Dante, we often forget, was just a Medieval Italian author, a good one, to be sure, but just human. His ideas of heaven and hell are not the Bible, they are just Dante's ideas that made it convenient for him to tell his entertaining, and often instructive tales. Still, most images and ideas of hell we see depicted in art or discussed in conversation are quite Dante-esque. I am not sure at all that Dante's ideas are Biblical ideas, though his are quite profound and often amusing. I often have remarked how convenient it is to believe in hell, especially when one has enemies.I have noticed how people seem strangely comforted to imagine their enemies roasting in hell. What a bizarre thing this is to me.
Theologically, I am not a universalist; believing that all people will be ultimately saved. No, I think some people's destiny will shape up badly. I don't see universalism in scripture, but I also think we will all be surprised on "that day," when we see who gets in and who does not get it. Oh, I think there is going to be a great deal of surprise on judgment day, to say nothing of shock and awe. One thing for sure is that the first will be last and the last will be first. The powerful will find themselves cast down and the weak will find themselves exalted. I do believe that justice will prevail in the end, and that every mountain and hill will be made low, and every valley and ditch raised up. There will come a reckoning, I do believe that.
The fact is, the Bible, although it frankly speaks about hell (there is no getting around that), does not really give us that much to go on, and I am glad. I think we should be talking about the "Good News" a lot more than we talk about the bad news, and thank God, the Bible actually does that.
The biggest idea about hell we get from the Bible is that we REALLY don't want to go there. Hell is a state of existence we want to avoid at all costs. Sometimes the Bible describes the nether world as a burning place, and sometimes as a sterile place, such as outer darkness. There is not one single word that describes hell in the New Testament, but several. Much has been written by religious folks about this place, but, every description leaves me cold. :-) Whatever it is, I do NOT want to go there. I have my own ideas about it, but I hate thinking about it.
But, as for the subject of fire, a much more important subject in the Bible, we would definitely do well to ponder it. The Bible teaches that we will ALL pass through one kind of fire or another. Fire, can be a metaphor for suffering, or it can be referring to fire as a purifying agent; as punishment, or as judgment. It can be "good" or "bad." It can be many things. The end of the world will be with fire. Fire is God's cleansing agent. When Christ appears, he will appear, "in fire," and so forth.
This morning I was listening to Handel's Messiah, which by the way is about the entire gospel story, Christmas, Easter, and the world to come. I listen to Handel's Messiah all the time. There is hardly a week goes by but that I listen to some portion of it. This morning the section I was listening to was taken from Malachi chapter three, and it really caught my attention - and my imagination. Here it is.
Malachi 3:1-6 "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, 4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years. 5 "So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me," says the LORD Almighty. Robbing God 6 "I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. 7 Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty.
It would be great to unpack everything here, but suffice it to say, this is a place in scriptures that speaks of God's people as going through the fire of judgment, and that is more important than the fact that some will go through that "OTHER" kind of fire.
Malachi talks about the fire that will purify the sons of Levi; that they may offer righteous sacrifices. John the Baptist talks about one who will come after him who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. Fire is always associated with God, and God with fire. "Our God," the writer to the Hebrews says, "is a consuming fire." This is a strong theme in the scriptures.
Yet, there is a principle here that bears consideration. It is that God's fire, though it purges away impurity, does not consume the believer, just the impurity.
6 "I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. In the King James version it says, "so you sons of Jacob are not consumed."
Moses saw the burning bush, but it was NOT being consumed. This was strange, and it drew him aside. The "consuming fire" spoken about in Hebrews 12:28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our "God is a consuming fire, is not the kind that devours God's people. The irony, if it be that, is that Hebrews 12 discusses God and fire before verse 29 and says, 18 You have not come to a mountain . . . that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned." 21The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."
He then comforts us by telling us the kind of wonderful place we now inhabit with God - read it for yourself. It is awesome -- then comes back around to the issue of God as fire . . . and not just any kind of fire, but a "consuming fire." Do a study on the subject of fire. You will be amazed at what you discover.
So, this fire of God is different than other kinds of fire. This fire is a safe fire. Safe does not mean it does not burn. Safe does not imply it does not hurt. Safe does not imply that it is all sweetness and light. Nope. This fire is a raging burning, churning, furious, vigorous burning that consumes the dross, the impurities, the wood/hay/stubble of our lives, and leaves only purified substance in its wake.
Make no mistake. We shall all pass through the fire; some to destruction and others to a purified life, by which we will be able to make acceptable sacrifices to God . . . in righteousness. God deserves the best, and he is determined to get it. Fire is the means. Purification is the desired effect. The revelation of God's splendor is the end.
From the beginning of the Bible to the end, fire is God's agent of transformation. If you have ever prayed for God to change you, then you can expect the fire of God to purge you. If you have never prayed for God to change you, you can still expect to encounter the fire of God, but you won't like it. As for me, I prefer one over the other. I trust the one kind of fire to do for me (and for my God) the best things imaginable. I want to offer my life as an acceptable sacrifice, and though I tremble and struggle at times with the implications of God's fire in my life, I will not refuse him. I will welcome that burning which transforms me from what I am to what he desires for me to be. Without such a blaze, there would be no hope for me. A fate worse than purging is the fate of being reserved for a different kind of fire. Our choices are never fire or no fire, but ever and only, which fire will I embrace.
John the Baptist said it best when he said, "There is one coming after me, whose shoes I am unworthy to untie, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." Yes, Jesus. Baptize me with that Holy Spirit and that fire.
