Hell is REAL!!
Jude 1:4-1:7
The subject of today’s sermon is one of those things that we all believe but none of us likes to talk about.
In a national poll conducted several years ago by USA Today “67% of American adults said they believe in a hell. But less than 25% believed that they would go there, while 25% believe their friends will be there” (1986]. But frankly folks, if Hell is not real, and everyone is going to get to Heaven eventually, we might as well close the doors to this church and go home.
I will concede that you may well be offended by today’s sermon, people often are when any man presumes to preach on the subject of Hell.
Strangely enough a newer poll conducted by US News and World Report (2000) reveals that more Americans today believe in Hell than they did in the 1950’s or even 10 years ago.
But most now think of hell as “an anguished state of existence” rather than a real place. [ US News and World Report. “Hell Hath No Fury.” January 31,2000. p. 46]
I assure you that the Devil believes in a real Hell.
You may not believe in hell this morning, you may think that it is just a state of mind, but as the old revival preacher said to the skeptic, “You not believing in Hell don’t lower the temperature there one degree.”
We don’t like think about the reality of Hell and we often hear the statement, “I don’t believe that a good god will send anyone to Hell.”
The statement is based on error and inconsistency of the highest order. We never make the statement, “How could a good judge sentence a mass murderer to death for his crimes?”
We don’t say that because the judge is not responsible for the man being sentenced to death, his actions are.
The Apostle Paul says in Romans 11:22, “Therefore consider the goodness and the severity of God…”
A.I am here to talk about the Reality of Hell.
It is said that for the Christian, earth is the only hell that he will know. For the Non-Christian, earth is the only heaven that he/she will know.
1. Hell is not a popular subject these days.
2. The Error Taught by Some
3. The Evidence in the Scriptures
4. The Testimony of Jesus
B. You should care about these points, because:
1.You may be sitting next to someone who will be lost forever in the fires of hell.
a. Mothers and Fathers – Look at your children… If you
don’t make service to God a reality for them in this
life ---they will exist eternally in torment
b.They’re not going to care about all the fishing trips, little league games, or movies you ever took them to…
c.Their not going to care that you gave them a car --- or a college education
C. It could be your fishing buddy or your best friend or the guys you work with everyday
1. They’re not going to care that you laughed at their
course jokes --- bought them lunch
D. Or it could be you….
a. If you thinks that you can reject the salvation
offered by God through his son Jesus Christ – Then
Hell is your destiny.
b. If you’re one of those people that have not truly been converted to Christ Jesus – Hell is your destiny.
c. If you’re one of those hypocrites Jesus speaks about – Hell is your destiny.
d. If you’re one of those people who believe that just because your name is in a church roll some where but you do not live for Jesus – Hell is your destiny.
I. There has been a shift in the view of Hell.
A. There was a time that preachers talked about the
destination of the wicked.
1. Jonathan Edward delivers a classic sermon entitled,
“Sinners Falling Into The Hands of A Living God.” And
1,000’s streamed to the altars to be saved!!
2. Some where along the line – people became more
concerned with what came to be called “The
practicalities of Christian Living.”
d. There has been a tremendous emphasis on the Goodness
and Grace of God --- To be sure --- the reality of Hell
has all but disappeared from our pulpits.
2. The Reality of Hell has been undermined in our
society.
A. We’ve all heard the jokes about “shoveling coal”
1. or the salesman who is so good he could sell air
conditioners to the Devil…
2. Man who was happy to be in hell because at
last he could have some peace and quiet for him wife.
B. Willy Nelson’s Birthday Bash on television a couple of years ago – Aero Smith’s lead singer Steven Tyler said, “Happy birthday Willie. Here’s hoping that we’ll have twice as much fun in hell as we did her on earth trying to get there.”
A flood of false doctrine has lately broken in upon us. Men are beginning to tell us "that God is too merciful to punish souls for ever...that all mankind, however wicked and ungodly...will sooner or later be saved."
