The False Doctrine of
Universalism
© Michael K. Farrar, O.D.
March 25, 2011
www.godsbreath.net
Copies
of this and other homilies available by sending requests to: mikefarrar@aol.com
Universalism is the false unbiblical
doctrine that states that that God will eventually bring everybody who has ever
lived into a saving relationship with Him. In other words, everybody will
be saved and that God will condemn nobody to Hell.
It is understandable why such a belief
would gain acceptance by people. Under this false belief there are no
consequences for rejecting the message of the gospel, no judgment from God for
turning away from the sacrifice Jesus paid on the cross for our sins. No matter
how attractive this unbiblical doctrine is, it is a lie. Those who have faith
in it will discover, that they were deceived and there will a price to pay, a
very high price, a hellish price.
Where did this false teaching come from? It
was first introduced by a man by the name of Origen Adamantius (185-254 A.D.) Origen
was denounced for this false teaching at the 5th Ecumenical Council of Constantinople in 533 A.D. The basic tenet of
universalism is that there is no eternal punishment.
So you might ask, how can people attempt
to support such a false belief? Universalism claims that since God is love, He
would never allow any of His creatures to perish in hell. It is true that God
is the embodiment of love (1 John 4:8) and God does not desire that anyone
should spend eternity in hell (2 Peter 3:9). But God does not force His love on
anyone. He desires us to respond willingly to His love, not to be coerced into
accepting it.
The Bible clearly teaches that there is a
place called hell where people will go due to their rejection of Jesus as their
one and only Savior.
"This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven
in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know
God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with
everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the
glory of his might."
2 Thessalonians 2:7-9
"Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on
it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place
for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and
books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead
were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13
The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead
that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.
Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the
second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was
thrown into the lake of fire."
Revelation 20:11-15
Jesus often shared about the existence of
hell and its purpose.
"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill
the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in
hell."
Matthew 10:28
"As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it
will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and
they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do
evil. They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in
the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear."
Matthew 13:40-43
If hell and eternal punishment do not
exist, why does Jesus discuss the horrors of hell in Mark 9:43-48.
"If
your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life
maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. And
if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter
life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye
causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes
and be thrown into hell, where 'the worms that eat them do not die, and the
fire is not quenched.'"
Another argument used by those believing in the false doctrine of
universalism is that since God is all-powerful He will enable all to be saved
because He has the power to do so. The following verses are used as evidence to
support this viewpoint, implying that since God wishes all people to accept
Christ as Lord and Savior He will cause this to take place in everyone's life.
"I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers,
intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those
in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and
holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be
saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."
1 Timothy 2:1-4
"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand
slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but
everyone to come to repentance."
2 Peter 3:9
These verses state that God wants all
people to be saved and that He does not want anyone to go to hell, but this
does not mean that He will force them to accept His love nor will He violate
His justness. There is a just penalty for rejecting salvation through Christ
and it would unjust to allow people to be saved who had never accepted the
sacrifice for sin on the cross that His Son Jesus Christ provided. God is love
but He is also just in His judgments. He determines who is rewarded and who is
punished according to His holy character. Hebrews 9:27 speaks of this judgment
when it says, "Just as man is
destined to die once, and after that to face judgment," God's holy
character demands justice be done regarding sin. If people do not accept Jesus
as Lord and Savior then they have no payment for the penalty of their sin. God
is just and must judge them accordingly. God does not send them to hell, they
have chosen to go to hell by their rejection of Jesus. The Bible is clear about
the penalty for sin. In Romans 6:23 it states, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
life in Christ Jesus our Lord." 1 Peter 3:18 it tells us
Christ paid the penalty for our sin, "For
Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring
you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit."
2 Corinthians 5:21 corroborates this fact as well, "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that
in him we might become the righteousness of God."
Men
and women cannot claim ignorance to this fact as Romans 1:18-20 tells us, "The wrath of God is being revealed
from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the
truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them,
because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world
God's invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been
clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without
excuse."
A
detailed explanation of the truth that there will be a judgment of God between
those who accepted Christ and those who rejected Him in Matthew 25:31-46, "When the Son of Man comes in his
glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly
glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the
people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He
will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. "Then the King
will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take
your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave
me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes
and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you
came to visit me.' "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we
see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When
did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?
When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' "The King will
reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers of mine, you did for me.' "Then he will say to those on his left,
'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the
devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was
thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not
invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in
prison and you did not look after me.' "They also will answer, 'Lord, when
did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in
prison, and did not help you?' "He
will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least
of these, you did not do for me.' "Then they will go away to eternal
punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Further evidence is found in Revelation 20:11-15 for a godly
judgment of men and women and that hell is a place of punishment, "And I saw a great white throne, and
him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and
there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand
before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were
judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their
works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell
delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man
according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This
is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life
was cast into the lake of fire."
It is true that everyone will
confess that Jesus is Lord at the judgment, but at this point this confession
by non-believers is simply submission to this truth, not a confession of
commitment to live for Him. It is too late at this point, judgment is already
in process. Philippians 2:10-11 says, " That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father." No one denies that unbelievers will
eventually confess Jesus is Lord, but that does not mean they will be saved.
Even demons believe that Jesus is Lord, but they refuse to submit to Him (James
2:19). Believing that Jesus existed will not save anyone. Only belief in
Christ (James 2:21-26) saves. For salvation, Paul insisted, one must both
confess and "believe in your heart" (Romans 10:9). Believing in your
heart means submitting to the Lordship of Christ in ones life and living a life
of obedience to the Word of God.
Regarding this false doctrine Eric Landstrom, states "Universalism is contrary to God's
perfection and justice. God is absolutely holy. And as such He must separate
Himself from and punish sin. Hence, as long as there is someone living in sin
and rebellion against God, God must punish them. The Bible identifies this
place of separation and punishment as hell (see Matthew 5, 10, 25)...Universalism
is based on Scriptures wrenched out of context, and it ignores other clear
passages."
Recently Rob Bell pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church
has written a book called "Love Wins" that contains many statements
that wrongly imply universalism is a Christian doctrine. It is unfortunate that
a pastor would promote such false beliefs to his church and to others. If you wish to read a review of this book from
a Biblical perspective you can go to the link below and view a copy. The review
is written by Kevin DeYoung and is an excellent discussion of the subjects
covered in the book and the theological errors and poor Biblical interpretation
of Rob Bell. The link to my website for this review is below:
http://godsbreath.net/ReviewofLoveWins.aspx