The only answer given to the questions posed in the article is in the one comment and I will use that sound answer given by 2FollowHim (2FH) as a reference standard to delineated differences between text, scriptures, explanations given in the article by Jameson Steward (JS).
The JS question 'Will you obey God and go to heaven or disobey and go to hell?' - makes God sound harsh in giving a binary choice. In or out.
Yet the Bible illustrates a merciful, long-suffering, loving, forgiving God.
This alone speaks to the popular misconception of God as a demanding, intolerant, indifferent, condemning Spirit.
Therefore the greatness and goodness of God becomes an actual reality for the beholder only when God's great good mercy, unfailing loving kindness, is acknowledged in all understandings and testimonies regarding Him.
Therefore disobedience is a vast, gray area of many levels and complexities that are humanly impossible to ascertain.
Thus, humans are never to condemn or even assume. The only safe criticism is that which is leveled only upon self, as 2FH explains.
So then there is mercy given to the disobedient, under circumstances such as being mixed with good works, mercy, kindness, good heart, doing good in the land, etc.
The Lord loses nothing good. God is in the salvaging operation.
To go to Heaven requires being in Christ through a new spirit from Him.
As 2FH states, once one is living, moving, and having their being in Him, they will be with Him in Heaven, minus the filth of the flesh, which dies.
This closeness is only possible through obedience.
But the disobedient are not necessarily relegated to hell, and especially not everlastingly.
The Lord preached in hell. This account is mentioned in Peter's letter. The Lord only preaches when there is opportunity for repentance.
This indicates that hell is not some place where the disobedient are tormented forever.
There are holding places described in the Bible. "Sheoul" is a study to look into.
In the Book of Revelation, the Lord speaks of those in Him having to be hot. Lukewarm is spit outside of His body. Is this a sentence to be punished eternally in hell?
The Lord is far too merciful to ever invent eternal torture of a person.
Lukewarm is a terrible condition to be in, but does not condemn one to a terminal hell.
There are word studies that offer up scriptures that go deeply into this.
Not simple. Not harsh.
To abide in Christ and be with Him in heaven requires one to remain hot. Or to become hot.
No one chooses to follow Christ. "You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you."
The Lord chooses those with Godly sorrow which leads to repentance not to be repented of.
These epic precepts are part of a major process involving the operation of God.
Without being drawn by the Father or chosen by the Lord through Godly sorrow and the subsequent gift of repentance, one does not get to choose to obey the Lord.
Or to choose heaven or even hell.
And the Lord does not punish ad infinitum.
The Greek rendering of the word everlasting refers to a limited timespan.
The destruction itself is permanent, but not ongoing. Look it up.
So the everlasting punishment or destruction is done and finished quickly, but the faculty is present for a span of time.
For example, hell and death are cast into the lake of fire. Over, ended once their purpose is served.
The disobedient are not punished over and over. They are either salvaged in some difficult and possibly painful way, or their end is quick and merciful.
The only answer given to the questions posed in the article is in the one comment and I will use that sound answer given by 2FollowHim (2FH) as a reference standard to delineated differences between text, scriptures, explanations given in the article by Jameson Steward (JS).
The JS question 'Will you obey God and go to heaven or disobey and go to hell?' - makes God sound harsh in giving a binary choice. In or out.
Yet the Bible illustrates a merciful, long-suffering, loving, forgiving God.
This alone speaks to the popular misconception of God as a demanding, intolerant, indifferent, condemning Spirit.
Therefore the greatness and goodness of God becomes an actual reality for the beholder only when God's great good mercy, unfailing loving kindness, is acknowledged in all understandings and testimonies regarding Him.
Therefore disobedience is a vast, gray area of many levels and complexities that are humanly impossible to ascertain.
Thus, humans are never to condemn or even assume. The only safe criticism is that which is leveled only upon self, as 2FH explains.
So then there is mercy given to the disobedient, under circumstances such as being mixed with good works, mercy, kindness, good heart, doing good in the land, etc.
The Lord loses nothing good. God is in the salvaging operation.
To go to Heaven requires being in Christ through a new spirit from Him.
As 2FH states, once one is living, moving, and having their being in Him, they will be with Him in Heaven, minus the filth of the flesh, which dies.
This closeness is only possible through obedience.
But the disobedient are not necessarily relegated to hell, and especially not everlastingly.
The Lord preached in hell. This account is mentioned in Peter's letter. The Lord only preaches when there is opportunity for repentance.
This indicates that hell is not some place where the disobedient are tormented forever.
There are holding places described in the Bible. "Sheoul" is a study to look into.
In the Book of Revelation, the Lord speaks of those in Him having to be hot. Lukewarm is spit outside of His body. Is this a sentence to be punished eternally in hell?
The Lord is far too merciful to ever invent eternal torture of a person.
Lukewarm is a terrible condition to be in, but does not condemn one to a terminal hell.
There are word studies that offer up scriptures that go deeply into this.
Not simple. Not harsh.
To abide in Christ and be with Him in heaven requires one to remain hot. Or to become hot.
No one chooses to follow Christ. "You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you."
The Lord chooses those with Godly sorrow which leads to repentance not to be repented of.
These epic precepts are part of a major process involving the operation of God.
Without being drawn by the Father or chosen by the Lord through Godly sorrow and the subsequent gift of repentance, one does not get to choose to obey the Lord.
Or to choose heaven or even hell.
And the Lord does not punish ad infinitum.
The Greek rendering of the word everlasting refers to a limited timespan.
The destruction itself is permanent, but not ongoing. Look it up.
So the everlasting punishment or destruction is done and finished quickly, but the faculty is present for a span of time.
For example, hell and death are cast into the lake of fire. Over, ended once their purpose is served.
The disobedient are not punished over and over. They are either salvaged in some difficult and possibly painful way, or their end is quick and merciful.
This attests to the mercy of the Lord.
So very many scriptures for believers to know that once IN the Lord Yehoshua (Hebrew), and once they
'live and move and have their BEING in Christ', then they've 'arrived....spiriually.
We never die. Never. Because 'in Him was Life' and believers are 'in Him'. We are part 'of His body', and
this is eternal, now and forever. Praise the Lord.
What 'doesn't 'GO' is all the dross, the sinful body with its problems, the carnal FINALLY does DIE.
We Praise the Lord.
It's like removing old, dirty, greasy, smelly clothes, and actually not needing ANY, any more.
We read in Revelation 3: 15-16, thereabouts about what happens, the PROCESS by which we
become part of the body of Christ. Very much like the digestion system.
Sins must GO. And sometimes WE get to 'break ourselves upon the Rock', which only breaks off flaws,
sins, and well worth doing.
Aren't we just too quick to 'accept ourselves' yet we can be quite strict with others?
Hypocrits. I want to be strict with myself, and expunge what impedes, the carnal spirit.
So, at the death of the sinful, corrupt body which is finally laid down, we, in Christ, remain in Christ,
in the spirit, wherever the Lord is, and His home is in the Heavens, so we would be there with Him.
It's like 'justification' and 'sanctification'. and like having the names put in the Book of Life.
We then SERVE LIFE and oppose the devil.
Some of our favourite activities, which often almost kill us, are to 'destroy the works of the devil', and
to resist the devil who certainly does then FLEE, about to be exposed.
This takes much prayer, sometimes what I don't do enough.
What makes me sad? Later, after the death of this body, I'll see what COULD perhaps have been done,
where I just didn't do it right. This grieves me.