Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Question 54 -When is Hell?
We ask our Readers to please take a moment to ask for God's Holy Spirit to be your only Guide as we continue. Thank you so much.

Pastor, we have good news and bad news. If you are a Pre-Trib Minister, or a Minister of any Evangelical Denomination teaching that Hell is place of torment that has been burning since the beginning of time, and you've had lingering questions as to whether this is truth, you just might be in the majority. It is a fact that many sincere and honest Ministers have made a careful and prayerful study into the Bible, and the Bible only, and have discovered things that make them much more comfortable concerning Hell. In this Blogsite we will share some of what these Ministers have discovered. We will save the bad news for the end of this Blogsite.

Peter gave a most comprehensive description of when and where Hell will be. In spite of Peter's inspired words, almost all Christian Denominations, declare that Hell is burning now.
Pretty much all of Christianity teaches that when the first lost person died after Adam and Eve, that person didn't die, but was immediately transferred alive into a burning Hell where he or she has been screaming and writhing and begging God for mercy for over five thousand years. Do we really believe such a person has suffered in Hell for all these years, yet Satan and his evil spirits have been free during this time?  And do we really believe God punishes people in fire before they are judged?

Peter Told When Hell Is!
Under inspiration of God's Holy Spirit, Peter wrote the following: "The heavens and the EARTH which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the Day of Judgment (Great White Throne Judgment) and perdition (destruction) of ungodly men" (2Peter 3:7). Peter then describes the fire that follows the Judgment and the perdition/destruction of the lost wicked: "The heavens [the atmosphere surrounding earth] shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements [atmosphere] shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are in it, shall be burned up" (Vs.10, last part). Note the words, "burned up." 

 After Peter tells of the earth, and the works that are in it, being "burned up," he then tells us what happens next. "Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for a New Heavens and a New Earth, in which dwelleth righteousness" (Vs.13).Peter explained when and where Hell will be. However, if we read the first words of Peters prophecy, we get another angle that, if not carefully examined with other prophecies, we could become confused. Let's read all of Peter's Prophecy: "But the Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night in the which the heavens [the atmosphere surrounding earth] shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements [atmosphere] shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are in it, shall be burned up" (Vs.10).
 
Day of the Lord Come as a Thief in the Night
When we hear "The Day of the Lord" and "A Thief in the Night" we immediately think of Christ's Second Coming. However, if we read all Bible Prophecies about the Second Coming, it is clear that, according to the Bible, earth is not completely destroyed by a massive fire. Pre-Trib's version of the Second Coming is that the earth, in its present condition, becomes the Kingdom of God, or the Millennial Kingdom. Pre-Trib agrees that the Second Coming will be as a Thief in the Night, but no Pre-Trib promoter believes the earth will be completely dissolved by fire at the Second Coming.

"Day of the Lord"
Thus the only way to resolve what seems to be a Biblical Impasse, is to understand what is meant by the Day of the Lord.  Many times in the Old and New Testament, we find the expression, "Day of the Lord" that is actually referring to what we now know as the Millennium. In other words, the Day of the Lord could mean the actual Day Jesus Comes, and it could also mean the Millennium.

A Day is as a Thousand Years - A Thousand Years is as a Day
Peter actually helps us understand the Day of the Lord with the following: "But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day" (2Pet.3:8).

We can sum up the, "When is Hell," Question with this. The phrase that says, "Come as a Thief in the night" happens at Jesus' Second Coming at the beginning of the 1000 years, and when Peter wrote, "in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are in it, shall be burned up" (2Pet.3:10), happens at the end of the thousand years. When the fire is done; when sin and sinners are no more; when Satan and his evil demons are no more; then Hell is done. Earth is pure and Jesus can then, "Create a New Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2Pet.3:13). If the Reader is a ardent supporter of Pre-Trib and does not believe that the last portion of Peter's statement here is referring to the end of the Millennium, following is the footnote in the Scofield Study Bible under 2Peter 3:10: 
  • "The expression, 'in which' refers to the close of the Day of the Lord at the end of the Millennium, when the destruction of the heavens and the earth ends the Day of the Lord (Rev.20:11;21:1)"  (Scofield study Bible Footnote under 2Pet.3:10).
At the beginning of this Blogsite we said there is good news and bad news. The good news is, if you are uncomfortable telling your congregation that right now God is torturing people, some of whom are your congregation's friends and relatives that have passed on, there are hundreds of thousands of Pastors that share your discomfort. Thousands of these Pastors have made a careful and prayerful study of only the Bible, not other Ministers, and have concluded that God is not a sadistic torturer after all. Pastor, you need only to do an Internet search to find a great many Ministers who have done exactly this, and now have the courage to stand up and share their findings. And now for the bad news:

