Hell must exist for one essential reason: respect. God has made us free and respects our freedom to choose His Kingdom or not. The Kingdom of God is not a mere abstraction. It has some very specific values, and these are realized and experienced perfectly in Heaven.

The values of the Kingdom of God include love, kindness, forgiveness, justice to the poor, generosity, humility, mercy, chastity, love of Scripture, love of the truth, worship of God, and the centrality of God.

Unfortunately, there are many people who do not want anything to do with those values, and God will not force them to. Everyone may want to go to Heaven, but Heaven is not merely what we want it to be; it is what it is, as God has set it forth. Heaven is the Kingdom of God and its values in all their fullness.

There are some (many, according to Jesus) who live in a way that consistently demonstrates their lack of interest in Heaven. They do this by showing that they are not interested in one or many of the Kingdom’s values. Hell “has to be” because God respects people’s freedom to choose to live in this way. Because such people demonstrate that they do not want Heaven, God respects their freedom to choose “other arrangements.”

In a way, this is what Jesus says in John’s Gospel, when He states that judgment is about what we prefer: And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil(John 3:19). In the end, you get what you want: light or darkness. Sadly, many prefer the darkness. The day of judgment discloses our final preference; God respects that even if it is not what He would want for us

Hell must exist for one essential reason: respect. God has made us free and respects our freedom to choose His Kingdom or not. The Kingdom of God is not a mere abstraction. It has some very specific values, and these are realized and experienced perfectly in Heaven.

The values of the Kingdom of God include love, kindness, forgiveness, justice to the poor, generosity, humility, mercy, chastity, love of Scripture, love of the truth, worship of God, and the centrality of God.

Unfortunately, there are many people who do not want anything to do with those values, and God will not force them to. Everyone may want to go to Heaven, but Heaven is not merely what we want it to be; it is what it is, as God has set it forth. Heaven is the Kingdom of God and its values in all their fullness.

There are some (many, according to Jesus) who live in a way that consistently demonstrates their lack of interest in Heaven. They do this by showing that they are not interested in one or many of the Kingdom’s values. Hell “has to be” because God respects people’s freedom to choose to live in this way. Because such people demonstrate that they do not want Heaven, God respects their freedom to choose “other arrangements.”

In a way, this is what Jesus says in John’s Gospel, when He states that judgment is about what we prefer: And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil(John 3:19). In the end, you get what you want: light or darkness. Sadly, many prefer the darkness. The day of judgment discloses our final preference; God respects that even if it is not what He would want for us

Salvation is not by works, but by grace. 

The Bible is very clear that we cannot earn our way into eternity with God. Our works are merely evidences of our faith, not the basis for salvation.

The reason it's unnecessary to perform good works in order to secure salvation is that God himself, through the work of Christ, has performed all the work necessary. However, one of the very reasons God saved us is so we would perform good works, and if we do not perform good works we are in disobedience to His Word. The Bible is clear on the source of our salvation: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spririt" (Titus 3:5).

Many of us have confused the doctrine of justification with the doctrine of sanctification.

According to the Bible, after a man is justified before God, he begins a lifelong process of sanctification where he grows in holiness and obedience to God's law. Justification is the starting point for sanctification (Romans 6). Justification removes the guilt of sin and restores the sinner to a relationship with God. Sanctification eliminates sinful habits and makes the sinner more and more like Jesus Christ. Justification takes place outside of the sinner in the court of God. Sanctification takes place in the soul and the spirit of man. Justification takes place once and for all. Sanctification is a continuous process of growth, as we "run the race" to the end of our lives. The work of sanctification is never complete in the life of a Christian.

Many Christian leaders and laymen are doing good deeds for which they are to be commended, but many have not surrendered to a true relationship with their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Christian faith declared in the Bible is one of trust in a relationship with a Person, rather than in a religion, institution or organization.

