"Redemption, Eternal Lostness, and a Few Questions That Plague Me"

If Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, which I believe He is, and if one of His Names is The LORD Who Saves, which it is, I have a question for you:  Before humanity fell, how was He the Lord Who Saves?  Have you ever wondered about that?  And what if we took things back even farther?  Say prior to the creation of anything?  If God was Savior then...Of whom?  Or of what?  To BE something, one must DO that which is congruent with said BEING.  To BE a baseball player, one must PLAY baseball.  To be a savior, one must engage in the act of saving.  Okay…have any of you ever wondered any of these things, or am I just a little weird because I have?  (Your nodding heads are not at all very comforting right now, and, in the words of Forest Gump, “that’s about all I have to say about that!”)

This whole line of thinking, though, does bring other questions to my mind as well.  Such as, does God have a plan to redeem the fallen angels?  If God is Loving-kindness, which I believe He is, that means He loves all His created beings, even those who have fallen.  When we fell, He still loved us.  So why would He not also still love the fallen angels?  And if to love means to will the highest good for another, and if the highest good (at least in my understanding of it) is to be in the presence of God and loving friends and family forever, why would God not have a plan for the fallen angels?  I know that it may be hard to conceive, but did you know that God loves Satan?  Oooooooh.  You probably weren't expecting that one!  Just think about it for a moment.  Would not God's loving of Satan be totally consistent with His nature?  And, furthermore, is it not God Who command us to love our enemies.  And is not our ability to do such a thing something that comes from God Himself?  The answer to all these questions is, of course, "yes."  For God not only commands us to love our enemies, but also gives us the power to do so.  And the reason He can give us that power is because He Himself possesses it!  Is the Source of it!  And practices it!  So…the next time you think about hating someone, just remember that God loves Satan.  Oh, and by the way, Satan didn’t cause man to fall.  MAN caused man to fall.  Adam and Eve behaved liked idiots (just go read the Genesis account), but THAT discussion shall be reserved for another day.

I have another question for you:  When the lost of this world die devoid of the salvation of Jesus, will they burn in Hell forever?  I mean with no end whatsoever?  I know the scriptures refer to the eternity of Hell, but what does that really mean?  Again, God is loving, and He loves everyone passionately, even those who have rejected Him.  If that is the case, how will there not be weeping in Heaven over those in Hell?  I mean, if there is rejoicing in Heaven over a single repentance, would it not stand to reason that there would be weeping in Heaven over the billions of people burning in Hell?  Hey, I'm just the one asking the question.  I just wonder, sometimes, if God has a redemptive plan that goes FAR beyond anything we can conceive.  I, for one, would certainly not put it past Him.  Infinite is infinite, despite whatever limited theological constructs we may have come up with to help us feel better about the tidiness of our faith.  Honestly, I think the Lord is a lot more comfortable with messiness than we are.

I have one more question, and this one is a personal one:  Having fallen and experienced the redemptive power, love, and forgiveness of your Father, do you consider yourself better off now than you would have been had you never fallen?  If not, why not?  If so, how so?  I shall provide you with my answer to that question in a future post.

Peace out, everyone!  And enjoy being with God and His people, tomorrow.  I know I certainly will!

Your friend, Bling.  (That's for you, Tara.  Thanks for the new nickname, y'all.  I like it!)