Hell Is Real
Introduction:
According to Gallup
research, 94% of U.S. adults believe in God or a universal spirit; 84%
believe Jesus Christ is God or the Son of God; and 53% believe in a literal
hell.
A Newsweek poll found
that 94% of Americans believe in God; 77% believe in a heaven; 76% think
they have a good or excellent chance of getting there. 58% of those surveyed
believe in hell.
The article examines
the history of the doctrines of heaven and hell in Christian and Jewish
traditions. According to church historian Martin Marty, hell began to disappear
in the 19th century, and no one seemed to notice. When Marty prepared a
Harvard lecture on the disappearance of hell, he consulted the indices
of several scholarly journals, including one dating back to 1889, and failed
to find a single entry.
In rejecting heaven
and hell, one also rejects the awesome seriousness of moral and immoral
behavior. But for those who take God seriously, human freedom means the
capacity to make moral decisions, which have radical and enduring consequences.
In general more adults
in the U.S. believe in hell now than did 40 years ago. The concept was
losing ground as recently as 1980 when just over half of those surveyed
said they believed in hell. By 1990 the percentage had risen to 60%.
Others say the prevalence
of suffering and violence in modern society makes hell seem more plausible.
Perhaps it simply reflects a nostalgic longing for the uncomplicated beliefs
of childhood.
Hell, then is not a
place created by a God bent on getting even, but the alienation we choose
for ourselves. Heaven, on the other hand, is for lovers- -of others and
of God.
Atheist: Do you honestly
believe that Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of a
whale? Preacher: I don't know, sir, but when I get to heaven, I'm gonna
ask him about it. Atheist: But what if he isn't in heaven? Preacher: Then
YOU can ask him!
A. The Bible emphatically
teaches that there are two gates which men may enter, two ways men may
walk, and two destines men may reach.
B. Jesus taught two
destinies.
Mt 7:13-14
Enter ye in at the
strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to
destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the
gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be
that find it. (KJV)
Luke 16:19-34
C. We sing a song "How
Beautiful Heaven Must Be", but there is another destiny.
Too many willfully close
their eyes to the awful place of torment; the Devil is working day and
night persuading men that God will accept them in their present condition.
Many believe in universal
salvation.
Priest who said that
there is a little good in all men; when God comes He will only look at
the good in man.
I. What Is Hell?
A. It is not just a
by-word or fantasy of man's imagination. Hell is a reality; a real place
for real people.
To deny the reality
of Hell is to deny the character of God as revealed in God's word.
God is love.
1 John 4:16
And we have known and
believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth
in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. (KJV)
But there is another
characteristic of God.
Romans 12:19
Dearly beloved, avenge
not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance
is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. (KJV)
To deny God's vengeance
would be to deny his entire character, and the reality of God.
B. A place to fear,
and avoid!
Mt 18:8-9
Wherefore if thy hand
or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better
for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands
or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offends
thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter
into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell
fire. (KJV)
Mt 10:28 And fear not
them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather
fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (KJV)
C. A lake of fire and
brimstone.
Rev 20:10
And the devil that
deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast
and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever
and ever. (KJV)
Gen 19:24
Then the LORD rained
upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;
(KJV)
D. A bottomless pit.
Rev 20:3 And cast him
into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that
he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be
fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. (KJV)
E. Like an oriental
death house with weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth.
Mt 8:12
But the children of
the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping
and gnashing of teeth. (KJV)
F. Place of outer darkness.
Mt 8:12
But the children of
the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping
and gnashing of teeth. (KJV)
Some years ago my family
visited a cave in the state of Kentucky. The guide led us through many
beautiful and winding subterranean passageways. Suddenly he turned off
all the lights and said, " I'm the only one who knows how to get back to
the entrance. If I left you here, you'd probably never find your way out.
Anyone lost in this cave would no doubt become insane within a week from
the oppressive loneliness. Be quiet for a moment and feel the darkness!"
I remember my youngster clutching my arm. After about 30 seconds, someone
in the party could endure it no longer and cried out, "Turn on the lights!
I'm going crazy now!" The guide laughed, but we'll not soon forget that
frightening experience. I thought of the "outer darkness" of Hell and shuddered!
G. Hell is a place of
immeasurable loss!
1. Lose pleasures of
this life, pleasures of sin, etc.
2. Lose fellowship with
God.
3. Lose fellowship with
loved ones here and hereafter.
The preacher was dangerously
ill and couldn't have visitors. But when an agnostic called to pay his
respects, the preacher asked that he be sent in anyway. "I sure appreciate
this," said the agnostic. " But why did you ask to see me, when you denied
admission to your close friends and church members?" "That's easy to explain,"
gasped the dying preacher. "I'm confident of seeing them in Heaven. But
this is probably the last chance I'll ever have to see you."
A warden at a large
prison was concerned about a longtime inmate because no one ever came to
see him. Knowing that visitors boost morale, he called the man into his
office one day. "Lefty," he asked, "do you have any close relatives or
personal friends?" "Sure," Lefty answered. "But no one has visited you
since the day you arrived. May I contact somebody for you?" "It wouldn't
do no good," Lefty replied with a shrug. "They're all here!"
