Tom writes:

Here is the doctrine of heaven and hell. God will be glorified in his holy people but will punish with everlasting destruction those who do not know God. There are surprisingly few verses about what happens to those who don’t live as if they know God. Paul’s two defining images of hell are everlasting destruction and a shutting out from the presence of the Lord. The second idea is quite easy to swallow. Everlasting destruction is a bit harder. There is debate over whether the destruction is everlasting in its duration (i.e. people are constantly experiencing destruction) or everlasting in its effect (i.e. the people are destroyed in an instant and that is the final end of them that cannot be overturned). I’ve thought about this a lot and I prefer the latter. I think it makes better sense in the overall sweep of the bible’s narrative to say that God will remove from creation forever those who would not cooperate with his eternal plans. I also must confess I feel this is easier to square with my sense of the character of God. But we should admit that this still is grossly offensive to a lot of people. I find that tricky. The answer to this trickiness isn’t to make up our own interpretation based on what we want God to do, but instead to lean into seeing the goodness in what God has said he will do.

And there is much that Paul says that is easy to celebrate. You see, Paul’s main point is that those who want to be fully in God’s glorious presence will get to do that forever and ever. And they will get to do that free from the hassle, persecution, hate and marginalisation of those who don’t want to do things God’s way. The hope of liberation for all the earth - for everything to be filled with God’s fullness is now guaranteed. Party poopers, those who stand at the side and criticise, those who reject God’s wisdom and try to impose their own will have no say, ever, in any way. They will be shut out; their influence destroyed. And so hell is the language used to describe the removal of every source of anti-god behaviour on the earth. Jesus will let anyone who wants to avoid hell to avoid it. We who make that simple choice will share in the most captivating and soul-soothing worship time that we will ever, ever know. And we will never need to leave the room to go back to “normal life”. This worship will be normal life - Mondays to Sundays will be lived in a pleasure-filled stratosphere where every activity, every work of joy, every collaboration in creativity will be done together with others who are utterly united with us and with Jesus. The dark day of destruction will bring the dawn of delight dripping across everything, everywhere. Those who say yes to the delight of God right now will bask in his beauty forever and ever.

Question for reflection

Do you delight in what God says is delightful?

2 Thessalonians 1 - Wednesday 31st July