What is Hell? What is Heaven?

[diver52]

Where is a flame before it is lighted, and where is it after it goes out?

God already created hell for Satan and his followers before creating humankind. God, through the Bible, in quite a few places clearly and explicitly teaches us that hell is a real place to which the wicked and unbelieving are sent after death. "23 for fall have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," Romans 3:23 To answer your questions, the fire has already been lit and will burn for all eternity.

I have a little story. I was listening to a debate between Lawrence Krauss, who was a physics Professor at Arizona State University, vs William Lane Craig, theologist. The question to Krauss, who is an atheist, was what would change his mind about God being real. He said if God had the stars align to spell out, "I'm here" or something to that effect, then he would have to reassess.

About a week or so later, an atheist made the front page because he said something that profoundly struck a chord with me. He referred to the debate and said that the stars aligning would not be good enough because the people (atheists/agnostics) on the other side of the world would not be able to see it. I think he meant every single atheist/agnostic would have to believe from the past, present, and future. That's some convincing God would have to do. Later, I realized that God had already put into place the means to do this. Hell. Pain and suffering in hell would be a great persuader even if they rebel.

Persuading to what end?

C'mon, are you that dense? I thought it was the greatest point an atheist ever made. That's what moved me. I think he got his comments published on the front page of the paper.

Anyway, this should answer the OP's question.

You stated that hell would be a great persuader. Persuading to what end? That seems akin to killing someone to teach them a lesson.

 

[there4eyeM]

The concepts of "hell" and "heaven" are attempts to explain eternity in terms of the temporary state called life and what we experience here. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept.

 

[MarathonMike]

I refuse to believe a being so great as to create the Universe and all life within it would be so petty as to inflict infinite punishment for comparatively insignificant "infractions". That didn't make any sense to me at age 13 and it doesn't make any sense to me today. I wouldn't do that, and I'm just some guy. Why would God do that?

Are you saying let the punishment fit the crime? I'm with you on that. What people don't get is God hates sin. They never talk about that. And Adam screwed it up for everyone by his sin. That stained us and we became sinful creatures. You, I, or anyone else cannot help but sin. Adam and Eve's lineage got wiped out and we were destined for sme until Jesus came into this world. Thus, we're not worthy anymore until we get cleansed and that's only through Jesus. What you believe isn't right..

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

 

[james bond]

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

>>How do you know God hates sin?<<

Look at what happened over the FIRST sin, man. Death! Sin is not in God's nature. It bugs him royally. Most people do not understand this because we are sinners. What bugs you, so you're ready to explode? Racism? Mass rioting, theft, and damage because of a tweet? Trump? Obama? You go to an expensive restaurant and get crappy service?

“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” Psalm 5:4

>>Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?<<

These questions are difficult to answer because we do not understand what it means to be holy. How can we?

The second important thing to remember is God is of a HOLY nature. We cannot enter into his presence because of sin. Only Jesus can remove the sin. Now, no one considers being holy as that important, but it's of utmost importance to God. That's why we got death as Adam's descendants. We do not really understand the nature of God because we aren't perfect.

"Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David." Psalm 89:35

"What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!" Romans 9:14

 

[BreezeWood]

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

>>How do you know God hates sin?<<

Look at what happened over the FIRST sin, man. Death! Sin is not in God's nature. It bugs him royally. Most people do not understand this because we are sinners. What bugs you, so you're ready to explode? Racism? Mass rioting, theft, and damage because of a tweet? Trump? Obama? You go to an expensive restaurant and get crappy service?

“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” Psalm 5:4

>>Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?<<

These questions are difficult to answer because we do not understand what it means to be holy. How can we?

The second important thing to remember is God is of a HOLY nature. We cannot enter into his presence because of sin. Only Jesus can remove the sin. Now, no one considers being holy as that important, but it's of utmost importance to God. That's why we got death as Adam's descendants. We do not really understand the nature of God because we aren't perfect.

"Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David." Psalm 89:35

"What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!" Romans 9:14

.

Only Jesus can remove the sin.

there is no physical proof for any of your messiah religion during the time of the events your 4th century book claims including for any of the stories contained as the christian assertion people are born in sin without recourse that abandons the very religion of antiquity the 1st century was meant as a reawakening for that very purpose.

to free themselves of sin and evil for admission to the Everlasting by their own accord.

 

[MarathonMike]

The concepts of "hell" and "heaven" are attempts to explain eternity in terms of the temporary state called life and what we experience here. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept.

I also look at the concept of infinite reward/infinite punishment this way. If you were designing a religion to ensure the greatest growth, you need a motivator. What better motivator than offering eternal happiness for joining and eternal agony for not joining?

 

[james bond]

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

>>How do you know God hates sin?<<

Look at what happened over the FIRST sin, man. Death! Sin is not in God's nature. It bugs him royally. Most people do not understand this because we are sinners. What bugs you, so you're ready to explode? Racism? Mass rioting, theft, and damage because of a tweet? Trump? Obama? You go to an expensive restaurant and get crappy service?

“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” Psalm 5:4

>>Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?<<

These questions are difficult to answer because we do not understand what it means to be holy. How can we?

The second important thing to remember is God is of a HOLY nature. We cannot enter into his presence because of sin. Only Jesus can remove the sin. Now, no one considers being holy as that important, but it's of utmost importance to God. That's why we got death as Adam's descendants. We do not really understand the nature of God because we aren't perfect.

"Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David." Psalm 89:35

"What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!" Romans 9:14

.

Only Jesus can remove the sin.

there is no physical proof for any of your messiah religion during the time of the events your 4th century book claims including for any of the stories contained as the christian assertion people are born in sin without recourse that abandons the very religion of antiquity the 1st century was meant as a reawakening for that very purpose.

to free themselves of sin and evil for admission to the Everlasting by their own accord.

What physical proof is there of your Torah? Your beliefs? Evolution? It's all magic except for the Bible theory backed up by real science.

 

[james bond]

The concepts of "hell" and "heaven" are attempts to explain eternity in terms of the temporary state called life and what we experience here. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept.

Do you believe in evolution, i.e. evolutionary thinking? For all intents and purposes, 4.5 billion years old Earth and 13.7 billion years is eternity. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept haha.

 

[Tax Man]

Hell is

In your opinion, that is. What is hell to you? Do sinners really burn in a lake of fire and suffer for eternity? Do people go to a city above the sky that has streets paved in gold?

Personally, my opinion is the following for each "place".

Hell: Absence from God. No torment. No lake of fire. Just...dead. Gone. No resurrection. No nothing. The God I believe in would not torture His children no matter how evil. He would just make them stay...dead.

Heaven: Is whatever made you happiest. For me...it would the guiding white light, stepping into a tropical paradise and every pet I ever owned there to meet me but they would not be pets, per se. They would be in pet form, but able to speak that I can understand. No stress, no pain, no lack of food or water, no illness, no death. Just those furry family that I loved so dearly.

For you..it could be reuniting with your spouse or parent or sibling or friend...at the beach, or in a Tuscan setting or in a forest. Wherever you found happiness and with whomever you had happiness with...is your specific individual heaven. Like minded individuals would be in that same world as well, but with their own loved ones.


Now....your opinions on the afterlife?

Hell is being alone with republicans, heaven is seeing all the republicans dead.

 

[Hollie]

The concepts of "hell" and "heaven" are attempts to explain eternity in terms of the temporary state called life and what we experience here. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept.

Do you believe in evolution, i.e. evolutionary thinking? For all intents and purposes, 4.5 billion years old Earth and 13.7 billion years is eternity. It is understandably human and at the same time ludicrously inept haha.

There is nothing inept about human discovery and knowledge.

It’s actually comical to suggest that the gods magically poofed a very young planet in a solar system and universe that science has determined is billions of years old.

