Well over thirty different Scriptures explicitly state that God intends to reconcile all men to himself through Jesus Christ. Let’s begin this study by looking at some of the clearest statements regarding this. The first and clearest, of course, is the one I mentioned in the first post in this series.
For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22 ESV)
Some people want to say, “Sure, all the unbelievers will be made alive at the resurrection of the wicked and then will be judged and thrown into Hell if they did not believe in Jesus during their life on earth.” Such a view renders Paul’s promise of life pretty pathetic doesn’t it? People evidently believe this because a following verse says that the end comes after “all” are made alive when Christ delivers his kingdom to his Father “after destroying every rule and every authority and power.” (1 Cor. 15:24) They believe these unbelieving sinners will be destroyed in Hell or eternally tormented in Hell. But, they do not understand what God means when he speaks of someone’s destruction.
The Book of Ezekiel describes what happens to someone after God destroys them. Ezekiel pronounces judgment upon Israel, the Jews, and all their surrounding kingdoms more than 60 times in his book. And every time, after God completes his judgment, God says, “And then you will know that I am the LORD!” For example,
Therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand against you, and will hand you over as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and will make you perish out of the countries; I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am the Lord. (Ezekiel 25:7)
Have you ever considered this question, “How can a person possibly come to know the Lord after God destroys him?” Paul understood this well. Thus he told the churches to judge unrepentant sinners in their midst,
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife.2 And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you.
3 For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. 4 When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. (1 Cor. 5:1-5)
Paul’s judgment upon sin followed up on his judgment upon dead works. Earlier he said to these same Corinthians,
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. (1 Cor. 3:10-15)
Today’s churches, unfortunately, neither judge sin nor dead works. This explains why the Church is powerless and impotent in this time. Most Christians still cling to the pagan doctrine of eternal torment in Hell for unbelievers! They need to thank their lucky stars, for most of them are idolaters, that God’s mercy extends even to them. For, if God judged today’s American Christians with the same standard by which they judge others they would be utterly lost, forsaken, and doomed to eternal torment. So, let’s look at the doctrine of fire in Scripture.
13 Hear, you who are far off, what I have done;
and you who are near, acknowledge my might.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid;
trembling has seized the godless:
“Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire?
Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?” (Isaiah 33:13-14)
The word Zion speaks of God’s people, yet some of God’s people at this time remain sinners. All of us still sin at times, but this speaks of those who claim God’s name who still live lives of sin and refuse to leave the pleasures of Babylon. These will learn to fear God although they do not fear him now because our God is a consuming fire. Moses wrote, “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God” and “Know therefore today that he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 4:24; 9:3a) The Book of Hebrews likewise says,
18 For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them.20 For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly[a] of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:18-29)
Do we know God as “a consuming fire,” as “a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest?” Remember that John the Baptist introduced people to Jesus like this, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11) Jesus himself said, “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled!” (Luke 12:49) What?! Is Jesus really anxious to burn the earth with fire? Does he really look forward to casting people into Hell and tormenting them? If so, then why did he say, “For God so loved the world,[i] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him”? (John 3:16-17)
Consider the use of fire in the natural. We use fire to purify precious metals. Fire melts gold or silver and consumes and destroys every impurity within and around the gold or silver nuggets. Malachi says concerning Christ, “And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” (Malachi 3:3)
Many Old Testament verses speak of God “purging” away our sins. For example,
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Iniquities prevail against me: as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away.
Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name’s sake.
By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil.
And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:
When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.
And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
We should be able to see now that God’s consuming fire is a spiritual fire that consumes all of the iniquity within a man. Yes, it “destroys” the man (actually the soul of the man) who was, a carnal man conformed to the image of Satan. But, the fire remakes him into one fully formed in God’s image. Read Isaiah 22:14 again. God says, “This iniquity will not be purged from you until you die.” I believe that this means that God’s purifying work goes on in us even after we physically die if that is necessary. This means the purging of our sins will go on even then if we have not fully repented in this life. And where does this occur? In the Lake of Fire. The Lake of Fire is the spiritual application of God’s truth, God’s Law, upon a soul whose body has died. Everyone will have a part in the Lake of Fire who does not submit to God’s way during this life. It is not a literal fire that burns and stings our flesh. It is a spiritual fire that works upon our souls until each one of us confesses with the rest of creation that God in Jesus Christ is our Lord, our Savior, and our Creator.
