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the rich man also died; and was buried: And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments Lk16:22b-23a These are facts. There is pain, sickness, violence, murders, disappointments, depression, mental illness, and death. There is also beauty, happiness, compassion, birth, family, health, and enjoyment. So in this state of things there is a mixture of good and evil. If you believe in God, that he is all goodness, all love, and all powerful then, though he created all things, he can not be the author of evil. That according to scripture was the consequence of an angel, Lucifer, who became consumed with his own beauty and wished to be worshiped as God. When he fell he took a third of the angelic beings with him. When God placed Adam and Eve in the garden, the serpent tempted Eve to disobey the word and eat of the forbidden fruit and Adam followed suit. As a consequence, what began in goodness, became a world with all the evil we experience. God's remedy for sin and the fall was to send his Son to be a perfect sacrifice for sin and bring salvation to the world. So what began as holy and good, in the intermediate, became a mixture of good and evil, but what started as as all good, will once again become all good and what is evil will be left behind. Hell is the place where all evil dwells with all its torments like those the rich man experienced. Hell is the place without God where the devil tortures those who are made in the image of God who did not receive salvation through the blood of Christ. Rather than denying the existence of God because of evil, posit the existence of hell because evil is real and God who is all good, all love, and all powerful has provided the remedy for the evil and will destroy all evil in the lake of fire and only goodness, love, and joy will remain. Hell is a consequence of the fall not an intention of God. Hell exists where the devil has dominion and God is absent. When God takes what he has redeemed, those left behind will not have the love and protection of God nor the possibility to change the course of their existence. Hell is real because evil is real and God is all powerful to restore only goodness and love and leave the rest behind. It is time to come to a decision. Either ask Jesus into your heart and repent of your sin or suffer the consequences of being left behind! The choice is yours. amen |