A hypothetical question

[-Anonymous-]

I've always wondered about this. Say, for the sake of argument, that the cosmic moral compass was inverted. Satan is the ruler of Heaven, making it is accessible only to those who lead evil, immoral lives. God is the ruler of Hell, and those who love Him and try to live a good, decent lives will end up in flames. What would you do? Would you follow your God into hell? Or would you just go after the "prize" of a blissful afterlife?

In other words, what is really important to you: God or the promise of an eternal paradise?

 

[Isis-Astoroth]

Basically you're just saying heaven and hell have switched names.

 

[-Anonymous-]

Not really. I'm saying that the good "God" was the rebel, and that He was cast into Hell by Satan.

If evil is rewarded and good is punished, which would you chose?

 

[Arthra]

You know your hypothetical question reminds me of a wonderful dog story i read once from the Mahabharata:

It seems King Yudhishthira had a favorite sidekick dog who was always with him...

Came time though when the great King was about ready to pass on from this life to the next...

An angel appeared before him and showed him the wonderful delights of heaven, which delighted the King.

Then the angel made one proviso for his entry into Paradise that he would have to leave his dog outside...part company with him forever...

Well the King thought on this and asked..."What if I refuse to leave my faithful dog?"

The angel replied: "In that case, you and your dog will be burned together in the flames of hell forever!"

Considering this the great King said "....alright, I've decided! I won't go to paradise without my dog!"

The angel replied..."Very well then!"

And the earth opened up and the King and his faithful dog began advancing toward the very flames and smoke of hell itself...

Then a miraculous thing happened!

The flames disappeared and the heat vanished and was replaced by the beautiful realms of paradise!

And the King entered the blessed realm with his faithful dog!

I think you gather from this story an answer perhaps to your hypothetical question.

May God always bless you!

- Art

 

[SqueezetheShaman]

I will do what I believe is right, and not what will get my promised afterlife. I can't harm another for my benefit, and that is what it would entail.

 

[Achichem]

I've always wondered about this. Say, for the sake of argument, that the cosmic moral compass was inverted. Satan is the ruler of Heaven, making it is accessible only to those who lead evil, immoral lives. God is the ruler of Hell, and those who love Him and try to live a good, decent lives will end up in flames. What would you do? Would you follow your God into hell? Or would you just go after the "prize" of a blissful afterlife?

In other words, what is really important to you: God or the promise of an eternal paradise?

For me the question is simple: burn in hell with my God.

My God is part of me, if he rebelled, I to would rebel just the same, that simple!

Yet, you put with me and God in 100% agreement, I assure you we would take back heaven in coup. And put Satan and his peoples back in their place (the suburbs).

 

[Outspoken]

Ahh what your question basically boils down to is a hedonist belief. Would you go with what feels good? I would answer in the negative, I would still go with God because contrary to what people think, christian doesn't mean this life is pleasureable, usually quite the opposite considering the book of 2nd timothy.

 

[Eudaimonist]

I would live a good life and end up in flames.

Oh, that story from the Mahabharata was turned into an enjoyable episode of the original Twilight Zone television series.

 

[stray bullet]

a good deed is its own reward.

 

[Andre3000]

I will do what I believe is right, and not what will get my promised afterlife. I can't harm another for my benefit, and that is what it would entail.

This statement sums up what I would do. Even though I believe in no god, I can put myself in the position and see what I would choose.

But I have also thought of this the other way around. Let's say that Satan is the "evil" one who rules hell and God is the "good" one who rules heaven (you will see why I used "s in a second). And let's say that God is responsible for allowing pain and suffering to exist; since he's God you would expect he could annihilate it, right? If God were to tell me that he allowed pain, suffering, and evil to exist for any reason I would have to conclude that he was in fact evil. Therefore, I would be forced to turn away from him because he was actually an evil entity.

Also, if he were to tell me that I was going to hell simply because I did not believe in him and ignored my works, I would go on my merry way. Like I would have a choice anyways right?

 

[-Anonymous-]

All right, so it sounds like most of you would follow your conscience and the God you love, no matter the consequences. Now you know how non-Christians feel every day. We are constantly told that we will burn in hell for all eternity for following the wrong gods --the gods *we* love-- yet we, too, chose to follow our hearts despite the threats of damnation.

I personally don’t view the Christian God as a particularly loving or “perfect” god; he displays far too many traits of his imperfect creation: anger, wrath, jealousy, etc. If I were to worship such a God simply because I wanted to get into heaven, it would be just as hedonistic as if you had chosen to worship Satan in my hypothetical question. Wouldn’t you agree?

 

[Havoc]

Sigh...

No, they won't agree. They can't. It would bring their world down around their ears...

 

[peaceful soul]

Sigh...

No, they won't agree. They can't. It would bring their world down around their ears...

Yeah, right! So much you know.

 

[beloved]

All right, so it sounds like most of you would follow your conscience and the God you love, no matter the consequences. Now you know how non-Christians feel every day. We are constantly told that we will burn in hell for all eternity for following the wrong gods --the gods *we* love-- yet we, too, chose to follow our hearts despite the threats of damnation.

I personally don’t view the Christian God as a particularly loving or “perfect” god; he displays far too many traits of his imperfect creation: anger, wrath, jealousy, etc. If I were to worship such a God simply because I wanted to get into heaven, it would be just as hedonistic as if you had chosen to worship Satan in my hypothetical question. Wouldn’t you agree?

I guess we just appreciate what a Great God He IS. Don't you aspire to please the one(s) you love, no matter how demanding they may seem? And just who are you to call passion unloving? Why shouldn't we be willing to go through some trouble for our Very Best Friend and Father? Our God is most loving, but strict. Do your children run your house? They must be some spoiled rotten brats.Why do you have a problem with folks beleiving in an eternal after-life in such a place called heaven and wanting to go there, as opposed that bad place you hope does not exist. Your just another self-styler, designing a god to make you feel better about your nasty little self.

 

[-Anonymous-]

And just who are you to call passion unloving?

I never called passion unloving. I call the murder of women and children unloving. I call destroying the world unloving.

Why do you have a problem with folks beleiving in an eternal after-life in such a place called heaven and wanting to go there, as opposed that bad place you hope does not exist.

If people worship a God *only* because they want to reap rewards in the afterlife, then it's nothing more than spiritual prostitution.

Your just another self-styler, designing a god to make you feel better about your nasty little self.

My "nasty little self?" Grow up, beloved. I'm a good person and I follow my heart above all else. I can't worship the Christian God because I honestly don't think he's much better than your pseudo-god, Satan.

 

[Tobias]

Now you know how non-Christians feel every day. We are constantly told that we will burn in hell for all eternity for following the wrong gods --the gods *we* love-- yet we, too, chose to follow our hearts despite the threats of damnation.

Anonymous,

I liked your little analogy here! Unfortunately it is something I have to deal with often enough in my own heart, weighing out which god I am actually serving and what the eternal results of that will be.

Nothing about this is that simple. I have chosen to follow the Christian God, as I have had Him shown to me by Charismatic WoF teachers. I have learned to sense His presence, and follow His leading as He is a living spirit being that takes an interest in my life. The results of this are great as I love learning the lessons He teaches me, and I benefit from His protection in my life.

Unfortunately, many Christians claim that the one who I follow is not in fact the real God. They say that this anointing that I can sense as my God is in fact Satan, as they decry the teachings of Benny Hinn and so many others from whom I have learned to bare witness in my spirit follow the same god that I do.

Am I willing to follow this god into an everlasting hell?? Heck no!!!! I love Him dearly and would never want to have lived this life without Him, but I also think that love goes both ways and that if He were condemned to suffer such a fate He would release me from any obligation to Him (which He insists I don't have any anyway dispite all He's done for me) -- and let me go live in paradise.

As things are, I must trust that as things go here on earth, so they continue in the afterlife. What is good for now will also be good for then. Forsaking my god out of fear that some who have no knowlage of a Living God have deciphered a warning out of an ancient book of an eternal hell -- would be foolish.

Wouldn't me forsaking my understanding of God and obedience to Him put me more at risk of some "hell" than anything else I could do?

 

[awksm]

Tobias,


Completely out of curiosity, you follow Christ? What is it in these teachings that vary from.. say "normal" christianity?

 

[Outspoken]

a good deed is its own reward.

Expand on this. Why is it its own reward?

 

[Tobias]

Tobias,


Completely out of curiosity, you follow Christ? What is it in these teachings that vary from.. say "normal" christianity?

You are aware, aren't you, that a person doesn't even have to leave the confines of "Christianity" to be rejected by certain "Bible believing" people, right? Are Mormons considered "Real Christians"?

My Christian foundation is following the Voice of God. As He is the one responsible for inspiring it in the first place, He feels He has the right to not only speak to me through the Bible, but also to point out which parts were not inspired.

I have spent many years "tunning in" to His voice, and recognize this same voice speaking through many preachers in different denominations. Chuck Smith, Jack Hayford, and just about anyone on TBN. He occasionally speaks through them all, some more than others. He is also present during worship.

To tell this solitary Voice to shut up because man has told me that "God wouldn't say that", would also be to contradict man's teaching that we can indead hear His voice. It would also contradict the Evangelical teachings about seeking His presence through private devotions. There is no place I can see to draw the line.

My only was back to Evangelical Christianity where I started learning all this stuff would be to Blaspheme the Holy Spirit by calling Him a lying spirit from satan. Then I would have to strictly avoid any "life", "anointing", "inspiration", and any other tangeble feeling of the moving of the Spirit -- as they are all one and the same.

 

[ObsessedWorship]

Sigh...

No, they won't agree. They can't. It would bring their world down around their ears...

Actually, I'm about as conservative Christian as they come, and I agree with anonymous. It would be 'spiritual prostitution' if I served God out of a fear for hell. But it's not that we serve some arbitrary God Who sits on His throne and turns His head from those who won't listen to every single minute detail of His insanely impossible law. I serve God because I've experienced Him, felt His presence, and felt more adoration than an egocentric, dying world (not merely referring to people, although partly) could ever offer.

I personally don’t view the Christian God as a particularly loving or “perfect” god; he displays far too many traits of his imperfect creation: anger, wrath, jealousy, etc.

As far as that goes, I must first say (and don't classify me as dogmatic) that I serve a living God. If He weren't angry or jealous for our sake, then I would understand your dilemma. Or, if He were wrathful for any sake other than that He is just (which He promised), I would understand. But my God is angry and jealous, and acts on those 'emotions,' for lack of a better word, for our sake, that we might believe in Him, and do that which is good for us. Righteousness is of no profit to God, except that He knows it's good for us. Sinfulness is not painful to Him, saving for grief over a 'spiritual suicide,' if you will. And wrath, for justice and integrity! God wouldn't be very great if He weren't reliable and unchanging. (I'd say you'd probably agree) That, and, if you expect the all the people in this world to be good enough for peace and world-wide prosperity, sorry, but I believe you indulge in almost the falsest of hopes. As long as free will for all men exists, which is a necessary part of what we believe is God's plan, the world will never be perfect, and, as much as human emotion makes us want to reject the idea, people who are rebellious to God all their lives must eventually meet an absolute end if we ever hope to achieve true peace and unending prosperity.

Hope this helps, if help is what you were seeking.

PS- If you are seriously open-minded about possibly believing in the Christian God, I'd suggest the book Case for Faith by Lee Strobel for some of your questions.