Would a Loving God Send People to Hell?

ByMarjie

We’ve heard it said time and again. God is love, and a loving God wouldn’t send anyone to hell. But exactly how loving is the God of creation, the God of our universe, the God of all living? 

According to John 3:16, God loved us so much “…that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” 

God loves us tremendously.  That’s why Jesus died for each and every one of us.  However, God is not only loving, but He’s also just.  And because He’s just, His holiness requires payment for sin.  But because He’s loving, He doesn’t want to see anyone perish. (II Peter 3:9) Therefore, He sent His Son to pay the penalty for our sin.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  Romans 6:23

I John 3:16 says, “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us…” 

Now John 3:16 says that God sent His only begotten Son to die for us, but I John 3:16 says that God laid down His life for us. Since we know that Jesus died for us, I John 3:16 makes it clear that Jesus is God.  God left Heaven and came to Earth in the form of a man, lived a perfect and sinless life for 33 years; then He died a cruel and agonizing death on the cross to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world. (I John 2:2) That’s how much he loves us. 

Then is it true that God loves us so much that He wouldn’t send anyone to hell?  It’s true that God doesn’t want anyone to go to Hell.  So in order to rescue mankind from an eternity in Hell, He paid the penalty for our sin Himself, and then He extended an invitation to all mankind to simply believe and be saved. 

Acts 16:31 says, “…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” 

However, He’s given mankind a freewill; a will to choose Him or to reject Him. So if someone refuses to believe, and they choose to reject God’s salvation, God’s not obligated to them.  So then, does God send people to Hell?  No.  But He allows them to choose their destiny.  Because to take away that choice is to strip them of their freewill, and to remove their freewill would only be done by a God who doesn’t love them.

Similar Posts

  • For God So Loved the World

    “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” John 3:16-17 KJV God loves you so much that He sent His Son to pay the penalty for your sin. (Romans 6:23)  Sin…

  • Every Knee Shall Bow to Jesus

    That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:10-11 KJV Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  He is the great I AM and one day everyone will see Him for who He…

  • In the Beginning was the Word

    We understand the Word of God to be the Bible.  To mankind, “word” means something spoken or written.  We fill books and magazines with the words of men.  We fill the air with the words we speak.  We see a word as nothing more than a means of communication.  And the Holy Scriptures is the written Word of God, bound by a cover.  We refer to it as the Holy…

  • Children, Obey Your Parents

    My son, keep thy father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. Proverbs 6:20-22 KJV We are instructed by the Lord to bind the commandments of our father and the law of our…

  • God Gives Believers a Sound Mind

    “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” II Timothy 1:7 Romans 8:9 says, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”  From the moment of salvation, we…

  • Pride Goes Before Destruction

    Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18 KJV God honors those who humble themselves before him. James 4:10 says, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.”  When you display humility toward God, you recognize Him for who He really is: the Almighty Creator of the universe.  But you also recognize yourself for what you really are: weak…