Is hell's punishment unending? (4) (Jeremiah 17:5-13)

Not only does the denial of eternal punishment often spring from an inadequate view of God; it also comes from an inadequate view of man.  Consider this statement from a pastor who rejected the doctrine of eternal punishment:

"But confronting my own sinfulness, that's when things started to topple for me. Am I really going to be saved just because I believe something, when all these good people in the world aren't?" (From FoxNews.com March 24, 2011)

It is quite possible the above statement reveals an inadequate view of faith as the wording may suggest just believing something rather than Biblical faith in the Christ of the gospel.  But let us lay that aside for the moment and consider all these good people in the world.  Can this statement Biblically describe some or many or any of the people of this world?

It is interesting that this pastor confronted his own sinfulness.  Should he have taken the apparently hideous person he found in himself and concluded that the picture was the same in everyone? Biblically there is no question, : he should have done just that.  Consider …

·        Jer. 17:9:  Deceitful means man’s heart is fraudulent or polluted.  It cannot be trusted, and that includes the fact that it cannot be trusted in its choice of whom to worship and it cannot be trusted in its evaluation of itself or others.  It is desperately wicked, meaning it is incurably wicked.  This is why turning to God in faith does not result in a refurbishing of the heart but a regeneration, God’s work of making the heart new.  

·        Psalm 14:1-3 (cf. Rom. 3:9-20): God looks from heaven to the earth to see if He can find anyone that is good.  The answer is no and is emphasized repeatedly.  Man is corrupt; he does not seek God; he turns aside from God.

·        Rom. 1:18-23: The process of turning aside from God is described in this passage.  Man suppresses the truth of God seen in creation.  Rather than glorify and thank God he empties his mind of God-thoughts and declares there is no God (i.e. becomes a fool).  They change the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like man.  He worships himself rather than God.  And when he feels the emptiness of denying his spiritual life the man may then seek to find something in creation he can worship.  

These passages concern mankind, not just some segment of mankind.  In terms of the question we are considering what it says is that there are no people, none, who do not deserve eternal punishment.  The fact that God offers men the choice of eternal life is, as we said in our previous study, not only an expression of His love; it is nothing but grace, unmerited favor!  As for God’s judgment, today’s passage is also clear: I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.