HELL IS REAL
AND IT IS NOT FUNNY
Revelation 20.11-15
S: Hell
C: A real place to avoid
Th: Heaven Can’t Wait
Pr: HELL IS TO BE AVOIDED.
?: Why? Why is to be avoided?
KW: Reasons
TS: We will find in our study of Scripture five reasons why we ought to avoid hell as an eternal destination.
Type: Propositional, Topical
The ____ reason to avoid hell is it is…
I. REAL (Revelation 20.14-15)
II. FINAL (Matthew 25.41)
III. PAINFUL (Luke 16.23-24)
IV. SEPARATION (II Thessalonians 1.9)
V. REGRET (Matthew 16.26)
PA: How is the change to be observed?
• Understand the awful necessity of hell
• Get on the right side, and receive the gift of life
• Warn others of its awful reality
Version: ESV
RMBC 10 June 07 AM
INTRODUCTION:
ILL Hell (H)
Outside a Canadian church was the sign:
“Sermon for Sunday: What Is Hell Like?”
Just below was the message:
“Come in and hear our choir sing.”
We know that is not true of our choir!
But it begs a related question…
Are we able to experience hell on earth?
I hope that you discovered, last week, as we studied the subject of heaven, that our language is inadequate to relate the beauty and joy of heaven.
I think that speaks to this truth…
No matter what we say about heaven here on earth, the reality will be far better.
I think the inverse is true as well.
Our language cannot adequately express how terrible hell will be.
Though there are many horrifying, evil, and atrocious things that happen here on earth, the reality will be worse.
Hell will be far worse.
TRANSITION:
1. Our theme for June is “Heaven Can’t Wait.”
We are doing a study in eschatology, that is the study of future things, and more specifically, our eternal destinations.
We are studying this because our understanding of heaven, and its counterpart, hell, cannot wait until the time comes that we experience them.
We are given information that is essential for us to know.
Heaven can’t wait!
This morning, we are speaking specifically about hell.
One liberal theologian (Martin Marty) has said, perhaps to his delight that “hell has disappeared and no one noticed.”
Perhaps there is no more controversial subject when it comes to the essential doctrines than the one of hell.
Bertrand Russell, the famous agnostic or atheist (by his own admission, he could not figure out what he was), said that anyone who threatens eternal punishment, as Jesus did, is inhumane.
It certainly has become a subject that is politically incorrect.
But this does not matter to us at Randall, for…
2. We believe in the reality of heaven and hell.
Our updated doctrinal statement (which will be presented for an official vote this year) states:
We believe that all will be judged by God, which will result in the eternal state of blessing for the believer and eternal punishment for the unbeliever.
Our belief in the reality of hell, though, does not coincide with America’s.
ILL Hell (S)
In a Barna survey that was reported in 2003, this is written about America’s beliefs:
While there is no dominant view of Hell, two particular perspectives are popular. Four out of ten adults believe that Hell is "a state of eternal separation from God’s presence" (39%) and one-third (32%) says it is "an actual place of torment and suffering where people’s souls go after death." A third perspective that one in eight adults believe is that "Hell is just a symbol of an unknown bad outcome after death" (13%). Other respondents were "not sure" or said they that they do not believe in an afterlife (16%).
Most Americans do not expect to experience Hell first-hand: just one-half of 1% expect to go to Hell upon their death. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (64%) believe they will go to Heaven. One in 20 adults (5%) claim they will come back as another life form, while the same proportion (5%) contend they will simply cease to exist.
The doctrine of hell, though, is not subject to the whims of the times.
It may not be liked, but that does not remove its reality.
ILL Hell (S)
In The Problem of Pain, C.S. Lewis comments:
"Some will not be redeemed. There is no doctrine which I would more willingly remove from Christianity than this, if it lay in my power. But is has the full support of Scripture and, specially, of our Lord’s own words; it has always been held by Christendom, and it has the support of reason…"
Lewis, reminds us then, that…
3. We must breakdown the misconceptions about hell.
We must break down misconceptions about hell that exists out in the world.
For, you see, some believe that they would rather go to hell because that is where their friends are going to be.
They reflect the attitude of Mark Twain when he said, “I’ll take heaven for the climate and Hell for the society.”
ILL Hell (S)
In a speech to the National Press Club, Ted Turner said, “Heaven is going to be a mighty slender place. And most of the people I know in life aren’t going to be there. There are a few notable exceptions and I’ll miss them. [Laughter] Remember, heaven is going to be perfect. And I don’t really want to be there...Those of us that go to hell, which will be most of us in this room; most journalists are certainly going there. [Laughter] But, when we get to hell we’ll have a chance to make things better because hell is supposed to be a mess. And heaven is perfect. Who wants to go to a place that’s perfect? Boring. Boring.” [Laughter]
Well, one can joke about it all they want, but I can assure you, no one will be laughing when they get there.
No one…
You see…
Hell is real and it is not funny.
