Fear of hell

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Anyone else have anxiety caused by their faith?
I can't ignore what I believe to be true and believing in hell is dark, scary and you can't hide from it.
It's not just about myself; I feel sad for anyone who doesn't believe and therefore won't go to heaven - my collegues, strangers, etc.

Ive frequently explained on this forum the following in order to free people from the blasphemous doctrines of men that promote fear, rather than love for God.

God is not an evil torturer who would burn somebody in horrific pain forever, just because they didnt want to be his friend.
I mean, would you do that to somebody?, so you think you are a better person than God?

All sin comes via Adam, what did God say he would do to Adam if he sinned?
"In that day you will positively die" "dust you are, to dust you will return"

What did Solomon reveal about life after death?, " a live dog is better than a dead lion for there is no knowledge or wisdom or devising in hell, the place you are going too, for the living are conscious they will die, but the dead are conscious of nothing at all".

If people go to heaven or hell when they die, what is the resurrection for then on the last day?

the word Hell means the grave, same as Sheol and Hades, basically hole in the ground.

If you want to be frightened of something, fear Gehenna or the lake of fire which is not hell as Revelation 20 says :-

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Firstly verse 13, hell is in the same category as the sea and death, namely as storage area for the dead awaiting a resurrection whereupon they are then judged as to if they are good or bad, so God wouldnt have put a good person in your concept of hell for 1000 years only to then judge him and find he was good.

Verse 14, I have read a translation that says "Hell was cast into Hell", such is the absurdity of these catholic doctrines. The institutions of death and the grave will no longer exist after the 1000 years, that is why they are permanently destroyed, they feel no pain, likewise those resurrected from "hell" in verse 13 get thrown into the lake of fire, it doesnt mean they had been burnt for a 1000 years before God took them out to judge them and decided yes they where in the right place after all and shove them back in, hes not stupid, it just means they are judged unworthy for life so given the permanent and painless destruction promised to Adam.

The symbolism of the Lake of Fire, or Valley of Gehenna comes from the valley outside Jerusalem that was kept burning with fire and brimstone that was a rubbish dump into which dead dogs and dead people who were judged unworthy by the Jews of burial in the memorial tombs, and a subsequent later resurrection, where thrown, dead, not alive, they felt nothing, the lake of fire means destruction, not torture.

So why believe? Tell me.

You don't have evidence whatsoever for your faith. Otherwise, it wouldn't be faith, would it? So why put yourself in such a dreadful position?

I was raised by super-religious people who knew nothing about God's love...or at the very least, were clueless about how to express it. It got so bad at one point, that I would have literal, visual dreams at night, about inescapable fire, screaming people, and demonic laughter. I'd wake up screaming myself, sweating like crazy, and crying because I was so terrified.

These days, I'm still afraid a lot of the time, mostly because I still carry a lot of anger towards those who raised me. I try so hard to forgive, but I'm not strong enough to release that pain by myself. Even though I love Jesus, I haven't read my Bible in at least 3 years. When I've opened it up in the past, I immediately want to close it, and I then feel guilty for being so angry toward God, my elders, and myself. I still go to church because being around other believers helps me relax, but there's still a part of me that's back in my bed, crying my heart out and hoping my nightmares don't come true someday. I've even told God regarding the Rapture, "if You leave me behind for that Tribulation, after all I've done to try and love You the best I know how...I don't think I'll have the faith to keep loving or trusting You anymore." That confession's a very difficult one to acknowledge, but I figure its better to be honest with my current state, instead of trying to hide it from the One who knows it already.

I ask the same question to you. What's the point?

What a loving caring God he must be to have you suffer all this fear and anxiety.

I was in the same boat as you two, by the way. Few years ago. I eventually gave up and realized there just wasn't a point to being such a believer who has to feel guilty over everything. So I stopped believing and I feel much more relief now.

Thank you, I feel much better now. You are right - God is love, but depression and anxiety can make it difficult for me to keep focused on that.

I see you've made it through the indoctrination process.

Now, go read your Bible - cover to cover - and learn for yourself what it really says.

