Dinner with Jesus - Week 3
September 21, 2008
Would a loving God Send someone to hell?
Luke 16:19-31

It was 7:30 am, on May 26, 2002 when a barge rammed the footings of the Interstate 40 bridge that covers the Arkansas River in Eastern Oklahoma. The captain of the barge, Joe Dedmon apparently blacked out and struck the bridge collapsing a 600 foot section of the highway and sending cars, trucks and trailers plunging 60 feet down into the water below. Fourteen lives were lost on that day. One fisherman saw the whole thing happen. He told reporters, "It was just one car after another hitting the end of the bridge at 70 mph. Nobody could see that the bridge was gone," It there had been someone to stand on the highway that morning and warn the cars, to wave them down, then maybe lives could have been saved!

The Bible speaks about our life as traveling down a road. The proverb writer put it clearly, there is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end leads to destruction.  There are people today going down a road they think will lead them to life, pleasure, happiness, satisfaction – but it is a road that will lead to destruction. Jesus said, something similar to that. Last week I mentioned Mt 7.14. Jesus said, “Enter at the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction and many go there, but small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life and only few find it.” You see, the Bible makes it clear that we are all travelers, we are on a road. And depending on which road you are on will determine where you end up after you die. There is a road that leads to life. But there is clearly a road that leads to destruction. And that place of destruction is called hell.

Hell has become the “h” word we never speak about in church today. No one wants to address this subject. But the Bible directly refers to Hell 167 times. Jesus preached on Hell 33 times in a three-year ministry.  So, 11 times a year, He preached on Hell.  About once a month, Jesus brought a message on Hell.  You might not have even wanted to go to His church, because you were going to hear a message on Hell once a month.  Why? Because Jesus knew that Hell was a real place, and he knew that people’s eternities hang in the balance. He saw people like you and me barreling down the road we chosen, going 75 miles and hour, without any thought that the road is out, that destruction is ahead. And so all through the scriptures we see Jesus standing on the road, waving his arms, warning us that there is destruction ahead! The bridge is out! There is a real place called hell.

Now most people believe in hell. There are some that will try to tell you that hell doesn’t exists. That it is a make believe place designed to scare you, to frighten or manipulate you. But Jesus was clear that hell is a real place. Most people instinctively embrace the idea of hell because they want to know that there is a final court where people that do terrible things in this world and escape judgment on this side, will face judgment before God and get what they deserve. People like Hitler, Saddam Hussein and Timothy Mc Vey. But many people don’t think of themselves as going to hell and they don’t like the idea of God sending anyone to there. I have a friend who is not a Christian. He lived across the street from me for many years. He is as computer programmer for a large oil and gas company. And he said to me that he’s not a Christian because some person told him that he was going to hell, and it turned him off. That may be you. you are struggling with this idea of hell. Then I want you to listen clearly to what Jesus had to say about hell. And at the end of this message, I’m going to ask you about the road you are on today and where it is taking you.

I want to show you a place where Jesus talks about hell in great details. Take your Bible and turn to Luke 16.19-31

Is Hell really that bad?

The first question is simply, “Is Hell really that bad?” Everyone once in a while you will hear someone say, “Yeah, I’m going to hell and take over” or “I’m going to hell and party”. That just shows that really don’t know what they are talking about. The Bible uses four terms when talking about Hell. 1) Tartarus – Jude 6 describes a terrible holding place for demons awaiting final judgment. This is the death-row of the demonic world. 2) Gehenna. This word is used 12 times to describe Hell (11 times by Jesus). Literally means the “Valley of Hinnom”. It was a dark place in Israel’s history. At times when they wandered from God and followed pagan idols, this valley was a place of human sacrifices. Later it became a dumping ground for animal carcasses and refuse. Often you could smell burning flesh and worms would feed on the sewage. 3) Hades. This is the temporary place of the dead and often translated Hell. Hades, along with it’s OT counterpart Sheol, represented the place people go when they die but often carried the idea of punishment. This is the term Jesus used in his story. The rich man died and he went to Hades. But is it really that bad? Let me show you what it is like.

