ETERNITY
ACTS 17:16 21
The other day I heard a song on the radio that brought back some great memories, one that a very good friend of mine used to sing..."Look for me, for I will be there too..." ...after we've been there...
When I get to heaven I want to look my old friend up and spend some time sharing with him...it'll be a great time. I also want to look up Sis Lewis...and my grandpap who died way back in 1983. Come to think of it, there are an awful lot of people I want to see.
But you know, there are a lot of people I'd like to see up there that won't make it to heaven. There are so many that I know...family, friends...people that come to my services in these churches. That's something that isn't pleasant to think about, but it's true.
And you know what...I also believe that it won't be long until it'll happen. I'm even more convinced than ever that the rapture of the church is close...I honestly believe it will happen in my lifetime.
There are many others who also believe it...at least partly. Because even though part of us believes in the imminent return of Christ, there seems to be another part of us that believes we've got time without end.
And I think we see the evidence of this in the fact of our complacency when it comes to sharing the gospel. And I think that we need to get our act together.
We've designated February "Friendship Month" ...a month where we are encouraging each of you to invite as many people as possible to come to church and hear the salvation message. But I think that before we even begin to do that we need to get a few things straightened out in our own minds regarding eternity.
This past week as I began to prepare for the messages I'll be giving in February I began to think about eternity...and for some reason I began to think particularly about hell. I know this is something that even Christians don't talk about much, and I don't know for sure why. After all, it is a real place.
What is it really like? We hear a lot of stories, and jokes about hell and what it will be like. And even when there is a serious consideration made there are many misconceptions about this place.
There are actually 3 words in Scripture which are commonly translated hell, and I'd like to just briefly take a look at them.
The first one is Sheol...which occurs 65 times in O.T. Scripture.
In the KJV it is translated 31 times as "grave" 31 times as "hell" and 3 times as "pit"
The general idea is the "place of the dead"...not the grave as we think of it (hole...) but the place of those who have departed from this life.
The Hebrews regarded this as a place where both the righteous and the unrighteous go at death. However, God is present in sheol. In Ps 139:8 David says that even if he makes his bed in hell "sheol" God is there.
There are many references to the difference in conditions of the departed. And it shows that even in death God's people remain under his care, and the wicked never escape His judgment.
The second term for hell is Hades...which is a N.T. word that refers to the underworld, or region of the departed. It is the intermediate state between death and the resurrection.
Jesus, in certain of His words, associated judgment and suffering with the condition of some of the inhabitants of Hades...such as in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the beggar.
So Sheol and Hades both describe an intermediate state prior to the judgment and the eternal state. The third word found in Scripture is Gehenna.
The distinction between Hades and Gehenna is very important...not only to understand all the many Scriptures in the N.T. but also to properly understand Christ's teaching in regard to the future state of the unsaved. It is also important to properly understand Christ's descent into Hades.
The word Gehenna comes from the Hebrew word for "Hinnom" that refers to the Valley of Hinnom just south of Jerusalem. It was in this deep, narrow valley that the Canaanites worshiped Baal and the fire god Molech by sacrificing their children in a fire that burned continuously.
Even Ahaz and Mannaseh, kings of Judah, were guilty of this terrible practice. It was converted by King Josiah into a place of abomination in order to make it unfit even for pagan worship. It became a place where dead bodies were thrown and burnt and came to represent the place of lost spirits.
In the time of Jesus the Valley of Hinnom was used as the garbage dump of Jerusalem. It served as a receptacle for all the filth and garbage of the city, including the dead bodies of animals and executed criminals. They had a terrible problem with maggots that would work their way into the midst of all this filth.
To consume all this fires burned constantly. It came to represent the place of everlasting punishment...especially on account of its ever burning fires.
When the wind blew from that direction over the city the stench of the maggot infested garbage and the smell of burning flesh were quite evident. At night wild dogs would howl and gnash their teeth as they fought over the garbage.
Jesus used this awful scene as a symbol of hell. In effect He said, "You want to know what hell is like look at the Valley of Hinnom.
This is quite a different picture than the view commonly portrayed by the world.
Ps. 116:3 speaks of anguish...untold horror
Isa. 14:11 speaks of the maggots and worms that cover the body...in fact these are worms bred out of your own body.
Mark 9:48 49 says that the worms do not die...and in the Greek it says they are gnawing worms...it also speaks of unquenchable fire...and being salted with fire.
Jude 6,13 speaks of darkness...complete and total blackness.
and the Scripture also speaks of torment. (ever get tormented...)
These are just a few of the things said about hell...but the worst consequence of hell is the eternal separation from God. The horrible reality of hell will far exceed even the boldest description of it. HELL IS REAL!
But my message this morning isn't about hell itself. What I have on my heart are the multitudes of people who are faced with this place of torment...fire...maggots and worms...and most importantly separation from God.