Yes, you are right: faith means having no solid evidence. Anything I say could easily be argued against.
But, as I wrote just because some things worry me, doesn't mean I'll loose faith. It is tempting to stop believing and stop worrying, but I don't think that's right or wise, I'm afraid.
But, as Nambo wrote God is loving. I really believe and trust in that. God is worth believing in.
If hell does not exist then I really have nothing else to worry about or fear because God loves me.
As for the old question of why suffering happens? Well, people have always asked that and someone smarter and wiser people than me could answer it better . For me I don't mind too much because God is with me. I know when I die I won't suffer any more; it is temporary. God gives me strenght to keep going. He gives me inner peace and strenght.
But, when I can't sleep because I'm scared or when I'm depressed I have to rely on God more than when I'm happy and everything is going right. In a way, it strenghtens my relationship with God.
As for evidence, things have had happened to me. They can be explained as coincidence or psychological, but I believe:
God spoke to me a dream. He appeared as a perfect sphere of light. Could have been just a dream or a dream sent by God to tell me to be nicer to my sister.
I prayed for a day off school. When I got there the school had closed due to a water pipe bursting. But, that happened more than once at my school due to old pipes or whatever.
The moments after I was baptised I felt a rush of warmth and love and inner peace. I had received the Holy Spirit as people do when they are baptised.
My Dad says he once had a vision of Jesus in a church.
I know these things aren't evidence, but they strengthen my faith.
Nambo reminded me that God is love and hell probably doesn't exist in the way I think of it. So, I have to be reassured of what God is really like, so it's definalty worth believing.

I don't believe that faith requires a lack of evidence. That kind of thing is nonsense, and what appears to be confusing with most people is defining what serves as "evidence" in this context. Many approach spiritual issues the same way they do science, which is crazy because they don't use the same structures. Science can be used to explain a spiritual worldview, but the reverse doesn't work.

For example, an old analogy has two people looking at the Grand Canyon. One thinks a small amount of water formed the chasm over a long period of time, while the other believes a large amount of water did it over a smaller timespan. Tools like logic and reason can ascertain which is true, but they can't explain what originally started it all.

The point is that while spiritual concepts can't be solely verified with the senses, that doesn't automatically equal a lack of evidence. Another classic example is seeing the effects of moving wind, but the air itself is invisible. Similarly, we can't see God with our eyes, but we do see the effect on the lives of those who trust Him. As I noted in another thread, the only thing capable of resulting in a naturalistic worldview is arrogance. People will quote Obi-Wan Kenobi's line about the eyes being deceptive, yet they refuse to apply the same logic to spirituality.

Personally, the main reason I believe in God is because He saved me from suicide 11 years ago (long story). I'm not egotistical enough to presume that such a thing happened through my own strength.

1. Occam's razor supports the former explanation concerning the Grand Canyon (although "small amount" is misleading).

2. Air is observable. You can sense it in some way. And it can be directly studied.

3. God may have saved you from suicide (your words), but you are now struggling with other things because of your faith. If, as you say, you hail from a very religious family, don't you think this may have played a role in the depression and hopelessness you felt that led you to attempt suicide?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-2zfdvL26o[/youtube]

living through a childhood where i witnessed disease and death of family members as well as school bullying and ostracisation because of my prolonged ASD diagnosis I seriously doubt hell could pull any punches for me. I snort in contempt in the face of any hellspawn who thinks otherwise.

Moviefan, permit me to offer an alternative interpretation from the one some religions teach as I would hate for you to lose your Faith.Love and Trust in God over what I consider to be a doctrine of men, namely that Christians get whisked off to Heaven to avoid the persecutions and sufferings of the Tribulation.

Revelation 6

9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

Now this is after the 4 horsemen, Christians will still be on Earth to be killed.

Revelation 12

13 Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.[b]

The Tribulations come when Satan is hurled to Earth, he wouldnt be able to "make war" against Christians if they where safely tucked in Heaven.

Revelation 13 regarding the 42 month rulership of the Global Government/Beast

7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them

The Saints are still on the Earth!

Revelation 14

9 Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation.

12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those[g] who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me,[h] “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’”

The Global Government will kill those who refuse the 666 mark, you see in verse 13 that Christians who have been patient and kept their faith will still be around for possible execution.

Daniel 7

24 The ten horns are ten kings

25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High,
Shall persecute[d] the saints of the Most High,

Then the saints shall be given into his hand
For a time and times and half a time.

Daniel 7 is an earlier account of the Revelation, you will find the ten horns/kings on the Revelation Beast that rules for 42 months, here a time is 1 year, 3 1/2 years = 42 months, note during this time the saints will be persecuted.

Daniel 12
“At that time Michael shall stand up,
The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people;
And there shall be a time of trouble, (other translations call the time of trouble, the Tribulations).

verse 5 Then I, Daniel, looked; and there stood two others, one on this riverbank and the other on that riverbank. 6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?”

7 Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.

Note again the three and a half years during which the power of the Holy Ones will be shattered?, they are still on Earth

The climax of the book of Daniel is the following:-
11 “And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.

The Daily Sacrifice in this case is worship, which will not be allowed, the 1290 days is again the 3 1/2 years that Christians will be here for and have to endure in order to be blessed on the arrival of Gods Kingdom on the 1335th day.

Dont give up on the final battle because of the deceit of men.

I feel sad for people who believe in such nonsense.

'hell is not a physical place, its others around you'

Jean-Paul Sartre

Would hell even in its contemporary sense still be so without its other denizens?