Although I am a conservative
Christian (Reformed Baptist), I no longer believe that the Bible teaches
or supports the traditional view of hell with its doctrine of eternal
torment or suffering.
The Bible does teach eternal punishment,
but that eternal punishment ultimately is not eternal suffering.
Few
in society realize just how much ancient Greek philosophy influenced
early Christian thought on hell.
The ancient Greeks believed and
taught that the human soul is immortal and indestructible. When early
Christianity adopted this belief then it became only logical to believe
that those who go to hell must suffer eternal torment.
More than
anyone else, the early Church bishop Augustine influenced early
Christianity's adoption of this ancient Greek belief about the nature of
the soul. Augustine was a great admirer and follower of the ancient
Greek philosopher Plato even after converting to Christianity. It was
Plato who systematically formulated ancient Greek belief and thought
concerning the nature of the human soul.
The Bible, however,
teaches that man by nature is completely mortal and that immortality is a
gift of God to be realized only on Resurrection Day for those who have
put their faith and trust in God's Son Jesus Christ for salvation
because Christ's death on the Cross fully paid for our sins and His
resurrection from the grave is the guarantee of future immortality for
all who believe in Him. Read the rest of the article
Where did my post go?
Bob