Add to that the suffocating indifference of those who possess the capabilities of leading those people to an eternity with Christ...an eternity of untold beauty and greatness.
There's not one person here who doesn't know of at least a dozen people...family, friends, co workers, neighbors...that this very minute are on the brink of spending eternity in hell.
So many people are blind...bound...and spiritually dead. And we Christians are so willfully indifferent to them. We are chronically lazy and indifferent when it comes to the area of soul winning.
And I honestly believe we are "Laodiceans" challenging God to spew us out of His mouth...as He says in Revelation 3. Why do we have such lead feet when it comes to rescuing those who daily move to the very edge of eternity?
Why such criminal indifference to the unsaved...and it is criminal... it is sin. Look at James 4:17
We need to get angry...but the type of anger that stirs us to action. Look at Acts 17 (READ 16 21)
Vs 16 says that he was greatly distressed at the sight of Main Street in Athens walled in with temples to false gods. The Phillips translation says,"While Paul was there, his soul was exasperated beyond endurance at the sight of the city so completely idolatrous."
The Amplified Version says it this way, "Now while Paul was awaiting them at Athens, his spirit was grieved and roused to anger as he saw the city was full of idols.
Let me make some suggestions as to why Paul got so fired up as he walked the streets of Athens. I think we can learn a lot from Paul's concern for the unsaved.
1. Paul was angry at the power of false religions to delude the people and at their reckless devotion to these powerless gods. More than once Scripture mentions about the utter stupidity of these people.
That may sound a little harsh but its true. They take a piece of wood or some other material, carve out a form of some kind, than bow down to it and worship it.
But look at the similarities of today. Many people still worship things made by human hands. Like the commercial for Mazda trucks...the idiot on there says, "Trucks are a spiritual thing to me..."
2. Paul was also angry at the staggering wealth sacrificially given to build temples to these frauds. And I could sure take off on that one because there are plenty of people out there trying to build monuments to themselves...and are wrecking the faith of many in the process.
That is why it is so important to get people into a church where the Word of God is preached...all the gospel, the grace and the judgment. A place where Christ is exalted...not the pastor or the leaders or the programs or the buildings.
Giving is very important...especially for the welfare of that person who gives for the work of the Lord, and also so that the church can function and continue to do the work it is called to do. But you better know that you are accountable for what you give and what you hold back.
But that is also why I encourage each of you to get involved in the church...find out what we are doing, especially as it relates to finances...come to the meetings if you desire and see that we are being faithful stewards of God's resources.
3. Paul was angry that Christ was cheated of the love that should be His by men and women who could have been born again by the Spirit of God.
Christ came down from glory and died a horrible death because of His love for man...for them. And yet they gave their love to objects that they themselves had made.
He was angry that these intellectuals mocked the resurrection and ascension of Christ and yet they would fall for the silliest of ideas. In fact, for many of them all there was to life was to sit around and discuss all the possibilities and never really find the truth.
Paul was angry that being within a heartbeat of eternity in hell...men could eat, drink, and be merry.
Today our idols have changed but the same spiritual conditions exist.
And the average believer's complacency towards the lost condition of people is appalling...!We need to get angry!„Ç
There is a gospel being preached in the streets...but not the true gospel of Christ...and who cares?
It's not the Church of God, or the Baptists, or the Brethren, or the Pentecostals that knock on doors to witness...It's the deluded Jehovah's Witness or the messageless Mormon.
Why don't we attack...why do we fear...why do we hesitate? Don't we have anything to communicate? Are we unsure of our biblical knowledge? Do we lack personal assurance of our own salvation? Are we not convinced that sinners stand in danger of an eternal hell?
Maybe we've forgotten that, even as believers, we will be judged at the Bema Seat not only for what we've done as a Christian but also for what we could and should have done...and that's what really hurts.
It's a sad thing in regards to our feeble Christian walk that in the first century 120 men and women could move out of an Upper Room and shake not only all of Jerusalem but the whole world.
Yet we have far more than that in our 2 churches that claim the same experience...and our communities hardly even know we're here.
In our so called spiritual warfare we must be shooting blanks!
It's time for action! To stir us sickly saints to rescue the perishing we need the smell of hell. We need to get angry like Paul did.
We need to remember that the Holy Son of God was angry with the pigeon sellers and the polluters of His Father's house...I also believe He would be angry with us for allowing people all around us to go to hell while all the time we possess the knowledge of the way of life.
What are we going to do about it? Can we make a difference? You better believe it. Not only can we, but we had better do it while there is still time.
Are they worth it?.....Christ thought so, because He died for them as well as for me and you. It's time to get stirred to action. Not to go out and "preach" but just to share Jesus with a lost and dying world.