Relationship not Religion

When we stand before God one day, He will not ask us whether we are Catholic, Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran or Methodist. He will only ask us why He should allow us into His kingdom. How will you respond to that question? Will you tell Him what denomination you belonged to or that you attended church every Sunday? Will you try and tell Him you were a "good and moral person" who did works of charity? The biblical truth is that God doesn't consider any of these responses to be worthy of admission into heaven. Our prayer is that we'll all be able to respond to Him with an answer that He will honor: "I have confessed Christ before man and You Lord, and it is by grace alone that I come into your heaven."

Christianity is not really a religion; it is a relationship with God. It is trusting in Jesus and what He did on the cross for you (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), not on what you can do for yourself (Ephesians 2:8-9). Christianity is not about ornate buildings, flamboyant preachers, or traditional rituals. Christianity is about truly accepting and obeying Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

Salvation is not by works, but by grace. 

The Bible is very clear that we cannot earn our way into eternity with God. Our works are merely evidences of our faith, not the basis for salvation.

The reason it's unnecessary to perform good works in order to secure salvation is that God himself, through the work of Christ, has performed all the work necessary. However, one of the very reasons God saved us is so we would perform good works, and if we do not perform good works we are in disobedience to His Word. The Bible is clear on the source of our salvation: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spririt" (Titus 3:5).

Many of us have confused the doctrine of justification with the doctrine of sanctification.

According to the Bible, after a man is justified before God, he begins a lifelong process of sanctification where he grows in holiness and obedience to God's law. Justification is the starting point for sanctification (Romans 6). Justification removes the guilt of sin and restores the sinner to a relationship with God. Sanctification eliminates sinful habits and makes the sinner more and more like Jesus Christ. Justification takes place outside of the sinner in the court of God. Sanctification takes place in the soul and the spirit of man. Justification takes place once and for all. Sanctification is a continuous process of growth, as we "run the race" to the end of our lives. The work of sanctification is never complete in the life of a Christian.

Many Christian leaders and laymen are doing good deeds for which they are to be commended, but many have not surrendered to a true relationship with their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Christian faith declared in the Bible is one of trust in a relationship with a Person, rather than in a religion, institution or organization.

Relationship not Religion

When we stand before God one day, He will not ask us whether we are Catholic, Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran or Methodist. He will only ask us why He should allow us into His kingdom. How will you respond to that question? Will you tell Him what denomination you belonged to or that you attended church every Sunday? Will you try and tell Him you were a "good and moral person" who did works of charity? The biblical truth is that God doesn't consider any of these responses to be worthy of admission into heaven. Our prayer is that we'll all be able to respond to Him with an answer that He will honor: "I have confessed Christ before man and You Lord, and it is by grace alone that I come into your heaven."

Christianity is not really a religion; it is a relationship with God. It is trusting in Jesus and what He did on the cross for you (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), not on what you can do for yourself (Ephesians 2:8-9). Christianity is not about ornate buildings, flamboyant preachers, or traditional rituals. Christianity is about truly accepting and obeying Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

Broken people don't focus on the sins and issues of others. No, they are so aware of their need for a Savior that they work on themselves. Broken people don't demand their rights. No, they often lay them down. Broken people don't dodge responsibility for their actions. No, they are fully willing to accept the consequences of their sin.

I've heard more stories than I care to relate to you about people who can't or won't take responsibility for what they've done. They play the blame game and run like crazy until they are far from the situation. If you've fallen into sin, own it. Even if you feel like you did something because of someone or because that someone didn't meet your needs.

Newsflash: You sinned. You made the choice to sin. You need to make it right. No matter what anyone else did first. You are still responsible for you!

Action Steps
Do you find that you dodge responsibility for your actions? Do you ever blame someone else for your sinful actions? Spend some time with the Father today and ask Him to reveal to you why you take this path so often.

Broken people don't focus on the sins and issues of others. No, they are so aware of their need for a Savior that they work on themselves. Broken people don't demand their rights. No, they often lay them down. Broken people don't dodge responsibility for their actions. No, they are fully willing to accept the consequences of their sin.

