For centuries, the idea of a “hell” has been used to conjure up images of pain and despair and to motivate people to accept Christ. The Bible contrasts heaven as a place where God dwells, pain of any kind doesn’t exist, and peace reigns in the presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Hell is the exact contrast. God is not present, torment is constant, and pain is worse than anyone could ever imagine.

Over the years, I’ve heard many debates about hell. Is it a spiritual separation that is painful or is their physical pain?

I have concluded in my studies over the last twenty years… Yes and yes.

The torment comes from being in God’s presence briefly on the day of judgment. It’s at that time a person will feel His radiance and warmth. Yet, those who lived and did not believe will also experience His wrath and separation. 

In Matthew 25:41, Jesus will say to those on the day of accountability who claimed to do great things in His name but were never truly His followers; “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

So, in one sense, the pain of hell will be the torment of having known the truth and yet denying it in this life and physical torment for eternity.

Let’s define the word before I get into the “how” of it all.

The word “hell” is never used in Scripture. Throughout the New Testament the word we’ve come to know as hell is called the “lake of fire.” You saw earlier that Jesus used this terminology, and it is predominately found in the Book of Revelation. 

“Hell” is a word derived from a pagan source and doesn’t resemble the word as we know it today. One source says it this way… “The New Encyclopedia Britannica confirms this little-known etymology this way: “Hell, the abode or state of being of evil spirits or souls that are damned to postmortem punishment. Derived from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning “to conceal,” or “to cover . . . .” Webster’s Dictionary explains that “hell” comes from middle English, old English, and old high German, (hel, helle, helan) and arose during the Anglo-Saxon pagan period (A.D. 400 – 1100).”

The original word was used in a completely different context than today. Concealing potatoes in the dark to protect them from going bad was one way. Or, putting on a roof to “hel the building.”

Now that we have some fun and interesting word studies out of the way, let’s get to the meat of the matter.

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve’s sole purpose was to glorify God. Yet, they chose pleasure instead. By the rules of nature, pleasure brings about pain much the same way that what goes up must come down. 

This forever changed the way human nature operated. 

Herein is an important theological point. Our humanity wasn’t permanently destroyed in the Fall. It was altered and corrupted. Man’s rebellion and sin corrupted all of nature from the smallest molecule to the largest. Science has learned that our DNA is corrupt — meaning it creates life and pre-ordains death. It contributes to our overwhelming desire for pleasure (i.e., personal enjoyment or gain) over God — which is the sinful nature.

We are told in Romans 6:23 that the “wages of sin is death.” We know our DNA shrinks causing aging to occur. This shrinkage is directly linked to the fall. We were never designed by God to die, but sin cannot live on forever.

So, one day this sinful body will die. In this life, every person has one of two choices:

1. Pursue a lifelong relationship with Jesus Christ of Nazareth by denying themselves, picking up their cross, and following Him (Matthew 16:24), or
2. Deny Christ and pursue pleasures of the flesh instead.

To those who are in Christ, there will be a lifelong struggle between our sinful nature and our pursuit of Christlikness. Those two things are always at war with one another within us. This is why the Church is so important and why it’s more than a Sunday morning service as expressed in my past experiences in a Baptist or non-denominational Bible Church. 

The Church is Christ’s bride made up of all of us (i.e., the individual parts). We serve one another in our giftedness. We build each other up. Through the sacraments, we are given the tools to defeat our sinful nature and ultimately win the war. I have found no better expression of this than in the ancient Orthodox Church.

My point is that you cannot live a Christian life without the Church.

When this body dies, our spirit lives on without a body. Yet, that was never God’s original intention in creation. One thing is clear, there will be a day of judgment. Everyone will be declared either a resident of heaven or the lake of fire. This happens after the physical resurrection (John 5:28-29; Revelation 20:11-15). 

Revelation 20:14-15 states to those who are unrepentant and without Christ, “Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”

The resurrected body will feel excruciating pain. It is a necessary consequence as is corruption and death Those in the lake of fire will experience the emotional pain of separation from the Trinity as well as psychological and physical pain — for eternity.

With this in mind, it’s even more important that we begin to understand what salvation is and is not. In doing so, I hope many readers of my writings will have clarity and understanding of what it means to “be in Christ” and His Church. Look for an upcoming article and podcast on this subject.

For me, gaining this understanding was life-changing. It changed my relationship with our Lord, deepened it, and helped me see that there is so much more to a relationship with God than I ever imagined.

I hope you’ll join me in this adventure!

Blessings to you,

Father Don