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Am I Going To Hell?
by Michael Blunk Th.D. A short time ago, I received a letter from an agnostic asking if he was destined to hell. He further stated in no way would he ever consider becoming a Christian. The following is my response; I would be interested in knowing if my Christian brothers and sisters would have answered this young man differently. Dear friend, God did not appoint me as your judge; furthermore, if you deny the existence of God and the reality of hell, why would this matter even cross your mind? And why would you bother seeking an opinion from someone you do not know? Still, you have asked a question and I will reply. The Bible teaches that hell is a place that was never intended for man. Hell was created as the eternal destination for Satan and his armies of fallen demons. So how will legions of lost men and women find their way into a place never intended for them? That's an interesting question. Heaven, which is properly called New Jerusalem in Scripture, is the eternal city of God. Now if this is indeed the eternal city of God, why would anyone who spent his or her entire life avoiding God want to spend eternity there? No, there is nothing that an unregenerate man or woman could possible desire in Heaven. I cannot believe than anyone who despises God in this lifetime could be content living in His eternal city in the next lifetime. And so there is hell. In hell, no creature will ever again come in contact with God. The man or woman consigned to hell will be eternally separated from Him. Does the very idea of submitting to the will of a Creator God upset you? In hell, you will never again hear His name. All those who despise God will truly get their wish--and their dying wish will endure throughout all eternity. Like it or not, God created you for a purpose; but He also created you with a free will. You may choose to follow Him. You may choose to ignore Him. God will not crowd you. He will give you your space. He will honor your wishes. And in the end, He will look upon you with sorrow in His heart and sadly proclaim, "Your will be done." You will be the ultimate rebel--the one who shook his fist in the face of God shouting, "No!" You and I are sinners. We were born into sin and without the divine intervention of Christ Jesus, we will die in sin. God offers a way of escape--by His grace, we can accept through faith His free gift of salvation. But how can you or I hope to escape the wrath to come if we neglect His gift of salvation. I am no better than you and you are no worse than me; the difference between us is that I have accepted His gift of salvation and you have not. In truth, you and I are both a couple of dirty-faced beggars, but I have held out my hands and accepted His good gifts. You have not. I desire salvation. You do not. I want to be His adopted son. You do not. I long to see God face to face. You do not. And in the end, we shall both have our wish come true. Again, what would there be in Heaven that could possibly interest you? I do not intend on sounding silly, but someone who dislikes music would not wish to attend a concert. Someone who loathes art would not care to tour a museum. So why would an unregenerate man or woman desire Heaven? I am a chaplain in a homeless shelter. Each day, I see people whose lives have been wrecked by drugs or sexual abuse or any number of other evils that ravage human lives. Take the word of a man who works in the gutter--this world is a desperate place. I long for something better. Why? I long for something better because I was created for something better. You were created for something better, too, but whether you accept it or not is up to you. You are not a robot. You have a free will. And in the end, you will reap the harvest you have sewn. You asked me if you were going to hell. I am not your judge. As I see it, your final destination is up to you. There are only two possible destinations--one is eternity with God and the other is eternity without God. As of now, you have chosen an eternity away from God. God will not force you into Heaven. He may twist your arm by sending people like me into your life to sound a warning, but again, if you despise God, He will honor your decision and you can join the ranks of others who also despise God. I really do not think you will like what you find there, but then, what would there be in Heaven that could possibly appeal to you? Be very careful what you ask for. You just may get your wish. And in the end, the wish cannot be undone. Dr. Michael Blunk is a staff writer for an apologetics ministry and serves full time as a chaplain with Wayside Christian Mission. You may contact him at [email protected] Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |