blackbird

The answer simply put is the Bible says "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23 It also says in Jeremiah that man's heart is desperately wicked. You may wonder how this can be but you may be looking at it from human standards, not God's standard. Since the fall of the first parents, Adam and Eve, all descendants inherited a fallen, depraved nature in God's eyes. So unless a person has been redeemed, there is no forgiveness or salvation. This has to do with the justice of God which is absolute and perfection. You will see that being a sinner is only part of the reason why people go to hell. This article goes into far more detail with some explanation how one can be redeemed, forgiven, and saved. "Why Do People Go To Hell? Using the Bible to Answer the Hard Questions! JUL 19Posted by agapegeek (Ver 2.3) This is Part 2 of a series of lesson on the subject of “Understanding What the Bible says About Hell“. This is also Part 2 of another series called “Understanding Hard Sayings”. If you want to read the first lesson about Hard Sayings then do that. There are many people in the world today that do not believe in the existence of Hell. However, that does not change the fact that it exists. If you did not read the first lesson in this series about the “Bliblical Evidence for the Existence of Hell” you should start reading there first. I often times wonder when terrorist bombers blow themselves up in the hope of achieving or earning paradise, what they think when they go to hell and are looking around wondering what happened. This is obviously not what they were told would happen if they caused all of this death and destruction to their enemies. I also wonder how many of them would do things differently now that they are locked within the eternal flames of hell, where Jesus told us there would be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Mat 8:12). There is no doubt in my mind that most people who are in hell are there and do not know how exactly that they got there. I hear many people in the world speak of sinners and the people who do really evil things to other people as deserving to be in hell. It seems that the worst the crime and the more innocent people are hurt or killed, the more deserving that people say they are for going to hell. You can think of people like Hitler, Stalin and others who have killed men, women and children in wholesale lots and certainly they “deserve” to go to hell. However, we are all guilty of comparing our sins to other people’s sins and thinking that ours are not bad enough to warrant such a punishment as hell. I had a reader ask me a question about “Do people go to hell or heaven after they die and why”? If you have read the first lesson then you should already know that the Bible clearly tells us that Hell exists and people go there. So the question arises, why? This is certainly a legitimate question to ask God. We will discover that God has already answered the question in the Bible. What I want to do first is tell you what is NOT a factor in why people go to Hell. It is not because you have sinned! Being a sinner does NOT send you to hell! However, it does not get you into heaven either. Sin is virtually a non-factor in the process of do people go to heaven or to hell. Yes, there are sinners in hell right now. But, yes there are also sinners in heaven right now. So committing a sin was not the determining factor for going to either place. You can clearly see that the Bible says “everyone” has sinned and failed to achieve to God’s standard of righteousness. If it says “ALL” that would leave no one out of the Sin Camp. That would include me and you also. A verse found in Romans 5:12 basically says the same thing. So we have two witnesses to the fact that everyone is a sinner. So now people like to say, my sin is not as great as their sin, so therefore they deserve punishment, but not me. Unfortunately for you God has already thought of this excuse defense and said the following: You can be the best sinner in the entire world and have committed the least number of wrong doings and yet God says if you fail in just one place, one point, violating just one rule, you are guilty of breaking them all. Wow! That is very strong! That also is not good news for being the best sinner either. That basically tells us that there are no sins that are greater than any other sins in the eyes of God. What do you do with that information? God makes it sound like a very ominous and hopeless situation that we are all in. I certainly agree with that assessment and I hope that you do to. So what have we learned? We have learned that there are no good people in the world who deserve to be saved. Everyone is technically guilty of violating the entire law of God and that will not work to get you into heaven based upon God’s standards. You see Islam and other religions in the world like to see things in a balanced scale system where you put your bad deeds on one side and your good works on another side and then see which one is greater and that determines where you go. Wouldn’t that be nice? However, this is not what God calls a system that will work to get you into heaven. Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. Hopefully you can see what this verse is saying. Salvation or justification is not earned by doing good things. Obeying the law is doing a good thing, yes? But, God tells us that no flesh will be “justified” by doing the good things written in the Law! That basically tells me you cannot do anything to work yourself into this salvation. That means heaven is not guaranteed no matter how many good things you have done in your life. What we have discovered are two things that are not a factor in whether you go to heaven or to hell. It is not your sins and it is not you doing good things. That really shocks a lot of people who have been deceived into believing they can do something to affect their outcome and destiny. So what are the determining factors for being saved and going to heaven? I’d like to tell you it is just a simple a 1 + 1 = 2 problem, but that would be oversimplifying the situation. However, I will make it as simple as I can. It appears to me from reading and studying the Bible that people go to hell simply because they reject salvation and the savior Jesus Christ. Part of the problem comes from the fact that God’s idea of Salvation is not usually your idea of salvation and that is one of the biggest problems you face to getting saved. You see if you were simply presented a choice of believing in Jesus Christ and not believing in Jesus Christ and that is all the choices you had that would certainly make it much more of a simple process. However, there is an enemy in the world, a spiritual being called Satan, who works very hard at tricking you into believing lies. While God plays by the rules, Satan does not and has caused a vast number of people in the world to believe in his lies. So rejecting the savior Jesus Christ could be a simple acceptance of Buddhism as your belief system. Simply by buying into a false religion you could be missing out on heaven and eternal salvation. This is what Jesus says to us: Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. Jesus is trying to get into your heart right now, if you have not let him in already. Jesus is standing and knocking and wants to come into your spiritual house. Did you ever think that if the omnipotent God wants in your heart, why doesn’t He just kick the door down and come in? Isn’t He still God? Doesn’t God always get His will done? Apparently not! You see God is a gentleman who abides within rules and self-imposed limitations. God will never force anyone to get saved. God will try to get your attention, but yet you have a responsibility to first hear Him knocking at your door and then to go open the door and let Him in. So what happens when Jesus comes and knocks and you refuse to hear it? What happens if you ignore Him? What happens if you do not open the door for Him? Believe it or not that is what causes you to go to hell. Here are some more words of Jesus on this subject. Joh 12:48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. So here is a little secret, Jesus is not going to come to your physical house and knock on your natural door to try to get you saved. Those were all symbolic references to a spiritual situation that will transpire in a way that you would probably not expect. You see Jesus is knocking right now at your heart, if you choose to hear Him. Did you notice what Jesus said in John 12:18? Jesus says that if you reject Him and His Word, it will be the Word that you heard and that you rejected that will judge you in the future. In other words the Word of God is God and if you reject it, you are rejecting God. That causes a lot of people to not find salvation. They do not know how God is speaking, when He is speaking, where He is speaking or even recognize what God is saying. God has purposely chosen to hide himself from your physical view, so that you can be an atheist if you want to be. However, God uses people like me to try to reach you and convince you that He is real. So I do not know everyone that is in hell right now. I do know how they were deceived. I do not know how many times they rejected the truth of God’s Word. I do not know how many times Jesus knocked and tried to come in. It could have been when they were just 5 or 6 years old. Maybe, it was when they were 12 or 13 years old. All I know is that Jesus said I tried to knock and they would not open the door and let me in. It could have been that they were preoccupied by the distractions of working, going to school, shopping or whatever else people do in the world. I wrote another blog on this subject, if you care to read it about why people are not saved and it was called “The Top 10 Enemies To Salvation! Why People Don’t Get Saved!” Many people think that God sends people to hell, but that is really not a true statement. The Bible says that Hell was made for Satan and his angels. God knowing that no man could do anything to earn salvation came to the earth in the flesh and gave His life for the payment of every man’s sin. So God by His grace reconciled man back into relationship and favor with Himself. But, yet God still gives man a choice in what they want to do. Then if we put Satan into the picture and see how he has deceived the world into believing his lies, that it the root of the problem of why salvation is not so easily obtainable. God freely offers salvation to everyone, but everyone is required accept it. To accept God is to accept His Words. To receive God’s Words is to allow God to come into your spirit and live. Always remember that Jesus is trying to knock at the door to your heart and get your attention, but the devil is trying to distract you with everything that he can put in front of you. What you decide to do will affect your eternal destiny. God has placed the ball in your court and it is your turn to move. God says now is the time for salvation, today is the appointed day for getting saved. So don’t delay and receive Him while you can. If you think that you have time and can wait to get saved, you are already deceived. If you are interested in learning how to get saved, you can read my page “Salvation How to Know if You are Going to Heaven”. God Bless! Why Do People Go To Hell? Using the Bible to Answer the Hard Questions! | The Agapegeek Blog

