Although Christians are confident they will spend all of eternity in Heaven, many of them don’t seem to give it much thought. This is very strange to me. If Heaven is forever, then Christians will spend virtually all of their existence there. In fact, their time on Earth will seem like a blink at the beginning of their infinitely long lives. Aren’t they curious what they’ll be doing for the next googolplexian years? Surely they don’t think they’ll be playing harps and singing the whole time.
Unfortunately, the Bible doesn’t say much about Heaven. Why doesn’t it go into more detail? You would think a better description would persuade more people to accept Christ. To be fair, the Bible does offer some details about the materials that will make up the new Jerusalem.
According to Revelation 21, Heaven is actually a city that will descend onto a new Earth. The gates will be made of pearls, the streets will be paved with gold, and the walls will be covered with all sorts of precious jewels such as emeralds and sapphires. Very luxurious. And a little confusing, because wouldn’t that stuff be worthless in Heaven?
The Bible makes Heaven sound like Scrooge McDuck’s wet dream. If you think about it, this makes no sense. Jesus frequently railed against greedy people, so why does the Bible’s only description of Heaven appeal to people’s greed? The poor aren’t supposed to be jealous of the rich; they’re supposed to be happy without riches. And yet the last book of the Bible essentially says, “Don’t worry, someday you’ll live in greater luxury than even the richest men on Earth.” It all seems so petty.
A couple other details are worth mentioning. The city will apparently be 1500 miles wide, 1500 miles deep, and 1500 miles tall (Rev. 21:16). Weird, right? Apparently it will be in the shape of a giant cube. The Bible also says there will be no night there because God will shine brighter than the sun 24 hours a day (Rev. 21:23-25). Sucks for stargazers.
Many of these details make Heaven sound… well, made up. There’s not a word about how people will spend their time (other than worship God), and the physical description is all gold, jewels, and light. Other than the Borg cube idea, it’s not very imaginative. I’d expect more from God.
I think this is why most people focus on Revelation 21:4: “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” But this is the part that bothers me the most.
Let’s not forget that Hell is also supposed to be eternal. Matthew 25:41 calls it “everlasting fire,” Matthew 25:46 calls it “everlasting punishment,” and 2 Thessalonians 1:9 calls it “everlasting destruction.” So a trillion years from now while Christians are living it up in the new Jerusalem, unbelievers will still be burning in the lake of fire. How will Christians be happy knowing billions of people are suffering?
Some Christians have told me they simply won’t think about the people in Hell. Frankly, you’d have to be a sociopath to not think about the billions of people weeping and gnashing their teeth (Luke 13:28), but let’s consider a more specific scenario.
Imagine, if you have to, that you’re a Christian and your mother is an atheist or a member of some other religion. You love your mother very much, but despite your efforts she never accepted Jesus as her savior. Eventually she dies, and a few decades later you die, too.
So there you are in Heaven, perhaps swimming in a pool of gold coins with Jesus and Pat Robertson. After a few months, Mother’s Day rolls around and you’re reminded that at this very moment your mother is literally on fire, screaming and writhing in pain. You ask God if you can at least send her a card, but of course that’s not allowed (the card would burn up, anyway).
How could you possibly be happy knowing your beloved mother, along with many other friends and/or family members, are burning in Hell? I’ve heard seven different answers from Christians (none of which come from the Bible, by the way). Here are my responses.
1. “You won’t remember those people when you’re in Heaven.”
How awful! The memories of your mother would be erased? If you love your mother, then she is more than just a memory; she is a part of you, a significant influence on the content of your character. If that part is cut out, then the person you were on Earth is not in Heaven. Besides, the story of the rich man and Lazarus suggests that people in Heaven will be aware of people in Hell.
2. “People are in Hell now but we still lead happy lives.”
Okay, but surely you’re not happy when you think about those people. In Heaven you’re supposed to be happy all the time. How will you continue to be happy when you think about what’s happening to your mother?
3. “God can do anything, so he will make sure we’re happy.”
I suppose, but that still sounds awful. Someone could tie you to a chair, give you a steady intravenous drip of heroin, and “make sure” you’re happy, but that sort of happiness would be completely artificial. Is that really what you want?
