Lady says, "We are all God's children"
By David J. Stewart
I received the following letter from a lady in May of 2007...
I have a question to ask, and I understand if you cannot answer it, I would much prefer you to think it over.
To begin, God loves us. More than anything or anyone has ever loved me, more than my friends, family, even my parents, God loves me. No matter what, he always will (the same goes for all the billions of people here- may He be praised!)
Thus, I pose my question. My parents, despite anything I have ever said, done, or imagined, or ever could say, do, or imagine, would accept me back into their love whenever I wanted. Even if I did not want to be in their embrace, I know they would want the best for me; no pain, no suffering, no regrets.
With this being said, I cannot imagine that anything anyone does would put them out of favor with my Lord for all eternity; even if you denied Him your whole life, seeing His face is the most wonderful thing that any one person could see, surely causing a sinner to return to Him. As I firmly believe this is the case (and even if it was not necessarily true) God would never want His children to suffer the pangs of Hell for all time, no matter what he or she had done wrong.
Because of this, I wish you would reconsider your articles assuring that if you are not in line with the Word you will be condemned. Although I believe in a Hell, I do not think it is our liberty to say anything would place us there, in the hands of God's sadistic enemies. I, alone, would wish no one there, and thusly I believe God would let us into Heaven much sooner.
Thank you for your time and understanding, God bless you and your efforts.
-Mary
Here's my Biblical response...
Hi Mary,
Thank you for your e-mail.
Although I certainly understand your position in the matter, we must be careful not to rely upon our own finite thinking...
"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." -Proverb 14:12
Many people today only focus on God's loving aspects, and nothing else. You are very correct that God loves His children with an unconditional love, and never casts them out ...
"...him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." -John 6:37
"Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." -Hebrews 13:5.
However, the Bible is also very clear that everyone is not a child of God...
"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it" -John 8:44
"He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." -1st John 3:8
Every person is either a child of God, or a child of the Devil. The Bible teaches that Satan's spirit works in the unsaved...
"Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." -Ephesians 2:2
The Bible is very clear that those who reject Jesus Christ as Savior, i.e., the unsaved, will suffer God's vengeance in the fires of Hell...
"In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power." -2nd Thessalonians 1:8,9
So we see from the Scriptures that although God loves people, His holiness demands justice. An earthly judge who allows a criminal to escape justice would be a BAD judge; likewise, God must serve justice as the Divine Judge of this universe if He is to maintain His character and goodness.
Revelation 20:15 WARNS...
"And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."
It is extremely dangerous for us to lean upon our own human understanding rather than obey the Words of God...
"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." -Proverbs 3:5,6
The Bible has much more to say about Hell and eternal punishment than it does about Heaven. Jesus plainly stated that people refuse to come to Him to be saved...
"And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life." -John 6:40
Jesus didn't say ye CANNOT come; rather, He said, "ye will not come." It is man's sinful pride and stubbornness that causes him to remain in sin, and steer away from the Savior and the Bible...
"For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved." -John 3:20
No one will ever be able to accuse God of being unjust. The Word of God will be every unsaved person's judge on Judgment Day...
"He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." -John 12:48
Many people today rationalize that God would never allow suffering in eternity; yet, we see suffering all around us in this sin-cursed world. If the unsaved don't go to Hell, then God's Word is not true, and God would be a liar. Titus 1:2 tells us that God cannot lie. God is not a liar...
"God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar... " -Romans 3:4
Thus, we are not all God's children. We are all God's Creation, and the object of God's love (for Christ died upon the cross for all men); however, only those who receive Christ as Savior are the redeemed children of God, i.e., they've been born-again in the Spirit of Christ...
"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." -John 1:12,13
Kindest regards,
David J. Stewart
