How Can A Loving God NOT Send People to Hell?

Fair warning, I'm going to talk about Nazis.

I say that, not because it's controversial, but because this is the Internet, and Reductio ad Hitlerum is a thing that I'd like not to be accused of.


"How can a loving God send people to Hell?" is a question that is often asked by Atheists, Agnostics, and let's face it, many Christians as well. It's not a bad question, but I do think it's the wrong question to ask.

I've been reading Eric Metaxas' excellent biography on Detrich Bonhoeffer. I've been engrossed by it for months. It's a great book and it paints the average German living in Nazi Germany in a completely new light, you should read it. One passage caught my attention tonight:

"On the positive side of things, Heydrich was dead. At the end of May, the albino stoat had been ambushed by Czech Resistance fighters while he was riding in his open-topped Mercedes. Eight days later, the architect of the Final Solution fell into the hands of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."

The Heydrich he's referring to is Reinhard Heydrich, One of the cheif architects of the Final Solution and the Holocaust. This guy was about as evil as you can get. He's on par with Herr Hitler himself.

Which brings me to the question: "How can a loving God send people to Hell?" It's hard to answer that when talking about your Great Aunt Betty who may have been a lovely woman, but happened to be an Atheist, but easy to answer when talking about such overtly evil men like our friend Heydrich. On the one hand: "She lived a good life, raised good, law-abiding kids and would never hurt a fly. She's in a better place." on the other: "Um...Nazi inner circle...go to hell, go directly to hell, do not pass "Gehen" do not collect 200 "deutschmarks". I have yet to meet a reasonable person who thinks anyone involved in Nazi High command should be in Heaven because "God is love"


Why the disparity?

If God is too good and too loving to let Betty fall into Hell why does He suddenly draw a line at genocide? Is that where God draws the line? What about mass murder? A single murder? Manslaughter? Negligence causing death? Attempted murder? I could go on.

We have something in common, believe it or not. The "How can a loving God send people to Hell?" crowd and the "Hell is hot, forever is a long time, repent and turn to Jesus." crowd. We all believe, whether you admit it or not, that God has to draw a line somewhere; has to say: "You, welcome to my Kingdom!" and "YOU! OUT OF MY SIGHT!" Otherwise, when we get there, we'll see Heydrich and Golda Meir in the same room...

Awkward...

The difference comes in where we draw said line. Christians believe it to be anything short of prefection, that's why Jesus needed to be incarnated on Earth. To live that life, in our place, and give us the credit while He took the punishment. That's why we love Jesus.

Every sane, rational person believes that there are some people who deserve Hell. The difference between them and Christians, is we think that list includes us.

Thank God for Jesus.

Christopher Hitchens and the Glory of God's Mercy

 

     Christopher Hitchens is dead. He died yesterday (Dec 15 2011). He was an Atheist; a loud one. He was 62. He was an author, and a father and a husband; in that order it seems.

If the name and picture don't ring a bell, he's known for saying (with an English accent) things like:

"My own view is that this planet is used as a penal colony, lunatic asylum and dumping ground by a superior civilisation, to get rid of the undesirable and unfit. I can't prove it, but you can't disprove it either."

and

“The only position that leaves me with no cognitive dissonance is atheism. It is not a creed. Death is certain, replacing both the siren-song of Paradise and the dread of Hell. Life on this earth, with all its mystery and beauty and pain, is then to be lived far more intensely: we stumble and get up, we are sad, confident, insecure, feel loneliness and joy and love. There is nothing more; but I want nothing more.”

and

“Thus, though I dislike to differ with such a great man, Voltaire was simply ludicrous when he said that if god did not exist it would be necessary to invent him. The human invention of god is the problem to begin with.”

    I respect the man for being vocal about his beliefs (though he wouldn't have called them that) and I can even admire him for the veracity with which he kept them, but there's a section of his Globe and Mail obituary that caught my attention:

"In response to Mr. Hitchens’s outspoken and steadfast atheism, the faithful clamoured to the heavens, organizing prayer groups and even going so far as to designate Sept. 20, 2010, as Pray for Hitchens Day.

Don’t bother, unless it makes you feel better, he told the devout, insisting that he wouldn’t recant his atheism so long as he was lucid and rational. And he issued a plea asking people to forgive him if he did make a deathbed conversion, arguing that if such a thing happened, it wouldn’t be him speaking but a “half-demented” entity racked by pain and riddled with drugs."

