Synopsis

This opening chapter sets the foundation for the author’s spiritual journey away from the traditional doctrine of eternal conscious torment toward the hope of universal reconciliation also known as Impartial Grace. It describes the author’s early belief in hell as endless punishment, his later awakening to God’s infinite mercy, and his growing conviction that Scripture teaches reconciliation for all creation. The chapter introduces the tension between inherited theological traditions and divine revelation through the Spirit, emphasizing that God’s love is the guiding force that leads to truth. The author calls readers to question long-held doctrines, to trust the nature of God as love itself, and to follow the path illuminated by “The Blessed Hope.”

I am a layman. I have no theological credentials. I am not a Bible scholar. God has blessed me with His Spirit. He has shown me His overwhelming love. He reveals the doctrine of universal reconciliation in His Word. He saw to it that I was exposed to the doctrine that is “The Blessed Hope.” I have come to believe universal reconciliation is God’s gift to humanity.

For most of my Christian life, I believed the doctrine of eternal conscious torment. I preached it. Many years ago, that doctrine was exposed to me as one opposing God—unbelievably cruel and inconsistent with His will that all be saved. Universal reconciliation, however, is a better doctrine. It neither opposes God nor His will that all should come to salvation. Yet, the doctrine of eternal conscious torment still prevails in many denominations and congregations today.

I was introduced to the doctrine of eternal conscious torment early in my Christian walk. Someone once said to me, “Believe in Jesus or burn in hell.” That was a common theme—and I heard it often. I learned the traditions of my teachers. I embraced their doctrines. I still share many of their beliefs, but not this one.

I once believed eternal conscious torment was true. I preached it. But I no longer do. I am liberated. I now preach the freedom that comes from knowing Christ’s purpose for all creation. He leads me to understand the infinite magnitude of His love. He helps me see His love is for all mankind. I preach that His mercies are limitless, and that the Gospel of Christ does not condemn to eternal torment. I proclaim that He will reconcile all to Himself.

I am grateful for His instruction and His intervention. The Father is showing me a better way. He leads me to love all. He is helping me see my life from His perspective. He commands us to love. I am learning to love. I wait patiently for the Spirit’s timing to speak to others about my conversion from the doctrine of eternal conscious torment.

Theologies and doctrines are important. They become traditions. Men become administrators of their doctrines. They become judges of those who do not comply with their rules. Traditions become idols—and idols divide.

I have learned much. The advocates of eternal conscious torment are passionate and sincere. Their doctrine is guarded carefully and considered unassailable. Those who challenge it are often rejected. The proponents are good, well-meaning people, yet many label others as heretics or blasphemers for opposing their view. Still, the truth cannot be ignored: “God will reconcile all men to Himself.” (Colossians 1:18–20)

I have turned from the doctrine of eternal conscious torment. I still agree with most of the core tenets of my former congregation and denomination. But the theological fork in the road has come. One fork embraces God’s love—universal reconciliation. The other embraces His wrath—traditional hell. One fork declares “The Father is all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28). The traditionalist path insists only a few will be reconciled. Universal reconciliation is “The Blessed Hope.” Traditional hell is cruel.

Traditionalists describe the punishments of hell in numerous ways, each more horrendous than the last. They teach of eternal fire—a flame that torments yet heals, cuts yet cauterizes, burns yet never consumes. This, they say, is God’s justice. They are convinced their doctrine is true.

But Scripture proves universal reconciliation to be true. The teaching that God reconciles all to Himself is inspired and consistent with His nature. God is love. (1 John 4:8) His very essence transforms us. His Spirit led me to challenge many of my long-held beliefs. I was taught from childhood by preachers, teachers, elders, and parents that God would condemn His enemies to eternal torment. I once believed it. I once taught it.

But now I see that His essence is love—love over all, after all. An all-loving God and an ever-wrathful Father cannot be the same. His justice is restoration, not eternal punishment.

I am convinced the traditional doctrine of hell is false. A clearer understanding of His Word reveals that humankind’s collective end is reconciliation. It is His will that all be saved. God’s purpose and glory are fulfilled when He reconciles all men to Himself through Christ Jesus.

