Christians usually fall within three different views on the subject of hell. Eternal torment, Annihilation, and Universal Reconciliation.
I have heard/read people say "If there is no hell, why believe in God/Jesus?"
And I always think. "Is God not worth loving because of who he is? and what he has created?" Maybe it's because over the last few years, I have gained an extreme appreciation for the small things. Like the five senses, the ability to see and comprehend beauty, the ability to taste my favorite foods, the ability to read a fun fantasy novel, the ability to feel sensation.
There is something sublime about it.
I am not OK with the idea of Eternal torture room hell. But for many Christians, this seems to be the norm. But Universal Reconciliation is look at as controversial, Why? Is belief in Eternal torment really necessary?
Annihilation seems to be the more accepted alternate view, it is still controversial for some Christians, But won't get nearly as big of a negative reaction from many Christians as U.R.
Christ died a horrific death to save us from
something. What He suffered, who it was that suffered it; none of that makes sense for anything less then hell. This Good Friday, think of who it was that suffered and why He suffered. The Scriptures are clear that hell is a place of torment and that it is eternal. They also say those who don't believe are condemned. "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (John 3:18)" If you get rid of hell you are already into relativism and religious indifference- it doesn't matter what religion you are, just be a good person. I mean, no matter what you do or believe we're all going to end up in the same place, right?
God is infinitely worthy to be loved for who He is, absolutely. But without being born again, human eyes cannot see God, human ears cannot hear Him. They are incapable of rejoicing in God and they need a Savior. And even after being born again, fear can be a just reaction in the face of God's holiness. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever! (Psalm 111:10)
Why does God send people to hell?
Answer: The Bible says that God created hell for Satan and the wicked angels who rebelled against Him, but there are people in hell also (
Matthew 25:41). Both angelic beings and human beings are in hell for the same reason, sin (
Romans 6:23).
Because God is completely righteous and morally perfect (
Psalm 18:30), He always does what is right—there is no “darkness” in God, not the smallest speck of imperfection (
1 John 1:5). God Himself is the standard for what is right, good, and moral. If it were not for God being the standard of moral perfection, created beings would have nothing to measure themselves against. In other words, if God is perfectly righteous, then anything that falls short of said perfection is sinful, and every human being who has ever lived, since Adam’s fall from grace, has committed sin (
Romans 3:23). Because Adam sinned, the entire human race now has a sinful nature (
Romans 5:12). But people do not go to hell because of Adam’s sin; they go to hell because of their own sin, which they freely choose (
James 1:13–16).
Since God is eternal, immutable, and infinite, and all sins are fundamentally against God, God has decreed the just punishment for sin must also be eternal (
Matthew 25:46). There is another aspect to consider, which is that God also created people to live eternally. So when someone commits a sin against another person, the offended person has also been eternally wronged.
God, therefore, has deemed all who commit sin will go to hell because they have failed to meet His righteous standard; they have broken His Law of moral perfection. If God did not send people to hell for breaking His laws, it could be said that God is not just (
Psalm 7:11). A good analogy is a court of law with a judge and a lawbreaker. A just judge will always convict the person who has been found guilty. If that judge did not pursue justice for the crime, he would not be a just judge (
Deuteronomy 32:4).
However, the good news is that God is also merciful. In His rich mercy, He made a way for sinners to avoid the punishment of hell by trusting in the atoning work of His Son, Jesus Christ (
Mark 16:16). For Christians, the penalty of sin has been removed and placed upon Christ on the cross (
1 Peter 2:24). Because of the sacrifice of Christ, God is still just—the sin is punished—yet He is also merciful to all who believe.