There were comments in my exposure against the Late L. Ray Smith and Gary Amirault, claiming that perfect love that defeats fear claiming that God is not fear but love. This is highly bizarre as I try to clear this error on the word "fear".
1 John 4:18 KJV "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because
fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love."
The universalist church tries to confuse the word fear with the fear of God. So what fear is Paul is speaking? Let's look at Albert Barnes' notes on the verse:
Because fear hath torment - It is a painful and distressing emotion.
Thus men suffer from the fear of poverty, of losses, of bereavement, of
sickness, of death, and of future woe. From all these distressing
apprehensions, that love of God which furnishes an evidence of true
piety delivers us.
Not the torment that God would cast upon the unrepentant, but it is the hard times that we go through. We fear of dying every time we go to the funeral of our loved ones who passed away. We fear of something we could get hurt or sick, by eating something that doesn't taste good or not wearing safety equipment
The second type of fear is "evil" as we read the 23rd of Psalms:
"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
Love doesn't remove the fear of God but the fear of evil.
This is what Satan wants you to believe is that love conquers the fear of God. We need to remind ourselves that we should not confuse the fear of God with the fear of evil.
Universalists claim that all of the mid-first, second and third century christians were Unitarian. This is not true.
Clement of Alexandria was a Trinitarian in the First century.
All men (The saved) are Christ's, some by knowing (obeying) Him , the rest not yet (That is hearing and obeying The Word). He (Jesus) is the
Savior, not of some and the rest not (that is those who have not obeyed Christ and repented). For how is He Savior and Lord, if
not the Savior and Lord of all?
Justin Martyr was a Trinitarian, he wrote in his first apology, and his dialogue with Trypho the Jew (all of Justin Martyr's quotes are long, cannot post them all)
Origen rejected John's view of the Trinity, also denied that God is the All in All. Not "will" but "is" the All in All.
Iraneaus
Tertillian who was also a Trinitarian
Augustine was a Trinitarian but He rejected Origen's view of universalism. His view of eternal was rather called purgatory, a place that those who are not Catholic goes there. Same teaching that is taught by the Anglicans, Lutherans, Wesleyans
The Arians were universalists but their view got rejected by the Council of Nicea. They believe that Jesus is the Logos where of in the late 19th Century, the Watchtower Cult (Jehovah's Witnesses) got it from.
Methodius was also a trinitarian but he believed that mankind has the freedom to choose eternal life or eternal separation (Free Will).
Jerome was also a Trinitarian but the universalists have confuse Jerome's quote "In the end and consummation of the Universe all are to be restored into
their original harmonious state, and we all shall be made one body and
be united once more into a perfect man and the prayer of our Savior
shall be fulfilled that all may be one." applying to all mankind. Unfortunately Jerome was only referring to believers. Most of all, it is clear as quoted by Jerome that the universe will be uncreated (See John MacArthur's "The End of the Universe"), but as we read "God makes all things new" God will make a New Heaven and a New Earth as promised in the Old Testament.
Sometimes Universalists will use John 8:15 implying that God doesn't judge anyone by their sins, however they will fail to read verse 16 .
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