Why would a “loving God” send people to hell?
Firstly, we need to establish what hell is. Hell is separation from the grace of God because of our sin and continual rejection of Him and His love.
The Bible teaches that God did not create hell as a judgment for humanity but rather for the sentence of Satan and his angels.
Jesus said:
Matthew 25:41 (NKJV)
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
Many people wrongly believe that hell is a place created by God to scare people into doing good things. However, God’s heart is that none should perish and instead should come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
Unfortunately, humans since the ancient days have chosen their sinful ways instead of God.
This is a sad reality, but God has not left us without hope; He makes salvation possible through Jesus.
God sent His Son Jesus to die for us so that everyone could have eternal life. When people reject Jesus, we confirm our decision to deny His calling and be separated in sin forever.
The below scripture puts it best.
John 3:16-18 (NKJV)
16. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
18. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
The above verse teaches us the following;
(1) God gave His son for our eternal life.
(2) God did not send His Son to the world to condemn us but to save us through Him.
(3) whoever does not believe in Jesus stands condemned already.
The following verse 19 puts an interesting spin on this;
John 3:19 (NKJV)
And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
When it comes to hell, it is not God’s rejection of us; rather, it is our rejection of Him because of the love for our evil deeds above everything else. We reject His light in love for darkness.
The real question isn’t why a loving God would choose to send someone to hell, but rather, why would someone choose hell over a loving God?
God sent His only son Jesus so that everyone can have eternal life.
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