But the misconceptions also exist among Christians…
ILL Heaven (S)
George Barna has pointed out that "Americans’ willingness to embrace beliefs that are logically contradictory and their preference for blending different faith views together create unorthodox religious viewpoints." For instance, he noted that among born again Christians - who believe that they will experience eternal existence in Heaven solely because they have confessed their sins to God and are depending upon Jesus Christ to spare them from eternal punishment or rejection - 10% believe that people are reincarnated after death, 29% claim it is possible to communicate with the dead, and 50% contend that a person can earn salvation based upon good works.
“Many committed born again Christians believe that people have multiple options for gaining entry to Heaven. They are saying, in essence, ‘Personally, I am trusting Jesus Christ as my means of gaining God’s permanent favor and a place in Heaven - but someone else could get to Heaven based upon living an exemplary life.’ Millions of Americans have redefined grace to mean that God is so eager to save people from Hell that He will change His nature and universal principles for their individual benefit. It is astounding how many people develop their faith according to their feelings or cultural assumptions rather than biblical teachings."
So the misconceptions exist today among Christians and non- Christians.
We must be willing to deal with the reality of hell, even if we find it to be distasteful.
Since it is terrible beyond description…
4. HELL IS TO BE AVOIDED.
It is the place no one wants to go.
It is the place of eternal punishment for Satan and demonic followers.
And it is the place where those who have rejected God, and His Son Jesus will be sent in judgment.
So…
5. We will find in our study of Scripture five reasons why we ought to avoid hell as an eternal destination.
Hear the words of the apostle John in his Revelation (20.11-15):
(11) Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. (12) And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. (13) And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. (14) Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. (15) And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
OUR STUDY:
I. The first reason to avoid hell is that it is REAL (Revelation 20.14-15).
1. The biblical testimony speaks of its existence (cf. Psalm 9.17).
We could do a whole study here just on the progressive revelation of hell.
In other words, as God reveals Himself in Scripture, we get more and more understanding of the reality of life after death and what the results are for those that follow the Lord and those who do not.
When we get to the New Testament, Jesus greatly expands our understanding.
In fact…
2. Jesus spoke of hell’s reality more often than heaven.
He believed in it.
He understood that the God of justice and the God of love work in perfect harmony.
Jesus understood that justice demanded hell.
You know, many times we hear the statement, “I don’t believe that a good God will send anyone to Hell.”
But we would never make the statement, “How could a good judge sentence a mass murderer for his crimes?”
We expect him to.
We expect it because the judge is not responsible for the man being sentenced, his actions are.
In the same way, justice demands consequences to one’s actions.
II. The second reason to avoid hell is that it is FINAL (Matthew 25.41).
I have included a previous verse not in your outline.
In these verses, Jesus is making a comparison when judgment comes.
(34) “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’”
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’”
Understand here, that at judgment, Jesus says there are two choices.
You inherit the kingdom, or you are sent into the eternal fire.
1. There is no such thing as purgatory.
There is no such thing as a place for punishment for venial sins (those sins that are committed without full knowledge or are not deliberate in nature), and then you go to heaven.
There is one basic reason why we do not accept this teaching.
It is not in the Bible.
It is a teaching that was first suggested about 600, long after all the major doctrines had been established.
Then by about 1100, it became an established belief in the Roman Catholic Church.
So understand this…
2. Your destination is determined by your life on earth.
If you are thinking that you can be a little bit bad, and just work it off after you die, don’t depend on it.
It is not going to happen.
When you die, the results are final.
III. The third reason we should avoid hell is that it is PAINFUL (Luke 16.23-24).
The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.”
Please get this…
1. Life in hell will be absolute misery.
Scripture describes hell in many ways…
…unquenchable fire
…a place of intense, unsatisfied thirst
…pain
…frustration and anger
…weeping and gnashing of teeth
…unimaginable fear
…intolerable filth, a place where the worm does not die
…confusion, corruption and rage
…outer darkness
…undiluted wrath
And then finally, the rich man says, “I am in agony in this fire.”
Don’t those descriptions alone sound as if it is a place to avoid?
And no matter what Mark Twain and Ted Turner think…
2. There will be no friends in hell.
There will be no togetherness.
There will be no unity.
There will be no relationships.
There will be no carousing with friends.
It is a place where hate, fear and despair are the bywords of every moment.
IV. The fourth reason that hell is to be avoided is the SEPARATION from God (II Thessalonians 1.9).
Paul writes…
They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might…
1. The worst absence will be of God.
Recognize this…
All that is good comes from God.
So anything that is good will not exist in hell.
The refreshing presence of God will not be there.
You see…
2. All that fills heaven will be missing in hell.
There will be no love.
There will be no joy.
There will be no fellowship.
There will be nothing good.
There will be no caring or compassion.
It will all be missing.
And there is no one to blame for this separation but oneself.
ILL Hell (S)
In The Problem of Pain, C.S. Lewis says...
“The characteristic of lost souls is ‘their rejection of everything that is not simply themselves.’ He has his last wish – to live wholly in the self and to make the best of what he finds there. And what he finds there is hell.”
