I wonder if this debate even matters in the long run. Regardless of which position one holds, the wrath and curse of God is terrifying whether it remains ongoing for eternity or not.
The apostles Plato and Socrates notwithstanding, Scripture's emphasis is on the
resurrection rather than "going to heaven when you die."
I find strong evidence for both positions. Moses and Elijah on the mount of Transfiguration with Christ is pretty convincing evidence of a conscious "intermediate state," for one example.
And yet we find other examples from sacred Scripture that seem to support "conditionalism." I wrote a little about the controversy on my blog
here.
Excerpt:
It doesn’t seem to make much sense (not that it needs to, however) that a sinner who dies without Christ goes straight to hell, only to be raised physically from the dead and judged on the Last Day. I don’t see it as if the angel looks into the Book of Life and says, “Oh, there it is! Enter into the joy of your Lord. Oh by the way, sorry about all those years in fiery torment, my bad.” Or the angel doesn’t find the name in the Book of Life and sends the sinner back where he was before the Resurrection.
It should make no difference in how we present the gospel to sinners, whether they
immediately go to heaven or hell or whether they await the judgment in utter insensibility for however long until Judgment Day.
