I know this is like my third blog post on this subject, but it's important.
I watched Brad Jersak speak in a video on YouTube about some Catholic and Eastern Orthodox theologians who taught "Hopeful Inclusivism" but felt they couldn't rule out Endless Torment because of "Free Will". Well, I'm getting tired of the notion that Universal Salvation proponents are the ones who need to explain away Free Will.
Because I know quite a few unbelievers, and none would ever choose Eternal Endless Hopeless Fiery Torment in Hell. Any edgelord who says they want to go to "hell" are not viewing hell as any Christians views it, they're seeing it as an endless orgy rock concert or a realm like Mordor. The problem is many people don't feel like they'd be happy in the Heaven of a God who would torture people forever.
When Calvinists and Arminians are just arguing with each other pretending Universal Salvation isn't an option. Calvinists accuse Arminians of not believing God is Sovereign, and then Arminians respond with "we're not saying God can't override Human Free will, we're saying he chooses not to, he chooses to respect human Free Will."
The problem is there is more to respecting someone's Free Will then just not using your Magical Mind Control powers on them.
If I proposed to a woman and said "If you say no I won't force you to marry me, but I will have to torture you to death for the offense of rejecting me" did I respect her free will?
What I'm saying is in my opinion only Evangelical Unviersalsits can truly believe God respects Human Free Will. Whether your view of God is someone who hypnotizes us to accept Him like a Hollywood vampire, or someone who puts a gun to our head is ultimately no different, the end result is still not respecting Free Will.
Origen, Methodius of Olympus, Gregory of Nyssa and Theodore of Mopsuestia all affirmed Human Free Will and condemned Predestination as a Gnostic Heresy. And they are also the pillars of the Ancient Precedent for Universal Salvation. It was Augustine who first popularized Predestination while also opposing Universal Salvation.
In my theology God is going to respect our choices. Actions will have consequences, sins will be punished, but they will be for Correction (Habakkuk 1:12) and not endless (Matthew 5:26, Luke 12:59 and Matthew 18:34).
He will not however force anyone to join His Kingdom, His Family, against their will. But the invitation will never be revoked. The Gates of New Jerusalem are never shut during the day and there is no night there. There are benefits to joining now rather then later, but the door will still never be shut.
The Outer Darkness I still view as being outside New Jerusalem. But I now think the only people flat out not let in at first are Believers who messed up, they'll be the ones wailing and gnashing their teeth, and maybe I'll be among them, I have no confidence I've been an ideal Ambassador of the Kingdom. Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth is a Hebrew idiom of remorse and disappointment. Jesus' references to that and the Outer Darkness in Matthew are all about Children of the Kingdom.
But I think even those could be let in eventually, after being cleansed by the River and healed by the leaves of the Tree of Life.
Jesus says in John 12:32 that He Will draw all Humans unto Him. But they will come willingly, even if it takes a long time.
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