The "Other Place"

Hell is often a topic of conversation among Christians and even non-Christians. There's debate over what it's like: is it eternal punishment or is it a second death where the spirit ceases to exist? Non-Christians use it as an excuse not to follow God. How could a loving and just God punish people forever, people who had just never heard His name? Christians try to use it to scare people into becoming Christians or doing the right thing. My question is: What's the big deal about Hell?

I understand it's a scary thought. I get that. But when Jesus came and He was talking to people, what did He talk about? Did He constantly talk about Hell? No. He talked about love so much more. And money was also a bigger topic of conversation for Him. It wasn't, "Do this or you'll go to hell." It was, "Love the lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself." It was "Take care of the widows and orphans." It was "Take care of the poor." Doing things just because you're afraid of hell won't work. You'll end up not following through with what you planned. But if you love God and that's the reason you do what you do, then you'll have no problem following through. It's love that makes things work, not fear.

The importance of the concept of heaven and hell have been explained to me in the following way, and I would agree. When a child is little, they need rewards and punishments to do the right thing. As they grow up, they do the right thing because they love their parents and don't want to disappoint them. Rewards and punishments are still part of it, but not overly important like they were before. As we become more mature Christians, the concept of heaven and hell don't matter quite as much. Yes, they're still important, but they aren't our main motivators. Our relationship with God and our love for Him becomes our main motivator to do the right thing. So as our relationship with Him matures, heaven becomes more of just something to look forward to some, but it's not thought about a whole lot, I don't think, because you can just enjoy the relationship and closeness you do have right then.

So I think that hell needs to stop being such a common topic of conversation, and loving people needs to take its place in our thoughts.