Traditions divide believers. Men gather in like-minded groups and form denominations, each claiming superior truth. These divisions multiply, even as all defend the same doctrine of eternal conscious torment.

From their pulpits, theologians across denominations preach that people just like them—fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters—will suffer unending torment. They insist that those who do not know Jesus in this life will never know Him. The unknowing dead, they teach, are judged guilty and sentenced to unimaginable eternal punishment.

The doctrine of eternal conscious torment is deeply troubling. Think this through: many of our children turn to science instead of Scripture, pleasure instead of peace. The doctrine demands that these children—fashioned by a loving Father—be condemned to endless suffering. Imagine parents in paradise knowing their beloved children are being tormented forever. The heartbreak is beyond words.

Many churches derive their theology from Calvinism or Arminianism. Calvin taught that God predestines some to salvation and most to damnation. Arminius taught that God gives everyone free will, yet most still choose wrongly and perish forever. Both positions leave most of humanity condemned.

But Scripture says:
“The Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered.” (Romans 8:26–27)

As a father, I’ve wept for my children, praying that God will save them. I do not believe those prayers fall on deaf ears. I know His Spirit intercedes. He knows my heart.

“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God.” (Romans 8:28–30)

He calls us, justifies us, and glorifies us. No power in heaven or on earth can separate us from His love.

“For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life… nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38–39)

Theologies do not save. Only God saves. Nothing can separate us from His love.

A. E. Knoch, in his Concordant Commentary on the New Testament, explains: “God’s love never lets us go. The trials and tribulations we endure are not tokens of His displeasure. They are all tempered by His loving heart… Nothing above or beneath, nothing at all, has the power to break the bond that binds the humblest and most unworthy saint to the throbbing breast of our great and glorious God. This is more than salvation from sin! This is reconciliation!”

Everything is subject to God—even doctrine. Eternal conscious torment and universal reconciliation cannot both be true.

Imagine the vilest man who ever lived—created and loved by God. Scripture teaches nothing can separate us from His love. Even sin cannot. Neither can false theology.

Psalm 139 declares: “For you formed my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother’s womb… How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is their sum!” (Psalm 139:13–18)

If God’s love applies to us, it applies to all. His mercy is infinite and unending.

What greater mercy could He bestow than the sacrifice of His Son for all humanity? None of His creation is an accident. He chose each of us before the foundation of the world. We are hopeless without His mercy—but His mercy is infinite.

The doctrine of eternal conscious torment demands we believe His mercy is limited. But the cross magnifies mercy, not restricts it.

Israel’s atonement rituals foreshadowed the perfect reconciliation of all creation. The Law, once limited to a people, is now fulfilled in Christ—whose mercy extends to all.

The doctrine of eternal conscious torment diminishes God’s love. The God I know is not vindictive. He is love itself. His mercy is boundless. His reconciliation is complete.

I am a traditionalist who believes in universal reconciliation. That is my theological fork in the road. I once preached Calvinism and regretted it. I once opposed Arminianism without understanding it. I preached predestination and free will—and warned that unbelievers would burn forever.

“Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgment.” (James 3:1)

I tremble at those words. Yet I am grateful that God corrected me. I now preach His love, declaring His mercy so great that even those who hate Him will be reconciled to Him.

I take the path of universal reconciliation. It is the right path. My direction is toward belief in God’s infinite mercies. I pray you will consider that eternal conscious torment is untrue, and that Scripture itself proves His mercies are infinite and real.

Conclusion

At this theological crossroads, the author chooses the path of reconciliation over retribution, mercy over fear, and love over wrath. The Spirit’s leading transforms belief into revelation—illuminating a God whose will cannot fail and whose mercy knows no end. The chapter affirms that every doctrine, every theology, and every tradition must bow to the supremacy of God’s love. The journey begins here: with one believer’s decision to embrace “The Blessed Hope,” trusting that, in time, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord—to the glory of God the Father.

Endnote

1. A. E. Knoch. Concordant Commentary on the New Testament. Concordant Publishing Concern, Santa Clarita, CA, 1968. http://concordant.org/version/intro-to-the-concordant-new-testament/. Accessed April 2, 2018.

The full condensed version of “God’s Gift to Humanity” is available here.