4. “You shouldn’t love people more than God, anyway.”
This doesn’t really answer the question. Just because you love God more than your mother doesn’t mean you don’t still love your mother. It seems callous to suggest that love for one’s mother isn’t important.
5. “We will no longer love those people when we are in Heaven.”
A very disturbing thought. If you believe God will remove your love for your mother, then as I pointed out in my first response, you will no longer be the same person. Are you really okay with that?
6. “In Heaven we will fully understand how evil sin is, so we won’t feel sorry for people in Hell.”
This is similar to the last response, but it’s even more disturbing. Even the crime of genocide doesn’t warrant nonstop torture for millions of years. Are you saying your mother’s “crime” of unbelief is infinitely worse? So bad, in fact, that you won’t even feel sorry for her? That is hard to believe. It sounds like Christians will be sociopaths in Heaven.
7. “People in Hell are stripped of all the good qualities God gave them, so in a way they’re not even the same people they were on Earth.”
So that person being tortured in Hell isn’t really your mother? This definitely answers my question, but it opens a whole other can of worms. If all good qualities are God-given, then people don’t really have free will. They’re just evil creatures that never do good unless God imbues them with a quality that allows them to do good. But if no one has free will, then why are people rewarded and punished? Is it all just for God’s amusement? (If you’re a Calvinist, you might say yes. And I would point out that your god is evil.)
And again, not one of these answers comes from the Bible. They were all invented by Christians trying to make themselves feel better about the idea of Hell. So I have to ask: Why did God leave us in the dark about this very important question?
Fortunately, the question doesn’t need to be answered because there is absolutely no evidence that Hell exists. A lake full of fire and brimstone is just a fantasy made up by men who wanted to see their enemies punished.
There’s also no evidence that Heaven exists. A city made of gold and jewels is just a fantasy made up by men who wanted to be rich. Despite the claims of hallucinating children, Heaven isn’t for real.
You obviously do not understand the bible. Most of what you say here is pure ignorance. My prayers are with you that God will show you truth.
Rather than calling me ignorant, why don’t you just tell me what I got wrong?
It makes anon’s god and its followers look like wretched creatures. Therefore, you must not understand and must be ignorant. Duh đ
See my reply above posted 4-17-16 HELL IS NOT ETERNAL
Call me at XXX-XXX-XXXX
If you post your phone number again, I will permanently ban you. You’re not going to use this site to look for people to brainwash.
Now why don’t you answer my question above? What about all the Bible verses that describe Hell as eternal? How do you explain that?
I understand the bible. I studied it for 16 years before becoming an atheist. Don’t dare say I don’t understand it. and yes, this author is 100% correct with what it says. It’s apparent you have never read the ENTIRE bible yourself. Just like every other christian out there you read a couple of “feel good” chapters your minister gave you and you claim to have read it. You like to pick and choose the nice parts of it and ignore the illogical, violent, and immorally wrong parts of it.
I was Drugged, Drunk, PTSD from Vietnam War…Mortared 1970 Spring…all religions washed away that night…1976 some guy says: “Jesus Loves you, He really does”. I prayed to Him in private, studied harder than most ‘to know who really buzzed me’…BottoM line: HEAVEN COMES TO EARTH WHEN THE KING OF KING SHOWS UP…EARTH WILL BE RESCUED FROM BONDAGE, AS WELL AS THE ETERNAL ANIMALS AND PETS…THE ‘MANSIONS’? NONE OTHER THAN THE GLORIOUS BODY (MIND OF THE FLESH HAS NO HOLD…’BORN AGAIN’ MEANS: TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MINDS’)….’WE’ TAKE BACK THE EARTH (Isn’t that what everyone wants for their country?) EARTH’S RECONSTRUCTION IS AMAZING (NO OCEANS)….THIS PLACE IS MAGNIFICENT…BUT, DISEASED AND, AND DEATH RULES NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE BELIEVES)..I’m not saying I won’t see MOM, but I will be (like the muslims imitate) ‘dealing with a sinful remnant’ after the 3-battles of Armegedo…IN A NEW BODY WHERE THE ‘FLESHLY MIND’ (SEX, DRUGS, R&R..GREED LUST..ETC) Thank Jesus WHEN WE SEE HIM NOTHING ELSE CAN POSSIBLE BE ON OUR MINDS….HE IS THE PRIZE…AND WE ARE GONNA HANG OUT WITH HIM FOR…NO END….IN VIETNAM…YOU DIE, WE TAKE YOU BOOTS AND ITEMS….’HE WON’T NEED ‘EM ANYWHO’
âSo there you are in Heaven, perhaps swimming in a pool of gold coins with Jesus and Pat Robertson.”