     It's his desire to be forgiven by his friends if he recants his Atheism, that gave me pause. It's almost as though he's leaving the possibility for such a conversion... open?  That can't be right, the man was one of the most fervent and outspoken of Atheists yet here he is making a theological statement?

     Hitchens saw the possibility of recanting Atheism and espousing God, if he were "half-demented", drugged up, and in incredible pain. He saw the possibility. What if the Holy Spirit was starting to get to him? Would such a conversion be valid? Could it be? Many would say that it would only be an attempt by Hitchens to "hedge his bets" perhaps as an extreme version of Pascal's wager. Theological misunderstandings of Blaise Pascal aside, what if Hitchens' (hypothetical) conversion was legitimate?

     I have said this many times: the question eternal destination for any person is out of my pay grade. I am not the Lord. I know though, that God gives Grace to the humble though he opposes the proud.

     What if that's really what it took to humble Christopher Hitchens, esophageal cancer, his own death, great pain? What if it happened?

      What if he believed?

     Then I'd have a new brother, that's what.

I hope I do.

Thankful for Grace
-Kevin

Muammar Gaddafi And The Image Of God.

"When we break down, it all breaks down. That's just how it works. You can bend it, and if you make it hot enough you can bend it in a circle, but you can't break it. When you break it, it all breaks down until there's nothing unbroken. It starts here and now."

                                                                                     -His Grace Sir Samuel Vimes
                                                                                                            "Night Watch"

     I don't have a lot of faith in the new Libya. It's a country that I have a certain affinity for. In high school, I was a Libyan representative in the security council of our Model UN. I learned all about Gaddafi; I was his representative. (I won second place) So when I heard that Libya was in an uprising during the recent Arab Spring I kept an eye on the news. Don't get me wrong, I sided with the Libyan freedom fighters (history is unlikley to remember them as rebels I think) like the rest of the world. Gaddafi WAS a despot, he WAS an autocrat. He called down air strikes on unarmed civillians; hard to root for a guy like that.

     There's another thing that Muammar Gaddafi was though; an image bearer of God. Gaddafi WAS a man, he WAS human, this means he was created by God and bore His image (albeit poorly) on this earth. That simple fact means that he was entitled to something he didn't receive at his death: dignity. The reports comming in of Gadaffi's death, or rather the way he died are sketchy at best. It'll be a while before we get the true story if ever. Stories vary wildly, but video that has surfaces on the internet show Gaddafi being manhandled, beaten, dragged, stripped, and stabbed. There is even a story floating around that he was sodomized with a combat knife. His last words were allegedly: "Don't shoot" then he was shot.

      Don't shoot...he had surrendered, he had lost. It's hard to write this post. It's hard to plead mercy for someone like Muammar Gaddafi, but Sir Samuel up there is right, when we break down, when we become the beast we are fighting, it all breaks down. The new Libya could have risen above Gaddafi, by giving him the dignity he didn't give others. Offering the mercy he didn't. Proven that they are not him by being better to him. They failed though, the new country must begin it's history with a black eye. I think it's sad, they're not in an insurmountable position, but they could have started better.

     This raises a new question, how ought we, as Christians, respond to the death of Muammar Gaddafi? Can we rejoice with the end of his regime and be saddened at his treatment? is that the only appropriate response? We all bear God's image in this world and not a single one of us deserves to. Is this the real problem of evil? Not "why does an omnipotent God allow evil" but How do Go's children respond to evil in the world?

     I read a story this week, about Henry Tandy. He spared a young German lance corporal's life in WWI. This is not uncommon, but that lance corporal grew up to become Adolf Hitler. I was conflicted about this story and wondered if his decision to save a nameless man's life ever ate at Tandey. My wife reminded me that mercy is always the better choice. 

     I don't have all the answers, I'm not even sure there are any, but it's times like these I really can pray "How long Oh Lord, will the wicked gloat? How long until You make all things new?"

-Kevin

Covenant Faithfullness According to Dr. Dre and Eminem

     


     I've had this song in my head for a few weeks now, It's "I Need a Doctor" from Dr. Dre's "Detox" album. It's a three verse ballad (can I call a rap song a ballad?) featuring Eminem in the first two verses and Dre in the last with Skylar Grey providing the melodic chorus. I've reproduced the lyrics here censoring the coarser language for our more discerning readers.

