I decided to “accept Jesus as my personal Saviour” when I was a young child because I was afraid of hell.  I mean, seriously, what 6 year old would not be afraid of . . .

• burning forever in a lake of fire,
• not being able to see anyone else ever,
• and having your eyeballs gauged out with a red-hot poker by Satan himself!

No sir, I did not need any more motivation than that.  I would be stupid NOT to say the sinner’s prayer.  So I did.  Many times.   I also learned that if my friends did not also accept Jesus into their heart, that their blood would be on my hands.  I never understood that one but it is what I was taught.

So without further adieu,  watch this video clip (I hope you find it as amusing as my wife and I did).

[flickrvideo]http://www.flickr.com/photos/7225566@N03/3564928729/[/flickrvideo]

I became a Christian because I was afraid of hell.  As I look back, I realize that it was not a very good way to start my relationship with God. 

Threatening people with eternity in hell is, sadly, effective in producing conversions but it will not engage them in the relationship God has always wanted for them.  Which is more important: instant conversions, or life-long disciples?

If you are only in this kingdom because you fear the alternative, you’ve missed the greatest part of what it means to know God.

Wayne Jacobson writes about this in his wonderful book called He Loves Me:

No one ever threatened me to do something that was wonderful to do. My parents didn’t threaten me with punishment to get me to go to Disneyland. But to make me go to the dentist or work on the vineyard, that was another matter.

So if I am told that I must love God or he will throw me into hell, I might well consider loving him—or at least pretend I do.   But if the only reason I’m even responding to him is to serve my own self-interest and escape a fiery eternity in hell, am I really loving him or myself?  Can a true friendship blossom under so grave a threat?

Let’s say I approach a recent acquaintance of mine, hoping to deepen our friendship.  I say to him, “I have really appreciated the time we’ve been able to spend together.   In fact, I’d like to see our relationship deepen and maybe even become best friends. How would you like to spend some time together over the next few months and see if that kind of friendship develops?”

So far, so good!  But what if I added one more sentence? “I hope you do, because if you don’t, I’m going to hunt you down and torture you for the rest of your life.”  Hasn’t the invitation just taken an ominous turn?  Even if he wanted to explore the potential of a friendship with me, it has now been twisted by my threat.  What does it say about me, and how will he ever feel safe in a friendship cultivated on fear?

Whether you are conscious of it or not, the threat of hell can create an inner dissonance in our perception of the God who seeks our love.  How can we feel safe with a God who is seemingly anxious to dangle us over the flames of hell? If he can find nothing else to call us to come to him, then what kind of God must he be? And if we can find no better reason to love him, how shallow must our faith be?

If we use hell as a motivation for becoming a Christian, then are we not using hell in a way that God never intended?  There are so many wonderful reasons for making a decision to follow Jesus other than merely receiving a “Get Out of Hell Free” card.

I am sure this has stirred up some kind or reaction within you.  Would you be interested in sharing your thoughts with us?  Feel free to comment below

Also see “Does Hell Exist?”.

Another related post: 5 Reasons to Follow Jesus (that do not include hell)