Page 292 … Cast into the Fire
Thereafter you mention John 16:6, a verse which states, “If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.” … You know Lucy, I have actually found this verse to be True as well, and yet whereas you seem to focus on the “cast into the fire and burned” part of it, I focus on what gets us burned in the first place, namely, all that is “not abiding in [Jesus]”! And this is the problem for Paulinists like yourself – and a most ironic problem it is: for to claim openly that Jesus supports damnation of any length of time (much less for eternity) is itself to choose to not abide in either his Way or his teachings, and thus to choose not to abide in him or his teachings is to cast one’s self into the very fire of damnation mentioned in this very verse!
Of course, this too is not really that big a deal. For if my interpretation is correct (and again, it very well might be), then such a cleansing will be solely proportionate with the intensity of each person’s “sins” (After all, the Bible promises repeatedly that we will reap only what we sow), whereupon the newly reborn being will thereafter exit “Hell” to walk refreshed and reborn into a renewed life refilled with the LOVE of Christ!
P.S. The funny thing is – even Paul figured this one out (albeit probably inadvertently). Consider the following passage from his first letter to the Corinthians: “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw – the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done. If what has been built on the foundation survives, the builder will receive a reward. If the work is burned up, the builder will suffer loss; though the builder will still be saved, but only as through fire.” ~ 1 Corinthians 3 11:15
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