We are to embrace what is called "kinder theology," and treat hell as a pagan fable...This question lies at the very foundation of the whole Gospel. The moral attributes of God, His justice, His holiness, His purity, are all involved in it. The Scripture has spoken plainly and fully on the subject of hell... If words mean anything, there is such a place as hell. If texts are to be interpreted fairly, there are those who will be cast into it...
The same Bible which teaches that God in mercy and compassion sent Christ to die for sinners, does also teaches that God hates sin, and must from His very nature punish all who cleave to sin or refuse the salvation He has provided.
3. Hell is not a place of fun and games.
4. Jude, the brother of the Lord wrote, “For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home-- these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. (Jude 4-7)
a. Notice that Jude says, “godless men have slipped in among you.”
b. These men have changed the grace of God into a license for immorality.
c. . The word for “immorality” simply means self-centered lustful indulgence – they justify doing those worldly things that give self-satisfaction.
c. They deny Jesus Christ our only Lord and Savior.
D. The word “deny” means that they are acting contrary to what Jesus as Lord as Savior demands of their character and life… They are untrue --- false --- Christians…
5. Then Jude gives three examples:
a. God destroyed those unbelievers whom he brought out of Egyptian bondage.
b. The sinful angels are not above his punishment.
c. And then there’s Sodom and Gomorrah.
d. All of these, “They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.”
e. Folks --- Hell is no joke!
No one who is ever in hell will be able to say to God, "You put me here," and no one who is in heaven will ever be able to say, "I put myself here."
One of the reasons Hell is not even thought about in our day --- is the reluctance of theologians to admit its existence.
E. The Testimony of theologians:
1. The Los Angeles Times, June 19, 2002: “The tendency to downplay damnation has grown in recent years as (churches) focus on everyday issues…(which have proliferated) and loyalty to churches has deteriorated…Bill Farris, a pastor of Crown Valley Vineyard Christian Fellowship said about the subject of hell, “It isn’t sexy enough anymore.”
1. Karl Barth: “Bible verses on hell are only threats from God to keep us from arriving at such a destiny.”
2. Nels Ferre: “In the end, love must dissolve all evil.”
3. Emil Brunner: “Men will be annihilated – the punishment is only temporary.”
4. Billy Graham: “I believe that hell is essentially separation from God…(we are separated) from God, so we can have hell in this life and in the life to come. (I cannot) describe hell in vivid terms like I did 30 or 40 years ago… (I don’t know if) there is actually fire in hell or not, I do not know.”
5. Pope John Paul II: Hell should not be seen as a fiery underworld but as “The state of those who freely and definitively separate themselves from God…”
So What? What does this mean to me?
a.This means that the biblical subject of Hell has been placed on the back burner in favor of preaching on social issues
b. This means that the world in which you live – categorically denies there is a place call Hell – wherein wicked --- sinful people will dwell throughout all eternity.
c. This means that for many people --- hell is a figment of the imaginations --- and it certainly isn’t a deterrent to living self-centered life-styles wherein God has become a God of convenience.
Thought: No matter how far you push the subject of Hell and eternal punishment out of your mind --- It is still there…. Look at ----
F. The Testimony of The Scriptures
1. In the King James Version of the New Testament you will find three Greek words that are translated by the single English word, “Hell.”
a. . Hades –It is a place of incarceration – where the wicked shall dwell until that Grand final day of the Lord – where their sentence and condemnation shall be carried out. the underworld inhabited by departed souls.
ii. Tartarus – [tahr-ter-uh s] This word is found only one time in the entire Bible – The wicked angels have been cast them into this realm where they are kept in the chains of darkness’ 2 Peter 2.4. a place in Hades for the punishment of the wicked.
iii. Gehenna – This is the place of future punishment. This is the eternal abode of all those who have died in rebellion to God and His grace. All the wicked angels --- all those who have died rejecting Jesus – all those religious people who have lived a lie --- will be thrown into this place of eternal punishment.
