There is no Christianity without hell.
There is no promise of eternal life, without the threat eternal torment.
Nowadays, Christianity has become a way to feel good about ourselves. A way to assure ourselves that the way we’re living isn’t wrong or sinful in Gods eyes, because He loves us no matter what. As long as we profess Him with our mouths, we can live however we want.
Views like this completely miss the point of God’s word, and what its purpose here is.
The Bible is meant to be a spiritual mirror to the soul (James 1:23-24). It’s purpose is to instruct its reader on how to live a life pleasing to God.
The Bible is God’s way of letting us get to know Him. It’s the avenue through which we learn about God: since this world doesn’t know Him, neither did we when we were born into it.
Gods word was never meant to validate our sinful lifestyles. Rather, its purpose is to show us exactly how sinful we really are, and to point to the one who wasn’t on our behalf.
Without the very real threat of eternal damnation, an eternity away from God, Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins is made void. Christ’s sacrificial love and miraculous resurrection is so crucial to our faith because they signify His victory over sin and death.
Through His sacrifice, we are able to diverge from the die path of destruction, and better through the narrow gate. This is the amazing news that should motivate Christians to continue living for Christ, and to spread His word to all corners of the globe.
Without hell, there would be nothing to spare us from, and Jesus’ sacrifice is made unnecessary.
The Bible is the blueprint for living a fulfilling life in Christ Jesus. It’s meant to prompt us to action; to reveal the destruction that living for ourselves can cause, and poke us into the right direction.
Opening the Bible should be the turning point for the born again Christian. It’s should be where they begin to know the Lord, and where their lives should start to change as a result. One cannot call themselves a true follower of Christ is their aren’t promoted to change by His word. These are the people who build their houses upon the sand, and their abodes aren’t going to last.
If there is no threat of hell, then there is no gratitude for Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and as a result, no fuel for the fire that the Holy Spirit intends to start within us. It’s our gratitude for what Christ did on our behalf that should private us to live for Him, and to obey His commands. If we don’t do so, then we’re saying (via our actions) that we don’t value Jesus’ sacrifice, and that we don’t really fear an eternity away from Him.
We cannot live for ourselves and expect to enter through those gates. Hell is to remind us what will happen if we try to live for ourselves, and to fuel our love and gratitude for Christ, and what He did on our behalf.
Without including this vital truth while preaching the gospel, we’re only spreading half-truths, which might as well be outright lies in the eyes of God.
After all, they both get us to the same place.
God bless, Jesus loves you ✝️❤️