The topic of the afterlife always fascinated me, especially because Scripture does not give us a clear message about what exactly will take place and how it will happen. It can be that God decided to reveal this truth to us only partially because the life after death cannot be fully comprehended by the human mind. Anyway, there is a space for various interpretations and speculations regarding how we are going to spend eternity. In the past, my view of salvation was simplistic – if the person fully accepts the Lord as her personal Savior becomes a member of the church, she will spend eternity with God; otherwise – she would go to hell, which is a place of the eternal punishment where God’s presence is absent. It was until I started realizing …show more content…
I would explain that God's grace is both sufficient and efficient to bring salvation to the entire humanity. God uses the Word as well as general revelation, reason, and conscience to make himself available and known. While both universalistic and particularistic motifs can be found in Scripture, the affirmation of God's love, rule, and victory certainly has the universal implication. The Bible assures us that for the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. And, as we read in 1 Timothy, “he wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth”. Of course, there some other passages that focus on particularism of salvation. However, I would concur with Bloesch that “we are closer to the truth when we read the particularistic texts in light of the more comprehensive or universalistic texts”. Even though much of Christian tradition pictures salvation on the individual level, Scripture clearly illustrates that it will include the restoration of the world. I can say together with Plantinga, Thompson, and Lundberg that “this final state of redemption is best understood as a “new heaven and earth” – that is to say, a renovated and glorified …show more content…
Even though God predestined all of us for the salvation, he in his love enables and allows us to choose. I believe that God's kindness covers even those who chose not to accept his love while living here on earth. In Psalm 145:17 we read that "the Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works". From this perspective, we can view hell as God's last mercy to those who will let him do no other. Bloesch suggests that “Hell signifies not exclusion from God’s presence but continued opposition to God’s presence. Moreover, if God is present in hell, if the gospel can be proclaimed to the dead, then we can hope for the conversion of many on the other side of death”. Love implies justice. I agree with Bloesch that we tend to view the drama of the final judgment too negatively because “we see it largely in relation to condemnation, whereas it means to establish the right order of things”. Even though hell is an illustration of God's judgment, yet he takes no pleasure in it. "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but