Erasing Hell: What God Said about Eternity, and the Things We Made Up

by Francis Chan

When it comes to hell, we can’t afford to be wrong. This is not one of those doctrines where you can toss in your two cents, shrug your shoulders, and move on. Too much is at stake. Too many people are at stake. And the Bible has too much to say.

Don’t believe something just because you want to, and don’t embrace an idea just because you’ve always believed it. Believe what is biblical. Test all your assumptions against the precious words God gave us in the Bible.

I don’t believe God wants our church life to be centered on buildings and services. Instead, God wants our churches—whatever specific forms our gatherings take—to be focused on active discipleship, mission, and the pursuit of unity.

Let’s be eager to leave what is familiar for what is true. Nothing outside of God and His truth should be sacred to us.

We must weep, pray, and fast over this issue, begging God to reveal to us through His Word the truth about hell.

It’s a book about embracing a God who isn’t always easy to understand, and whose ways are far beyond us; a God whose thoughts are much higher than our thoughts; a God who, as the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of all things, has every right to do, as the psalmist says, “whatever He pleases” (Ps. 115:3 NASB).

God has the right to do WHATEVER He pleases.

There’s a difference, in other words, between God’s values that please Him (moral will) and those events that He causes to happen (decreed will).15

No passage in the Bible says that there will be a second chance after death to turn to Jesus.

For those who follow Jesus, there is everlasting life in the presence of God, but for those who don’t follow Him, there will be punishment.

This is not just about doctrine; it’s about destinies.

You must let Jesus’ words reconfigure the way you live, the way you talk, and the way you see the world and the people around you.

The everlasting fire of gehenna is a place of punishment for all who don’t follow Jesus in this life.

Jesus chose strong and terrifying language when He spoke of hell. I believe He chose to speak this way because He loves us and wanted to warn us.

Similar to John the Baptist and Jesus, Paul believed that warning people of the wrath to come was actually loving.

God is compassionate and just, loving and holy, wrathful and forgiving. We can’t sideline His more difficult attributes to make room for the palatable ones.

Refusing to teach a passage of Scripture is just as wrong as abusing it. I really believe it’s time for some of us to stop apologizing for God and start apologizing to Him for being embarrassed by the ways He has chosen to reveal Himself.

Jesus didn’t speak of hell so that we could study, debate, and write books about it. He gave us these passages so that we would live holy lives. Stop slandering one another, and live in peace and brotherly unity.

Why is it that only 5.5 percent of American evangelical churches could be considered multiethnic (where no single ethnicity makes up more than 80 percent of its congregants)?1

We need to see the glaring contradiction in saying we believe in hell while making no effort to tear down the walls of racism and ethnic superiority.

The fact is, Scripture is filled with divine actions that don’t fit our human standards of logic or morality. But they don’t need to, because we are the clay and He is the Potter.

We need to stop trying to domesticate God or confine Him to tidy categories and compartments that reflect our human sentiments rather than His inexplicable ways.

It’s incredibly arrogant to pick and choose which incomprehensible truths we embrace. No one wants to ditch God’s plan of redemption, even though it doesn’t make sense to us. Neither should we erase God’s revealed plan of punishment because it doesn’t sit well with us.

It’s not about figuring out all of the mysteries of God, but embracing Him and cherishing Him—even when He doesn’t make perfect sense to us.

A sense of urgency over the reality of hell should recharge our passion for the gospel as it did for Paul, who, “knowing the fear of the Lord,” persuaded people to believe (2 Cor. 5:11).

In light of this truth and for the sake of people’s eternal destiny, our lives and our churches should be—no, they must be!—free from the bondage of sin, full of selfless love that overflows for neighbors, the downcast, and the outsiders among us.

This is the same wrath that is being poured out for your sins. This is the same wrath that ultimately will be satisfied, either in hell or on the cross. We deserve it; Christ endured it. How could I keep from bursting out in joy?

Hell is the backdrop that reveals the profound and unbelievable grace of the cross.

Christ freely chose to bear the wrath

that I deserve so that I can experience life in the presence of God.

Can you imagine what it would be like never to get stressed-out or to worry because you are so filled with the peace and love of God? Don’t you want to be characterized by these attitudes? Don’t we all want peace, and self-control, and all the rest?

If we never follow Him to positions where we need Him, how can He show up and make His presence known?

If you have not known and experienced God in ways you cannot deny, I would suggest that you are not living in a needy and dependent way.

As for me, I am tired of talking about what we are going to do. I am sick of talking about helping people, of brainstorming and conferencing about ways we can be radical and make sacrifices. I don’t want to merely talk anymore. Life is too short. I don’t want to speak about Jesus; I want to know Jesus. I want to be Jesus to people. I don’t want just to write about the Holy Spirit; I want to experience His presence in my life in a profound way.

Our Scriptures teach that if you know what you are supposed to do and you don’t do it, then you sin (James 4:17). In other words, when we stock up on knowledge without applying it to our lives, we are actually sinning. You would think that learning more about God would be a good thing … and it can be. But when we gain knowledge about God without responding to Him or assimilating His truth into our lives, then it is not a good thing. According to the Bible, it’s sin.