You know Iâve always wanted to do that with my Savior and Pat. You really nailed it for me! Now whoâs being petty?
Is it fair that Jesus died on the cross so that Hitler could go to heaven and Anne Frank would go to hell?
Hey Southern! Its been a while. Just wanted to share something with you that I’ve discovered recently in my studies. Hopefully this will help provide some clarity to one of the details you pointed out in your post.
You mentioned:
“The city will apparently be 1500 miles wide, 1500 miles deep, and 1500 miles tall (Rev. 21:16). Weird, right? Apparently it will be in the shape of a giant cube.”
To better understand this I’d like for us to go back to the Old Testament, in particular the Book of Numbers, Chapter 2, verses 1-34.
Here we find God providing organization for Israel’s camp in preparation for their march into the Promised Land by assigning the placement of the various tribes within the camp and designating their order of march for when they are on the move.
The people were divided into 4 camps, with 3 tribes in each of them. The 4 camps were located some distance on the north, south, east, and west from the tabernacle where God made his presence to dwell among the people. Kind of like a square shape.
While on the march the tribes would follow one another in the same order as mentioned previously.
Now compare this with the city laid out like a square from Revelation 21:16. Keep in mind the metaphors John often used throughout his writing of the Book of Revelation.
If the final dwelling place of God is with man and the Bible often refers to the church (that is the body of Christ) as His “bride”, could it be that this “city” is not literally a four walled structure (just like the true meaning of the “church” isn’t either) but instead the body of believers – the new Jerusalem?
Revelation 21:1-3
A New Heaven and a New Earth
Then I saw âa new heaven and a new earth,â for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, âLook! Godâs dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
Strange… metaphors aren’t usually so specific.
Ahh…there’s nothing like the smell of skepticism in the morning. Or is it napalm? Hard to tell…
Southern Skeptic; I’ve got your back brother. ALL of your questions will be answered at the link below, HELL IS NOT ETERNAL and no one is in Heaven or Hell fire today; they are asleep in their graves and all will be resurrected on judgement day and then they will be punished or saved.
ANYBODY who reads this, call me 24 hours a day at XXX-XXX-XXXX and I will email to you my 295 page partial summary of the Bible and my research on nutrition. Sincerely, Brad
Would eternity in Hell be cruel and unusual punishment for oneâs transient sins / crimes?
If God tortured His enemies in a fiery horror chamber throughout eternity, He would be more vicious and heartless than men have ever been in the worst of war atrocities. An eternal hell of torment would be hell for God also, who loves even the vilest sinner.
2 Peter 2:9 “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.”
Matthew 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Psalms 37:20 But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.
Ezekiel 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. [This includes all the sinners]
Revelation 20:9 “They went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.”
James 1:15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
Job 21:30 will suffer “destruction”
Malachi 4:1 will “burn” up
Romans 6:23 the wicked suffer “death”
Psalms 21:9 “fire shall devour them”
Psalms 37:9 “shall be cut off”
Psalms 37:20 “shall perish” ⌠“consume away”
Psalms 37:38 “shall be destroyed together”
Psalms 62:3 “shall be slain”
Psalms 145:20 God will “destroy” them
http://www.amazingfacts.org/media-library/study-guide/e/4988/t/is-the/laststatus/mobile/mrtype/mobile/postback1387/1?skinsrc=%5Bg%5Dskins/amazingfacts/af-mobile
What about all the Bible verses that say Hell is forever?
That’s why I said to call me 24 hours a day XXX-XXX-XXXX so we can discuss the fine details. I don’t want to spend time typing here when I can email to you my research in a 294 page document titled PARTIAL SUMMARY OF THE BIBLE that I spent a lot of time to create. It will answer many other things as well.