[Chorus - Skylar Grey]

I'm about to lose my mind
you've been gone for so long
I'm running out of time
I need a doctor
call me a doctor
I need a doctor, doctor
to bring me back to life

[Eminem]
I told the world one day I would pay it back
say it on tape, and lay it, record it
so that one day I could play it back
but I don't even know if I believe it when I'm saying that
doubt starting to creep in, everyday it's just so grey and black
Hope - I just need a ray of that
'Cause no one sees my vision when I play it for 'em
They just say it's wack
they don't know what dope is
and I don't know if I was awake or asleep
when I wrote this,
all I know is you came to me when I was at my lowest
you picked me up, breathed new life in me
I owe my life to you
but for the life of me, I don't see why you don't see like I do
but it just dawned on me you lost a son
demons fighting you, it's dark.
let me turn on the lights and brighten me and enlighten you
I don't think you realize what you mean to me
not the slightest clue
'Cause me and you were like a crew
I was like your sidekick
you gon either wanna fight me when I get off this f******g mic
or you gon hug me
But I'm out of options, there's nothing else I can do 'cause

[Chorus - Skylar Grey]
I'm about to lose my mind
you've been gone for so long
I'm running out of time
I need a doctor
call me a doctor
I need a doctor, doctor
to bring me back to life

[Eminem]
It hurts when I see you struggle
you come to me with ideas
You say they're just pieces so I'm puzzled
'Cause the s**t I hear is crazy
But you're either getting lazy or you don't believe in you no more
seems like your own opinion's not one you can form
Can't make a decision you keep questioning yourself
Second guessing and it's almost like you're begging for my help
like I'm your leader
your supposed to f******g be my mentor
I can endure no more,
I demand you remember who you are
it was you who believed in me
when everyone was telling you don't sign me
Everyone at the f******g label, let's tell the truth
you risked your career for me
I know it as well as you
nobody wanted to f**k with the white boy
Dre, I'm crying in this booth
You saved my life, now maybe it's my turn to save yours
but I can never repay you, what you did for me is way more
but I ain't giving up faith and you ain't giving up on me
Get up Dre, I'm dying, I need you, come back for f**k's sake 'cause

[Chorus - Skylar Grey]
I'm about to lose my mind
you've been gone for so long
I'm running out of time
I need a doctor
call me a doctor
I need a doctor, doctor
to bring me back to life
bring me back to life
bring me back to life

(I need a doctor, doctor
to bring me back to life)

[Dr Dre]
It literally feels like a lifetime ago
but I still remember the s**t like it was just yesterday though
you walked in, yellow jump suit
whole room, cracked jokes
once you got inside the booth, told you, like smoke
went through friends, some of them I put on
but they just left, they said they was riding to the death
But where the f**k are they now?
now that I need them, I don't see none of them
all I see is Slim
f**k all you fair-weather friends
all I need is him
f******g backstabbers
when the chips were down you just laughed at us
Now you 'bout to feel the f******g wrath of Aftermath, f******s
you gon see us in our lab jackets and ask us where the f**k we been?
You can kiss my indecisive a******k, maggots, and the cracker's a**
Little Cracker Jack, beat-making w******s backwards producers
I'm back, b******s
one more CD and then I'm packing up my bags and as I'm leaving
I'll guarantee they scream, Dre don't leave us like that man 'cause

[Chorus - Skylar Grey]
I'm about to lose my mind
you've been gone for so long
I'm running out of time
I need a doctor
call me a doctor
I need a doctor, doctor
to bring me back to life

     I love this song, I have loved it since I first heard it, I bought it on iTunes, learned the lyrics, sing along. But there was something else about this song, something that got to me at a deep spiritual level, it reminded me of something, of someone.

It reminded me of David and Jonathan.

     The storylines and narratives of these two groups of men's lives certainly have nothing in common, but what struck me was the depth of commitment between Eminem and Dr. Dre, how they have covenanted with each other, seen each other through both good and bad.

    This all got me thinking about something I think about often: Christians and Media. Can the redeemed learn from the world? I've been of the belief that we can, and should learn and seek to connect and understand worldly events, people and even art in relation to biblical metanarrative.

