Is Hell Real? (“Fear Less” pt. 4)

Fear Less | Is Hell Real? |  Week Four | Dr. Troy Doucet | October 29, 2023

Is Hell Real? (“Fear Less” pt. 4)

Dr. Troy Doucet continues the series called “Fear Less” – where we discover how to handle fear (of God, religion, the Bible, Hell, failure, etc.) and discover truth by having the courage to look where we might not want to look – to reimagine the most important and beautiful aspects of the Christian faith.

What images do you see in your mind when you hear the word “hell?”

Fire? Satan? People being punished? Are those depictions accurate? Does Hell really exist, literally?

Romans 5: 12-19

God’s love is unconditional – do you believe that to be true?

Point 1: All beliefs have a history!

Sometimes our beliefs are based on an inaccurate understanding of history (or where the belief originally came from). Did you know that there is not one mention of Hell being a literal place in The Old Testament? What about The New Testament?

Luke 16 has a story that Jesus tells as an example of how God operates and how we should live our lives each and every day (we should not fear our death and eternal punishment in a place called Hell, or simply accept a belief and be saved from Hell in order to go to a place called Heaven). Jesus was saying that the kingdom is here and now, not a far off place we hope to reach someday. By living in truth, we can bring about Heaven on Earth – goodness in the midst of chaos and hurt. There is good news and grace for everyone that can be found now, today. If you can awaken to the truth of who you are, that you are God’s child, you do not need the fearful doctrines that were brought about to control and influence people. Being scared of eternal suffering for not following a certain set of conforming beliefs worked for a long time – but that way of thinking shuts you off from the truth of who God really is – loving, forgiving, good.

Point 2: The Church has historically had four views regarding the doctrine/teaching of Hell.

The Literal view: if you do not accept Jesus and pray the sinner’s prayer, you go to Hell.

The Annihilationist view: God loves everyone, but if you’re evil, God simply annihilates you, you cease to exist.

The Purgatorial view: This is the traditional Roman Catholic understanding, where souls go to a place (Purgatory) for a time (depending on how much sin cleansing you require) before going to Heaven.

The Metaphorical view: A belief that the Bible is not talking about a literal place, rather it uses language to keep people from living a bad, sinful life.

Dr. Troy shares his view:

Point 3: In the end, God will get whatever God wills (not what we think, expect, or even want to believe).

God wants, wills, commands everyone to be saved and discover truth. Ask yourself, would God create a perfect soul just to let them suffer for eternity? We can’t know God’s will, but if we live with an attitude of faithfulness instead of fear, if we focus on our own faithfulness instead of other people, we might live a more fulfilling life.