Chose Hell Or Salvation

Chose Hell or Salvation

Scripture: Luke 17:1-2, Psalm 139:1-3

Jesus spent much time convincing us that He cherishes and wants us to be with Him eternally. That is why He warned us of eternal hell. Indeed, Jesus taught about hell more than He taught about heaven describing hell in vivid detail. For example, in Luke 16:23, He says it is a place of torment. In Mark 9:43, He says it is an unquenchable fire; in Mark 9:48, He says it is where the worm does not die. In Luke 16:19–31, Jesus says there is no return to warn loved ones. In Matthew 10:28, He compares it to “Gehenna”, a trash dump outside the walls of Jerusalem where rubbish was burned continually and maggots abounded. In Matthew 25:30, He says hell is a place of “outer darkness” where people will gnash their teeth in anguish and regret. Hell certainly sounds like and is an awful place.

Some people believe that God will not send even the unrepentant to hell for lesser sins like white lies or friendly gossip. Although He is a forgiving God, I certainly do not know the answer to that. Will God send you to hell for an uncontrolled hot temper, hatred, jealousy, quarreling, scoffing, eager pursuit of wealth or honors, greediness in eating, and so on? Or, will it take such sinful deeds as those listed in the Ten Commandments like murder, adultery, robbery, bearing false witness, and coveting what others have to get you sentenced to eternal hell? Are these sins worse than white lies, friendly gossip, hot temper, hatred, jealousy, quarreling, scoffing, hot pursuit of wealth or honors, greediness in eating, and so on? This list of sins that many consider lesser sins may gnaw away at a person’s character. We may have strength enough to resist larger temptations, but little hypocrisies and minor sins may consume us. They can wreck our lives just as surely as murder, adultery, robbery, bearing false witness and coveting can. Looking at sin in this light we realize that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

We are going to look at some sinful actions and compare the results. I will begin with a sin that is all too common in America today, that sin, misleading others.

Luke 17:1-2, “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone was hung around his neck and he was cast into the sea than he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.’” Verse 1, this scripture begins with the inevitable, the temptation to sin. The Greek word skandala is translated ‘temptation’ in English. However, skandala is more specific than its English translation ‘temptation’. Skandala means the bait-stick of a trap. Temptations are traps that trigger trouble. Verse 2 is a strong warning against causing others to sin. Jesus used the metaphor of “a millstone” to illustrate the severity of the punishment for a person who temps, traps, and others highlighting the importance of protecting and nurturing those who are vulnerable. “These little ones” means the ones who are defenseless, and innocent. That could be a child or someone who is not very intelligent, a confused old person, a new believer, or anyone ignorant of their current situation. Any ill-meaning person that traps an innocent person is guilty of a grievous sin.

A true story: A boy 12 enjoyed going to football games on Friday nights. What could happen, families from all over the county were always there. One of the young men gave a 12-year-old some beer and got him drunk. The young man and older boys thought the drunken kid was hilarious. This went on every ball game that year and in the following years, there were more opportunities for “fun” watching the drunken kid. For some unknown reason, the boy’s parents did not catch it. At 13 or 14, the young boy began smoking marijuana. His bad habits were established, and at 17 his parents were unable to stop him; he moved in with an older woman, a loose woman, a drug user. Eventually, they married and had two children.

The boy is now a man, his parents tried to help even financing a home for him, his wife, and his children. The man and woman moved to another town hours away where both continued to use drugs the cost of which deprived their children of necessities such as a decent diet and adequate clothing. The woman left the man and their children. The drug-addicted working man had to finish raising his children by himself. He usually arrived home late and high. The son and daughter grew up woefully short of necessities, discipline, and education, and both were drug users. The daughter became a whore to pay for her habit and had children that she gave away. The son worked in construction and had three children out of wedlock.