V. The fifth reason that we are to avoid hell is that it will be a place of REGRET (Matthew 16.26).
Jesus says…
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life?”
1. Hell will be filled with remorse.
The person in hell will be well aware of his past.
His life on earth will haunt him.
The memories of the opportunities to turn to Christ and the subsequent rejection will constantly remain.
You see…
2. For eternity, there will be no going back.
Understand this simple truth.
There is a lifetime of opportunity to make the right choice.
But after we die, there are no second chances.
None.
APPLICATION:
As believers in Jesus…
1. We need to understand the awful necessity of hell.
ILL Hell (S)
Alex McFarland has stated:
Sin is present, hell is real, and humans choose them both in lieu of a revelatory, relational, redemptive, and restorative God. We are not free to re-invent, revise or change biblical truths and Christian doctrines for mere accommodation. We must not evaluate truth based on what is popular, preferred or politically correct. Forget conventional wisdom. We must evaluate truth based on God’s Word.
We can’t just drop hell because we don’t like it.
We can’t stop believing it because we find it undesirable.
Because if we drop it, Jesus and what He did on the cross, doesn’t make sense.
Ill Hell (S)
C. S. Lewis again makes this comment in The Problem of Pain…
In the long run, the answer to all those who object to the doctrine of hell is itself a question: "What are you asking God to do?" To wipe out all their past sins, and, at all costs, to give them a fresh start, smoothing every difficulty and offering every miraculous help? But He has done so, on Calvary.
The truth is that hell is necessary because God’s holy, just nature demands that evil be punished.
Similarly, the cross (Calvary) was necessary because God’s merciful nature demanded that salvation be offered.
That is how God’s justice and God’s love work together.
But if there is no hell, then the cross is a sham.
So let us understand this…
2. We need to receive the gift of life (John 3. 16-18).
Heaven cannot be earned.
It is simply a gift for those that place their lives in God’s hands…
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
Every person has a choice.
The steps are simple.
Recognize you are a sinner.
Understand that what sin earns is death.
Then understand and believe in God’s love to save you from that very penalty by Jesus paying that price for you on the cross.
Finally, turn from your sin, and place your trust in Jesus.
Ill Hell (S)
As C.S Lewis summarizes in The Great Divorce…
“Any man may choose eternal death. Those who choose it will have it… There are only to kinds of people in the end; those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ or those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’ All that are in Hell choose it.”
As believers in Jesus…
3. It is our responsibility to warn others of this awful reality (cf. II Peter 3.9).
ILL Hell (S)
There is a story in which two soldiers went to speak to their chaplain. One soldier asked, "Do you believe in hell?"
The chaplain said, " No, I don’t…," and explained that belief in hell arose at a more primitive time when humans were less enlightened than today. Then he asked, “Will I see you boys in the services this week?”
One of the soldiers surprised him with their response. "With all due respect, I doubt it. If there is no hell, we don’t need you... and if there is a hell, we don’t want you to mislead us."
Folks, the reality of hell should cause an urgency within our hearts and souls.
For we all know someone that is going there.
But they don’t have to…
Ill Hell (S)
“One day, when Vice-President Calvin Coolidge was presiding over the Senate, one senator angrily told another to go “straight to hell.”
The offended Senator complained to Coolidge as presiding officer, and Coolidge looked up from the book he had been leafing through while listening to the debate and wittily replied.
“I’ve looked through the rule book,” he said, “You don’t have to go.”
You don’t have to go.
May God give us the grace to share that good news with those that are letting the opportunity slip by.
For Further Study: Luke 12.5, 16.19-31; John 1.12, 3:36, 10.10; Romans 10:1; II Peter 3:9
BENEDICTION:
Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
RESOURCES:
SermonCentral:
Ainsworth, Mark Escape the Horrors of a Place Called Hell
Dillahunty, George An Eternal Hell!
Dykes, David O. What in Hell Do We Need?
Hamby, John Hell It’s Real and It’s Not Funny
Hamby, John What If Hell is Real?
Haraldsen, Gene What Everyone Should Know About Hell
Harrelson, Phillip Hell’s Biggest Party
Kittrell, Curtis If There Were No Fire in Hell
Martin, Donnie The Horrors of Hell
Santos, Joel A Place No One Wants to Go
Research:
Barna, George. Americans Describe Their Views About Life after Death. In The Barna Update, 2003.
Decker, Paul J. It’s No Laughing Matter: The Horror and Reality of Hell in God’s Universe. Nyack College, 1979.
Geisler, Norman. "Everything You Wanted to Know About Hell, but Were Afraid to Ask." Discipleship Journal, no. 87 (1995): 31-35.
Lewis, C. S. The Problem of Pain. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, Inc., 1977.
________. The Great Divorce: A Dream. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2000.
Magnum, R. Todd. Three Models of Hell. In Christianity Today, 2007.
McFarland, Alex. Preaching the Inconvenient Truth of Hell. 2006.
Sheler, Jeffery. "Hell Hath No Fury." U.S. News and World Report, January 31 2000.
Wenham, John W. The Goodness of God. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979.
