Understanding Human Nature

This study examines biblical passages that have been proposed by some as promoting the immortality of the soul and/or the existence of a foreverburning hell. These reflections should strengthen our own convictions and help us to answer kindly those who question this crucial teaching.

The biblical worldview of human nature is a unity of all aspects of our existence, namely, physical, mental/intellectual, emotional, volitional, spiritual, and social, aspects that do not exist separately or independently from each other. All are put together by our Creator God in a marvelous and unseparated unity, and everything needs to be sanctified by God (1 Thess. 5:23).

God is our Judge (Isa. 35:4). As our Judge, He is impartial in His judgment. This is good news for us. As fallen beings with imperfect judgment and a tendency toward partiality and prejudice, we tend to transport some folks into heaven and then refuse others entry. God knows human hearts, thinking, and motives; thereby, He alone can deliver to every human being an unbiased and just sentence. Through His judgments, God restores His glory and vindicates His character. He does so openly and consistently so that everyone can know who He is (Ps. 34:8). God wants all intelligent beings in the universe to understand His purposes and to know that He deals with evil fairly, punishes the wicked appropriately, and saves sinners justly (Ezek. 18:21, 23, 32; Ezek. 33:11; Rom. 3:21–26).

Many thinkers have tried to explain the origin of evil. Some suggest that evil always has existed because, in their view, good can be appreciated only in contrast to evil. Others believe that the world was created perfect but, somehow, evil emerged. For example, in Greek mythology, evil started when the curious Pandora opened a sealed box out of which flew all the evils of the world (this myth, however, does not explain the origin of the evils supposedly hidden in that box).