This brings to mind
a sobering fact. Some unbelievers try to soften the harsh reality of an
eternal Hell by glibly saying, "Oh, it won't be so bad because a lot of
my friends will be there, too." How tragic! The expressions "outer darkness"
and "weeping and gnashing of teeth" make it obvious that the agony of eternal
perdition will be all consuming. The consolation of fellowship and friendship
will be absent.
5. All hope will be
lost, even the hope of dying. "In hell their worm dieth not, and the fire
is not quenched."
Rev 14:11
And the smoke of their
torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night,
who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of
his name. (KJV)
H. Hell will be a place
of painful remorse, sorrow, shame, and self condemnation will be in every
heart, the hopelessness and despair will be overwhelming.
I. The duration of hell
will be eternal.
Mt 25:46 And these shall
go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
KJV)
A pamphlet contained
the dying words of various people who were unsaved. It quoted Thomas Hobbes
the atheist as saying, "I am taking a fearful leap into the dark!" The
French infidel Voltaire cried out, "I am abandoned by God and man; I shall
go to Hell!" Sir Francis Newport wailed in anguish, "Oh, that I could lie
for a thousand years upon the fire that is never quenched, to purchase
the favor of God and be united to Him again. But it is a fruitless wish.
Millions and millions of years will bring me no nearer the end of my torments
than one poor hour. Oh, eternity, eternity forever and forever! Oh, the
insufferable pangs of Hell!"
1. No reform school
from which to graduate. Purgatory is a wistful dream.
2. Hell is not a preparation
for heaven. No missionaries will ever be sent there.
II. Who Is Going
There?
A. Unbelievers.
2 Thes 1:7-9
And to you who are
troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven
with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know
not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 9 Who shall
be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of his power; (KJV)
1 Cor 6:9-11
Do you not know that
the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither
the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes
nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers
nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of
you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (NIV)
B. Those who believe
not the truth.
2 Thes 2:11-12
And for this cause
God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That
they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness.
C. Angels who sin.
2 Peter 2:4
For if God spared not
the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them
into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; (KJV)
D. Unfaithful Christians.
2 Pet 2:20-21
For if after they have
escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the
latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better
for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have
known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
III. Why Is There
Such A Place?
A. Wrong Choices.
1. God doesn't force
anyone into eternal punishment. It is a matter of choice.
Mt 7:13-14
Enter ye in at the
strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to
destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the
gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be
that find it. (KJV)
Josh 24:15
And if it seem evil
unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether
the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood,
or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and
my house, we will serve the LORD. (KJV)
Mt 6:24
No man can serve two
masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he
will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
(KJV)
2. God does not choose
eternal punishment for any of us we make that choice ourselves.
3. "Few there be that
find it" because very few are willing to make the right choice.
4. Choose to serve the
Devil and you chose the destiny of the Devil.
Mt 25:41
Then shall he say also
unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting
fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: (KJV)
Mt 13:41 The Son of
man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom
all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; (KJV)
5. God and Satan become
two magnets attracting men.
a. Satan appeals to
man through lusts, and ignorance.
Jo 8:44
Ye are of your father
the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from
the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in
him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar,
and the father of it. (KJV)
b. God appeals to man
through truth, ideas and lasting values.
Jo 8:32
And ye shall know the
truth, and the truth shall make you free. (KJV)
Phil 2:7-8
But made himself of
no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in
the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled
himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (KJV)
Mt 16:26
For what is a man profited,
if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall
a man give in exchange for his soul? (KJV)
B. Hell exists because
we need the restraints of fear as well as the allurements of love.
Prov 1:7
The fear of the LORD
is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
(KJV)
Heb 12:11
No discipline seems
pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest
of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (NIV)
1. Imagine a law without
a penalty attached for violation. "Where there is no penalty, the law is
null and void."
There is an old law
on the books in Newbern, Tennessee, where a person was fined for spitting
on sidewalk. The law is no longer enforced and therefore is null and void.
2. If there were no
hell there would be no law.
3. Reality of discipline
keeps children obedient.
CONCLUSION:
A. 1 Tim 2:4 who wants
all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. (NIV)
John 3:16
"For God so loved the
world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall
not perish but have eternal life. (NIV)
2 Pet 3:9
The Lord is not slack
concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering
to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come
to repentance. (KJV)
B. Jesus died for all
that they might be saved.
He 2:9
But we see Jesus, who
was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned
with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for
every man. (KJV)
2 Cor 5:15
And that he died for
all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but
unto him which died for them, and rose again. (KJV)
C. Satan wishes to convince
men that sin really isn't that bad, then when man sins Satan persuades
men that they are given over to sin.
The power of God will
assist you to overcome sin and avoid this awful destiny.
John 14:1-3
Let not your heart
be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house
are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare
a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again,
and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (KJV)