I've heard more stories than I care to relate to you about people who can't or won't take responsibility for what they've done. They play the blame game and run like crazy until they are far from the situation. If you've fallen into sin, own it. Even if you feel like you did something because of someone or because that someone didn't meet your needs.

Newsflash: You sinned. You made the choice to sin. You need to make it right. No matter what anyone else did first. You are still responsible for you!

Action Steps
Do you find that you dodge responsibility for your actions? Do you ever blame someone else for your sinful actions? Spend some time with the Father today and ask Him to reveal to you why you take this path so often.

Renounce False values of the world 

Fill yourself with Spiritual kingdom values

Worldly Spirit

Selfish

Self interest 

self seeking 

self centered

Self serving 

Self aggrandizing 

Self absorbed 

Self assertion

Spiritual spirit

Self giving 

Self denial 

Self sacrifice 

Surrender to Christ 

Abandonment to Christ 

Renounce False values of the world 

Fill yourself with Spiritual kingdom values

Worldly Spirit

Selfish

Self interest 

self seeking 

self centered

Self serving 

Self aggrandizing 

Self absorbed 

Self assertion

Spiritual spirit

Self giving 

Self denial 

Self sacrifice 

Surrender to Christ 

Abandonment to Christ 

We humans are a very misled group, aren't we? We think we have some sort of divine power to change a person. We think that if we are nice enough or do the right things that maybe someone will “come to their senses” and change. I have met more people who think they can actually change someone by what they say or how they treat them. I have fallen into that trap in the past so please hear no judgment from me. However, today, I am fully aware that I am no match for the power of God. Yes, I believe in speaking the truth in someone's life when prompted by the Spirit of God. But, even if I do that, it still doesn't guarantee that they will change. Only God can change a person. And the best way for us to participate with Him is to pray.

So, for years now, I've been praying for people whose hearts seem to be a little on the hard side. For those people who seem to think they've got it all together and actually do no wrong, I pray for brokenness. For those people who still love their sin, I pray they develop a hatred for it. For those who have turned from their faith in God, I pray for a return to Him. I pray that God will give them a new heart and a new spirit and remove their hard heart and give them one that is pliable to the Master's touch.

I've seen remarkable results in doing this. And quite frankly, am still waiting to see many hearts softened...even after praying for over a decade. Truth is, I may never see a transformation in some people, but I still pray. I still believe.

Action Steps
Do you find yourself always wanting to “fix” or change someone? Why do you think you do this? Spend some time asking God to show you the areas where you are trying to take over His job. Ask Him to show you how to love people where they are and how to pray them to where He wants them to be.

We humans are a very misled group, aren't we? We think we have some sort of divine power to change a person. We think that if we are nice enough or do the right things that maybe someone will “come to their senses” and change. I have met more people who think they can actually change someone by what they say or how they treat them. I have fallen into that trap in the past so please hear no judgment from me. However, today, I am fully aware that I am no match for the power of God. Yes, I believe in speaking the truth in someone's life when prompted by the Spirit of God. But, even if I do that, it still doesn't guarantee that they will change. Only God can change a person. And the best way for us to participate with Him is to pray.

So, for years now, I've been praying for people whose hearts seem to be a little on the hard side. For those people who seem to think they've got it all together and actually do no wrong, I pray for brokenness. For those people who still love their sin, I pray they develop a hatred for it. For those who have turned from their faith in God, I pray for a return to Him. I pray that God will give them a new heart and a new spirit and remove their hard heart and give them one that is pliable to the Master's touch.

I've seen remarkable results in doing this. And quite frankly, am still waiting to see many hearts softened...even after praying for over a decade. Truth is, I may never see a transformation in some people, but I still pray. I still believe.

Action Steps
Do you find yourself always wanting to “fix” or change someone? Why do you think you do this? Spend some time asking God to show you the areas where you are trying to take over His job. Ask Him to show you how to love people where they are and how to pray them to where He wants them to be.