How Can A Loving God Send People To Hell?
Would A Loving Parent Send Their Child To A Firey Hell?
If “God is love” as the Bible says in 1 John 4:8, then why would He send people to a place of horrible suffering? As a loving parent, I could never send my children to hell, not now, not ever. So why would I think for a moment that God is going to send anyone to suffer in the eternal lake of fire?
First, it is vitally important that we understand God’s heart on this subject. From the Scriptures we learn that God is loving, patient, and kind toward us “not wanting anyone to perish” (2 Peter 3:9). This love of God is more than mere words, He backed it up by His actions:
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16-17)
God sent Christ not to condemn or judge us, but to save us from our sinful rebellious lives. God became a man and took upon himself the punishment for all of our sins on the cross. He suffered and died in our place for our sins.
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)
Through Christ, all our sins are forgiven and we are reconciled to God. It is His desire that we possess eternal life and live forever in His eternal kingdom. In and through Christ, all our sin, guilt, and shame have been removed. All that is necessary now is that we turn to Him in true repentance and receive forgiveness and a new life. The decision is ours to choose either the Lord or continue to do our own thing. To think that God wants us to suffer the torments of hell is inconsistent with God’s love and plan of redemption.
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:4-9)
Without Christ as our Savior and Lord, our sin-stained lives are unqualified for heaven. We are sinners through and through. If we are unwilling to confess from our hearts (not lip service) that we are sin-sick people in need of God’s forgiveness and healing, we will not comprehend God’s amazing love. Sin will have succeeded in blinding us from seeing the truth and we will continue living in denial.
There are only two paths in life, one leads to eternal life with the Lord, and the other to eternal damnation in a place called hell. Each of us must choose which path we will travel. While there are many influences that may steer us in one direction or the other, only we can choose which path we will travel. If we choose the path toward hell it is absurd to blame God for our choice and ultimate destiny. We should not be surprised when we see the gates of hell on the horizon, it is where the wrong path leads and ends. This is a universal truth understood by billions of people and clearly taught in the Scriptures. We can not say to God, “why did you send me here?” He didn’t; the choice was ours.
God is continually calling us to change paths and join Him on the path toward heaven. If we respond to God’s loving call, He will qualify us for heaven through Christ and forgive all our sins. He will declare us holy and blameless in His sight. He will place His Holy Spirit in our beings and give us a new heart and mind that is renewed through His word. He will make us spiritually alive in Christ and capable of hearing, seeing, and practicing the truth of His word. He will bless us in ways never thought possible. His loving kindness, mercy, and grace will envelop our hearts and impart a peace that goes beyond our understanding. And when we fall flat on our faces and fail to obey His truth and stray from his teachings, He will pick us up and carry us until we regain our footing. He will never leave us or forsake us!
The only people going to hell are those who reject Christ and God’s loving plan to rescue them. Jesus taught that the path to hell is very wide (Mat. 7:13) and well-traveled. Sadly, too many of us choose to remain on the wrong path toward eternal separation from God and heaven. Proverbs 14:12 warns us of the deceptive nature of this wide path that leads to death:
There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.
The path to hell is a busy place of endless activity that hypes the promise of great things to come. It boasts of the good life, happiness, freedom, and the right to do your own thing. You can be who you want to be, follow all your passions, desires, and appetites longing for expression. Anything and everything seems permissible. The path leaders and authorities are constantly urging everyone to hurry along, for wonderful things are just around the next turn. Unfortunately, they are lying.
It was on this path that I heard the voice of someone calling out to me, asking me for a moment of my time. This wasn’t the first time I had heard this voice calling out to me—in times past I just ignored it. But on this occasion, I paused to listen and realized it was He, the Savior of the world. He extended his hand and urged me to come, and somehow by God’s grace I knew He was the right way. In an instant, the illuminating presence of God change my life and I was on a new path, the right path, and I was no longer walking alone, but with the Lord. Yes, I was on the way to hell when I met Jesus!
Jesus said, in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
The only one who wants you to suffer in hell is Satan. It is not God’s desire that we remain on the path to hell, but that we choose the true path and turn to the Savior. The choice of heaven or hell is ours alone. Which path will you choose? Perhaps if you take a moment and listen carefully you might hear the Savior calling out to you today.
How to Turn to God
Perhaps at this very moment, you have realized that you need the Lord in your life. Maybe you drifted away or need to be been born again? If so, you can stop right now and begin talking to God. Ask Him to forgive you for being a sinner and the life you have been living outside of His love. Surrender your life to Him, unconditionally. Call Him Lord and make Him Lord of every thought, attitude, and action. You can say, Lord Jesus, forgive me for all my sins and come into my heart and take full control of my life. I am your child from this day forward. Change my heart and mind to be Christ-like in every way. I confess Jesus is my Lord and Savior forever.
If you prayed that prayer we would love to hear back from you.
You may be interested in this blog also: Are You Really Born Again?
