I'm trying to understand how God's justice works in the 'one heaven one hell' belief structure.
It is my understanding that Trinitarians place in the same place in Heaven all who meet the requirements (accepted Christ, received baptism...I think it varies somewhat among churches) to go to Heaven. Is this correct?
Do you also believe then that the person who devoted his whole heart and everything he had to serving God would receive the same reward as one who met the requirement/s but gave relatively little thought to God or his fellow man? If so, is this just? I believe that mercy makes up for lack of ability when one has righteous desires. Does mercy also make up for the lack of desire thereby making everyone in heaven equal? (We'll talk about works later, I promise.)
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OK loaded question, but here is what I believe and I think that many Christians who believe the Bible only as scripture will agree. And forgive me if I don't say it just right.
ReplyDeleteYes, there is only one level of Heaven. And everyone is equal there. We will recieve rewards for the works that we do, but I have no idea what they will be. Ray Bolten has this song called Thank You that makes me think that it could just be that we will be able to know who all we impacted in our lives, weather it was us telling them about Jesus, or us giving our tithing that allowed a mistinstry to flurish so that someone could know about Jesus or us giving offering to a Missionary so that they could tell someone about Jesus. (No, I don't evlevate that the song to scripture, but it is one interpitaion of the rewards that we will recieve.) And by knowing about Jesus I mean coming to a saving knowedge of Jesus. Even the demons and Satan know Jesus and they tremble at the very mention of His name and the reminder of His blood on the Cross wipping every one clean of the sins that they committed if they would just believe and accept. But the demons and Satan do not have a saving knowedge of Jesus. That's to say with all their knowedge, they refuse to accept Him as their savior. I'm not even sure if they can. It's not for me to worry about though. I'm to witness to those humans that I come in contact with.
Still on rewards: I think in Rev. it talks about us laying our crowns at His feet. And I think somewhere it's mentioned that these crowns have jewels. Maybe these crowns will be our rewards.
I don't really know what the rewards will be it's all speculation, but I do know that I am not doing "Good Works" for any reward, but because I love Him and I love the people that I have come in contact with and I don't wish them to parish.
The requirement for Salvation is accepting the Diety of Jesus, His sinnless life, His sacrifice on the Cross, and asking for and believing in His forgiveness. Baptism is not a requirement to go to Heaven. It is a step of obedience, but not a requirement. The thief on the cross next to Jesus didn't have time to get baptised before dieing, but yet, he was sent to Heaven after He came to a saving knowedge of Jesus. There are countless of people who come to a saving knowedge of Jesus on their death beds or die of some other reason before they are baptised. They are in the same Heaven as those who spent their entire lives devoted to Jesus and those who have died before their age of acountablity.
I may be wrong about this, but I believe that Heaven will be a place of praising God 24/7. We will be equal no one will be above another person. And to me that is the real justice. There is no room for predjuice or "I'm better than you."
I'm looking forward to your post about works, I'm interested in what you have to say about them. I had to delete a lot of what I have typed up because it crossed over into that subject. LOL
Thanks Stacie. I am still unclear on the issue of justice.
ReplyDeleteMy perspective: Heaven includes 3 degrees of glory to which people go depending on their level of committment and willingness to follow Christ. We do not merit anything on our own, and no true follower of Christ would place himself above another, but our assigned responsibilities will be different based on our level of committment. Justice rewards or punishes us based on our actions, mercy gives us the power to realize our righteous desires and to overcome the effects of sin. Christ stands between us and justice. He has paid the price of our sins so that if we accept him we stand justified before the law. Mercy makes us equal to the point that we accept it. I see justice in the inequality that comes from individual choices and desires. It seems unjust to punish the hardened criminal to the same extent that you punish a good but non-christian man. It seems unjust to elevate the wishy-washy christian to the same rewards and responsibilities of the devoted disciple.
I just don't see the justice in making everyone equal, regardless of their desires. Would everyone even be happy in heaven if they never learned to love the lifestyle. I don't believe a just God would force equality that way.
Will you dig a little deeper for me, you don't have to rush. Help me understand why you think one equalized heaven and one hell is just.