It depends.
I missed your following post here, which I think only tells half the story.
It's not so much that I disagree with the notion itself, but instead, "it being popularized."
The Bible actually does quite clearly declare all true believers in Jesus go onto a favorable afterlife.
To a certain extent.
I don't think it's quite clear on what that "favorable afterlife" is, or even how (or
if) they "go onto."
True, it's on Earth
But not on the Earth as we know it to be now.
Heaven(which is in the sky),
If you're talking about floating about on a cloud with strange lights and music, then this is the concept of "heaven" informed to us by mainstream and pop culture as opposed to scholarly research, historical development, etc.
but the principal is there.
The kind of description of heaven found in Revelations is the New Jerusalem and its description is what we can expect for the city, but as far as the eternal order is concerned we can only say what Paul said in Corinthians---"eye hath not seen, nor hath ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man the things that God has in store for those who love Him. What we call heaven is beyond being able to be accurately described with human language. Like the candy bar it will be "indescribably delicious".
Back in Bible college I had to define theological terms for Kingdom of Heaven/God and this was what I came up with.
The Kingdom of God is the sovereign rule of God on earth which was initiated by during Christ’s ministry and will be completed at the Second Coming of Christ, when evil is fully overcome. Subjects of the kingdom of God will experience blessedness (like that of the Garden of Eden) and joy. The church is the community of the Kingdom of God.
Matthew 5
2 and he began to teach them saying: 3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven...10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
So according to the above definitions, "heaven" is God's kingly throne room.
As to Hell, there's little doubt the concept was foreign to Jesus and Paul, but it is certainly in the Bible.
Jesus seems to speak of it as a place, which sometimes refers to a trash dump... and sometimes hades, which is akin to Sheol...
The valley of Hinnom was far worse than a dump. It was a place of rotting corpses, garbage, fire burning stuff and general nastiness that a modern dump does not begin to broach in horror.
The only way to get Hell out of the Bible is to get rid of John's Revelation.
I don't disagree.
'Hell' in this context is sheol/hades, the abode of the dead.
Acts 2:31
he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. [referring to Psalm 16]
Romans 10:7
or " 'Who will descend into the abyss?' " (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).
Ephesians 4:8-10
8 Therefore it says,
"When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men."
9 (In saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) [Referring to Psalm 68]
And therefore:
Revelation 1:17-18
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last,
18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.
Community Forum
Topic: Do you believe in a Heaven and a Hell? (Read 22252 times)
March 30, 2010, 10:23:39 am