Very sad indeed that people would choose hell instead of heaven for eternity. I am sure this must grieve a loving God who prefers that all be saved. But everyone makes their own choices. It is not God's fault or choice that people condemn themselves for eternity. The Bible tells how God provides forgiveness through his Son and will save anyone, but if people reject it, what can one say? All men are born with a sinful, fallen nature and at enmity against God. "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God." Romans 8:7, 8 KJB. Except a person receive the gift of God's grace, he cannot be saved. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2: 8, 9 KJB In rejecting God's written revelation (the Bible), they are rejecting the gospel of salvation and the Savior who is the only one who can save them. "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Romans 10:17 KJB

If you are an immigrant from Syria, how is it you seem to speak perfect English on here?

There is a difference. Islam is very demanding and want to take over once they get in large enough numbers. Liberals and left especially removed any remnants of Christianity from public schools 40 years ago and said we couldn't have religion in schools because schools should be secular. Liberals and left want to be the first in the world to be "progressive" which means being against tradition families, against Christianity, and supporting same-sex marriage, medical assistance in dying, abortion on demand and being soft on crime. A guy in B.C. was recently given 5 months in prison for killing a 20 year old girl with his car; an absurd sentence. Liberals let criminals out who have gone on to kill people. There is perverse law and order and no public safety under Liberals. Canada is becoming a heathen nation.

Having a mindset against our western culture means they will vote Liberal, left, or Marxist and support anti-Christian, anti-west, anti-Israel, anti-American, and possibly pro-Sharia laws and practices.

Going to a mosque or wearing a hijab doesn't necessarily mean they are extremists, but it does mean they reject our western or Judeo-Christian culture.

Your alleging Christianity is the same as Islam is a twisting of truth to a extreme extent. I have no way of knowing what Christians do in places like Africa, but Biblical Christianity is the total opposite of what you claim. Biblical Christianity does not practice polygamy, honour killings, or persecution of gays. There are many denominations in Europe and north America and none of them practice those evils. There have been a handful of people in a breakaway cult who practiced polygamy as in Bountiful, B.C. But this is a handful of people out of millions of in the western world. You deliberately misrepresent Biblical Christianity and lump them in with all other false religion and try to smear all Christians with the same brush. There are many people in the world who use Christianity as a label for whatever reason. Western Christians in Europe and North America do not do the kind of things you allege. Maybe in some countries some of them are not really Bible believers, but don't want to be Muslims because they know the horror show that is. So they become nominal Christians in some of those countries without having any idea what Bible believing Christians actually believe. Bible believing Christians are actually in a minority which is another thing to consider. But you don't distinguish. In your mind they are all bad. Political Islam is a domineering ideology that would scare many people when they hear of what goes on. It is understandable why they would reject that.

The thinking of Liberals and the left is if they bring large numbers of Muslims in, they will somehow be influenced by western democracy and human rights and abandon their beliefs and become more like westerners. A few might but many cling to their own enclaves and beliefs. This liberal ideology of friendly open-border multilateralism and multiculturalism is the same kind of belief the Liberals and left hold with Communist China. They established diplomatic relations with Communist China in 1970 and started massive trading and bringing large numbers of immigrants in. Liberals thought this would somehow change China to more of a western style liberal democracy. Hah. This changed nothing with China and now the chickens are coming home to roost. China is just expanding it's influence and control in the west. They have no intention of changing themselves. If anything they are becoming more oppressive with their own populations like the Uyghurs. They plan to grow their power and control in the world.