Thousands and thousands, possibly a majority, of Ministers who declare that God tortures people throughout eternity actually know better, but fear loosing their jobs as Pastors, Television personalities, and many other positions in which they are paid money. More bad news is the fact that, when a high profile Minister does have the courage to share the truth about Hell, other Evangelical Ministers do everything possible to besmirch and humiliate him, and demand he be fired. There is not any way to establish what percent of Christian Ministers secretly know that God does not and will not torture His creatures, but based on how many that have denounced the "never-ending-torture" view and embraced the truth, it could be far and away the majority. Pastor, please make this a matter of much prayer and Bible study!!

Again, for more Bible answers for this subject, see No Rest Day Nor Night Forever, The REAL Punishment of the Wicked, The Rich Man and Lazarus, and most of all, see, Did Jesus Suffer Your Hell for You?

Thank you SO much, Dear Reader, for your time and interest. Let's continue to pray for God's Spirit as we study!
Your Brother in Christ!
Walter C. Martin Jr.
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Check Our Other Blogsites:
Pre-Tribulation Rapture
Post-Tribulation Second Coming of Jesus
Will We Eat Pigs During the Millennium?

Planet Earth WILL be Destroyed After the 1000 Years!
New Jerusalem - How BIG is It?
Great White Throne Judgment Seat - When and Where
Christ's Kingdom - Millennial or EVERLASTING?

 Hell Fire
Is God Torturing People Now
Did Jesus Suffer ALL of Your Hell?
The Rich Man and Lazarus?
Death
The Dead - Dead or Alive - What is Death?
Did Jesus Die YOUR Death for You?
Will Satan Ever Die - Bible Says "YES!"
Testing Our Doctrine About Death
The Dead Stand Before Great White Throne Judgment Seat

 The Gnostics Attack the Sabbath
Were Gnostics Really Christian?
Were Gnostics Satan's Implants into the Church?
Is Gnosticism Alive and Well in Today's Churches
Church is Israel - Israel is Church
Is the Church Israel and Israel the Church?
Is the Bride of Jesus the 144 Thousand?
Did Jesus Offer the Jews a Millennial Kingdom in His Ministry?
Will New Jerusalem Sit in Israel? How Big is It?
Christ's REAL EVERLASTING Kingdom is for ALL Believers!

The Sabbath
Is it a Sin to Observe the Sabbath?
Is There a Connection Between the Rapture and the Sabbath?
Will the Sabbath Be Observed By God's People During the Tribulation?
Who REALLY Changed the Sabbath in Early Christianity?
Un-Answered and Un-Answerable Sabbath Questions For Popular Preachers
How to Test Your Doctrine Concerning the Sabbath

Heaven
Marriage in Heaven - Millennial Kingdom?
Strange Animal/Demons the Millennium?
Why Jesus Hasn't Come to Take Us To Heaven?
Teachers of Anomia (Law Annulling)
Good Ministers Teaching Against God's 10 Commandments?
Teaching of Anomia - The Reason Jesus Hasn't Come Yet?
Pre-Trib Rapture and Sabbath
Pre-Trib Rapture and the Sabbath?

Walter C. Martin Jr.
Everlasting Gospel Ministries

These are just a few of the questions we examine in our Websites.
Thank you, Dear Reader,  for checking them. Please feel free to give us your comments and feedback if you look at our Sites.  If you send us your questions or comments, we will try to answer and add your question to these Websites. We will Not give your name or E-Mail address to ANY ONE or ANY Church Group or Denomination! Nor will we send you ANY annoying E-Mails!! It is NOT our purpose to get you to withdraw from your present Church, but to invite you to present things you learn here to your Pastor and Friends.
Let's pray that God will continue sending His Holy Spirit to guide as we prepare for Jesus to come. Thank You!
Your Brother in Christ!
Walter C. Martin Jr

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