If a parents want their child to be a doctor but the child chooses to be a musician, it is usually not a big deal. Even if it is, the parents almost never kill the child! So why would God damn us to hell if we do not agree with him? If we are supposed to suffer consequences for our behavior then shouldn’t God? I mean, if He wants us to have free will then He should understand that we may not always agree with Him and may seek to live our lives with our own decisions, whether it be choice of career, how we dress, or who we marry.

Let’s consider marriage for example. As we’ve said, we have the freedom to do whatever we want, but not everything we want to do is good or beneficial. If my parents had truly believed that my fiancé was going to ruin my life, they would not have sat quietly aside but would have done everything in their power to convince me to rethink marrying her. Yet I know a few people who have ignored their parents advice and went through with the wedding anyway.

Similarly, God gives us the freedom to make even the stupidest, most self-destructive choices. We all have a conscience, and mind to reason, and an inner sense of right and wrong. People like you and me are familiar enough with biblical morality that we are without excuse for knowing and adhering to God’s moral law. But if we insist on disregarding his standard for living we are free to do so; he will not stop us.

God does not punish us for disagreeing with him. But doing so is literally stupid. Who in their right mind would think that they are smarter than the all-wise Creator? If He says don’t do something it would be best to listen and at least consider why.

However, if one were not to listen, God would not necessarily interfere with that person’s free will. He allows people to live with the consequences of their actions. This is where hell comes in. For those who persist in disregarding God and distancing themselves from him, he will honor their decisions and allow them to spend eternity apart from him. That’s what hell is: separation from God. And it is pure anguish to be separated from the love of God forever, from the source and sustainer of all that is good, right, true and beautiful.