It is not important to make it a Muslim only problem. It is just one of many problems which stem from political Islam.

I oppose FGM but it is mainly a Muslim practice, even though you brought it out that is is not limited by religion in those areas. Surprisingly, one website says it is supported by a large percentage of girls and women. There is obviously a lot of backward thinking in those countries. The U.N. tries to warn against it but they can't seem to have much effect. Political Islam is still a backward oppressive religious-political ideology for many other reasons, but it is also a false religion. The west has struggled with Islam trying to take over for 1,300 years but now is inviting them in and putting them in high positions in government.

RankCountryPercentage of girls and women aged 15 to 49 years who have undergone FGM/C 1Somalia98% 2Guinea96% 3Djibouti93% 4Egypt91% 5Eritrea89% 6Mali89% 7Sierra Leone88% 8Sudan88% 9Gambia76% 10Burkina Faso76% 11Ethiopia74% 12Mauritania69% 13Liberia66% Percentage of population which is Muslim: Middle East - North Africa315,322,000 –488,603,838 91.2% You will notice these countries with a high percentage of FGM are mainly Muslim, 91% in fact.

"The prevalence of circumcision is the percentage of males in a given population who have been circumcised. The rates vary widely by country, from virtually 0% in Honduras and Japan, to 8.5% in the United Kingdom, to 7% in Spain, to 45% in South Africa, to 75% in the United States,... Sep. 6 2019" -wikipedia As I said, I don't think it is mutilation and not comparable to female genital mutilation.

Ask your doctor or google it on the internet. It is not mutilation.

Well, we won't go into that here. It's a bit off in more ways than one.

Whether is should be made illegal until a child reaches a certain age I don't know. A large percentage of Americans have it done, maybe more than 50%. But it should never be compared to female genital mutilation. That is horrendous.

Circumcision is not male genital mutilation by any stretch of the imagination. It simply removes the foreskin which does not effect the amount of pleasure. You have been told lies by those who try to defend female genital mutilation, which is really harmful.

No, you are way off base. FGM is practiced on millions of Muslim girls in Muslim countries. Why try to twist the truth and say is is practiced by Christians There are no Christians in the west who practice FGM. Now it is possible it is practiced on some Christians in Muslim countries as a cultural thing, but it is certainly not a Christian teaching, but it is mainly a Muslim thing to try to control girls and women. It could be partly cultural but it is still mainly in Islamic countries.

I sure glad she lost the election in 2016. But that video just has a few words pulled out of larger conversations and so it doesn't really tell much. But I don't support her anyway.

I have no knowledge of all that, so can't really comment. I don't know if that is really true. There is also a lot false information around and you have to be careful. I am not a fan of Obama and Hillary Clinton. They are globalist elite. But if you came over with the 60 or 70 thousand Syrians Trudeau brought in around 2015 and later, you are very fortunate. As I said, my interest is with God and Biblical truth. That is what matters most. Most people don't seem to believe in it or even in God and are facing a lost eternity, maybe in hell. The only salvation is found in the New Testament and gospel of Jesus Christ. I hope you will read the New Testament and find out how to be saved. Most Canadians that don't believe might not be saved and have turned their backs on God and the Bible. Maybe some immigrants have more of an open mind. I hope so.

OK, well to be honest I don't know anything about the civil war in Syria. Don't know what Hillary Clinton had to do with the Arab Spring. Not sure what all that accomplished. I never heard of the west promoting the war in Syria. Wasn't there a number of groups involved there. They seem to have a lot of wars in the middle east. But that is a whole different subject. Back to immigration. I don't agree with allowing a lot of immigration from countries that don't share our culture or beliefs. We are a country built on Judeo-Christian civilization. If you came here, I hope you will support that. The Bible supports respect for the rights in the individual. We have human rights and democracy which most countries in other parts of world don't have if you follow my thinking.

