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If Jesus was dead for three days -- where did he go? The standard view for almost all of Christian history was that he went to the realm of the dead to save the lost souls who died before his crucifixion made salvation possible. But did he save only a few or ... everyone? In this episode, Bart and Megan dive into the ancient doctrine called the "Harrowing of Hell," which is still believed by millions today. But what are we to make of the idea that Jesus' salvation was universal? Literally, everyone gets saved?
Megan asks Bart:
- Why is it important to consider the teachings of the apostle Paul?
- What role did Paul’s writings play in the formation of Christianity? What role do they play in modern Christianity?
- What are the most important messages in Jesus’ teachings?
- Does Paul teach the same thing in his writings?
- If someone asked Jesus what they had to do to be saved, what would he have answered?
- If the same question was asked of Paul, would he have given the same answer?
- Why do people struggle to see these as different responses?
- What are some of the ways that Christians have tried to make these different messages mean the same thing?
- Would Paul have viewed himself as changing Jesus’ message?
- Do you see any commonalities between what Paul and Jesus said?
- Are any of their instructions contradictory, or is it possible to do what they both say?
- If you had to pick a side between Jesus and Paul, who would you go with?