“All dogs go to Heaven,” the classic kids movie suggests to us that this is true. But do all people, no matter what they do or don’t believe? Not surprising that in his most dismissive views on an afterlife to date, famed physicist Stephen Hawking has declared the idea of heaven a "fairy story." There's nothing for individuals beyond the brain's last flicker of life, Hawking tells the Guardian. "I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail," he said. "There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers. That is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark." Hawking, who was diagnosed with motor neuron disease at the age of 21, has faced the possibility of an early death ever since. "I'm not afraid of death, but I'm in no hurry to die. I have so much I want to do first," he said. In his recent book Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. Rob Bell addresses the issue of Hell. He writes, “The standard Christian view of salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth is summed up in the Gospel of John, which promises "eternal life" to "whosoever believeth in Him." Traditionally, the key is the acknowledgment that Jesus is the Son of God, who, in the words of the ancient creed, "for us and for our salvation came down from heaven ... and was made man." In the Evangelical ethos, one either accepts this and goes to heaven or refuses and goes to hell. Bell begs to differ. He suggests that the redemptive work of Jesus may be universal — meaning that, as his book's subtitle puts it, "every person who ever lived" could have a place in heaven, whatever that turns out to be. R. Albert Mahler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, says, "When you adopt universalism and erase the distinction between the church and the world, then you don't need the church, and you don't need Christ, and you don't need the cross. This is the tragedy of nonjudgmental mainline liberalism.” In other words, if we remove the truth of the bible anything we can imagine is possible. Anything we think is right or wrong is permitted and that my friend is a dangerous place to live! You know it’s really important what man thinks of God, but more important indeed is what God thinks of man.
Jesus I believe appreciated honest skeptics. There is a difference between skepticism that is honest and open to answers and phony intellectualism. In John chapter two we are introduced to a man by the name of Nathaniel. Nathanael wasn’t phony. He had his doubts. Maybe he was suspicious and skeptical by nature. He was looking for answers. He wasn’t just using his doubts to hide behind. When invited to come and see, he came! Notice how Jesus greets him. “Here is a true Israelite in whom there is nothing false.” The KJV uses the phrase “in whom there is no guile.” It describes a person of integrity. What you see is what you get. No pretense, just honesty. You see skeptics aren’t always bad people but good ones who want the truth. Nathanael was real! Jesus likes that! If you have doubts but are an honest doubter, you can do no better than what Nathanael did. He kept searching and asking God for answers. He looked in the right place—God’s Word. He hung around the right people—those who believed. And when invited to come and see, he came to see! Jesus actually prefers honest skeptics who are willing to “come and see” over “tag alongs” who talk a good walk, but who aren’t really on board. Jesus likes honest skeptics because he knows their heart. There is an interesting and puzzling conversation between Jesus and Nathanael. “How do you know me?” Nathanael asks, perhaps with a bit of suspicion. Then Jesus says I saw you under the fig tree. That doesn’t make much sense to us, but most Bible scholars think there is something special going on. A fig tree has important meaning in Jewish thinking. In fact, the rabbis would often use the phrase “being under your fig tree” like we might use the idea of “a prayer closet” or “quiet time.” To be under your fig tree, literally or figuratively, often meant to be in a time of prayer, meditation, and study. Jesus maybe saying to Nathanael, “I saw you praying. I heard your questions. I know you are seeking God’s truth.” What are you seeking today? Jesus still has the answers you need.
I sometimes like to ask skeptics of the Christ-story what percent of the knowledge available in the world they have: "Do you think you know even one percent of all there is to be known in the universe?" Invariably they reply they don’t know even one percent. Then I’ll ask, "Is it possible that in the 99% of the knowledge you don’t have, that there might be room for something outside your realm of understanding and experience?" Theology is what man thinks about God. Remember it’s really important what man thinks of God, but more important indeed is what God thinks of man. A fellow skeptic once asked the famous atheist Voltaire if he would speak some words of comfort to a friend who was dying. Voltaire responded, "I don’t think I can do that. The thought that there might really be a hell plagues me continually." Abraham Lincolns word’s come to my mind as I ponder this topic, “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right” Which side are you on today?
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