The Christ of the Logos

From the second century onward, the message of Jesus was misunderstood and misrepresented by orthodoxy, reshaped to fit theological constructs that diverged from the essence of what he proclaimed. To understand Jesus' true message, it is crucial to reconnect with the Jewish context of the Messiah and expand our view beyond the narrow interpretations imposed by later orthodoxy. In Jewish tradition, the Messiah was never confined to the role of a divine savior who rescues humanity from sin in the penal sense but was envisioned as an anointed figure—a king, prophet, or priest—tasked with restoring harmony and leading humanity into alignment with God’s purposes. This broader understanding provides a foundation to revisit Jesus’ teachings through a lens that unveils the universal, transformative nature of his message.

Jesus did not come to establish a religion but to awaken humanity to the divine truth within themselves. His message was one of participation in the divine nature, an idea that resonates profoundly with the Jewish and early Christian understanding of humanity’s relationship with God. The divine nature is the essence of creative consciousness, an eternal flow of life and love emanating from the Source. The Logos, or divine Word, is the way this creative consciousness manifests and interacts with creation. It is the blueprint of existence, the organizing principle that brings order out of chaos and life out of nothingness. Jesus embodied this Logos fully, but his role was not to monopolize it. Instead, he came to reveal that this same Logos is imprinted within all of humanity, making each person a participant in the divine creative process.

The term “Christ” is not exclusive to Jesus; it represents the anointing of the Logos, the activation of divine consciousness within creation. In this sense, Jesus was the Christ not in a singular, exclusionary sense but as the exemplar of what it means to live in full awareness of the Christ within. He came to demonstrate that humanity, collectively, is the Christ of the Logos—the vessel through which divine creativity is expressed in the world. When orthodoxy isolated the term "Christ" to Jesus alone, it inadvertently diminished the scope of his message. Instead of inviting humanity to recognize their shared identity as bearers of the divine anointing, orthodoxy created a chasm, elevating Jesus as uniquely divine while leaving the rest of humanity stranded in sinfulness and separation.

Jesus’ message, properly understood, aligns with the concept of the Cosmic Christ or the Universal Christ—a reality that transcends time, space, and individual identity. The Cosmic Christ is not confined to a single historical figure but represents the eternal presence of the Logos in all creation. It is the unifying force that holds all things together, the light that shines in the darkness, and the love that sustains life. When Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” he was not presenting himself as the sole path to God but was speaking as the embodiment of the Logos, the universal principle through which humanity comes to know and experience the divine. His statement was an invitation to recognize the Logos within and to follow the same path of awakening that he exemplified.

The Universal Christ is also intimately tied to the concept of Christ consciousness—a state of being in which one lives in full awareness of their unity with the divine. Christ consciousness is not a distant ideal reserved for the spiritually elite but the natural state of humanity when we transcend the illusions of separation and fear. Jesus demonstrated this consciousness in his life and teachings, showing that it is characterized by love, compassion, humility, and creative power. He taught that the Kingdom of God is within us, emphasizing that the divine reality is not a distant realm but an ever-present truth that can be accessed by anyone who seeks it with an open heart and mind.

When we embrace the idea that humanity collectively bears the Christ of the Logos, it transforms our understanding of ourselves and our purpose. We are not merely passive recipients of grace or salvation but active participants in the divine creative process. The Logos flows through us, inviting us to co-create with God and bring the Kingdom of God into tangible reality. This understanding also redefines the nature of salvation, shifting it from a transactional exchange to a transformative awakening. Salvation is not about escaping judgment or punishment but about realizing our true identity as children of God, made in the divine image and called to reflect the divine nature in our lives.

This realization challenges the hierarchical structures of traditional orthodoxy, which often emphasize authority and control over spiritual exploration and personal transformation. If we are all participants in the divine nature, then no institution or individual can claim exclusive access to the truth. The Christ of the Logos is universal, present in every person, and manifesting uniquely through the diversity of human experience. This perspective fosters a more inclusive and egalitarian approach to spirituality, one that honors the sacredness of all people and seeks to build bridges rather than walls.

The implications of this understanding extend far beyond theology. Recognizing the Christ of the Logos within ourselves and others changes the way we relate to the world. It calls us to live with greater love, creativity, and responsibility. As bearers of the divine anointing, we are called to heal the brokenness around us, to bring light into darkness, and to co-create a world that reflects the beauty and harmony of the divine nature. This is not an abstract or theoretical task but a practical and urgent calling that touches every aspect of life—relationships, work, community, and the environment.

