One of two destinies await all men: Heaven or Hell. Why? Why are these the only two options? Why can’t there be something else? Why can’t we “live forever in a paradise on earth”? Why does there have to be a hell at all? Why not just annihilate those that are evil?
First, it is logical. In logic there is something that is called a “strong disjunction.” A strong disjunction is a precisely stated proposition in which there are only two possibilities, one of which is the negation of the other. Logically it is represented as either “A” or not “A” and in symbols as (A v ~A). Jesus essentially asserted a strong disjunction when He said, “He that is not with me is against Me” (Matt. 12:30). There are only two options in life, the straight gate and narrow path which leads to life or the wide gate and broad way which leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13,14). If you take away all that is associated with heaven, God’s Presence, His Love, His Power, His Goodness, etc., then you have not God’s Presence, not God’s Love, not God’s Power, not God’s Goodness, etc. and that is hell!
Second, it is just. God’s Nature is pure, uncontaminated and uncontaminatable. He is of purer eyes than to behold evil (Hab. 1:13). Evil shall not sojourn with God (Psalm 5:4). He is the Just One (Acts 22:14). But when men violate that holiness by rejecting His equally holy will (Rom. 7:12), there is no other option for a just God but to commit the offender to a just punishment (Heb. 2:2). It is not the hearers of the law that are just before God, but those that do it (Rom. 2:13). God’s will is so pure and perfect, that disobedience to it demands eternal damnation (Matt. 25:46). Obedience to it also requires a just reward and nothing short of abiding in the presence of God satisfies it (Rom. 8:18).
Third, it is moral. As noted above, God is holy and that holiness cannot be contaminated. The separation of the wicked from the righteous is something that God demands of us even in this life. Paul clearly taught this is II Cor. 6:14-18:
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”
There can be no mingling of the righteous with the unrighteous. Heaven and Hell preserves that moral separation throughout eternity.
Fourth, hell is deterrent to wickedness. Jesus warned that eternal punishment, that is, hell fire, awaits all those who do not obey his will (Matt. 18:8,9). A 2012 study by University of Oregon professor Azim F. Shariff examined “26 years of data involving 143,197 people from 67 countries” and concluded that “a nation’s rate of belief in hell predicts lower crime rates.” It also showed that people who have a distorted view of God’s forgiveness are more likely to commit crimes. The study also showed there was no correlation between poverty and crime. It is not poverty that causes a person to commit a crime, but a lack of a moral standard. The realization of the possibility of hell, encourages obedience. Peter wrote, “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness” (II Peter 3:11).
Finally, heaven is an incentive to do right. Immediately after writing about judgement and hell, Peter wrote about heaven: “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless” (II Peter 3:13,14). Jesus said, “Come unto Me…and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure” (I John 3:3). Heaven is the only place pure enough for a soul without spot or blemish or any such thing to live (Eph. 5:27).
Eric L. Padgett