Is There a Place Called Hell
Luke 16:19-31
"There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.' Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead."
According to Jesus, there is a place called Hell. Jesus actually said more about Hell than he did about Heaven. In this very simple parable --- if this is a parable. I say "if it is a parable" because there is something very unique about it. Jesus gave one of the characters a name, Lazarus. He does that nowhere else. Because of that some have concluded that Jesus is telling us an actual event that is representative of what Hell is like. Perhaps I should not call this a parable, but a story. In this simple story, Jesus contradicted at least five false doctrines. He contradicted the doctrine of universalism -- the view that says that everyone eventually is going to go to Heaven. Jesus said there is a gulf that eternally separates the saved from the lost. He contradicted fatalism -- because the fate of his brothers was not yet sealed. He contradicted re-incarnation. The Bible says "once to die and then the judgment." He contradicted purgatory -- the view that there is an intermediate place of suffering from whence a person can be redeemed and go on to Heaven. There is no hint of remediation here, only the unmitigated judgment of God. He also contradicted the doctrine of annihilationism -- the belief that the soul ceases with the demise of the body.
What Will Hell Be Like?
The Bible gives a seven-fold description of Hell. It's not pretty, but it's important for you to understand the severity of this place called Hell. The Apostle Paul said "knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men."
First, Hell is a place of flames. V. 24 says "I am tormented in this flame." Perhaps there is no more horrible way to die than to die in flames, yet Hell is an eternal flame, yet nothing and no one is consumed.
Second, Hell is described as a place of torment. V. 24 says "I am tormented." This word means that Hell is more than just a place of suffering; it is a place where the awful wrath of God is poured out on the Christ-rejecting world.
Third, Hell is described as a place of memory. V. 25 says "Son, remember." Remember. If you reject Christ, you will remember every Vacation Bible School you attended, you will remember this sermon, you will remember the tender prayers of your family. You will say "O, if I had only listened while I had a chance." The memories of those in Hell means that it is a place of painful regret.
Fourth, Hell is described as a place of darkness. The Bible says that unbelievers will "be cast into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Someone once asked how Hell could both be a place of fire and of darkness. The answer is that it is fire to the body, but darkness to the soul.
Fifth, Hell is described as a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. People will weep for their missed opportunities, for the suffering they caused, for trampling the blood of Jesus under their feet, and for their painful present and pathetic future. John Milton said that Hell was a place with a sign above it that said "Abandon all hope ye who enter here."
Sixth, Hell is described as a place of demons. I've never seen a demon, but I know how they are described in the book of Revelation. They are powerful creatures. They are crazed with hate and lust to do the will of Satan. I have heard fools say that they want to go to Hell so they could take over the place and have fun. Listen, friend, your not going to take over anything in Hell. You are no match for a demonic spirit. You are going to be at the mercy of those who are totally unfeeling and unmerciful. What a terrible place Hell must be.
Seventh, Hell is described as a place of worms. When the Bible says a thing once it is important. When the Bible says a thing twice it is doubly important. In just a few verses Jesus is going to describe Hell as a place of worms.
"If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched -- where "Their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.' And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched -- where 'Their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having tow eyes, to be cast into hell fire -- where
Their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched."
Now someone will say that these Bible descriptions of Hell are "just symbols." They say that we are unsophisticated and cannot understand the nuance of symbolic language. I have spent years studying Bible symbolism, and I think I can answer this charge. The Bible uses symbolic language when normal, literal language cannot express the matter. Therefore, if this is symbolic language, how terrible must Hell actually be. It must be far worse than a place of worms, darkness, torment, and flames. The truth is that if you are an unbeliever and you plan to stay that way, you had better pray that Hell is a place of flames, for if it is not, it is a far worse place than that. The Hell of symbolism makes the Hell of literalism seem like a paradise!
Why Was Hell Made?
In the gospel of Matthew we are told the reason God made Hell: "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his angels." Matthew 25:41
The blood of Christ was not shed for the lost angels, but for lost humanity. God did not make Hell for humanity, it is His desire to save humanity. By turning to Christ you may avoid this terrible place called Hell.
Does Everyone Suffer Equally in Hell?
The answer is "No." Judgment will be based upon knowledge. Jesus said "that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed sins deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more." Luke 12:47-48
The peasant in China who has never heard the gospel will not be judged with the same strictness as the Christ-rejecting, materialistic American.
I have heard some say "God won't send me to Hell, I had a godly mother or father. My grandfather was a deacon or preacher etc.." These excuses only point to the fact that your future holds for you the hottest corner in Hell, for you had light but rejected it in favor of darkness.
Who Goes to Hell?
Who goes to Hell? Revelation 21:8 says "But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
Some of you, no doubt, are saying "I'm not listed there. I'm no murderer. I'm not sexually immoral. I'm no idolater." But did you notice that the list says the "unbelieving?" Unbelief is a crime against the blood of Jesus Christ. It will send you to Hell.
Now I want to ask you this question: Who was it who blinded your eyes so that you did not see the word "unbelief" in this verse? Who was it who pulled a veil over your face so you could not see this word? I'll tell you who: It was Satan. He is the one who does not want you to put your faith in Christ so that you will be saved.
CONCLUSION
What do you see when you look at Hell? You see the wrath of God. Someone once asked "if God is everywhere is He in Hell?" The answer is that He is in Hell with respect to His wrath, but not in respect to His person. Even the wrath of the demons who haunt Hell are administered under the auspices of the wrath of God.
You also see His justice. No one will be able to blame God that they went to Hell. He is a just God. When we receive the beatific vision and we see things the way God sees them, we will cry "Amen" to His righteous sentence.
More than that, you see the holiness of God. Since God is infinitely holy, sin demands an infinite punishment.
But, strangely and wonderfully, we also see the love of God when we look at Hell. For Jesus endured Hell for us. He went to the cross and suffered the righteous sentence that was ours and paid for our salvation with His own blood. He built a bridge over the fires of Hell with His cross and provided for us more than just a way of escape, He provided an avenue into Heaven.
Would you accept His gracious offer of salvation today?
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