A place or state of torment or suffering. The abode of condemned souls; hell.
G. The Testimony of Jesus concerning Hell
The subject of Hell is a prominent teaching of Jesus
A. He uses the word Gehenna 11 times and the word
“hades” 4 times in Matthew, Mark and Luke.
3. So what does he say about HELL?
a. It is a place of torment
1. In Rev. 20:10 he says that those who follow the ways of the world will be cast into the lake of burning sulfur and be tormented day and night forever and ever…
2. It is a place where those who are condemned will never find rest --- no sleep will come to you there.
a. The horrible experiments of the Japanese in Unit 731 – where in they tortured P.O.W.’s by injecting them with anthrax and performing vivisections on living patients – are nothing compared to the eternal tortures of Hell.
b. It is a place of Darkness
1. In the parable of the wedding banquet – Jesus says that those who are not in proper attire – covered by HIS righteousness – will be thrown into the darkness where the in weeping and gnashing of teeth.
2. The word “darkness” is the opposite of “light” – it is the place where God is not present.
3. Matthew 25:41 - 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: Hell is a place that will house Satan and his angels
C.Hell is a place without the love of God… Matthew 25:41 tell us that those on his left at that final day will here the words, ”depart from me, you who are accursed into the eternal fire…”
D.It is a place of memory – Luke 16:25 – There you will remember all the times God begged you to live for him ---
E. All the times you rejected him… You may look into the faces of your loved ones and remember those evening that your children crawled into you lap and said, “Daddy read me a story about Jesus.”
F. It is a place of Fire – In Matthew 13:40 he tells us that those poisonous, counterfeit weeds that are in God’s kingdom will be “pulled up and burned in the fire”, at the end of time.
Transition: So what does this mean to me?
It means that you really need to start thinking about your relationship with God!
That you really make Jesus REALLY is your Lord and Master…
For your sake --- I pray that you never suffer the pangs of Hell…
The second death --- the eternal separation from God --- will be more horrible than you can imagine…Hell is real… Jesus said so…
If your life isn’t right with Him now --- If you have been living a lie --- then your need to let him fix it for you right now…
You don’t want to go to a real place --- called hell.
ILL.- A preacher in the Midwest tells about a young couple in his church who boasted to all their friends and neighbors that they were flying to New York City. They were only going to be able to spend one day there, but the highlight of their trip would be to go see the Broadway play, “My Fair Lady.” They were so proud of this and everyone was really impressed because no one else in that small town had ever been to a play on Broadway.
The day came and when they arrived in New York they took a taxi to the theater where “My Fair Lady” was playing. To their dismay, they found that the play was sold out for the night.
They thought, “What do we do now? Everybody knows that we came to see ‘My Fair Lady.’ We don’t dare tell them that we didn’t.” So they found a couple of ticket stubs on the sidewalk and picked them up. They bought a program that described the various acts of the play. They went home singing “I Could Have Danced all Night.” And they told everybody that they had gone to see “My Fair Lady.”
The preacher said, “That’s right. They had the ticket stubs. They had the program. They had been to the theater. They knew the music. But the trouble is, they didn’t see the performance.”
Many people today are like that. They may go to church occasionally. They may sing the songs, bow their heads and perhaps even give some money, but they never really believed and trusted Christ for their salvation. It was just an act.
Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ’Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
Unbeliever asked Christian: Suppose you learn there is no Heaven?
Christian asked Unbeliever: Suppose you learn there is a Hell?
It was originally prepared for the Devil and his angels (Rev. 21.10).
A. It is a lake of fire (Rev. 21.15).
This fire is not quenched (Mark 9.48).
You never get use to the pain.
It is a place of torment (Luke 16.23-24).
a place of consciousness (Luke 16.23-24).
(1) Hell is just as real as is Heaven.
(2) Nevertheless, because of God’s grace, we get to decide upon where we want to choose eternity.
(3) “He who hesitates has already decided.”
(4) What will you decide?
