My Testimony

[Guest rodgertutt]

Because my testimony is helping so many people, I am posting it here so it will stay on your front page for awhile if that's ok with you. The many entries in my guest book that is accessible towards the bottom of the front page on my site, and the many positive emails in my email file folders, show that the content of my testimony is helping many people. http://greater-emmanuel.org/Hope4You/ (nothing for sale on this site)

 

 

MY TESTIMONY

 

 

The idea that God lets any creature suffer endlessly has caused me more suffering than all other problems of my life combined. By the time I had reached the mission field I had hoped to have found a satisfactory answer that would justify God allowing this to happen. I didn't find such an answer. Surrounded by thousands of people, dozens of whom were dying every day and beginning an eternity of suffering in hell was too much for me.

 

In 1966, at age 28, it caused me to have a nervous breakdown. For several weeks I was confined to my bed in a state of terror night and day. The terror was caused by the fear of what a God I could not love or respect would do to me after I died. It took me twelve years to fully recover from the breakdown. I quickly became agnostic, for the Christian gospel and the Bible were no longer any comfort to me at all. Many evangelical friends tried to help me. They meant well, but in the end they all had only words of condemnation towards me. This added more suffering to my already intense suffering.

 

Gradually I began to learn that there have been, in centuries past, and still are today, a few people in the world that see a different kind of God in the Bible. They see a God who will not let any creature suffer forever. They see a God in the Bible who will change every second of everyone's suffering into something better that it happened, including the sufferings of Satan. I learned that a correctly (literally) translated Bible teaches universal transformation, not endless suffering in hell, or even annihilation. I read dozens of books, and listened to hundreds of tapes by men who believe this way and I gradually became converted to believing this way myself.

 

Since 1981, through my newspaper ads and my telephone ministry, I have sent out many hundreds of packets of literature explaining why I believe as I do. I have also sent this evidence to hundreds of pastors and Bible school teachers. None of them have told me that they are able to refute it. I have also read eight books that were supposed to refute the evidence in favor of universalism, but none of them do. Because of this evidence, my panic attacks became less frequent until twelve years after my breakdown they ceased altogether. Now nothing gives me greater pleasure than to make this evidence available to others who have suffered because of the same problem I had even though they have embraced Christ and His gospel for themselves, and I use a substantial amount of my money and time to this end.

 

Because of the enormous amount of suffering the idea of "endless hell" causes in this world, I am asking you to consider the possibility that you should stop endorsing the idea that the Bible teaches it. Or, at least, let others know that there are (and have been in centuries past) people who do not think the Bible teaches it.

 

Many of the responses from pastors and teachers range from a mild: "The majority don't agree with you so you must be wrong", to the vicious "For every week you leave your ad in the papers, God will increase the temperature of the fires of hell for you personally".

Most are somewhere in between these remarks. But none have told me they are able to refute the evidence. And, until they can, they will not be able to stop me from sharing the good news that a correctly (literally) translated Bible teaches universal transformation, not endless suffering in hell, or even annihilation.

 

A website that answers all the arguments that seem to support the idea that the Bible teaches endless suffering in hell is TENTMAKER. Although forum rules prevent me from posting forum links, you can easily Google it up. The “scholar’s corner” under “research” deals with every aspect of the subject. The more than 600 page search engine at the top of this same TENTMAKER front page is also very comprehensive regarding this subject. Just type in a key word or phrase from any argument or scripture passage, and ten articles will appear that refute the eternal hell and annihilation doctrines.

 

I am also going to guide you all to the testimony of a man whose experience was almost identical to mine. Even the thought processes that took him into, through, and out of his breakdown are the same as mine. Only he is much more eloquent in telling his story than I am in telling mine. His name is Charles Slagle.

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/Absolute-As...sus-Christ.html

 

It may well be that a few members of this form or surfers will be able to benefit from the testimonies of Charles and myself.

 

May God's blessing rest with your spirit!

From Rodger Tutt in Toronto, Canada

“That God may be All in all” 1Cor.15:28

[Guest rodgertutt]

My name is Rodger Tutt. I am 68 years old. I could have avoided a horrific twelve year nervous breakdown had I known as a youth about the following information concerning what a correctly (literally, not interpretively) Bible teaches.

 

BOOKS THAT SHOW THAT THE BIBLE TEACHES UNIVERSAL SALVATION, THE ENTIRE CONTENTS OF WHICH CAN BE READ ONLINE

 

1. HOPE BEYOND HELL - Gerry Beauchemin (recently published)

http://www.hopebeyondhell.net/index.html

2. CHRIST TRIUMPHANT - Thomas Allin

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/ChristTriumphant.htm

3. THE BIBLE HELL - J.W. Hanson

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/TheBibleHell.html

4. THE ORIGON AND HISTORY OF THE DOCTRINE OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT – Thomas Thayer

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/OriginandHistory.html

5. THE OUTCOME OF INFINITE GRACE – Dr. Loyal Hurley

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/infinitegrace.htm

6. JUST WHAT DO YOU MEAN "HELL" - J. Preston Eby

http://www.tentmaker.org/articles/savior-o...-world/hell.htm

7. ONE HUNDRED SCRIPTURAL PROOFS THAT JESUS CHRIST WILL SAVE ALL MANKIND - Thomas Whittemore

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/ScripturalProofs.html

8. TWENTY-FOUR SERMONS ON UNIVERSAL SALVATION – John Bovee Dods

http://www.tentmaker.org/Bovee2.htm#Top

9. THE SECOND DEATH AND THE RESTITUTION OF ALL THINGS – Andrew Jukes

http://www.tentmaker.org/restitutionindex.htm

10. ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY REASONS FOR BELIEVING IN THE FINAL SALVATION OF ALL MANKIND – Erasmus Manford