     How many of us would give almost anything to have the kind of deep, intimate friendship that David and Jonathan had or that Eminem and Dr Dre have? This song gives me shivers in certain sections because of the feelings of hopelessness and devastation that come with the loss of a friend who may not come back. Eminem pleads for the life of his friend: "Get up Dre, I'm dying, I need you, come back for f**k's sake!"

     Not only does Eminem plead for his friend's life, he has the courage to tell Dre like it is even though the truth will hurt. You can almost put a scripture reference at the end of the first verse. (Proverbs 27:6)

     We can learn about friendship and covenant from David and Jonathan.
     We can learn about friendship and covenant from Eminem and Dr Dre.


-Kevin

What the Church can Learn From AA

I went to an AA meeting a couple of weeks ago. No, I am not an alcoholic, and no I didn't crash some random meeting. I went to an AA meeting this weekend because of my father. He was receiving his medallion for being sober for a year. For an alcoholic, the one year medallion is a big deal, the whole meeting was about my dad. I'm proud of my father, and I'm happy and grateful that he has come this far, but this post is not about dad, it's about what I learned, and what I think the Church can learn from AA.
During the meeting, one of the men my dad asked to speak for him read the 12 traditions of AA, and what got me was the tenth and eleventh ones:

"Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy."
"Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films."

What if the church did this? What if we shut down the media blitzes, and the PR, and the battling bus ads and just lived attractionaly and stayed away from controversy? What if we could say:

"The Church has no opinion on outside issues; hence the Christian name ought never be drawn into public controversy."
"The Church's public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films."

Before you immediately disagree with me on the first one "Of course the church has an opinion on outside issues! the world is full of SIN!" (One may say) consider these two items. 1) Sin is not an outside issue, but is at the core of Christianity and what we believe. 2) Why do we insist on discussing and denouncing the moral actions of people who are not Christian? Is it not a waste of time? Did Jesus not die precisely because our moral acts can not and will not stand up to the Father's expectations? It is inappropriate to talk about morality until after we talk about the Gospel.

But what about the second statement? don't we need promotion and flashy ads for the church today in this consumeristic product-driven culture? Sure, if you're selling a product. Sure, if you want to compete with the World. Simple truth is, the Church will never be able to compete with the advertising world. We'll never be the Old Spice Guy, or Diamond Shreddies (If you didn't get this in the States Google it, brilliant campaign) and that's fine, we have something that consumerism and fads will never have, staying power. Jesus died 1972 years ago (give or take) and His Church has stood up to (and thrived in) ridiculous persecution and out and out wars to kill it. So why don't we just do what we do best, preach Christ, teach the Gospel and leave morality of unbelievers to Philosophers.

With Love For The Church
-Kevin

Valhalla vs. Heaven

 

     I watched a video today over at Vimeo, called "The Saga of Biorn" It's a cool little short about this old Viking named Biorn (above) and his quest to die in battle and gain entry into Valhalla. Theology and mythology aside, it's a fun, well done, entertaining, and funny short film.

     What really got me though, was the ending. (I'm going to ruin it here, so go watch it first, no, seriously, it's only seven minutes long. Go) Ok, funny right? and that thing with the wheel when he gets buried by the nuns? Classic. Seriously though, what struck me about this was the depiction of heaven.

     See in the short, heaven is this bland, boring and lame. It's where nuns literally stand aroung doing nothing, wearing their halos. Valhalla on the other hand is a fun, wild party. The message is clear. Nuns go to heaven, men go to Valhalla.

     Is this how we see heaven? As a culture? Harps, lyres and all that jazz (but no Jazz - Elevator music)? That's how I saw it for a long time. Then I went through an ascetic phase, where I was planning on prostrating myself before the Lord for all of eternity. Neither of those things are very appealing to us now. Then I realized that there will be a new earth as well as a new heaven.and God has always wanted us to enjoy and shepherd His creation, heaven may not be the debauchery of Valhalla, but it will be a party.

-Kevin

Blasphemy?

An interesting thing happenned at work this week.






As a Christian there are things I, as a rule, don't say and certain things I won't say; blasphemy being one of the latter. Colossians 3:5-8 speaks on this directly when it talks about obscene talk, and so, as a Christian who believes the Bible, I seek to follow Paul's instruction by God's Grace.