Good question. I think al Qaida is an international organization, not supported by the Saudi Arabia government. They were training in Afghanistan I believe and led by bin Laden. So there wasn't much the Saudi government could have done to stop them.

That's fine. You can like them or not. I was in unions all my life and a member of the Conservative party for 29 years and never found them to be anti union or workplace safety. Not sure what you mean by progressive wages. The federal government pays their civil servants well with all kinds of benefits that private industry workers don't have. And they don't control wages in private companies. That is determined by private industry and provincial governments set minimum wages. Unions also negotiate wages, not the federal government. Actually you are incorrect about identity politics. It is the Trudeau and the Liberals who are into identity politics. Conservatives generally stay away from that subject. Everyone should be under the same laws. It is Trudeau who said Canadians committed genocide against first nations, which is a ridiculous statement. He is always making false statements to fool the people into thinking he is some kind of champion for minorities. The federal government has nothing to do with autism and people with disabilities. Health care falls under provincial jurisdiction. I know the provincial government spends billions of dollars on the public health care system. It is a large part of provincial spending. I don't know what wars Conservatives have "promoted". That sounds like fiction. The Conservatives did support the war on terrorism in the world because it was necessary to stop violent extremists which kill a lot of innocent people as in 9-11. Do you think Canada should have gone to Afghanistan to fight against the terrorists? Do you support illegal border crossers coming into Canada? They are jumping the queue and not following the legal immigration system. Lot of conservatives oppose illegal border crossing. Trudeau encourages it.

Well, that's fine. I don't believe in being racist myself. You make much out of the subject of skin colour. I don't think skin colour means anything. But what people believe does mean something in today's world. But just curious why you call yourself "AntiConservative". Conservatives have many good reasons for opposing the Liberals and NDP, if that is who you support. Conservatives support free enterprise and oppose Socialism. If you have a construction company, the Conservative Party would be your strongest supporter. They strongly support small business and free enterprise. Liberals and NDP, no so much. The NDP and Liberals are more into virtue signaling about how much they support diversity and minorities, but a lot of it is just vote-getting propaganda. NDP and Liberals falsely accuse Conservatives of being racist. I have been a Conservative many years, but don't agree with everything they support these days. I am not sure I will be able to give them much support in the immediate future as they support abortion and O'Toole sounds more like a liberal. As a King James Version Bible believer myself, we probably agree on a few things. We believe there is one God who created the universe. A lot of people don't even believe that much. I find the NDP and Liberals totally opposed to Biblical truth. Only Jesus can save a person and give eternal life through believing in him.

Since you're anti-Conservative, I assume that means you disagreed with the Conservative's preference to bring in more religious minorities and Christians as refugees instead of all Muslim refugees as Trudeau preferred to do. Did you know that in Islamic countries, it is the religious minorities that are the ones who are persecuted? In fact, large numbers of Christians are being killed in different countries around the world constantly. They are the real refugees, not the majority religions. Canada was founded and built as a Christian nation.

"Genesis The Beginning (John 1:1-5) 1In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. The First Day: Light 3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. The Second Day: Firmament 6And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. The Third Day: Dry Ground 9And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 11And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13And the evening and the morning were the third day. The Fourth Day: Sun, Moon, Stars 14And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 15And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. 16And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 17And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 18And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. The Fifth Day: Fish and Birds 20And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. 21And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 22And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. 23And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. The Sixth Day: Creatures on Land 24And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. 25And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. 29And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. 30And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. 31And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day." So, yes God is and has revealed himself in his written word and in his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Whether you believe it or not, it is a fact that you will someday face for good or worse. The evidence is all around you in the creation. Creation was no accident. The material universe was created by a Divine Creator.