Damnationists are always telling atheists that god is not sending them to hell they are sending themselves to hell. How would you personally respond to a damnationist who gave you that answer?
These days, I think I'd poke fun at them: "This way to hell, folks! Step right up!"
People do not know Jesus, therefore they can not believe, yet there are many people out there that profess they know the Father and call out "Lord, Lord!" only for God to say "I never knew you."
If someone can not see God and then gets this distorted view of God that traditional dogma feeds them then I don't blame them for their ignorance, confusion and therefore rejection.
Is their blindness and ignorance part of that decision that eternally damns them? If someone truly can not believe in this life but wants too, is that them saying they want to go to hell?
It's been my experience that people rarely change their mind by being told something. Saying, "there is no such thing as hell the way you think of it" will only intensify them clinging to their belief so as not to be wrong. People naturally repeat what they've been told or express a belief without thinking about it. A few simple questions won't turn them around on the spot but will get them thinking and questioning. These questions assume that their is an actual hell as they see it. You must have a common ground starting place.
Who created hell? - God
What does scripture say it was created for? - The devil and his angels.
Does the scripture say hell was created for people? - no
If hell is eternal, why does scripture say death and hell are destroyed in the lake of fire and will be no more?
If the penalty for sin is eternal torment away from God, and Jesus took the believers sin upon himself and pays the penalty as the scripture says... Why isn't Jesus still being tormented now?
Why doesn't the Bible say, the wages of sin is eternal torment rather than the wages of sin is death?
How is it that Jesus paid in full for our sin by his death on the cross and yet torment in hell wasn't any part of that payment?
Jesus was tormented for several hours prior to his death
I keep getting damnationist that tell me that God didnt create hell. It was the devil screwing over humanity that created hell.
Tell them they're making Satan equal to God. There is no Biblical support for such a position that I know of.
Remind them of the Jubilee principle: everybody goes free!
It is clear in the Bible that there is the one creator God, and that all things were created genesis week. The new testament also says that it was christ that created all things "there is nothing that has been created that was not created by him" and that it is his power which holds all things together.
Besides Bible backup excerpt for the fact that God created ex nihilo-(out of nothing) anything else created would be a violation of conservation - matter and energy cannot be created or destroyed, merely exchanged.
In revelation God doesn't say, I'm making all new things, but says I'm making all things new.
Many scholars believe that nothing new has been created since creation week when God "rested"(stopped creating)
Quote from: aaronclark1989 on March 01, 2013, 08:53:32 AM
Damnationists are always telling atheists that god is not sending them to hell they are sending themselves to hell. How would you personally respond to a damnationist who gave you that answer?
I would ask them what they believe the verse in Rev. that Jesus says that he has/holds the keys of hell and death.
Not to mention that in Rev. it says that hell was created for the devil and his angels not by. Your damnationists need to learn scripture better. Jesus is preparing a place for us, it is not being built by us.
Ask them about why Tartarus is only used once in the bible, and it's purpose was only for "fallen angels" till Judgement.