Lisa

One of my friends…He goes, I just can’t believe in a God that would send me to hell just because I don’t believe in Him. I said, Why is that? And he goes, Because that’s an ultimatum. Believe in Jesus or go to hell. That sounds manipulative. I said, Let me ask you something. If a building is already on fire and someone kicks the door open and says, Come out, this is the only way, is that an ultimatum, or is it a rescue? He said, What do you mean? I said, Well, you were already going to hell. I was already going to hell. That’s not God being cruel. That’s humanity choosing sin, and that’s justice. God does not send innocent people to hell. The fact is, there are no innocent people. The standard is perfection. Not better than your neighbor. Not mostly good. Perfection. I asked him, Have you ever lied? Have you ever lusted? Have you ever hated someone? Have you ever been prideful? He said, Yeah. I said, Well, then you’re guilty. I said, To be honest, I have too. We’re all guilty. And he goes, So you’re telling me it’s believe or just burn? And I said, No. It’s guilty but rescued. You weren’t standing on neutral ground and God came up and just shoved you toward the fire. You were already falling, and He caught you before you hit the ground. Jesus didn’t come to threaten you. He came to take your sentence. The Cross was not an ultimatum. It was a substitution. Justice says the wage of sin is death, but love says, I’ll pay it for you. A friend asked me, But why make belief the condition? And I said, Because love can’t be forced. Salvation is not a hostage situation. It’s a gift. If someone pays your debt, you still have to accept it. If you refuse it, the debt doesn’t disappear. God is not saying, Believe in Me or I’ll torture you. He’s saying, You’re already dying. I made a way. Take it. Hell is not proof that God is cruel. The Cross is proof that He’s not. And if you’re wrestling with that same question, it means the door is still open.