I've got a hell of an idea

Isn't that a funny phrase, "a hell of an idea?"
Such a common phrase, and a common use of the word 'hell.' We say "hell of an idea'' for a good idea; 'hell of a guy' for a good guy; 'hell of a run'' for a good run ... you know.
And yet, the reality is, most of us would say 'hell' is anything but a good idea.
(For anyone who actually hoped to read about my high school trip to a tent revival healing service, it's coming. Just not in this blog. Sorry.)
Personally, I think 'hell' is a perfect idea. I'll get to that in a minute.
From time to time, mostly when I'm teaching kids, I'll ask two questions:
"Who rules in heaven?" I'll ask.
You'd be surprised how many times kids kind of look at me, as if it's a trick question. But eventually, someone will say - rather timidly - "God?"
"Absolutely!" I say. Then I ask, "Who rules in hell?"
It's amazing how often that answer comes so quickly, almost invariably without hesitation.
"Satan!" someone will yell out. Or "the devil."
But of course, that's not the right answer.
Because God rules in hell, just like He rules in Heaven.
The Psalmist even wrote, "If I make my bed in hell, you (God) are there."
It's an easy mistake. You see it all the time. Cartoons of hell, where this guy in red with horns and pitchfork sits on a fiery throne, as if he's the god of hell. Poetry, classic literature ("I'd rather rule in hell than be a slave in heaven,'' said Satan in John Milton's "Paradise Lost"); movies, folklore, songs - there's no end to this idea that heaven and hell are somehow opposite ends of the spectrum, and that if God rules in Heaven then Satan must rule in Hell.
But of course, the same Bible from which we get the idea of Hell tells us that God created Hell as a place that Satan will one day be cast into, to face eternal punishment.
Which is going to come as a shock to those people who somehow believe if they 'serve' Satan here, Satan will look after them in the afterlife. Joke will be on them, because Satan will be one more God-forsaken schmuck.
If the idea that God rules in Hell bothers you, then let's say what makes Hell, Hell is the absence of God.
Perhaps that's the horror Jesus is addressing on the cross when He says, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" Maybe that was God separating Himself from Jesus as Jesus took on the sins - and the punishment for those sins - of the world.
I don't know. Just a thought.
Hell isn't very popular these days. I hear people say, "How could a loving God create a place of eternal torment, much less punish even one of His creations by sending them there for eternity?"
However, my question is, How could God not?
If there is no hell, then there is no justice. I mean, what difference does it make whether you're a Christian or a Muslim or an atheist or a mass murderer or a pedophile or pick-your-poison ... what difference does it make if, eventually, we all end up in the same place?
That's not fair.
And God is a God of justice.
"Will not the judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25).
People get offended by hell - and rightfully so.
The point is not that anyone should go there, but rather that God, despite being a God of absolute justice, is also a God of absolute mercy who made a way out for those of us who deserve to go to hell.
Now that's a hell of an idea!
But He can't just ignore justice and let everyone escape. But it's like the basketball coach that says, "If Jim here hits two free throws, nobody has to run suicides until they puke after practice." The rest of us don't say, "Aw, don't worry about it. Coach obviously doesn't want any of us to run. No matter what happens, we'll all get to go on home."
No. Doesn't work that way. And while the analogy isn't perfect, the point is the same. Jim hits the free throws, nobody has to run. Nobody chooses to run, either.
OK, occasionally you'll find some suck-up who stays behind to run. Or maybe it's a guy like Latrell Sprewell. who used to do that when he was in college at Alabama because he was determined to turn himself into an NBA all-star - which he did - by working longer and harder than anybody I've ever seen. I told you the analogy wasn't perfect.
Wait - maybe it does work. See some guys decide that Jim hitting those free throws isn't enough for them. So they stay on to work out their salvation for themselves, and run - although rarely have I ever seen a guy (Sprewell excluded) who actually pushed himself far enough to satisfy the coach. Running suicides after practice doesn't impress a coach as much as running your tail off when it counts - and the coach is watching.
Because usually in those situations the coach just walks off. Hey, he gave everyone a chance to get their legs back under them, and some schmuck decides not to do it. That's his choice. It isn't going to change the Coach's plans.
God is like that. He gives us a way out. If we choose not to accept it, well, we try to save ourselves. And it just doesn't work.
C.S. Lewis said it this way: In the end, either we say to God, 'Thy will be done' or God says to us, 'Thy will be done." I likethat. Because if we choose to reject God, we chose to exercise our own will.
And I'm a believer in free will. I know some Christians are not. That's a debate for another day.
The point, however, is not to be so focused on escaping Hell.
The point is to love God.
We love God because He is a God of justice, but also a God of love who realized early on that we can't satisfy His perfect Justice, so He figured He'd better do it for us through His Son.
If we understand and accept that, we appreciate God, and - oh, by the way, we don't go to hell.
But Satan will.
Which is a good thing. Do you really want to spend eternity facing the possibility of living next door to the Devil? Somebody would have to do it. And I have a feeling he'd the kind of neighbor who borrows your tools without asking and never gets around to giving them back; who has the dog that barks all night; who doesn't cut his grass or paint his house and drives the value of the entire neighborhood to ... hell.
You're only saved by grace through faith in Christ and not by anything you do.
I have a friend who has a problem with that. He says, 'You mean Hitler, if he accepted Christ in his dying moments, could be in Heaven? I just don't think a fair God could just forgive Hitler."
Fortunately, I don't have to make that call. It's up to God.
But the deeper question he was really asking was, how far can you go before you're beyond forgiveness?
Hitler  killed millions. How many millions are too many? How many thousands? Or is it hundreds? What if it's 50? What if it's just two, but those two are your wife and child?
How much evil is too much, even for God?
I happen to know that: it's when I decide to ignore God because I want to be God.
And you don't want me to be God. I can guarantee you I wouldn't be near as merciful as God is; you hear me, Buckeye fans?
I've got an idea. You might even say it's a hell of an idea.
Let's trust God.
 After all, it was all His idea to begin with.