http://www.rbc.org/questions/answer/bible/hell/whyhell.xml/The biblical doctrine of hell is often badly misunderstood. Certainly, if God arbitrarily and unjustly punished His creatures for eternity, He would be evil rather than good.
Luke 12:47-48 , however, shows that
punishment will depend on a number of factors, including oneÂ’s knowledge of truth, oneÂ’s intent, and oneÂ’s rejection of the good news and "light" of Christ. Jesus denounced the cities in which most of His miracles were performed ( Matthew 11:20-24 ) and told them they would be judged more harshly in the day of judgment than Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom.
Jesus displayed compassion toward sinners. Even when He was on the cross He said,
"Father, forgive them for they donÂ’t know what they do" ( Luke 23:34 ). It is wrong to think of hell as a place where sinners will receive horribly disproportionate punishment for their sins. Certainly, there is an element of coercion. Justice and retribution are involved. But
a personÂ’s presence in hell is also the result of a long series of choices. As a person passes through life he either becomes more open to truth, love, and spiritual life or he
willfully withdraws from the light that God has given him and begins a descent towards spiritual darkness and death. Hell is necessary in a universe where genuine free will exists. C.S. Lewis has written a remarkable little book on the subject of hell called The Great Divorce. While we do not endorse all of LewisÂ’ imaginative descriptions of what hell might be like, the value of his work is in his explanation of the need for hell and eternal punishment. It can be purchased at most bookstores.
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My comment:
GOD is Just in giving his punishments to men. He is
forgiving and yet cannot tolerate the sight of sin.
Men can never be righteous in ourselves as we are prone to sin.
Only by acknowledging Christ as our saviour,
can we be made righteous in Christ and thus tolerable in GOD's eyes.
GOD has given us his grace freely, and all we need to do is to receive it humbly and with humility, affirming the goodness he has given to us and love him as our GOD. 2 Samuel 7 verses 18-29 shows how
King David humbly receive the blessings from GOD and affirmed this covenant in his heart. He was surprised by GOD want to bless his house and overwhelmed. He didn't know why GOD had chosen a humble servant (a sheperd by background) like him and lead him to be king...giving him all the blessings any man on earth would have wished for:
18 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said:
"Who am I, O Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 19 And as if this were not enough in your sight, O Sovereign LORD, you have also spoken about the future of the house of your servant. Is this your usual way of dealing with man, O Sovereign LORD?
20 "What more can David say to you? For you know your servant, O Sovereign LORD.
21 For the sake of your word and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made it known to your servant.
22 "How great you are, O Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 23 And who is like your people Israel--the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt?
24 You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, O LORD, have become their God.
25 "And now, LORD God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised,
26 so that your name will be great forever. Then men will say, 'The LORD Almighty is God over Israel!' And the house of your servant David will be established before you. 27 "O LORD Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, 'I will build a house for you.' So your servant has found courage to offer you this prayer.
28 O Sovereign LORD, you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. 29 Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, O Sovereign LORD, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever."