Also see FAQ About Life and Death.
Note what Jesus said:
"Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire." (Matthew 18:8)
Read Luke 16:20-31
"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." (Matthew 25:41)
"And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal." (Matthew 25:46)
"And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." (Mark 9:45-46)
"And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:11-15)
"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. . . .And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:10, 15
Sir you have been misled. Yet, the finality of punishment for those who reject God should cause us to be more zealous in our efforts to preach the Gospel and win the unsaved to Christ. God is Love, but He is also a just God. You cannot use human reasoning and then apply that to God and thus change Him and His word. God loves the sinner and as 1 John 2:2 says died for the sins of all the world. But man has a choice. He can reject God the Lord Jesus Christ's offer of salvation, or he can accept it and reap the joys of eternal life with God.
Jesus Himself said, "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God." (John 3:19-21)
Paul writing under the inspiration of God said, "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things." (Romans 1:18-23)
"Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power" (2 Thessalonians 1:9)
The writer of the books you mentioned uses the writing of the Apocryphal books and Gnostics to establish his belief in universal salvation and that hell is not eternal. If you note above, Jesus said that Hell was prepared for the Devil and his angels. Men too who have rejected God's word and Jesus Christ, will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire as Revelation 20:11-15 plainly states. The writer of the books you quote knows nothing of who God truly is, nor His word on the matter and is a false teacher. My heart goes out to those who struggle with this matter, but God says "we are to know the truth and the truth sets us free." The devil always has a religion for those who want deny or cannot accept God's word. But God, not any man, establishes the truth. As John 1:1 says, Jesus is the Word, and you cannot separate Him from His written word to us.
Sir, cannot you see that what you sent me trying to convince me that hell is not eternal is the word of men. My reply is to quote you God's word. Sir, who are you going to trust your eternal destiny to.....some man's opinion....or God's own word on the matter?
Certainly, rejecting God and our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ will bring an eternal punishment which highlights the seriousness of sin rejecting the Lord.
The holy places made with hands was the ark in the tabernacle and temple. It says He entered into heaven itself and appeared before God for us. It says the placing of blood on the mercy seat on earth were "patterns" (v24) and "figures" of the true, meaning of Christ's shed blood on the cross. The Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and temple was the place where God showed Himself on earth in his Shekinah Glory of God. Thus, the priest placed the blood on the ark as a pattern of when Christ would present Himself before God having shed His blood for sin. I do not find a physical mercy seat in heaven in the Bible and appears to be representative of what happened in heaven.
My question is did Jesus blood have to be applied to mercy seat in heaven or was the blood of Jesus representative of his death on the cross as some teach?
Is your belief that men will not go to heaven in eternity but will reside on the new earth?
Do our relatives watch over us from heaven?
Even though I was and am trusting for my salvation in what Jesus accomplished by His death and resurrection, through the power in the blood of His cross, I was, and still am unable to love a god who would let anyone suffer forever. Here are testimonies similar to mine.
Answer: The Bible is silent concerning saints in heaven being able to know what is going on, here on earth. Though vague, I believe the evidence is that those in heaven do not know what is going on here on earth. One thing that would seem to bear upon this is that heaven will be so wonderful and so completely different from out earthy existence that things that were important to us on earth such as family, friends, etc would not there be a great concern. Jesus said there will be no marriage in heaven, which indicates our relationship with our spouses and probably also those we love on earth will be different. We shall know them of course, but our affections and concerns will probably be changed. Mostly, it would seem we will be occupied with our Savior.
Answer: You say you are trusting in Jesus for your salvation. If you are trusting Him for your salvation would you believe what He, the "author and finisher of our faith" has to say on the matter? (See Hebrews 12:1-2) Would you not understand He is the authority in the matter...not some man?
Answer:
It is a popular idea that our relatives are watching over us in heaven, but this idea is not found in God's word. A Christian has the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in their lives to guide and direct them. Although the New Testament does not mention the ministry of angels in a Christian's life, most believe to some degree God may use angels. A child of God has the God the Holy Spirit looking over him/her and we really do not need the help of dead relatives. I cannot find anywhere in God's word that our dead relatives are aware of what is happening on earth. I think they are probably too busy serving the Lord there and enjoying being with our Savior and God.
Answer:
The Bible does repeatedly refer to the externality of the punishment of those who reject the Lord.
Matthew 3:12, Luke 3:17 refers to the fires of hell as being unquenchable.
Matthew 18:8 and 25:41 refers to hell as everlasting fire.
Mark 3:29 uses the term "eternal damnation" referring to the state of those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
Jude 7 uses the term "eternal fire."
Mark 9:43-48 states the unsaved will be cast into hell where the fires will never be quenched.
Answer: At the rapture the bride of Christ will be taken to heaven. Already there are the Old Testament believers who will be resurrected at the Second Coming. During the Tribulation those saved will also go to heaven to await their resurrection, the same as the dead in Christ from this age are presently. All believers alive at the Second Coming will go into the Millennium in their natural bodies and repopulate the earth. All resurrected believers will enter the Millennium and be a part of Christ's kingdom serving Him. At the end of the Millennium after the final judgment of Rev. 20:11-15 as Rev. 21-22 reveal there will be a new heaven and earth and all God's children will be there, on earth as Rev. 21:1 and following states.
Answer: It was the act of Christ's sacrifice and shedding of His blood that atoned for sin. In Exodus 12 the blood the spotless was lamb symbolic and a picture of Christ's shed blood for sin. It was applied in faith by the Hebrews. Hebrews 9:14 states "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14)
Every reference of the mercy seat is found in the Old Testament and referred to the physical mercy seat above the ark of the covenant in the tabernacle and then the temple. This place on top of the ark is also sixty times referred to as the "holy place." The verse does not say that the mercy seat or holy place is in heaven, only that Jesus applied His blood to it and that atoned for sin.
Hebrews 9:23-26 states, "It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." (Hebrews 9:23-26)