The problem comes when we ignore the context and audience of this passage. The book is actually a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a church in Colossae; it's written to Christians. Paul is giving instruction on living to Christians. Why is it then that we (as Christians) get offended or freak out when a non-Christian does something that is in contradiction to these instructions? If a Brother or Sister gets frustrated and says something like "oh for christsakes!" we have a right (duty) to lovingly correct them, just like any other sin.  Why is it then that we get so upset when someone who is not a believer does the same thing? Yes, it's blasphemy, and it is sinful to take God's name in vain this isn't news to us, but guess what, blaspheming is the least of these people's problems. They're going to hell because they haven't repented of sin (all of it) and placed faith in Christ. They already have the judgement of God on them, what more could our reaction possibly add?

All we are communicating is God's anger, we're not communicating God's grace at all. When we show our overt displeasure at the language of our friends, we're preaching morality, not Gospel. Works, not Grace. At this point, I'm not concerned with the state of your tongue, but the state of your soul.

-Kevin

Manhood ReLaunched?

Those of you who know me in the real world know that I have a thing about gender roles, I like them. I am of the firm conviction that God created men and women equal, but different and because of that when I saw this ad campaign by Dockers, I had to weigh in...
 

In case you can't read it:

 Once upon a time, men wore the pants, and wore them well. Women rarely had to open doors and little old ladies never crossed the street alone. Men took charge because that’s what they did. But somewhere along the way, the world decided it no longer needed men. Disco by disco, latte by foamy non-fat latte, men were stripped of their khakis and left stranded on the road between boyhood and androgyny. But today, there are questions our genderless society has no answers for. The world sits idly by as cities crumble, children misbehave and those little old ladies remain on one side of the street. For the first time since bad guys, we need heroes. We need grown-ups. We need men to put down the plastic fork, step away from the salad bar and untie the world from the tracks of complacency. It’s time to get your hands diry. It’s time to answer the call of manhood. It’s time to WEAR THE PANTS.

The people at Dockers also sponsored this documentary.


The ad has garnered has garnered negative attention from some feminist and women's Lib groups. But in a very real way they hit the nail on the head. If men simply "manned-up" and led as the leaders we were created to be (note: leading and oppressing/being the boss are different things) North american culture wouldn't be nearly as jacked up as it is.

Comments?

James and Media

I was reading in James tonight, and I had to stop in verses 26-27 of the first chapter. It's not often that I have to stop like I did, usually I can finish a book like James in one sitting and then Meditate and think on what I've read. But this section stopped me dead:  

"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."

The relevant part is at the end. Christians are called to keep ourselves "unstained" from the world. The language James is using is the same as 1 Peter 1 talking about the sacrificial Lamb being without blemish. this got me thinking (again) about what Christians should and should not partake in when it comes to media.

Pastor James Harleman from Seattle has his own site where he reviews movies that most Christians won't even watch. (reviews available here) he explains why here but a shortened quote may help those who don't want to read the whole thing:

"We are image-bearers of our Creator, a master storyteller whose narrative spans all of creation, a metanarrative in which we all play a part. Made in the image of our Creator, we have a yearning to both create, and be entertained, by narrative"

By connecting "secular" narratives created by that save God-given creativity to the metanarrative of the scriptures, Harleman takes cultural engagement to a new level.The question now is what is acceptable to watch and what is not.

The answer to this comes from Jesus, in Mark 7:15 Jesus says this: “Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” Yes, in context, Jesus obviously was not talking about movies or any form of media. The immediate context is food and eating. But the broader context applies directly doesn't it? I'll explain.

I had a conversation with my lovley wife tonight, we were talking about the recent controversy surrounding "South Park". Read about that here. In the end she won't watch South Park and certain other movies because the gratuitous language may cause her (and other good friends of ours who share the same postion) to fall into the same behaviour themselves. I on the other hand am free to watch the show and appreciate the (usually) excellent social commentary without it affecting by behaviour.

What we have here is a basic "weaker brother" situation. Some of us are free to watch things like South Park et al because they woun't blemish us or defile us and some cannot. Because the measure is mot what goes in, but what comes out.


Christianity: we have shades of grey too!


-Kevin