God has to punish sinners, because God is holy, but Jesus has paid the price for our sin, and so we can have eternal life. However true or untrue that is technically or theologically, what it can do is subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God.

Rob Bell
About This Quote

God has to punish sinners, because God is holy, but Jesus has paid the price for our sin, and so we can have eternal life. However true or untrue that is technically or theologically, what it can do is subtly teach people that Jesus rescues us from God. The idea is that if you are bad enough God will send you to Hell. However, all you have to do to get out of Hell is ask Jesus to come into your heart and he will save you.

It’s a very simple message. One of the fundamental errors of all religions is this idea that sinners are forever separated from God. This notion was addressed by Augustine in his famous work The City of God: "If the angels who sinned were tortured eternally, how much more justly will God punish those who have rebelled against his authority?" This notion of Christians being saved through Jesus makes all other religions look foolish by comparison, because they are based on belief in an afterlife rather than on the living Christ.

Source: Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, And The Fate Of Every Person Who Ever Lived

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