By reclaiming Jesus’ true message, we also reclaim the dignity and potential of humanity. We are not fallen creatures destined for condemnation but divine beings on a journey of awakening and transformation. Jesus came to remind us of who we are and to guide us back to the truth that has always been within us. His life, death, and resurrection are not merely historical events but symbols of the universal process of dying to the illusions of the ego and rising into the fullness of divine consciousness.

The misunderstanding of Jesus’ message by orthodoxy has led to centuries of spiritual alienation and confusion, but the truth of the Logos cannot be silenced or diminished. It continues to speak through creation, through the hearts and minds of those who seek it, and through the life and teachings of Jesus himself. As we open ourselves to this truth, we begin to see the world and ourselves in a new light. We realize that we are not separate from God but intimately connected to the Source of all life. We see that the divine nature is not something to be earned or achieved but something to be embraced and lived.

The Christ of the Logos invites us to step into our true identity and purpose, to awaken to the divine within, and to join in the cosmic dance of creation. This is the message that Jesus came to reveal—a message that transcends the limitations of orthodoxy and speaks directly to the heart of every person. It is a message of hope, love, and infinite possibility, calling us to rise above fear and division and to live as the anointed children of God, co-creators of a world filled with light, love, and joy. 

Six Reasons Why Bishop Carlton Pearson Was Right About Hell: A Biblical and Historical Perspective

The story of Bishop Carlton Pearson’s transformation from a prominent Pentecostal preacher to a vocal proponent of what he calls the “Gospel of Inclusion” is one that has stirred widespread debate in the Christian world. In the late 1990s, Pearson began to question the traditional doctrine of hell, suggesting that a loving God wouldn’t condemn people to eternal torment. His shift in theology, which led to his rejection of hell as traditionally understood, caused him to be ostracized by many in the Christian community. Yet, as we explore both the teachings of Jesus and the writings of the Apostle Paul, we find strong biblical and theological foundations that support Pearson’s perspective.

Here, we’ll examine why Bishop Carlton Pearson’s understanding of hell as a metaphor rather than a literal place of eternal punishment aligns closely with the teachings of Jesus and Paul, as well as with early Christian beliefs about justice, restoration, and God’s love.

1. Jesus’ Use of Gehenna and Hyperbole

To understand why the traditional concept of hell may be inconsistent with Jesus’ teachings, we need to consider his use of the term “Gehenna.” In many English translations of the Bible, Gehenna is translated as “hell,” but the term has a specific historical and cultural context. Gehenna (or “Ge-Hinnom”) was a real place—a valley outside Jerusalem associated with idolatry, child sacrifices, and, later, with a site for burning refuse. By Jesus’ time, it symbolized a place of judgment and purification rather than a literal realm of eternal torment.

When Jesus warned people about Gehenna, it’s likely he was using hyperbole, a common rhetorical technique in first-century Jewish teaching. Jesus often used vivid, exaggerated language to stress the seriousness of moral choices, but his intent wasn’t to endorse a place of everlasting punishment. For instance, when Jesus spoke about cutting off a hand or plucking out an eye to avoid Gehenna (Matthew 5:29-30), he was clearly using metaphorical language. This kind of hyperbole was meant to convey the urgency of ethical living and the serious consequences of unloving behavior—not to describe a literal place of eternal suffering.

Jesus often challenged the Pharisees and religious leaders of his time, who emphasized doctrines of purification and punishment as motivators for religious adherence. By referencing Gehenna, he could have been critiquing the fear-based approach that emphasized outward behavior over inner transformation. In this way, Jesus’ references to Gehenna align more closely with a call for present-life transformation and a warning against the natural consequences of unethical living, rather than a belief in post-mortem punishment.

2. The Apostle Paul’s Silence on Hell

Perhaps even more striking than Jesus’ use of Gehenna is the complete silence of the Apostle Paul on the topic of hell. Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament and is considered one of the foundational voices of early Christianity, never mentioned hell as a place of eternal torment. Instead, Paul’s writings focused on themes like grace, reconciliation, and the transformative power of the resurrection. His emphasis was on salvation as a present experience of living in unity with Christ, rather than a fear-driven avoidance of eternal punishment.

Paul often spoke about consequences for sin, but he framed these in terms of “death” or “destruction”—language that suggests separation from God rather than endless suffering. For example, in Romans 6:23, he writes, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Here, Paul contrasts spiritual death with the promise of life, focusing on the gift of life in Christ rather than the threat of eternal punishment. Similarly, when Paul mentions “perishing” or “being cut off,” he uses these terms in a way that suggests a loss or cessation, not a never-ending hell.

