There are two stick figures happily going about their business on the 4 sided, 8"x 11" piece of notebook paper. They can go up and down, and right and left. One day they realized they had reached all of the corners, traveled on every inch of the paper, and had gone as far as they could go. One stick figure said to the other, "Well, we've been everywhere there is. There is nothing more, this is all there is to know and see." Little do they know that paper they live on is sitting on top of a desk, in a classroom, in a school, in a town, in a state, in a country, in a world, in a solar system, in a universe, that they don't know much about. It seems a little silly they would conclude there is nothing else to be explored since they had reached all 4 corners of their paper (I can't claim full credit for that analogy. I adapted it a little).
We are no different. We are bound within certain limits. We can only explore, see, and understand to a certain degree. To say we have everything figured out, would be just as silly as those stick figures claiming they've seen and done it all. But, of course, there's so much more. It's terrifying to think about, because it doesn't fit onto our "paper," but it has to be obvious that there is far more than what we see and understand, and that we are limited to our 8"x 11" space, if you will. Making everything we learn and explore fit into our paper is silly, because there are just some things that are bigger than our four corners.
Sometimes though, if we are open to it, and have the courage, we can go to the edge of the paper and peek around the corner and get a glimpse of the vastness we know exists, but haven't been able to touch before. And though we can't go off the edge yet, we can get as close as possible, and start to smell the taste of freedom, creativity, fullness, and wholeness. Admitting that there is so much more, and then living in a way that encompasses the eternal now is bold, scary, and filled with things that don't fit into 8"x 11" paper. But, we really can live that way now, in this moment, in this time, if we want, but it requires a dimension and paradigm shift, and that is terrifying. But, I have to believe that it is also filled with depth, meaning, and the kind of richness we thought we could only dream of.
I feel like I am peeking around a corner. And what a beautiful view I see.
SO, in that spirit, here's where I'm at today! I'm about 75 pages into "Love Wins," and I have to say that it has really challenged my thinking about heaven and hell. Obviously, I can't speak for the entire book yet, but the first 3 chapters that I have read have been very thought provoking. I will spare you all the details right now, since I don't have the full picture of the book yet, but there was an interesting thought I had that was spurred by something discussed in the book. Here is my question...
What if hell isn't a specific place? What if it a state of being or existence? What if it is a condition of the heart as opposed to flames and heat? What if it is experienced on an individual basis, stemming from our individual issues- pride, greed, etc?
There is a story in Luke that talks about a rich man ignoring Lazarus, a beggar, who was standing outside his home, pleading for food. The rich man did not help him...ever. Fast forward, Lazarus is in heaven with Abraham, and the rich man is not. The rich man is in Hades. The rich man is dead, but hasn't really died yet- what? I know!-because he is still able to communicate with Abraham and does so by asking him for water. He is still asking to be served. Which begs the question, what is being communicated in this story? Here is what Rob Bell says, in speaking of the rich man:
"He's alive in death, but in profound torment, because he's living with the realities of not properly dying the kind of death that actually leads a person into the only kind of life that's worth living."
Un-be-liev-a-ble. That sentence stopped me in my tracks. It was a good thing the following sentence said verbatim, "A pause, to recover from that last sentence," because I paused anyway and was so discombobulated- in a good way. This rich man is in Hades, still alive, still communicating, and still exuding the same characteristics as he did on earth. He is in extreme torment, though, because of his attitude of pride,a greed and arrogance, which is clearly not how we were ever created to live, hence the tormented reality of his choices. Loving and caring for your neighbor seems central to the message of this story about eternal "placement," if you will, and that that matters far more deeply than we can even imagine. If the implications of loving, or not loving your neighbor are eternal, how does that not rock your world? How does that not make you question and contemplate how you are walking through life, and the attitudes and conditions that you are carrying with you?! Questions I asked myself after reading this section...
1) Is the answer to everything we could do or say, whittled down to "how can I love my neighbor right now?
2) Even though we physically die, does our consciousness, character, attitude, and conditions of our heart, remain, as "the age to come" begins?
I would say from this book, from the Scripture that is being talked about, and from my own conclusions, that the answer to both of those questions is, yes. We are given a terribly large amount of freedom to act, and live the way we want, and God will give us exactly what we have asked for in our entrance into eternity. Wow! If our eternal state of being is who we are, and are becoming now, I want to be constantly growing, learning, changing, and self aware.
With these ideas, it doesn't really matter "where" hell is. It's completely irrelevant. Hell could be a state of consciousness or tormented existence, which place has no barring on. My mind is completely blown away by this concept of consciousness in hell. That hell could be this deep awareness, of the torment that you have chosen for yourself. Awareness that you have not died the kind of death that gives you the life that we are created and made for. Death of self. Living for loving. This concept is so world-rocking, that it makes me re-evaluate how I am living my life, how the condition of my heart is, and what sort of attitudes I want to keep or get rid of because they will be a part of the "age to come," as said in the book.
And the most radical question of all? If there is a state of awareness and consciousness in the "age to come," will there be other chances for people to experience God's love, other than JUST the short years we live on this earth? Crazy to think about, right? These are big questions, I know, but I'm really enjoying pondering them, and pondering the vastness and depth of God's love.
I have a feeling his love is a whole lot bigger than our minds have even begun to grasp. Incredible. Wanna peek over the edge a little with me?!
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