 

[MarathonMike]

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

>>How do you know God hates sin?<<

Look at what happened over the FIRST sin, man. Death! Sin is not in God's nature. It bugs him royally. Most people do not understand this because we are sinners. What bugs you, so you're ready to explode? Racism? Mass rioting, theft, and damage because of a tweet? Trump? Obama? You go to an expensive restaurant and get crappy service?

“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” Psalm 5:4

>>Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?<<

These questions are difficult to answer because we do not understand what it means to be holy. How can we?

The second important thing to remember is God is of a HOLY nature. We cannot enter into his presence because of sin. Only Jesus can remove the sin. Now, no one considers being holy as that important, but it's of utmost importance to God. That's why we got death as Adam's descendants. We do not really understand the nature of God because we aren't perfect.

"Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David." Psalm 89:35

"What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!" Romans 9:14

I can accept that God is not knowable by our tiny minds. It is tougher for me to envision that God would have an emotional reaction to the imperfect beings he created behaving poorly.

 

[james bond]

I can accept that God is not knowable by our tiny minds. It is tougher for me to envision that God would have an emotional reaction to the imperfect beings he created behaving poorly.

I can see that you are open minded. The Bible says that God created Adam and Eve as perfect humans. To God, it means without sin. To us, it means good looking, perfect height, complexion, weight, whatever. We don't really know because there is no exact description, but it's the best that we can physically be. I could be wrong, but don't think it means we are holy as that applies only to God the Father's attributes. I mean I don't think we achieve "holy" in this life. In this life, only God the Father is holy.

We know Adam and Even committed sin, i.e. they disobeyed God, and for lack of a better term, all hell broke loose. Thus, we were doomed to death for all eternity. However, God found a way to atone for Adam's sin through his Son Jesus. Jesus became the "perfect" human and atoned for Adam's and our sins.

 

[BreezeWood]

How do you know God hates sin? Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?

>>How do you know God hates sin?<<

Look at what happened over the FIRST sin, man. Death! Sin is not in God's nature. It bugs him royally. Most people do not understand this because we are sinners. What bugs you, so you're ready to explode? Racism? Mass rioting, theft, and damage because of a tweet? Trump? Obama? You go to an expensive restaurant and get crappy service?

“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You” Psalm 5:4

>>Why would he hate anything? Why wouldn't he endow us with intellect and free will and then observe the various ways people use those gifts?<<

These questions are difficult to answer because we do not understand what it means to be holy. How can we?

The second important thing to remember is God is of a HOLY nature. We cannot enter into his presence because of sin. Only Jesus can remove the sin. Now, no one considers being holy as that important, but it's of utmost importance to God. That's why we got death as Adam's descendants. We do not really understand the nature of God because we aren't perfect.

"Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David." Psalm 89:35

"What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!" Romans 9:14

.

Only Jesus can remove the sin.

there is no physical proof for any of your messiah religion during the time of the events your 4th century book claims including for any of the stories contained as the christian assertion people are born in sin without recourse that abandons the very religion of antiquity the 1st century was meant as a reawakening for that very purpose.

to free themselves of sin and evil for admission to the Everlasting by their own accord.

What physical proof is there of your Torah? Your beliefs? Evolution? It's all magic except for the Bible theory backed up by real science.

.

What physical proof is there of your Torah? Your beliefs? Evolution? It's all magic except for the Bible theory backed up by real science.

evolution is the proof for a pathway to goodness.

the religion of antiquity is spoken and is only 6 words long - the triumph of good vs evil - there is nothing more an individual is required for admission to the Everlasting. noah and jesus and many others have all been the same, have any triumphed, perhaps and in fact from the original version it is for all humanity to have accomplished the same for there to be any judgement at all.

the history for those adhering to the original religion is replete with persecution and victimization - and primarily administered by members of the desert religions as recorded through the centuries to the present day. ... hollywood values, have they ever been allowed to flourish. for some reason feared worse than death.