Spending forever with God?

I'd like to follow up on the post from Friday about Rob Bell's forthcoming book.  No matter what he actually says in the book, what he questions, what conclusions he draws or refuses to draw, or how many books actually sell, there is a serious point to be made here.

I brought this up briefly in my earlier post.  Underneath every question about heaven, hell, eternal life, eternal damnation and all of that is another question.  It's a huge question - even bigger than what happens to you when you die.  Underneath the question about where a man or woman spends eternity (and how long he or she is in that place) is the question about how that man or woman becomes rightly related to the Creator God.

I propose this:  you do need saving from God's judgment.  He is holy and righteous.  We are neither.  He is morally and incorruptibly perfect.  We think perfect is a 10 or 27-0 or a 300 game or a hole-in-one.  He is sinless.  We are by nature and choice sinners.

Any and all judgment that we incur is rightly and justly deserved.  It's not that Jesus has to save us from God.  He has to save us from the judgment we deserve.  And He does so by giving His life in our place as a substitute, absorbing the blow of judgment, taking away our sin, and imputing to us His right-standing with God.

That last paragraph - that's the part we can't forget.  Heaven, hell, and a lot of other things take care of themselves when we get the Gospel right.

But that's just me thinking thoughts...