God's Judgments by Fire
It is important. All of those verses are talking about God's judgments by fire.
Remember I posted about judgment before?
When thy judgements are in the earth... the people learn righteousness.
Fire is used as a symbol or metaphor quite often in the bible.
Consider what fire does:
Fire burns things up.
Fire produces useful energy in the form of light and heat.
Fire destroys things.
Fire purifies and purges out impurities.
Fire is useful to a refiner for forming metal.
Fire can be painful if you end up in it - your physical body would not survive if you stayed in for too long.
Many people have been badly hurt, tortured or even died from fire. No one has been eternally tortured with fire.
Now some of the biblical usage:
We are tried by fire now.
We are judged by fire.
Everyone will be salted with fire.
God's chosen who reign with Christ are called Ministers ... of fire (Hebrews 1)
God is called a refiner.
God is a consuming fire.
The tares are burned in a furnace of fire.
The vast majority of humanity who are not in the book of life (BoL = Jesus) are thrown into a lake of fire.
Malachi 3
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.
So on the one hand we see that fire burns things up, purifies things and is used as a metaphor for trying God's chosen elect right now. No one believes that God's elect are being tortured with fire right now. Yet they are definitely being tried with spiritual fire.
But when it comes to what happens to the rest of humanity, why do people forget everything I just pointed out above; the fact that fire in the bible is symbolic and spiritual; and instead jump to the conclusion that God has prepared an eternal torture chamber of physical fire for the vastness of humanity?
After all, God IS love. Let us consider, as God is correcting the saints with fire (spiritually) in this life now, would not Got also do the same to the rest afterwards via the picture of the lake of fire (again spiritually)... ?
Do you understand how this works? God IS love. He is not the master designer of the most insane torture ever imagined.
Have you read Bill Wiese's account? He thinks demons are in control of hell and they burn people's skin off every 30 seconds, and for some reason God is sustaining this place. Think about this Hollywood horror nonsense for a second.
Now consider all the verses that speak of the good news for all people, Jesus coming to save the world, God willing to save all men, etc. Its good news.
1 Cor 3
10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
Every man is judged by fire... burning the stubble, wood, etc. but he is saved by that same fire.
The lake of fire will do the same thing.
Remember I posted about judgment before?
When thy judgements are in the earth... the people learn righteousness.
Fire is used as a symbol or metaphor quite often in the bible.
Consider what fire does:
Fire burns things up.
Fire produces useful energy in the form of light and heat.
Fire destroys things.
Fire purifies and purges out impurities.
Fire is useful to a refiner for forming metal.
Fire can be painful if you end up in it - your physical body would not survive if you stayed in for too long.
Many people have been badly hurt, tortured or even died from fire. No one has been eternally tortured with fire.
Now some of the biblical usage:
We are tried by fire now.
We are judged by fire.
Everyone will be salted with fire.
God's chosen who reign with Christ are called Ministers ... of fire (Hebrews 1)
God is called a refiner.
God is a consuming fire.
The tares are burned in a furnace of fire.
The vast majority of humanity who are not in the book of life (BoL = Jesus) are thrown into a lake of fire.
Malachi 3
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.
So on the one hand we see that fire burns things up, purifies things and is used as a metaphor for trying God's chosen elect right now. No one believes that God's elect are being tortured with fire right now. Yet they are definitely being tried with spiritual fire.
But when it comes to what happens to the rest of humanity, why do people forget everything I just pointed out above; the fact that fire in the bible is symbolic and spiritual; and instead jump to the conclusion that God has prepared an eternal torture chamber of physical fire for the vastness of humanity?
After all, God IS love. Let us consider, as God is correcting the saints with fire (spiritually) in this life now, would not Got also do the same to the rest afterwards via the picture of the lake of fire (again spiritually)... ?
Do you understand how this works? God IS love. He is not the master designer of the most insane torture ever imagined.
Have you read Bill Wiese's account? He thinks demons are in control of hell and they burn people's skin off every 30 seconds, and for some reason God is sustaining this place. Think about this Hollywood horror nonsense for a second.
Now consider all the verses that speak of the good news for all people, Jesus coming to save the world, God willing to save all men, etc. Its good news.
1 Cor 3
10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
Every man is judged by fire... burning the stubble, wood, etc. but he is saved by that same fire.
The lake of fire will do the same thing.
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