Lewis's belief that "the doors of hell are locked from the inside" (PoP, 130) has really been troubling me. I really don't understand how this could be true. I know that Lewis is trying to make the point that a person's unwillingness to submit themselves to God is what put them in hell, and I agree. But can we really assume that is what is keeping them there? I think if these people saw Jesus face to face and he said "I never knew you" they would be struck by Christ's glory and know for certain that they had missed it. I think they will realize that the sovereign God of the universe truly exists and that surrendering their self-will for His service would have been definately worth the sacrifice. But it will be too late. If hell truly is a lake of fire and a place with weeping a gnashing of teeth like the bible says it is, I don't think people will "enjoy forever the horrible freedom they have demanded. I think it will be horrible, but I don't think there will be enjoyment or freedom.
And what about when the Bible says "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" ? I could be wrong, but I have always thought that "under the earth" was talking about hell. Lewis thinks that souls in hell will not want to surrender themselves to God, but I think that they will want that more than anything else, but they will never be able to do so because they are eternally separated from Him.
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I have thought about the idea of souls locking themselves in hell. I was introduced to it a couple years back and I can understand where someone would feel the need to turn away from God.
People may turn away from God knowing that he is the sovereign lord and that they desire to be with him and follow God, but they also know that they are so covered with sin that they damn themselves because they feel the need to hide themselves from God. It is kind of like a child that has done something wrong, they know that they have done something wrong and they feel really bad about what they did. Now, the parent has come home and they are too ashamed of themselves to go see the parent. Also we can look back to Genesis. Adam lived with God, he knew God's face and voice. One day Adam and Eve both ate the apple and turned themselves from God and hid because they were ashamed.
Because of that, I can see why the gates of Hell may be locked from the inside.
The phrase 'the gates of hell are locked from the inside' goes beyond religion and into something better described as spirituality.
We are our own keepers. We let the thoughts in our head define us in our analytical mind and let our actions be affected by this inner monologue which often stems from routine and patterns, essentially the past.
If your current thought process is based in the present and not the past you will be free.
We let thoughts in our mind own us and define us. We all hold our own key.
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