite delight in the
abundance of peace." Ps37:9
Everyone
is invited! |
