There is a universalism that exists today that is so wrong. It seems to be traced to the universal spiritualism of the 1960s, but certainly this has existed for centuries. This form of universalism states that because God is love, people can do whatever they want, live however they want, believe whatever they want. At the end of time, God’s love will cover all sin and disobedience and everyone will be saved and spend eternity with this loving God.
Rob Bell, in his 2012 book, Love Wins says that God will send people to hell, but only for a short time. Eventually, God’s love will win and he will call all those in hell out and into his presence for all eternity. Hell will then be destroyed. In Rob Bell’s theology, hell is nothing more than a modified purgatory. At its core, Rob Bell is preaching Christian Universalism.
One aspect that is ignored in this universalism based on God’s love, is that God hates sin. God hates sin more than he loves people. That statement may not be totally true since God’s love is complete and perfect and God’s hatred for evil and sin is complete and perfect so one is not greater than the other. However, if God were to excuse sin and overlook sin and declare sin, “no big deal,” then God would be contradicting his character. God would sin. If God sinned, then it is game over and everything we know would cease to exist.
Therefore, people who praise God’s love over and above all, ignore the fact that his character is to hate sin with a white hot, rage base, wrath expressing anger. Read the events of the seven seals, the seven trumpets and the seven bowls in Revelation and get a sense of God’s wrath toward sin. God’s love will not win over and above his perfect righteousness and holiness and sinlessness. God hates sin and God will utterly punish every sinner for every sin they have committed.
God is so perfect and holy and righteous, that in his system, one sin is worthy of being punished for thousands upon millions of years. Considering the millions of sins that the average person commits every year one cannot imagine the depths of punishment that will never be completed.
So what did God do? When Adam and Eve sinned, God killed animals and covered their sin with the animal blood. That was they system all the way through the end of the Old Testament. Animal blood was used to atone for people’s sin. Then God sent Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ died on the cross. All the sin was placed on him such that he became sin for us. Then God opened the floodgates of heaven’s wrath. For hours God pounded Jesus with every bit of hatred and anger and wrath that God has for the sins of the world. Jesus was crushed by the weight of God’s wrath. When Jesus died the punishment for sin had been completed and fully paid. Atonement was finished, redemption was paid and forgiveness was given. When Jesus rose from the dead, the transaction was complete.
So when people reject Jesus, mock Jesus, disgrace Jesus, do not believe in Jesus, then what God does is he takes all the wrath for that’s person’s sin and instead of putting it on Jesus, he puts it on that person. Unsaved people atone for their own sin and God expresses his wrath for all eternity for their sin.
Everyone is not saved. Universalism is a lie. Everyone could be saved, Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient, but not everyone will be saved. It is so much easier and simpler to allow God to put my punishment on Christ and for me to receive the righteousness of Christ. So simple, so straight forward and so hard to believe for some.
Rob Bell, in his 2012 book, Love Wins says that God will send people to hell, but only for a short time. Eventually, God’s love will win and he will call all those in hell out and into his presence for all eternity. Hell will then be destroyed. In Rob Bell’s theology, hell is nothing more than a modified purgatory. At its core, Rob Bell is preaching Christian Universalism.One aspect that is ignored in this universalism based on God’s love, is that God hates sin. God hates sin more than he loves people. That statement may not be totally true since God’s love is complete and perfect and God’s hatred for evil and sin is complete and perfect so one is not greater than the other. However, if God were to excuse sin and overlook sin and declare sin, “no big deal,” then God would be contradicting his character. God would sin. If God sinned, then it is game over and everything we know would cease to exist.
Therefore, people who praise God’s love over and above all, ignore the fact that his character is to hate sin with a white hot, rage base, wrath expressing anger. Read the events of the seven seals, the seven trumpets and the seven bowls in Revelation and get a sense of God’s wrath toward sin. God’s love will not win over and above his perfect righteousness and holiness and sinlessness. God hates sin and God will utterly punish every sinner for every sin they have committed.
God is so perfect and holy and righteous, that in his system, one sin is worthy of being punished for thousands upon millions of years. Considering the millions of sins that the average person commits every year one cannot imagine the depths of punishment that will never be completed.
So what did God do? When Adam and Eve sinned, God killed animals and covered their sin with the animal blood. That was they system all the way through the end of the Old Testament. Animal blood was used to atone for people’s sin. Then God sent Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ died on the cross. All the sin was placed on him such that he became sin for us. Then God opened the floodgates of heaven’s wrath. For hours God pounded Jesus with every bit of hatred and anger and wrath that God has for the sins of the world. Jesus was crushed by the weight of God’s wrath. When Jesus died the punishment for sin had been completed and fully paid. Atonement was finished, redemption was paid and forgiveness was given. When Jesus rose from the dead, the transaction was complete.
So when people reject Jesus, mock Jesus, disgrace Jesus, do not believe in Jesus, then what God does is he takes all the wrath for that’s person’s sin and instead of putting it on Jesus, he puts it on that person. Unsaved people atone for their own sin and God expresses his wrath for all eternity for their sin.
Everyone is not saved. Universalism is a lie. Everyone could be saved, Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient, but not everyone will be saved. It is so much easier and simpler to allow God to put my punishment on Christ and for me to receive the righteousness of Christ. So simple, so straight forward and so hard to believe for some.
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