Big question indeed. Jesus spoke of them pretty often and His words can be relied on. Everyone thinks of it sometimes.

When ‘in extremis’ (very difficult, or near fatal state) everyone thinks of God and mostly pray or curse God. I have heard that soldiers say: “There are no atheists (don’t believe in God) on the front line.” Like on a ‘two way rifle range’, (war), or in a broken down boat with a storm coming up fast.

Deep down I believe we all know they are there but we would rather not think about it just now. “I’ll think about it when I am older,” is common.

In Luke, one of the two criminals dying with Jesus said: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus replied: “Today, you’ll be with me in paradise.” Jesus knew he was sorry for his deeds. That’s very clear to me that there is a heaven (Luke 23:39-43).

On Hell, Luke writes a story Jesus told of a very rich man, who cared for nobody else, but he died at that same time as a diseased beggar, who sat at his gate begging for food scraps died too. In torment, the rich man called to ‘Father Abraham’ to send the beggar over to him to “dip his finger in water to put on my tongue for I am in agony here”. Abraham replied that “in life you had everything but cared nothing for others, and the poor beggar is now here. A great gulf separates us, and he cannot help you even if he wanted to.” (Luke 16:19-31).

A Bible quote: “… and He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 9:11). Read a Bible or Google the quoted verses and you’ll find it an intriguing and often fascinating book. Begin with John’s account of the life of Jesus. The Gospel of John can be read in about 3-4 hours. There you can learn that heaven and hell are very real.

There are some stories about this and I have read one of hell. A 150 years ago criminal,who was a coal miner, died in a rock fall. He was conscious (but dead as far as a human would be considered) and knew he was in hell. He was ‘dead’ for several hours, then woke up-but told nobody about it for fear of being put in a mental asylum(home). He came back to life in the morgue- got a Pastor and quickly became a believer in God. He did NOT want to go to the awful place he saw and experienced while he was ‘dead’. 

Another is Dwight L. Moody.  In a book that I read some years ago on his life story, The Life of D.L. Moody, the author told of his dying at home – three times!!  In his life (1837-1899) he had been a poor country lad as a child but he became world famous as a Preacher (Pastor or Minister) and preached to millions of people. On his dying of a heart attack (seemingly slowly) he died, came back to life and told his wife: “I have seen the children” (their children who had died earlier). And, “I have seen heaven’s gate.” On the third occasion he apologised to his wife saying: “This must be hard on you Mama.” After this he died and died permanently.

All this and much more about D.L. Moody can be found on the WWW or YouTube. Mighty unusual indeed.

I have got this question dozens of times and I want to have you think a bit. Your teacher has a one metre wooden ruler and I want you to imagine it sitting on a little block of wood right in the centre of teachers table. Neither end touches the table. It is balanced.

Now imagine a large, very cruel male in a suit standing on one end. The other end is now up in the air. Then someone like Dr. Fiona Wood and Professor Fiona Stanley go and stand together on the high end. Both are highly regarded medical professors in hospitals in Perth. The ruler is balanced. Then a maker of land mines goes and stands next to the large unpleasant male and talks to him about selling ten tonnes of land mines to the arms dealer. Unbalanced again. Then two doctors (the neurosurgeons who separated the brains of the two joined 3 yo girls in that 30 hour operation in 2009) go and stand with the two doctors. The ruler is balanced again. So it is with this world and the six billion people in it. Some care only for themselves and money, others devote their lives to helping and healing others. Why? God has given us, a choice to do good or bad, to be helpful to others or selfish and greedy, grasping for more. It is a choice! God did not make us robots. Please know that the big knives in my kitchen have never hurt anybody (except my finger now and then – Ouch!)

The writer of this blog (Me - Peter Harris) is still ‘obsessed’ with World War Two (WW II).

I was in school during the six years of that terrible war when fifty-two million (52 m.) people died. Around half were civilians, from hunger and cold. The death and the utter waste are still seared into many living people’s minds.

Why did it happen?

Thousands of books have been written. The essential fact is that a leader, a dictator, can get the idea that he can rule the world because ’his mob’ are better than the rest and “God has told me that my mission is to dominate the world because we are the best, the most suitable people to rule the world.” That’s what they think.

Some are, or have been, mad.

The truth of what was really behind wars only comes out 30, 40 or 50 years after it all ends. The families of the dead and wounded soldiers, sailors and airmen and their families pay the true price for many years.

Countries only go to war to get something – in the current wars; it is oil, coal, uranium, copper or iron ore. In other words things that make them money, or racial hatred is at the bottom of some of it.

The commandments: “Do not lie, Do not steal, Do not envy your neighbour’s goods or anything he has,” are all broken here. Australia is NOT innocent in this oil business. Neither are Britain and many other First World countries.

How did they get so rich in the first place? Slavery and looting of Africa’s, India’s and Asia’s natural resources was a start.

It is getting better very slowly. The world-wide-web is helping the ‘poor nations’ understand what the ’rich’ countries have done to them in the past. I like that idea. Now the poor are fighting back.

Note that a little war can start over a stolen rubber.

God has put that matter into our hands by my much-mentioned word ‘choice’.

We can make things that are good or make things that are bad.

Same for our behaviour.

Sadly, many go for money and forget about God.

Thank you for a lovely question.

Yes he can.

His ‘Workshop Manual’ = The Bible gives us all the directions and guidance.

It assures us that God will guide us all the way; right to the end which is heaven.

We make the decision to accept Jesus and the Bible, or not.

Sadly, many Christians fail to grasp all that He offers and that is plenty!!

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The Answerer

The Answerer - Peter Harris, answered children's questions from his many years of teaching "Scripture" classes.
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