What if you're wrong

[The Sum of Awe]

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

 

[StarryNightshade]

What if you're wrong

Then I guess I'm screwed.

 

[Augustus]

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

I like Bart Simpson's response: 'Wouldn't you eventually get used to it, like in a hot tub?

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Then I guess I'm screwed.

Perhaps we all are. Maybe man never found the "one true religion"

it's silly.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

I would flip him off and say "**** you" since it's not a being worthy of worship in the first place.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Can't be wrong. The way it is remains as always.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Ha. I like what you said. Especially the bold, among other points.

I like what Billy Joel says, "I rather laugh with the sinners, than cry with the saints." and be like Charley Daniels and be down in Georgia playing the fiddle with the devil.

The whole situation is a catch-22. I have yet to find a honest reasoned explanation without personal testimony.

/shrugs/

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

 

[LuisDantas]

With me it would be a bit shorter a conversation.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."

"You're not serious. Whatever."

 

[ChristineES]

In anything I believe, don't believe, etc, there is always a chance that I am wrong about it. I don't worry about "if" very much.

 

[lunakilo]

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

It sounds like I made a mistake that I will not be given a chance to correct.

I will have an eternity to be angry at the god who decided to torture me forever without giving me what I consider a fair chance to figure out it existed, thus not giving me a fair chance to make what it consideres the right choice in life.

I feel angry and ... Ouch! Ouch! OUUUUUUUUUCH!!!

 

[Caligula]

- That's a sick sense of humor you got there... . ...Sorry! What was your name again?

 

[Aupmanyav]

To be fried in hell with no eater would be a waste.

 

[allfoak]

Can't be wrong when everything i do proves that i am right.
There is no other explanation for what has happened to me in the last 6yrs other than i have come into contact with my eternal soul.
We speak to one another like best friends.

Before someone tells me to go see a doctor, i would like to add that everyone talks to themselves.
Most have no idea what they are doing and most times don't even know they are doing it at all.

I ask people this question.
Who is doing the talking and who is doing the listening?

 

[Lyndon]

The OP presents a very unlikely scenario, its just not going to happen like that IMHO

 

[dave_]

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

Lots of followers of Abrahamic religions don't believe in such a hell.The hell as you mentioned is based on the writings of Dante.At least that was what said to me in a previous thread of mine.

 

[SkepticX]

I like the What If model that says there's a supreme being who's weeding out less interesting company, and so doesn't allow traditional believers into Heaven and particularly likes those who have been conscientious and resistant to peer pressure and unexamined socialization and such (Nones as the Pew polls call us--Nuns as I like to write it).

 

[Willamena]

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

And then you wake up.

 

[Quintessence]

I'm a Witch. We find ways of turning things around. I'm almost positive I'll be able to use telekinesis at will since I can always do that in the otherworlds, and probably several other things as well. So the first thing I'll do is be levitating over that lava pit - having never fallen into it - and shift into a different sector of the otherworlds. Pfft... that "god" thinking it can hold a Witch. What a sucker.

 

[allfoak]

I'm a Witch. We find ways of turning things around.

This is for another thread but i am really interested in knowing the answer to this question.

These "ways" you speak of, do they have anything to do with the use of these principles?

THE SEVEN HERMETIC PRINCIPLES
"The Principles of Truth are Seven; he who knows these,
understandingly, possesses the Magic Key before whose
touch all the Doors of the Temple fly open."--The Kybalion.

The Seven Hermetic Principles, upon which the entire Hermetic Philosophy is based, are as follows:

1. The Principle of Mentalism.
2. The Principle of Correspondence.
3. The Principle of Vibration.
4. The Principle of Polarity.
5. The Principle of Rhythm.
6. The Principle of Cause and Effect.
7. The Principle of Gender.

 

[Etritonakin]

This applies to anybody; atheists and theists alike.

Let's say you died, and 2 seconds later you are in a very bright place, and the feeling of peace is omnipresent. This is heaven.

But not your heaven (if you believe in one), but another's.

A figure approaches you. His features aren't important, you are too focused on the bliss from his presence.

