"hell" is basically just separation from god on the identity level. because real separation is impossible. when the mind has an identity separate from god it creates suffering.

"emotion is your body's reaction to your mind" -eckhart tolle

its that separate identity (ego) that creates the idea of hell as a separate physical place. it does the same with heaven. places to go in the afterlife. all delusion.

both are states of consciousness here now

I grew up as a Christian, and although I can not confirm the strength of faith I have now, I have been immersed in all things “Christian” for many years. Growing up with this, I was taught many different reasons for the way that certain things were when it came to God, in attempt to explain them fully. These reasonings have left me confused now that I am older and processing things more deeply. One of the examples I often think about is that the explanation for “Hell” was that it was the place where people who do not believe in God go.
For example of where this belief may have come from, I look to Psalm 17 : “The wicked go down to the realm of the dead, all the nations that forget God.” The “realm of the dead” of course meaning hell- and the “nations that forget God” being the people that don’t recognize Him as their God. — whatsgoinon

It's a rich expression! "Forgetting God" - well, who is God? "God is love". Does the name Jesus convey love? Not necessarily, and why? 2 Peter 2:2 "The false teachers will introduce destructive heresies. Many will follow their depraved conduct, bringing the way of truth into disrepute."

So to know God is more than to know the proper pronunciation of His name. It is to understand His character, to know love. Those who forget love, go down into death - and it is more real than you have said, because it is a spiritual death. An instant spiritual death (Romans 7:9). Thus the Psalmist observes "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death" - richly describing the path he is on - a long vast channel where death is all around, casting it's shadow, because "many take the broad road that leads to destruction (they forget God, they abandon love)".

The idea that I was taught is such as this (ish):

1. Person learns about God.
2. They then get to decide whether or not they believe in Him and accept Him as their savior.
3. If said person accepts God as their savior while they are alive, they will then get into heaven.
4. This godly person will get into heaven.
— whatsgoinon

It smacks of the antichrist's doctrine. Jesus warns in Matthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone saying 'Lord! Lord!' to me will enter heaven. Only those who do my father's will: for many will say to me "See, I have done many great things in your name!" yet I will say to them "I never knew you, you cannot be with me, for you are a worker of iniquity".

He also said through Matthew 25 that the final judgement is merited upon morality and love, not belief: "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you were doing it to me" - so, "The righteous (morally justified) will go to everlasting life, but the wicked to everlasting punishment".

For those not so “lucky”-

1. Person learns about God.
2. Person decides whether or not they believe in Him and accept Him as their savior.
3. Said person does not accept God as their savior, they will not go to heaven, but rather sent to Hell.
4. As the Bible says, Hell is the lack of God and all things God created- — whatsgoinon

(Interjection upon point #4: .. could you please prove that the bible does in fact say that? .. I am pretty sure you won't find anything like that).

thus leaving hell to be a fiery burning apocalyptic like land with no sense of time or space.
5. Person goes to the place without God, aka Hell.

I just have so many questions when it comes to a faulty argument such as this. First of all, what about people that don’t know about God or haven’t had access to the bible or teachings about Him? — whatsgoinon

It is for God to make that decision, right? Remember that He is in the spiritual realm, and most people do not perceive the spiritual realm (because "unless a man be born of the spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God". But we who are born again, we do see the spiritual realm. We recognise that words come from the spirit that is in a person, and "God is compassionate to all his creatures" - so it is unreasonable to think that there is any one person to whom God has not spoken. Just as in Matthew 25 mentioned above, they say to Him "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a naked or poor?" and just as He said to Philip "Have I been with you so long, and yet you don't know me? How can you say to me "Show us the Father"? .. whoever has seen me has seen the father". The issue then is whether they recognise Him, and remember the thief on the cross - we don't see that he recognised the father in Jesus, only that he chose to side with justice and truth against the mockery of what he saw as a righteous man wrongly condemned. That is the basis upon which Jesus said "today you will be with me in paradise".

So, His judgement is about justice, not belief. If it were about belief, you would be absolutely justified to say He is unjust, just as the antichrist would have it, and as he achieves through the false doctrines "bringing the way of truth into disrepute".

Beliefs are only as good as the behaviours they produce. If beliefs produce bad behaviours, they do not produce any good, and no judgement of justice can reward a person for them.

What about people that accepted Christ when they were really young, or didn’t exactly understand the religion fully? — whatsgoinon

I don't fully understand why you have asked this question - if what I have said already isn't enough, could you please provide some clarification?

What about the people that believe in their own Gods, do they go to the Christian Hell as well as whatever their religion considers to be the idealized end of time for them? — whatsgoinon

God is love, so any religion (including the counterfeits of Christianity) that teaches a person to oppose love, will cause them to be condemned in judgement. Ultimately though, it is God who makes those judgements - based upon the merits. A person who breaks a law cannot really be held responsible for breaking that law if they have been reasonably led to believe that it was lawful to do so (remember that the adversary operates through deceit - drawing us away from the truth that would keep us free from condemnation).

Basically, I’m just wondering how this could even be a justification for how Hell would maybe work. I haven’t read the bible from cover to cover, so I’m sure I am missing out on things. But does anyone have any thoughts to add to this? — whatsgoinon

Just as has already been said, hell is the existence being separated from God, who is love. So, to be cut off from love is to be cut off from God, and as you might already have found out, as we age there is less natural affection toward us from the world around us, so there are many people (and indeed, animals) who experience hell on earth in the present day, by definition

I'm going to PM you something too, a link to an online booklet about the gospel that is very good and I think it will be helpful for you to get the right idea about some things that most churches actually don't have right. I can't post the link in public though because of the forum rules.

I regard Hell as a mental state, which one can dwell in during physical life and possibly after. A state devoid of Good, which could be described as a state lacking God. It's self-inflicted, and the punishment is too.

I just have so many questions when it comes to a faulty argument such as this. First of all, what about people that don’t know about God or haven’t had access to the bible or teachings about Him?
What about people that accepted Christ when they were really young, or didn’t exactly understand the religion fully?
What about the people that believe in their own Gods, do they go to the Christian Hell as well as whatever their religion considers to be the idealized end of time for them?

The first question is something Christians struggle with and we just do not know.

As far as young people, they are taught the religion and it's commitments and can regret at any point.

This last one, they would all go to Christian hell, because in order for them to get there end they would need to be right.

It smacks of the antichrist's doctrine. Jesus warns in Matthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone saying 'Lord! Lord!' to me will enter heaven. Only those who do my father's will: for many will say to me "See, I have done many great things in your name!" yet I will say to them "I never knew you, you cannot be with me, for you are a worker of iniquity".

One that thing about the antichrst's is blasphemy, heresy. I'll leave it at that

Well this is true he was referring to those who would declare Jesus is lord but not believe it in there heart's or the other way around. Meaning whatsgoinon was theology right.

Christian hell — hachit

do they go to the Christian Hell — whatsgoinon

A Visit with Charon in Hell:

sorry I'm a wesleyan. What is you point?