Disregard the above poll, there is an error.
Christians believe that "hell" is a temporary holding pen for those who have not accepted Jesus as their personal savior and/or lived a sinful life not acceptable enough to God for him to allow them into heaven.
These "rejected" souls are then directed either to purgatory for a second chance at gaining entry to heaven, or to the even worse temporary prison or holding pen, which we call "hell."
Here they will be greeted personally by Satan, and welcomed into their new home. Satan will explain the rules of hell to them and will laugh at them in their face. (Okay, I made this paragraph up).
Then they are all alone. They will be in an extremely hot, desert setting with flames all around them. They will still retain some kind of bodily form since they couldn't find it in themselves to detach from that body while on earth. So they will feel all the torture, torment, and heat of hell and will be extremely thirsty without the possibility of quenching that thrist.
The prisoners will stay in this horrifying realm until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. At this point they will be judged again by God, and will be transfered to their final destination: the Lake of Fire.
My question is this: Can souls which have gone to hell redeem themselves while in hell and gain reentry back into heaven? In other words, can they redeem themselves somehow while in hell, and then at the Second Coming judgment can they be approved for heavenly access and avoid the Lake of Fire?
Only those written in the Book of Life will gain entry to the new heaven/earth. So if someone goes to hell, can they somehow get their names back on that list while in hell or before the Second Coming?
If not, what is the purpose of this judgment? If someone has been sent to hell, then why waste time judging them if you already know they are going to the Lake of Fire with no chance of redemption?
Here are some other questions to consider:
1) Say an infant gets sick and dies at 1 month old. What happens to that infant? If they go to heaven, then that would be unfair since it is a free pass to heaven. That person had no chance of going to hell, and had to undergo no temptations or trials. They simply skipped the tough part. This question applies to Hinduism as well.
2) Revelations states that people who died for Christ while on earth will be the ONLY people who will be granted immunity from the Second Death, or the Lake of Fire. Does this mean that for the other 99.9999% of Christians who lived a generally pious and acceptable life and who didn't go to purgatory or hell are NOT immune to the Second Death?
3) The Book of Life represents a pass/fail type of system for gaining access into heaven and/or avoiding hell or the Lake of Fire. So is there a minimum requirement to gain access into heaven?
4) Assuming a purgatory, is the fire, torture, or punishment more intense in hell than in purgatory?
Christians believe that "hell" is a temporary holding pen for those who have not accepted Jesus as their personal savior and/or lived a sinful life not acceptable enough to God for him to allow them into heaven.
These "rejected" souls are then directed either to purgatory for a second chance at gaining entry to heaven, or to the even worse temporary prison or holding pen, which we call "hell."
Here they will be greeted personally by Satan, and welcomed into their new home. Satan will explain the rules of hell to them and will laugh at them in their face. (Okay, I made this paragraph up).
Then they are all alone. They will be in an extremely hot, desert setting with flames all around them. They will still retain some kind of bodily form since they couldn't find it in themselves to detach from that body while on earth. So they will feel all the torture, torment, and heat of hell and will be extremely thirsty without the possibility of quenching that thrist.
The prisoners will stay in this horrifying realm until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. At this point they will be judged again by God, and will be transfered to their final destination: the Lake of Fire.
My question is this: Can souls which have gone to hell redeem themselves while in hell and gain reentry back into heaven? In other words, can they redeem themselves somehow while in hell, and then at the Second Coming judgment can they be approved for heavenly access and avoid the Lake of Fire?
Only those written in the Book of Life will gain entry to the new heaven/earth. So if someone goes to hell, can they somehow get their names back on that list while in hell or before the Second Coming?
If not, what is the purpose of this judgment? If someone has been sent to hell, then why waste time judging them if you already know they are going to the Lake of Fire with no chance of redemption?
Here are some other questions to consider:
1) Say an infant gets sick and dies at 1 month old. What happens to that infant? If they go to heaven, then that would be unfair since it is a free pass to heaven. That person had no chance of going to hell, and had to undergo no temptations or trials. They simply skipped the tough part. This question applies to Hinduism as well.
2) Revelations states that people who died for Christ while on earth will be the ONLY people who will be granted immunity from the Second Death, or the Lake of Fire. Does this mean that for the other 99.9999% of Christians who lived a generally pious and acceptable life and who didn't go to purgatory or hell are NOT immune to the Second Death?
3) The Book of Life represents a pass/fail type of system for gaining access into heaven and/or avoiding hell or the Lake of Fire. So is there a minimum requirement to gain access into heaven?
4) Assuming a purgatory, is the fire, torture, or punishment more intense in hell than in purgatory?
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