"Unfortunately you are going to hell forever"
"Why?"
"You don't believe i existed."
"How could I have known?"
"It's so obvious, I have prophets that written books centuries ago, to reveal myself"
"There are tons of books similar, saying they are the right religion. How could I have possibly known that out of all these books, this is the one to choose?"
"If I interacted anymore with humans, freewill would be out of the question."
"No, in fact, freewill is out of the question when you DON'T reveal yourself more clearer. Sure we can choose to believe and not believe, but non-belief is due to the lack of information. How could we truly have freewill when you aren't apparent?"
"Into the pits you go!". the ground beneath you opens up to flames.
"wait wait wait! give me another chance, please, why is it too late to be saved?"
"You had an entire lifetime to make the choice."
"why do you send me to hell for just not believing?"
"i don't send you to hell. you do."
"but you created hell, and created how to get to hell."

Annoyed, he simply said; "I work in mysterious ways. Your mortal mind cannot comprehend my reasons for doing things. You just have to trust me that I am a perfect being, and above everything else."

You fall into the pit, and after a long fall you are drowning in lava, suffocated by smoke. You then realize: This is forever... it'll never end!!"

The above scenario has nothing to do with what is actually written in the bible.

When "the rest of the dead" are raised, they are judged "according to their works" -not according to belief.

The meek inherit the earth (then beyond) -not heaven.

While the word "unbelievers" is used to describe some who will have their part in the lake of fire, it does not refer to ignorance or honest disbelief/uncertainty.
However, those who work against God, and so do evil works in disbelief, disagreement or antagonism, will be judged according to those.

Elsewhere it says that while works will be destroyed, some are saved -yet so as by fire. They will be purified -refined as gold. The nature of that "fire" is such that it will remove those things listed as the reasons for experiencing it.

The overall plan -as outlined in the bible -is generally as follows.

God begins, with Adam, to make children of God -who will become like God in character over time, and eventually in body/form which will allow great creative power.
Meanwhile, they are flesh -with limited power to create (or destroy).

God begins to work with "the elect" -who will be the government under Christ on earth when he eventually returns in power and glory after initially showing himself worthy when he is made flesh.

The "elect" -as God's ways are not our ways -will serve those humans who live during the thousand years following Christ's return -administering God's government of peace -and later will serve "the rest of the dead" as they are raised, judged, and become immortal.
God does not call all initially -only some before Christ returns -but as written, even so in Christ shall all be made alive -but in order. The first fruits -then many later.

The "fire" -hell, if you will, is an ultimatum to all. It makes the statement that one must eventually choose to do right -or they can and will be destroyed, rather than allowing their destruction into eternity. The overall concept does include eventually removing those who deserve such from others -denying that which is pleasant -and even causing to experience that which is unpleasant -but this is a last resort and is not some ridiculous and unfair decision by a pouting God.

It should be noted that none are now in "hell". Apart from the beast and false prophet at Christ's return, and Satan later, none experience the lake of fire until a thousand years after Christ's return -and not all raised to the judgment will experience it.

God initially worked with carnal man -choosing Israel to be a peculiar nation -making the first covenant with them -which was based on obedience. God also made promises about the future of their offspring which were not dependent on obedience, concerning the nations they would become, and what would eventually come to pass.

God knew the first covenant was not perfect -and could not be -and even in its imperfection knew that Israel would likely break it overall. However, he used it to lay the groundwork for the second covenant -making a people mindful of God and his government -thinking along certain lines -whose offspring would be prepared to receive the second covenant -which included the giving of God's spirit to man -which enabled man to obey not only in letter, but to obey in spirit -to think and act as God.


Then he offered this covenant to people of all nations whom he called -and many of all nations will be made immortal at his return and be "the elect" -not just Israelites -though Jerusalem will be the world capital, if you will, and the human nation of Israel who live on and repopulate will administer the government of God to other nations after Christ returns -serving the whole world and being a blessing to them -because in God's government, one who would lead should make himself a servant.

God allowed man, for the most part, to decide as they chose -and will allow man to almost destroy all life on earth.

He has allowed it to satisfy any who would say his government is not necessary -as he allowed the first covenant also to show its imperfection and that man was not yet prepared for the next.

God -when he could -did everything we might eventually say he should have -to show that it was not enough -to show both that his government was necessary -but that we need the willingness to follow it, and to put forth the effort. (God could not have instantaneously made everything -including us -perfect AND have accomplished his goal of reproducing himself and his character in us. We needed to become like God, knowing good and evil -but then become like God, only DOING good.)

Then, all things can be made new -and we can be given powerful bodies -having become responsible enough to use them.

As it is written that God formed the heavens and earth to be inhabited, we will then create throughout the universe -and as it is written that of the increase of his government there will be no end, humans on earth are likely to continue to receive immortality.