ANYBODY WHO READS THIS PLEASE CALL ME XXX-XXX-XXXX Brad
The short answer to your question is that the verses which use the word forever is just a figure of speech and I have proved it within my document; e.g. Sodom and Gomorrah is NOT still burning today neither is the fire that was set near the gate of Jerusalem. God is perfect; he does not contradict himself in the Bible. This is why all companion verses must be viewed together and then the words forever in those verses are understood to be a figure of speech; just like you describe the pain experienced in the dentist chair lasted forever. The operative words âwill burn upâ, “fire shall devour them”, “consume away”, “shall be destroyedâ, âable to destroy both soul and body in hellâ and âthe wages of sin is deathâ all demonstrate finality. Only God is immortal; immortality is life. To be immortal in hell one would have to be alive or have life whether referring to the body or soul. But we know the wages of sin is death. Death is the opposite of life. Therefore hell is not eternal. This is much more thoroughly demonstrated in my document. Thereâs more to know:
Learn that God blinded the minds of his chosen people to ensure the shedding of his blood for everyone; his chosen people will not be forsaken.
Learn that it appears that the creation events described in Genesis chapter 1 and 2 are two separate distinct events with their own peculiarities. It was the first creation of mankind that resulted in giants and fallen angels had nothing to do with it; fallen angels are not sons of God.
Learn about the BIGGEST LIE OF ALL as also proven by the Biblical description of the Earth.
In addition I can email to you my other research:
OWNERâS MANUAL FOR THE HUMAN BODY, 700 pages
I made three convenient excerpt documents:
SOME OF THE MAIN POINTS, 91 pages
MAKING SUPERFOOD SMOOTHIES, 53 pages
MINIMUM SUPPLEMENTS ONE SHOULD TAKE, 32 pages
SANDY HOOK HOAX, 121 pages.
AGENDA 21 – SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT – GLOBAL WARMING, 96 pg
BIBLICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE EARTH, 191 pages.
GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES: THE INFLUENCE OF SATAN OVER POLITICIANS AND THE CABAL WHICH RULES THE WORLD BEHIND THE SCENES, 200 pages, COVERING:
FIAT MONEY SYSTEM.
DEPOPULATION â vaccinations, chem trails, GMO food, drug dealing instead of nutrition, perpetration of wars
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTE COVER-UP of ancient artifacts and giant skeletons to promote evolution and hide the validity of creation and the Bible.
COVER-UP OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY to keep us dependent on utilities and oil.
FALSE FLAG EVENTS in a day, or over years e.g. global warming scam and UFOs. The future false flag hoax of a UFO invasion or return of the messiah using high tech holograms.
There are no extraterrestrials. 2 Corinthians 11:14 âfor Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.â Fallen angels can morph themselves to appear to be UFOs. This is shown in some YouTube videos. This explains the impossible maneuvers UFOs are seen to execute in the sky and which I have witnessed in 1980. I witnessed a second UFO with three other people and it was reported in the newspaper the next day. The government maybe using secret technology also but there are no E.T. from other worlds.
CURRENT GENETIC MANIPULATION OF HUMANS; such manipulation was the catalyst for the flood of Noah.
Please show your appreciation for my effort by calling me.
Like-minded people should be willing to communicate by talking on the phone and sharing tips as they arise.
Send tips to [email protected]
ANYBODY WHO READS THIS PLEASE CALL ME XXX-XXX-XXXX
Sincerely, Brad
1 Timothy 6:18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; 19 Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life
Proverbs 18:13 He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.
Job 38:1 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, 2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
Proverbs 1:5 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:
7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means:
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1 Peter 3:16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. 17 For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
Acts 20:26 Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. 27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
I told you to stop posting your phone number, asshole. You are banned.
And by the way: you are crazy. This isn’t just a random insult. I’m 100% serious. You are fucking crazy and you should get to a psychologist immediately. Again, I’m not insulting you, I’m trying to help you. I don’t know if anyone else has told you yet, but you heard it here: you are crazy. Remember that next time you post a long rambling post full of conspiracy theories and Bible verses and try to get strangers to call you. You’re fucking crazy.
Heaven is REAL. Ok fine you have your opion but rember god will bring you to heaven :}