POWER OR PLACE QUESTION: In some parts of the book you talk about hell as a “power,” but in others as a “place.” Which is it: a power or a place? RESPONSE: Both. As is often the case with Scripture, this is a both/and, not an either/or. The destructive “power” of hell makes its way into the world from the “place” of hell. For example, in the James passage we looked at earlier, this dynamic can be seen clearly: Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of
POWER OR PLACE QUESTION: In some parts of the book you talk about hell as a “power,” but in others as a “place.” Which is it: a power or a place? RESPONSE: Both. As is often the case with Scripture, this is a both/and, not an either/or. The destructive “power” of hell makes its way into the world from the “place” of hell. For example, in the James passage we looked at earlier, this dynamic can be seen clearly: Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell [Gehenna].4 James sees hell as a place whose destructive power, like a wildfire, makes its way into the world through us. Power and place go together. To use an analogy: let’s say the United States invades Iraq (I know, use your imagination). And let’s say you live in Iraq. And let’s say as the bombs fall around you, they destroy a local hospital, a school, and a few homes. And someone asks you, “Is the United States a power, or a place?” The obvious answer would be: both. You are experiencing the power of the United States invading your country, dropping bombs, destroying buildings. But it is a power that comes from a place; its origins are not in Iraq, but on the North American continent, across an ocean, far away. This is what makes it an invasion: a power is infiltrating your country from an outside place. Similarly, in Script...
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