Whatever happened to the “H” word?
A very popular rock band continues to chime, “Hell is no bad place to be – all of my friends will be there…”
The only time we ever hear the “H” word these days is when it’s used to emphasize a joke, or to alert the media when we’ve hit our thumb with a hammer, but other than the most trivial of occasions, “HELL” is no longer a threat of impending doom for the unsaved, unbeliever and sworn enemy of God Almighty.
So, what happened?
Like all of the devil’s schemes, he always works very slowly, preying on sleeping minds, and once he can get his gangrene toe in the door unnoticed (or unconfronted by the Church, which is typically the case), it’s only a matter of time before he has his entire army of death behind him leading hearts by the multitudes astray – to their doom, along with his own. This is his game; to drag as many to the pit with him as he can before the Lord puts the cards down on the table and makes his call. Think for a moment about all of these recent murder suicides… why is it these horrible people kill as many as they can – only to turn the gun on themselves? This is as close to the devil’s pattern for murder as it gets. If the devil had his way, he’d first kill off all of the Christians, and once they were out of his way, he’d then proceed to kill all of the unbelievers (those who actually assisted him in killing off all the Christians), and then he’d kill off his own demonic army, and left by himself, he would finally commit suicide. Such are the schemes of the evil one that all slope into one objective – Death. The Lord Himself describes him as the “father of lies” and “a murderer from the beginning”.
Hell is such a “hot” topic these days, that few pastors will ever touch it. It’s like the big southern cities in Florida, where they’ve creatively hidden all the cemeteries from view. Try to find a cemetery in Orlando – especially as you get closer to the surrounding cities of Disneyworld – you’ll need a GPS to find them, and good luck with that. Why? It’s simple: people do not want to be reminded about death, and more than this, they do not want to know about what may very well await them in the pit along with their father satan (I never use a capitalized “S” for this enemy – he doesn’t deserve any dignity).
By now, most readers have already stopped reading, and you know why – it’s a very difficult topic to talk about. Yet, Jesus was never timid about talking about it, was He? He mentions it at least 23 times – more than he even mentions ‘Heaven’. He does so because He loves us and would do anything to keep us from going there – even to the point of sacrificing Himself in our place.
Nowhere throughout the garment of the entire Bible are there any threads that descend into fairy tales or folklore. None of it was written for our amusement or entertainment (though there is a lot of it that I find amusing, i.e. the comedic irony of Haman’s noose in the book of Esther, for instance).
II Timothy 3:16 tells us that “all scripture is inspired by God”. If we, as believers truly believe this, then on a subject like Hell, we dare not settle on anything else. Rich or poor, influential or inconsequential, beautiful or ugly, gifted or intellectually unenlightened… death is the great neutralizer, is it not? In the end, we are all doomed to die, and die each of us will. Death can strike at any time, day or night, in youth or in advanced age, but as one writer wrote, “Death borders on our birth, and our cradle stands in the grave.” In other words, there is no escape from the inevitable. If anyone is not disturbed by the problem of death, then it is for one of two reasons: hardening of the heart or softening of the brain.
For we, so-called, Creationists, being made in the image of God is what makes men, men and women, women. We were created as intelligent, rational, personal, moral and spiritual beings, as visible replicas of God. Men and women are not a body with a soul, but souls with a body. The body will fade and die, but the spirit will live eternal. Before I became a Christian, I always wondered why I still felt like a youthful 17-year-old, even though my body was half a century old, failing in physical strength, balding and wrinkling up like a prune. When I became a Christian, I no longer cared about this shell – this body – I turned my attention to my future home in Glory as this 17-year-old who would live forever with my Lord and Savior, hundreds of thousands of years after my bones have returned back into the sands from whence they were originally derived through our first parents, Adam and Eve. More than this, the Lord promises us a “glorified body” when He resurrects us on that final, last day when He comes to judge the world. If He is going to provide me with a glorified body to go along with my 17-year-old spirit, then what does this mean for the unbelievers in Hell? The Bible is clear about this when it uses the illustration from Christ’s parable about the rich man and the poor man, Lazarus (check it out for yourself here: Luke 16:19–31). The future bodies given to the enemies of Christ will be anything but young, beautiful and strong. More than this – if this wasn’t bad enough – Christ Himself will laugh at their anguish, as He most certainly will satan’s and all of his fallen angels beguiled by him. It will be as though Christ will take his foot and squash those in hell further into their misery as he squashed the serpant’s head when He crushed him by His work of the cross, and laughing mockingly at them all the time.
Is this not an appropriate image of Hell?
No?
Well, let’s sum up. Hell is the ultimate severance from God and all of the graces that He’s piled upon us in life. Yes, some of us have had a difficult time of it, but even the most worthless, useless pedophile murderer gets three squares a day in prison along with a toilet and a bed; heat in the winter and air-conditioning in the summer; a TV, a weight room and a number of privileges he/she can earn on “good behavior”. I need not provide the details, but what can a cell mate of satan expect? Even if you were the best possible person in the world, who gave millions to charities, never lied or cursed, a “good person” who attended Church services 10 times a week… all you’d end up with is the best bed in HELL. This is the sin of pride in the flesh and it has no place in Heaven.
The ONLY escape from Hell is to be covered in the pure blood of God Himself as provided in His one and only Son – for only He is worthy enough to sacrifice Himself for you. Unless you repent of your sinful life and ask Christ to take all of your sins upon Him, then Hell is waiting for you with open, hungry arms.
For me, Hell is no longer a threat. I have no fear of it, since I am now a joint heir with Christ – possessing everything that He possesses and enjoying the fellowship of His people forever. It’s as easy as asking Him for our salvation, and what is easier than this? He beacons us to knock, and the door will be opened to us, and it’s as easy as this! There is nothing we can we need of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross in the place where we belong?
The negatives always lead to the positives. The lost should hear about hell for it is the reality for those who remain in rebellion against God, but it should always lead to the positive promises of the Lord to save us completely.
We have all of the infinite power of the Holy Spirit to enable us to do which is impossible if done on our own. No matter how stupid or evil we have been, He wipes the slate clean.
Christ Jesus is ready for you! He’s already paved the way for you, but the only way to eternal life is through Him. Ask Him to take control of your heart, then like II Corinthians 5:17, we can say, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, (s)he is a NEW creation. The old has passed away; behold, all things are new!”