Aug 25, 2026 · 8 min · 7 segments
Why do some people claim that hell will ultimately be unpopulated? Today, Barry Cooper contrasts this idea with the clear teaching of Jesus on who will inherit eternal life and who will not. Read the…
You're a wise individual, so you ask an important question of a person standing nearby, "What must I do to get across here safely?" Now, if that bystander is a universalist, their answer will be something like this, "You don't need to do anything in particular to get across the minefield safely.
Everyone gets across safely." That's universalism, the idea that ultimately everyone is saved, regardless of whether or not they have put their trust in Christ.
To quote theologian J.I. Packer, "A universalist is someone who believes that every human being whom God has created or will create will finally come to enjoy the everlasting salvation into which Christians enter here and now." Regardless of whether you're Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Protestant Evangelical, all agree that universalism is outside the bounds of Orthodox Christian teaching.
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You're a wise individual, so you ask an important question of a person standing nearby, "What must I do to get across here safely?" Now, if that bystander is a universalist, their answer will be something like this, "You don't need to do anything in particular to get across the minefield safely.
Everyone gets across safely." That's universalism, the idea that ultimately everyone is saved, regardless of whether or not they have put their trust in Christ.
To quote theologian J.I. Packer, "A universalist is someone who believes that every human being whom God has created or will create will finally come to enjoy the everlasting salvation into which Christians enter here and now." Regardless of whether you're Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Protestant Evangelical, all agree that universalism is outside the bounds of Orthodox Christian teaching.
