Robert Krapohl: The Doctrine Of Christian Life

In the words of Robert Krapohl, a Baylor University Librarian, “no scriptural doctrine has proved more difficult for Christians to defend in the modern era than the traditional notion of hell.” While this issue at one time was cut and dry, it now is one of the most widely debated and misunderstood doctrines in the church today. This doctrine affects most “major doctrines of the Christian faith, not just the area of eschatology,” but throughout all aspects of Christian life. This asks not only “if we are to be saved, [but] from what are we to be saved” from, in terms of punishment. If people are only being saved from annihilation, is an eternity with God truly greater than complete annihilation, if there is no punishment other than being wiped from the face of the earth? The doctrine of an eternal punishment …show more content…
When the Bible talks about hell, according to annihilationists, it primarily uses “a language of destruction” to characterize the judgment of the damned. This means that God will finally destroy those who are opposed to Him, which is the orthodox Biblical teaching on this issue. This doctrine states that humans were created mortal, and that by nature they are not immortal, because “immortality is a gift God offers” to those who love Him. The immortality of the soul is a privilege, not a right, which would lead to the conclusion that humans can and will be annihilated if they do not put their faith in Christ. The image of fire that is found in Revelation is to be taken with a grain of salt, because “fire burns what is put into it,” just as the body is annihilated in the fires of hell. Revelation speaks of hell as an unquenchable fire, to which many annihilationists will argue that “it would be very odd if what is thrown into [the fire] proved indestructible,” as those who are being tortured would eventually perish completely into