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"Reflection on God's Nature Leads to Universalism

Next, the nature of God, as described in the Christian scriptures, leads me to believe in Universalism. I believe that God is Love. Indeed, the Christian Bible also states that explicitly (1 John 4:8). If God is Love, then surely he wants the best for every person. Many scriptures support this. 1 Timothy 2:4 says, "God … wants all people to be saved". Again, He "does not want anyone to perish, but for everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). There are several other scriptures that plainly state that God desires salvation for everyone.

I also believe God is powerful and wise enough to accomplish whatever He wants. When Christ's disciples once asked him, "Who can be saved?" part of his response was, "With God, all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26), by which we can infer: God can save anyone! If God desires that every person be saved, and He can save anyone, how can anyone not be saved? The doctrine of eternal damnation suggests that either God's love or God's power is deficient.

I've often heard it objected that God can save anyone, but He will not do so because He refuses to interfere with the "free will" of any person. However, that idea is not scriptural at all. Isaiah 46:10 says, "I (God) will accomplish all that I please." In other words, if God desires something, He not only has the ability to obtain it, but He will obtain it. "God … wants all people to be saved" (1 Timothy 2:4) and God "will accomplish all that" He pleases (Isaiah 46:10). Therefore, human free will is not going to thwart God's desires. See also Daniel 4:35 and Romans 9:16-20. Also, note how the discussion in Romans 9:16-20 continues to its final conclusion at Romans 11:32, which is explicitly universalistic. In fact, Paul is in such awe at this wonderful conclusion that he lapses into ecstatic worship for the next few verses (Romans 11:33-36)."

"Another example is Romans 11:32, which says, "God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them all." It is very clear from reading the whole chapter of Romans 11 that when it says "everyone" was bound over to disobedience, it is referring to every single person. So, when the verse speaks of God having mercy on them "all", it is once more referring to every person. There are many other scriptures like this. Just a few examples include John 12:32, 1 Timothy 4:10, Colossians 1:19, Lamentations 3:31, Eph. 1:9 & 10, 1 Cor. 15:28, and Rev. 5:13.

Importantly, the Christian scriptures define "eternal life" not as an endless duration of life but as a certain quality of life. That is, eternal life is defined as the quality of life that a person has when a person is living in communion with That which is Eternal. This is how Jesus is quoted as defining it: "Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent" (John 17:3).

Similarly, He says, "You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that by them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me, yet you refuse to come to Me to have life" (John 5:39 - 40). I'll return to this line of thought later in this article."

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