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On the Beautiful Heresy board a week or so ago...a new member posted the following in her intro....
Many proponents of the doctrine of eternal hell argue that it is just part of God's nature that we don't understand. But there's this principle in theology called Deus ad intra/Deus ad extra that says that how God reveals himself to us does not contradict his inner nature, even if it is not fully known to us. Saying that a loving God would torment people forever is like saying that an all-powerful God can make 2+2=5...it is just absurd. God has revealed through creation that he is a God of order, and he has revealed through the Incarnate Christ that he is a God of unconditional love and infinite grace.
Although I didn't know there was a specific theological term for it, I knew by intuition that God would not violate his character and nature displayed for all the world to see in the "Incarnate Christ." Always have. Well, at least since I became a Christian. Hell never made much sense to me because it seemed to so contradict the character and nature of God. (not to mention the fact that it is so incredibly unfair) Being a new and ignorant Christian, I knew that scripture declared it to be so (or so I thought) but in my heart, I knew better. The OT atrocities many consider orchestrated, ordered and ordained by God also totally contradict the image of the invisible God we see in Jesus. The bloody OT Sacrificial system, believed to be initiated by God as a "type and shadow" of the bigger, better sacrifice he intends to feed into the sacrificial machine with Jesus....also violates the character and nature we see so perfectly demonstrated in the image of the invisible God we see in Jesus. It reminds me of the old adage....you can't get blood out of a turnip. God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. No matter how those who believe the aforementioned heinous doctrines try to twist scripture to say prove that there is.
11 comments:
I came across this post by chance looking for a definition of "ad extra" but felt I should comment. How I fear for you! I don't where to start with the things that worry me in this post! Yes, God acts in accordance with his nature but Jesus is also the image of the invisible God - there is no contradiction in the Godhead. In one short post you seem to deny the consistency of the Trinity, the sinfulness of man, the right of God as creator to do as He wills with His creation (expressly stated in scripture) and His right as most Holy judge to punish sin (which He hates), you deny countless scriptures which show that God is in control of ALL his creation working ALL things, even the evil done by others for good, for His glory and You try to make Jesus in Your own image, thinkiung that your heart should guide your interpretation of scripture rather than scripture exposing the evil in your heart - even though God declares that our hearts are deceitful beyond measure. I fear you do not know the scripture nor the One of whome they speak. He calls us to repent of all our pride and trust in Him alone as our only hope. If we try to add anything of our own efforts to His finished work on the cross Jesus says that the words He spoke to us will judge us!
Martin...
Thanks for your concern...and all comments are welcome here as long as they are stated in a civil, respectful way...which you did. I just happen to disagree with your point of view...
Cindi....
Hi Cindi
Like martin, I came across this while searching for "ad extra", and felt that I should comment. I wonder the same thing as you too - how to reconcile the concept of hell with the concept of a loving God. i think alot has to do with our concepts of hell - an active present place of torment, or as a negative absence of existence. I too find the book of genesis the hardest book of the bible to discuss - simply because of the horrors that Israel was commanded to perform. But hey, no one said understanding the scriptures would be easy ;)
Dear Sing Chee-
Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving your comment. I just happened to be on line when the comment alert hit my inbox. As to reading the scriptures, I remember a comment from long ago..ten years or so...made on a UR message board where I hung out at the time. (and still do to a certain extent - tentmaker.org) Anyway, the comment, paraphrased due to the fact that I cannot remember the exact wording was -
You can read the scriptures in the King James, the NIV, the Concordant Literal or in the original Greek/Hebrew...but unless you read it with/in the Spirit, you will never hear Abba speak.
Good advice ten years later. I try to read with the guidance of the Holy Spirit within. God promised he would lead us into all truth. I believe he will.
Cindi....
bravo!!!
true enough! God revealed himself through his creation and he is in all...stop spiritualizing! we are in the world...Jesus came not only for our sins and he died not becuase of our sins but because of sinful humanity. You are correct in saying that it is incontradiction if God punishes his creation. What God wants us is to be happy... happpiness is what makes man fully human, and that is where salvation comes in...
There is a hell. God tells us this in His Word. Is anyone there? The fallen angels, we call them demons, they are there. Anyone else? I don't know. God does not send anyone there, but God will not interfere with our free will if we choose to go there. It is the choice of our lower nature over the higher life that God offers us. Is it possible that someone could elect to choose forever their lower nature, earthly things, over their higher nature, spiritual things, communion with God Himself? How many people do you know who renounce the world to live for God alone. I know that's the extreme (and a good one, at that), but I am sure you can find many, many more who renounce God and live for themselves alone. It is a mystery. Will anyone elect eternal separation from God as Satan did? And did that make God somehow contrary to His nature? We are here trying to make judgments that only the Infinite God is in a position to make. If I knew all things, I would give you your answer, but as it is, I can only tell you what the Word says. It warns us not to choose things that will send us to hell, and I will obey to the best of my ability, knowing that if I fall, I have a loving Savior who will forgive me and help me get back on my feet again. His Mercy endures forever.
Blessings to you Aslan. Thank you for taking the time to comment.
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