Why Will Hell Be So Full?, hell Options

[ursula]

I hope someone can answer me cause I am very confused...Jesus died on the cross and suffered beyond ones wildest imagination..and yet it seems that half the creation either doesnt believe it or hasnt heard it or understood it...or wasnt taught about it...so it seems like such a precious waste to have to go through such suffering and so few acknowlege it...and yet as christians we believe that it is the only way to be saved from eternal damnation...so what about these people?? will they not go to heaven?? and have to go to hell?? and also what about the souls that lived before Jesus? what happens to them...I think there has to be another place they can go like maybe purgatory like the catholics believe...maybe they get a chance to hear the gospel...cause how could god send someone to hell whose never heard?????? i eagerly look forward to hear from you...
Ursula

[Glen]

Hi Ursula! Sorry I misunderstood you. When you use ?????? and !!!!! it seems like you're yelling a statement rather than asking a question. I've been praying about this issue and your question since my last post, so, be patient with me while I give you what went through my mind, because some of it is pretty basic, but it sets a foundation for the answer to your question.

God created us and, as our Creator/Father, set a rule for us to follow. We, through Adam, rejected Him as our Father, saying, in essence, "you have no authority over us."
Ever since then, we have all been born separate from God, and needing reconciliation. Also, ever since then, God has been speaking to any of us who would listen and, in faith, follow Him. His plan has been in existence since before creation...He knew we would reject Him and planned for Jesus to pay the price for our sins and reconcile everyone who believed, to God, regardless of their sins. This is why it was important for Christ to sacrifice Himself, as a testimony of how important each of us is to God. Christ died to save everyone who had faith in God, past, present and future. Salvation has always been through through Jesus Christ, by faith, not works. Even those before Christ (see Hebrews chapter 11). No one was saved by obedience to the Law, but their attempt to obey the Law was evidence of their faith, by which, Christ saved them.

So, when Paul writes in Romans 2:6, "God will give to each person according to what he has done," he is speaking of seeking the things of God, rather than seeking to follow evil. Look at the wording of vs 7&8. The one who has faith is the one who seeks to do the will of God. Really, the same rule applies to Christians and non-Christians...everyone sins and falls short...even Christians. It isn't where you've been, it's where you're headed, that counts. Seeking to do God's will, however He reveals it to you, is an act of faith that He will reward.

So, why is sharing Christ important? Because He is the living embodiment of God's plan to reconcile every human with Him and His love, to be with Him forever. Jesus is God's expression of love (Jn 3:16) and the power through whom we can gain that love again, personally. When I speak of sharing Christ, though, I don't recommend anyone try to, as you put it, "convince" another. No one comes to God except the Holy Spirit draw him. Instead, Jesus gave a great example of sharing Christ, by being a "friend of sinners." He shared love with the lost and preached against the religious leaders. Don't open a discussion about Jesus by telling someone they're going to hell. How can they hear your next point? Instead, wait until someone tells you they're "going through hell" right now. Then offer the love of Jesus as a solution to their problem instead of a condemnation of their lifestyle.


On wanting to know how God does things...no matter how much we want to know, God only tells us what we need to know. "Now we see as through a glass, darkly." When we're with Him in Heaven, we'll see clearly.

One last point going all the way back to your first post in this topic. The word Hell in the Bible just means grave. Spending eternity with or without God...that's the choice we face. Looking at Scripture as a whole, I trust God that no one will spend eternity without God unless they have actively made that choice. "There is nothing capricious in God's nature." So, "Hell" will only be full of people who got on the bus to go there. But, that's also why it's important that we, living out His love, show them the other bus.