Today, my friend ObstacleChick had an interaction on my Facebook page with an Evangelical man named John. If there is no fear of Hell (or God), would people still devote themselves to the one true faith? Maybe, for social reasons, but if there are no worries about going to Hell, I suspect people would likely treat their chosen religion more cavalierly than they do now (more like they do in some European countries). If threats of Hell are removed, would Evangelicals still attend church, give money, or evangelize unbelievers? Heaven is the carrot, but Hell is the stick. Hell is a cudgel used by Evangelical preachers to keeps asses in the pews and money in offering plates. Undoing the psychological conditioning often takes years. When people are told a lie repeatedly, it should come as no surprise that they believe it. It is hard to shake the sermons and Sunday school lessons about Hell. I have received numerous emails over the years from ex-Evangelicals who are still struggling with thoughts about Hell. How could it be otherwise? Years of indoctrination, of being told Hell is a real place and unbelievers will spend eternity being tortured by God, will do that to you. Even among Evangelicals-turned-atheists, Hell often lurks in the depths of our minds. The literalness of Hell is deeply engrained in our thinking. Eighty-two percent of Evangelicals believe Hell is a real place. According to a 2014 Pew Research study, sixty percent of American adults believe in the existence of Hell. Yet, a majority of Americans believe in its existence. Donald Trump might want to go to Hell and build high rises to accommodate all the non-Evangelicals. Imagine 100 billion people living in a space the size of the United States. Thus, we can safely say that Hell has a population in excess of 100 billion people. Evangelicals believe that the vast majority of people past and present will end up in Hell after they die. Scientists estimate almost 110 billion people have lived and died on our planet. Today, almost eight billion people live on earth. According to Wikipedia, the core of the earth is approximately 1,500 miles in diameter, one-fortieth of the volume of the whole earth. All joking aside, most Evangelicals believe Hell is somewhere in the center of the earth. What? Hell is Australia? I guess Hell could be Antarctica, though its climate seems very un-hell like. Ask an Evangelical to point you to where Hell is and they will point down. There’s no evidence for the existence of Hell (or Heaven). I am well aware of the various Evangelical beliefs on these subjects.) By fitting unbelievers with bodies that can withstand the terrors of Hell, they won’t be turned to ashes. Unbelievers will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire. Christians will spend eternity in the Eternal Kingdom of God. After Jesus returns to earth and defeats Satan, every human will be resurrected from the dead, judged, and then given a new body. The Bible teaches that Heaven and Hell are actually temporary holding places. Those consigned to Hell would immediately melt and be turned to ashes without God doing something to keep that from happening. Worse yet, the natural body can’t withstand the extreme fire and heat of Hell. But even with annihilation, unbelievers are still tortured by God for a time before they are obliterated.) (And yes, I am aware that a small percentage of Evangelicals are annihilationists. If you didn’t believe the right things (and Evangelicalism preaches a gospel of right beliefs) you will spend eternity suffering in the flames of Hell. You may have devoted your life to serving the sick, poor, and marginalized. You may have been an awesome mother, father, grandparent, or friend. Just saying no to Jesus means you will be tortured by God of “love” forever. If Evangelicals are right about Hell, this means that a momentary decision made by unbelievers to not believe the Evangelical gospel will be punished for millions, billions, and trillions of years. The life expectancy for humans is 70-80 years in most of the developed world. Some Evangelicals suggest that the only sin people will be punished for in Hell is the sin of unbelief as if this is somehow better than being punished for adultery, fornication, or being LGBTQ. Hell (actually the Lake of Fire) is a place where unbelievers will be punished and tortured for their sins for eternity. Those who were saved when they died go to Heaven, and those who weren’t - atheists, agnostics, pagans, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, and Catholics (to name a few) - go to Hell. Where we end up depends on whether we were born again/saved. The Bible says that it is “appointed unto men once to die.” All of us will die someday, Evangelicals say, and the moment we draw our last breath, we will be transported by God to Heaven or Hell. Most Evangelicals believe in a literal Heaven and Hell.
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