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/150reasons.html

11. THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS – J. Patching

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/RichManandL...s-Patching.html

12. BIBLE TRANSLATIONS THAT DO NOT TEACH ETERNAL TORMENT – Gary Amirault

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/GatesOfHell.html

13. AION – AIONIOS – John Wesley Hanson

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/Aion_lim.html

14. BIBLE THREATENINGS EXPLAINED – John Wesley Hanson

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/BibleThreat...sExplained.html

15. THE CASE OF JUDAS, ETCETERA

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/asw/Chapter16.html

16. THE PROBLEM OF EVIL – John Essex

AND THE ROLE OF THE ADVERSARY – James Webb

http://www.tentmaker.org/articles/TheProblemofEvil.html

17. HIS ACHIEVEMENT ARE WE – James Coram

http://concordant.org/expohtml/HisAchievement/index.html

[Fweethawt]

rodgertutt,

 

One of the very last things that will be tolerated in the ExChristian Testimony section is any attempt to reconcile any type of biblical beliefs with the members who have gone through, or are going through, the deconversion process. If it is their wish to do so, they are free to observe/join the multitudes of Christian Websites™ out there on the Internet.

 

As you can see, I have merged the two topics that you posted in the Testimonies forum, and I will move them to a more appropriate part of the forum. Any further postings of this nature that are placed withing the Testimony section will also be merged with this thread.

 

I apologize for the inconvenience.

 

-Fwee

[riverbank]

Hi there,

 

I went through a time when i feared hell, it's a very pleasant experience eh?

 

I can see where you're coming from in a way, but to be blunt, I do not know how anyone can come to the conclusion that the bible teaches universal salvation. What about the book of Revelation? That doesn't paint a pretty picture does it? What about Jesus' sayings, such as "He who believes and is baptised will be saved, he who does not believe will be condemned" and "The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide enough for all the multitudes who choose the easy way". And certainly us apostates are screwed according to the bible. This seems pretty clear cut to me, no matter what translations of the bible you make. If you can twist these scriptures around to make the bible sound like the christian god is all nice, then you may aswell re-write the whole bible or something.

 

I am not saying there isn't a god and I'm not saying that universalism is wrong, but if universalism is true, then God DEFINITELY is not the God of the Bible. He is a different God entirely.

 

Anyway, I'm glad you recovered from your breakdown.

 

best regards to you

[riverbank]

just curious, do you go to a church at all?

 

I have read most of the site with the testimony from that other guy. His viewpoints are fairly interesting. Of course he would be considered a heretic by a lot of churches and christians.

[chefranden]

Damn, finally a true prophet of God has come!

 

 

 

 

Put him in the bin with the other true prophets!

 

 

And don't let him shake the dust off his feet. I just swept up in here!

[mick]

First of all, your position is a hundred billion billion times better morally than the traditional position. I spent a very very brief time hoping UR might be true.

 

However, the attrociousness of the god of the OT is so heinous, that it wouldn't matter much to me if there was no eternal hell afterwards. (Though I admit it would be alot better)

 

My bigger question for you would be why believe the Bible at all at this point? The Bible itself is completely false and utterly awful.

 

 

I hope this doesn't sound harsh. It just feels like the Truth. Perhaps the reason you required a 12 year nervous breakdown is because you can't let go of stupid ancient horror stories like the Bible? None of us here want to waist 12 years "struggling" with this shit to that extent. (Many of us have already suffered in various ways WHILE being Christian and in the deconversion process.

 

My feeling is it is clear that the Bible is totally shit at this point. Why in the name of any Gawd would I waste any more time in my life on it? You probably still pray, give money, worry if you might be wrong, stuff like that. When you allow yourself to truly wake up to the mind bogglingly fantastical bull shit nature of the entire thing you will be more healthy.

 

I can't think of a position that would MORE lonely than the Universal Reconsiliation position. You go to church, and disagree with the pastor almost as much as we do. And you still believe in Yahweh and all his shit. And you must wonder a bit more than the reast of us if you are wrong. It is alot easier to know it is shit, if you stop trying to convince yourself it's true, but true the way you want it to be.

 

You are right about one thing. No good god is going to send people to torment and torture for all eternity. However, no good god would commit all the attrocities of Yahweh, send hurricanes and famines, let children die of terrible diseases, create the diseases in the first place. I must say that UR Christians have defended the attrocities of Yahweh to me in even more sickening ways than some fundies.

[trashy]

A drive-by poster pushing a watered-down version of Christianity.

 

Why is this post even allowed here?

 

What's next, free Jack Chick tract offers?

 

[Piprus]

This is not the place to be evangelizing or proseletyzing for christianity, not even your kinder-gentler version. Not appreciated.

[R. S. Martin]

This is not the place to be evangelizing or proseletyzing for christianity, not even your kinder-gentler version. Not appreciated.

 

I was surprised it didn't get deleted right away.