Here is a review of Erasing Hell by Francis Chan that I posted on Amazon. The last 2/3 of it deals with Post-Mortem Repentance/Salvation, and cites many of the verses that Sherman lists above. My inclusion of the Forgivable Sins was inspired to a passing reference that Thomas Talbott made in his book (in the autobiographical section). I hope this is helpful.
REVIEW OF ERASING HELL
It must have taken incredible courage, fortitude and pain for Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle to defend a Christian doctrine so unpopular that even they can’t stand or fathom it. Authors of Hell books have sometimes, understandably, suffered breakdowns, and in all sincerity my prayers are with them.
Their motives seem noble (they want to save people from experiencing the unimaginable), and their gracious tone in addressing their theological opponents is exemplary.
Chan and Sprinkle do a good job in showing that Hell (by which they mean the post-Second Coming Lake of Fire) is real, and is worth avoiding at all costs. However, they state that there’s at least a remote possibility that Hell doesn’t last forever, and that the fire, worms, and darkness probably aren’t literal, and there are probably degrees of punishment in Hell. This should bring at least a little comfort (and truth) to many readers.
But I believe they, and traditional Christianity, are mistaken about Hell probably lasting forever, and about Christ ultimately failing to “save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).
I only have room to discuss one specific disagreement, and that will be whether the possibility of post-mortem salvation (aka “second chances”) has biblical support. Page 35 states: “There is no single passage in the Bible that describes, hints at, hopes for, or suggests that someone who dies without following Jesus in this life will have an opportunity to do so after death.”
I believe these scriptures say otherwise …
SODOM RESTORED (!) – “I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and of Samaria and her daughters, and your fortunes along with them … And your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to what they were before; and you and your daughters will return to what you were before” (Ezek. 16:53,55). In verses 47-55, the pronouns “their” and “they” identify the restored individuals as being those who were destroyed in Gen. 19 because of their detestable deeds. They will first need to be punished and purified in God’s refining Lake of Fire, but this will be “more tolerable” for them than for some others (Matt. 11:24).
DRY BONES LIVE – “Then he said to me, Son of man, these bones are the WHOLE HOUSE of Israel. Behold they say, "Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off."' Therefore prophesy, and say to them,Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graveS, O my people… And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, O my people. And I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live… Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken and I will do it, declares the Lord’” (Ezek. 37:11-14).
UNTIL – “I tell you the truth, you will not get out UNTIL you have paid the last penny.” (Matt. 5:26).
THE FORGIVABLE SINS – “Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not … either in this age or in the age to come” (Matt. 12:31-32). These verses strongly suggest that all sins except one, including blasphemies against Christ, will be forgiven in the NEXT age if they’re not forgiven in this age.
LIMITED BLOWS – “That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with MANY blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with FEW blows” (Luke 12:47-48a).
SAVED THROUGH FIRE – “If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be SAVED, but only as one escaping through the flames” (I Cor. 3:12-15).
BAPTISMS FOR THE DEAD – In I Cor. 15:29, Paul addresses – and does not condemn – the Corinthians’ practice of being baptized for the dead.
But this practice would have been absurd if, as the authors contend, one’s fate is sealed at death. Also, prayers for the dead were almost universal in the early church.
THE DEAD HEAR THE GOSPEL AND LIVE – “For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may LIVE IN THE SPIRIT according to the will of God” (I Peter 4:6). (Also see Psalm 68:18, Isa. 9:2b, Zech. 9:11-12, Matt. 12:29, Eph. 4:8-10.)
WHO IS THE BRIDE TALKING TO? – “The Spirit AND THE BRIDE say ‘Come!’” (Rev. 22:17a) – The bride is the church, and is in the New Jerusalem in Rev. 22. So who is the bride’s “Come!” appeal addressed to? The setting continues to be the Rev. 21-22 new heaven/new earth age, since verse 22:17c refers to the “water of life,” which was introduced in Rev. 22:1, and it’s the Rev. 21-22 bride who is speaking – not the “church” or the “lampstands.” The unavoidable conclusion, it seems to me, is that by process of elimination, it must be addressed to those in the Lake of Fire, located outside the city gates (Rev. 22:15), which never close (Rev. 21:25).
DEAFENING SILENCE – The first 2/3 of the Bible is completely silent about Hell, and the last 1/3 uses the ambiguous-at-best word “aion” and its derivatives to describe Hell’s duration. This makes no sense if (a) God is love and (b) eternal torment is true. There would have been clear and dire warnings on almost every page. For instance, why did Noah infinitely understate the penalty when he warned his neighbors only of a worldwide flood and not of ET?
EVENTUAL UNIVERSAL SALVATION EXPLICITLY TAUGHT – Finally, I Cor. 15:22,28, Rom. 5:18-20, Rom. 11:32,36a, Col. 1:19-20, John 12:32, Isa. 45:23, 57:16, Lam. 3:22,31, Rev. 5:13, and Psalm 145:10a and many dozens of other verses look very much like they teach eventual universal salvation, and thus imply second chances.
One day God will wipe away every tear (Isa. 25:8, Rev. 21:4). If only Francis Chan had realized what this implies; namely, eventual universal salvation.
). Also, Jonah doesn’t literally need to die for him to be a type of Jesus death in the grave. His ‘whale of a tale’ grief that he retells in the second chapter depicts his horrific physical conditions but also mirrors the depth of his own pride and prejudices against the Ninevites. Later, Jonah’s anger about Ninevite repentance even when they didn’t deserve it mirrors how many religious Christians will feel about everyone being saved by Jesus.