“Hell: Things to Know without Having to Go” – Pastor Rob Yanok
Introduction - Fire does not make hell. That’s not to say that there isn’t fire. What makes
Hell is the lack of the presence of God. Hell is a place of eternal damnation, which is
eternal separation from God. TEXT- John 17:3, 3:17-18
People do not go to hell because God does not love them; people go to hell because they
don’t love God.
People go to hell because they never accepted God’s gift of salvation, Jesus.
Unfortunately, this is why people go to hell, not because they lied, cheated, or stole. They
lied, cheated, or stole due to their nature; they are dead in their spirit and have separation
from God. When people become born again they get a new nature. (II Cor. 5:17)
Catholic Prayer –“Oh, my Jesus forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of hell. Lead
all souls to heaven, especially those who are most in need of thy mercy.”
USA Today Poll: Is there a hell?
•52% of adults are certain there is a hell
•27% Think there might be
Pollsters – Asked people what they think hell will be like?
•48% believe it is a real place where people suffer eternal torment
•46% say it is an anguished state of existence rather than an actual place.
•6% Don’t know
Many have concocted their own theories about hell.
•Comedian Wood Allen – “Hell is Manhattan at Rush Hour”
•Carlton Pearson –“The Gospel or good news about Hell is that there isn’t one”
•Mark Twain said – “Go to heave for the climate, and go to hell for the company”
•Carlton Pearson also said, “Hell is a human idea based on human ignorance and
the fear of the unknown. It is a manmade concept. I believe hell is a form of insanity.”
I. While people may think light of hell, the Bible gives us terrifying glimpses of
it, and it is no joking matter.
1. Hell is a Literal Place –
a. In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31,
Hades is pictured as a literal place where the unrighteous rich
man went immediately upon his death.
b. 11 of the 12 times the word gehenna (hell) occurs in the NT and
is found coming out of Jesus’ mouth. Make no mistake Jesus
believed in a literal hell.
c. John 14:1-3 – place – greek “topos” – geographical location. So
if heaven is an actual geographical location so is hell.
2. Hell is a Literal Place divided into at least four parts
a. The Abyss or Bottomless Pit – the NT refers this part of hell 9
times. This is the place where some demons are presently
confined who will be released for a period of five months to
afflict the lost during the tribulation (Rev. 9:1-5). It is also the
place where Satan will be bound for the duration of the
Millennium (Rev. 20:1-3)
b. Tartarus – 2 Peter 2:4 refers to it as a place of confinement
where the angels who sinned in Genesis 6:1-4 are being held
until they are finally cast in the lake of fire (Jude 1:6-7)
c. Hades – The Greek NT refers to hades 11 times. This is the
place where the souls of lost people are presently confined while
they await the final day of judgment (Lk 16:23, Rev. 1:18, 20:13-
14)
d. Gehenna – This is the most commonly used Greek word for hell
in the NT. It is used 12 times. It was the smoldering trash dump
outside Jerusalem. Gehenna is the final place of torment for
Satan, demons, and all that are lost (Rev. 20:10-15). It is also
called the Lake of Fire and brimstone, the second death. It is
called the second death because it is a place of final, eternal
separation from God.
3. Hell is a Place of Memory
a. In hell there will be continued consciousness and immediate
awareness of where one is. (Luke 16:19-31) The Rich man knew
exactly where he was, remembered who he was, and remembered
Lazarus and his own brothers.
4. Hell is a place of Torment
a. The worst part of hell is that there will be torment and agony.
The rich man said, “I am in agony in this flame”. In verse 28 he
describes Hades as “this place of torment”.
5. Hell is a Place of Unquenchable Fire
a. The NT is clear that hell will be a fire. Rich man said, “I am in
agony in this flame”.
b. “The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather
out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit
lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that
place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Mt. 13:41-42
c. “If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for
you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two
eyes, to be cast into hell, where their worm does not die and the
fire is not quenched. For everyone will be salted with fire.”
Mk.9:47-49
6. Hell is a place of Separation from God
a. Those who do not choose Christ as Lord and Savior and Repent
of their sins will spend eternity apart from Him.
b. “These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the
presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” 2 Thess.
1:9
7. Hell is a Place of Raging Thirst
a. Jesus indicates that those in hell will be tortured by
unquenchable thirst.
b. “And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me,
and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water
and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.” Lk.
16:24
8. Hell is the Only other Place to Spend Eternity besides Heaven
a. Heaven or Hell. There is no third choice. Only two options.
b. The Choice is determined by Salvation
c. Nothing can change one’s fate after death. No second chance, no
purgatory, no parole for good behavior.
d. “As death finds us, eternity keeps us. Hell is truth seen too late.”
e. The lost can never go to heaven and the saved can never go to
hell!
f. Mt. 25:46 – “These the wicked will go away into eternal
punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
g. “And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm
fixed, so those that wish to come over from here to you will not
be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.” Lk.
16:26
h. Charles Spurgeon spoke the words of heart wrenching despair of
Hell’s eternality:
“In hell there is no hope. They have not even the hope of dying; the hope of being
annihilated. They are forever, forever, forever lost. On every chain in hell is written
forever. Up above there heads read forever. Their eyes are galled and their hearts are
pained with the thought that is forever. Oh if I could tell you tonight that hell would one
day be burned out, and that those who were lost might be saved, there would be a jubilee
in hell at that very thought of it. But it cannot be. It is forever. They are cast into outer
darkness.”
i. Hell is a place of eternal destiny. The only way of escape from
this terrible place is through Jesus Christ. On the cross He bore
God’s full wrath against your sin and mine. (Romans 5:8)
Things To Remember
1. God did not intend hell or eternal judgment for anyone – II Peter 3:9 (...not
willing that any should perish but all come to repentance.) John 3:16
2. The Gift of free will carries with it the consequences of choices made. (Deut.
30:19)
3. Since God is the final arbiter of eternity, it is never our duty to consign anyone to
eternal torment. If that is someone’s final destination, self-invoked by reason of
human will, we are wise to leave it to God to handle and not feel we need to tell
anyone that they are in hell or going their.
A person will end up in Hell if he or she rejects Jesus Christ.
Mark 3:29 – “But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness,
but is in danger of eternal damnation.”
The Truth About Hell has 3 Implications
1. For Unbelievers - fall to your knees and repent
2. For Believer – Rejoice over what you have been spared from
3. For this Church – What we do matters, because we’re a rescue operation for
humanity.