Paul’s silence on hell supports Pearson’s view that the traditional doctrine may be a later development in Christian history, influenced more by medieval theology than by early Christian beliefs. The absence of hell in Paul’s teachings indicates that, for him, the core of the gospel was the hope of resurrection and the transformative power of God’s grace, not fear of eternal punishment.

3. Reconciliation, Grace, and a Restorative View of Justice

At the heart of Paul’s gospel is reconciliation—God’s act of restoring humanity into right relationship with Him. Throughout his letters, Paul emphasizes that God’s love is unconditional, an idea echoed in Jesus’ teachings. For both Jesus and Paul, God’s justice is restorative, focused on healing and transformation, rather than retributive, aimed at punishing sin forever.

The traditional concept of hell as a place of eternal torment contradicts this understanding of God’s justice. If God’s justice is truly restorative, then the ultimate purpose of judgment would be correction and healing, not unending punishment. This aligns with Pearson’s belief that God’s love is too vast and merciful to consign anyone to eternal suffering. Pearson’s “Gospel of Inclusion” suggests that God’s grace is for all people, and that God’s desire is for every person to be reconciled to Him—a concept deeply rooted in Paul’s teachings on grace and the transformative power of God’s love.

4. Early Christian Views and the Development of Hell Doctrine

The doctrine of hell as eternal torment did not emerge until centuries after Jesus and Paul. In the early church, many Christians held a view called “universal reconciliation,” which suggested that all souls would ultimately be reconciled to God. Early theologians like Origen believed that even the most hardened sinners would undergo a period of purification before eventually being restored. It was only in the medieval period, with theologians like Augustine, that the notion of eternal, conscious torment became mainstream in Western Christianity.

This historical context suggests that the doctrine of hell as eternal punishment is not intrinsic to the gospel message but is a later addition, influenced by cultural and philosophical factors. In this light, Pearson’s rejection of hell aligns with an older and arguably more biblically consistent tradition within Christianity—one that sees God’s justice as fundamentally merciful and redemptive.

5. The Dangers of a Fear-Based Faith

One of Pearson’s primary criticisms of the traditional doctrine of hell is that it promotes a fear-based approach to faith. When people are motivated by fear of punishment, they may focus on external behaviors while neglecting the transformative inner life that Jesus taught. This fear-based approach can lead to a “performance” mentality, where faith becomes about following rules to avoid punishment, rather than about growing in love, compassion, and unity with God.

Jesus’ teachings emphasize love and relationship with God as the foundation of faith, not fear of retribution. Paul also highlights that it is “the kindness of God that leads to repentance” (Romans 2:4), suggesting that genuine transformation arises from experiencing God’s grace, not from terror. Pearson’s perspective resonates with this message, encouraging believers to embrace a loving and merciful view of God that fosters inner transformation rather than external conformity.

6. Hell as a Symbol for Natural Consequences and Present-Life Transformation

When Jesus spoke of Gehenna, he was likely using it as a symbol for the natural consequences of a life lived in opposition to God’s ways. Just as physical fire consumes waste, the metaphor of fire may illustrate the way selfish or harmful behaviors ultimately destroy or consume a person’s life, relationships, and spiritual health. In this sense, “hell” can be understood as the self-inflicted suffering and separation from God’s love that people experience when they reject divine love and grace.

Bishop Carlton Pearson’s view aligns with this interpretation, suggesting that hell represents the painful realities of life disconnected from God, rather than a literal place of torment. In this view, Jesus’ warnings about Gehenna were meant to provoke a change in this life, urging people to turn away from harmful ways and embrace God’s love.

Conclusion: Why Carlton Pearson Was Right

Bishop Carlton Pearson’s message that God’s love excludes no one and that hell is not a literal place of eternal torment is rooted in both biblical teaching and early Christian tradition. The hyperbolic nature of Jesus’ references to Gehenna, Paul’s complete silence on hell, and the restorative view of God’s justice all support Pearson’s belief that the traditional doctrine of hell does not align with the gospel’s core message of love, reconciliation, and transformation.

Pearson’s “Gospel of Inclusion” echoes the foundational Christian belief that God’s love and grace are truly for all people. Rather than promoting fear of punishment, his message calls believers to a deeper understanding of God’s character as endlessly merciful and compassionate. By rejecting hell as eternal torment, Pearson invites Christians to rediscover the good news of a loving God who desires to restore and heal, not condemn.

In embracing this perspective, Pearson aligns with a gospel that celebrates God’s grace and calls us to live lives of love, compassion, and transformation. He reminds us that God’s love is too vast to be limited by human notions of retribution, pointing instead to a divine justice that seeks the ultimate reconciliation and wholeness of all creation.