There is no Hell

Opponent: "Okay, during the time of Jesus there was only the Old Testament, which, by the way, has NO teaching of hell. So basically Jesus just invented the concept, or... Also, here is another problem." So Jesus lied. But Jesus was perfect, he never sinned. Lying is a sin, so how could Jesus lie? Opponent: Okay, first I'm going to comment on this and then I'm going to present a straight question for which I expect a straight answer. Comment: Christians are not better than the rest of mankind. If a Christian tries to be perfect, and an atheist tries to be perfect, why is ONLY the Christian allowed into Heaven? Because the word perfect is used in a spiritual sense. It is impossible for an atheist to be perfect when compared to a Christian. Because believing is the requirement for entering, and atheists don't believe. Opponent: Person 1 is Hitler. Person 2 is Mother Theresa. On the very last second of his life, Hitler became a Christian. On the very last second of her life, Mother Theresa became a Hindu. According to the Bible, Hitler is allowed into Heaven and Mother Theresa will be sent to the everlasting flames of hell. How is this logical? God doesn't need logic. Nothing about Christianity has to be "logical". Logic is a philosophical element invented by men. The Bible is based on faith and belief, therefore it doesn't need logic to back it up. And one of the aspects of belief in repentance, so not only would Hitler have to believe he would have to repent and be baptized. Opponent: Or why couldn't he take us all into heaven? He can't help somebody who doesn't believe in him. Opponent: Okay. If I were your child [or best friend] (as humans are god's children), could you, as a loving father, send me to a place of torture, and pain? If you did that, would you also make me immortal so that I could not simply die, but would have to endure the pain and who knows what for an eternity? No. But, I can't answer for God. Opponent: Are you saying that God is dependent of his creations? This poses several problems, of which I'd like to mention one. How could god have created the universe when there were no humans around? God created much simpler beings than we are today. Think about it, when God created Adam and Eve, they we're truly his "children". We had no concept of right and wrong, we were naive, ignorant, etc. However, we ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil we become exposed to the idea of right and wrong. We became much more complex, and much more powerful. Opponent: Since God is almighty, he could just basically say, "Hey! Give those souls to me!" After all, Satan is his creation. Don't you think God has more power over his creation than his creation over him? Actually, Satan wasn't created by God (it's never stated in the account of creation). And plus, evil is the absence of God, so how could God save the evil? Opponent: "I agree 110%. However, it is said that you don't need to love God in order to gain salvation, you need to believe in him." You need to believe, repent, and be baptized, and most of that requires a love for God. Opponent: What is so good about believing in God that it entitles for salvation? Why couldn't he just take all of us to heaven? Because belief and love come hand in hand. And the whole reason why God created man, in my opinion, was to be loved. We must give a little love to get some. Opponent: So, if in heaven an atheist (while he was alive) says, "Hey, God, listen. I know I've been an atheist, but now that I'm finally able to see for myself you, hell and heaven, I believe in you! I'm a Christian now! Don't send me into hell!" he will still be sent to hell? Interesting. [FYI, the Bible says that after a man dies, he cannot change his fate.] Because a blind faith is a more loving thing than a faith backed by facts. Opponent: Okay. Let me make this clear. The Bible says many times that if you sin, you go to Hell for eternity [and since Jesus took all the sins of the world on him, he should be in Hell forever.]. However, in the Gospels etc etc it is said that he arose after three days! This is a contradiction. That's what I was trying to say. So, how do you explain the contradiction? God bought him back. And since Jesus was God in the flesh, God had control over him. And bought him back. Opponent: In the 4th century the NT was translated into Latin. A coincidence? Using this strategy you could nullify everything in the Bible. Who is to say the passage that God is a loving God is not a mistranslation? Closing remarks: Without a heaven and hell, the whole purpose of religion is lost. If everyone went to the same place no matter what, there would be no encouragement to love him. Trust in the Bible, the Bible says: Hell is real. Don't rely on this idea that some parts are mistranslated, if we use that mentality the whole bible becomes useless. Think about it. Believe in him. Love him. Amen.