Good, what ever reason they reject God, I'm sure He knew that before the foundation and they were not part of His Elect.
Butch, I'll address your post if you answer these simple questions:
I've already answered that. Aion means an age. It means the same thing in both places, an age. Here's a literal translation,
We neither drive people away from being born again nor do we drive them to be born again. The Christians duty is to proclaim the gospel message and teach all that God Jesus has commanded. It is GOD the HOLY SPIRIT that works in the hearts of men to save them, and the hearts of men are exceedingly wicked.
Obviously you are not reading the Greek, because the manuscripts all say aiōnion, which literall means eternal. If you're don't believe in the triune nature of God, it is best we not communicate.
Good? They weren't part of the elect because Christians told them to serve a God who tortures people forever. Would you praise Adolph Hitler? He tortured people too. Most of the world abhors him because of what he did. Yet those same people will say God did even worse because He keeps them alive forever. How does that make sense?
Again, aion and aionios are the same word in different forms. aion is the noun and aionios is the adjective. The meaning does not change, only its usage in the sentence changes. Well, I answered your questions and you said if I did you'd answer mine. You haven't. Instead you're suggesting something about the Trinity as reason to end the discussion. It seems to me that you simply can't answer the questions. I understand, there is no answer. By definition eternal means unending. Therefore something that ends cannot be eternal. That creates a predicament for the argument that aion means eternal because Jesus said it ends. That leaves us with the fact that one of the two is wrong. Either the aion ends or it doesn't. Jesus said it ends, the translators say it doesn't. We've come to a crossroad. We have to choose which is correct, Jesus or the translators.
The translators didn't get everything right, but they got aiōnion right, and aiōnion. means eternal, unending, everlasting. Jesus meant what HE said - ETERNAL - and HE said what HE meant - ETERNAL.
And, when Christians teach things that God has not put in the Gospel they are driving people away from God. You see, what we teach has an effect on people. Stop and think for a minute. What if you're wrong. What if people hear you and turn away from God? Are you ready to answer for that? It's a frightening and humiliating thought. Are we ready to stand before God and give an answer for what we have taught people, for the things we have preached? I find Christians are quick to argue a point that they can't even back up with Scripture. That's a dangerous place to be. Remember what James said about teachers.
Teach and preach Jesus Christ crucified, died, buried, resurrected, and ascended, and HIS promise to save the ungodly from their sins if they repent and believe. Teach from OLD to NEW and how HE fulfilled HIS promises. And always teach that Jesus Christ is the incarnate God.
I agree, there are many teaching that which is unbiblical, such as when SDA's teach annihilation, soul sleep, investigative judgment, Satan is our sin bearer, etc. Or the JW's when they teach Jesus is not God but a little god, or that the 144,000 are JW's. Or the LDS who teach another gospel altogether. All of them are accursed. Or Joel Osteen and Beth Moore et al, who teach prosperity and that Jesus is not the only begotten Son of God. They are accursed. Or pastors that date set the coming of Jesus's parousia, or that you can take the mark of the beast and still be saved. They are accursed. And so on and so on. Then there are those that deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They too are accursed.
Yes, Jesus God it right. He said the aion would end. He didn't say aion meant eternal. That was the translators. Why are you ignoring the passages I posted where Jesus, the Apostles, and Paul all speak of the end of the aion? Ignoring them makes your argument look weak. I'll answer your last question when you address mine.
That's part of it. However, people also teach that God tortures people.
About eternal life and etrnal punishment, the Word of God is clear: both are true.
Eternal punishment from a sovereign God. HE is creator and HE decides what the consequence is for rejecting HIM. That's what sovereign means: it HIS to decide how HE wants you to remain for rejecting HIS offer of eternal salvation. Sovereign.
People choose to reject a sovereign God with the knowledge that they will be punished for doing so. So, choose.
There's a difference between punishment and torture.
All die and then comes judgment. The one that rejects God will be eternally punished, where the worm never dies, fire is never quenched, etrnal weeping and gnashing of teeth, forever and ever.