The man was CONSCIOUS. He knew exactly where he was. He saw Lazarus his friend in heaven. He saw Abraham. He knew who he was. He remembered his family. He was aware of pain and discomfort. When you step into Hell, it’s not some dreamy state, you know you are there! The man was in torment. The man was in TORMENT. “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.” (v24)  Often times hell is described as a place of fire. Some people dispute whether this is literal fire, but Jesus never wavered on this point, he consistently painted hell as a place of torment. Fire is a symbol of judgment. John saw Jesus after his resurrection and his eyes were like fire (REV 1.14). Hebrews 12.29 the Lord is a “consuming fire”. Fire is a symbol for judgment, but there is no reason to discount the literal fire of hell. If it’s not literal fire, then it only represents something much worse! The man faced SEPARATION. There was a chasm “fixed” (v26). One of the awful things about hell is isolation. Isolated from God, from others. Once the door slams behind you in hell, there is no way out. No dreams, ambitions, plans, activities, no hope. You are hemmed in. Trapped. C.S. Lewis believed hell would be silent. No one to hear you or comfort you. Is hell that bad? It’s worse than you imagine.

4) Hell- represents an eternal place of punishment made for the Devil and his angels. Rev 20.14 “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.” After Christ comes back and everyone stands before the judgment of Christ, then Satan, demons and those who have rebelled against God will find themselves in Hell permanently. Here the sufferings of Hades intensify. But Satan will not torment anyone there, he will be torment in Hell. That brings up the second question.

HOW CAN A LOVING GOD SEND A PERSON TO HELL?

How can the love of God be reconciled with Hell? We like to think of God in exclusively loving terms. But the Bible says that God is also just. Hell exists for the punishment of the Devil and his angels. And all those that rebel against God and follow Satan find the same end. You see, God isn’t just arbitrarily saying, “This one to Hell…this one to Heaven”. It’s about Justice. 1)  Hell is the Consequence of what we have done. There is coming a day when you will stand before Jesus and give an account of your life. Rev 20.12, 15 “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books…if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” You are going to stand before God. And if you have rejected Christ, you will judged solely on your own merit, behavior. Every word, action, thought will be judged – that is recorded in “the books”. And your own merit will condemn you. You see, there is no one perfect. We have all sinned, violated God’s laws, gone our own way, done our own thing. Paul writes, RM 3.10-12 “There is no one who is righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. all have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Everyone is guilty. And just like a murderer stand trial and hears the words of the jury say guilty as charged and he faces the penalty justice requires, a person apart from Christ suffer Hell because of what he has done. The rich man never said, “This isn’t fair”. His own conscience knew what he deserved. And he even knew what his brothers needed to escape Hell – repentance. 2) But Hell is also consistent with the intent of the heart of man. Those that are in Hell have lived their entire life saying, “God leave me alone”. And in Hell they still shake their fist at God. D.A. Carson – “Hell is not filled with people who have already repented, only God isn’t good enough to let them out. It’s filled with people who, for all eternity, still want to be the center of the universe and who persist in their God-defying rebellion."  So God is justified in his justice. Hell is merely the punishment for the crime. Then you may ask….  

IS EVERYONE PUNISHED THE SAME IN HELL?

Judge Courtland Mathers was presiding over and unique case. Standing before him was a 31 year old impoverished mother with a young family who was guilty of playing a minor role in a drug case. In his opinion, she deserved a second chance. But there was a problem. The state of Massachusetts had mandatory sentences for drug offenders that required jail time for no less than six years. He knew that such a sentence would be in this case devastating and a “miscarriage of justice”. So what did he do? He declared her guilty of a lesser offense and gave her five years probation with counseling. Mather told reporters that a judge must be “driven by a sense of justice.”  When we think of Jesus as our ultimate judge, the question comes – “Is Hell a mandatory sentence for everyone? Will Hitler get the same punishment my moral but unbelieving friend gets?” Jesus explains that since God is just, the punishment in hell will fit the crime. Jesus said, “Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.” MT 11.21-22.  He was saying that the town that heard his preached, saw his miracles and had opportunity to repent and did not, will have a stricter sentence in judgment that those who did not have the same opportunity. So what does that mean? It means that there are various degrees of punishment in Hell. Your punishment in Hell will be determined by two things: 1) your actions (the books) and 2) what you have done with the gospel of Jesus Christ. The most dangerous place you can be right now is in this room, hearing this message, and yet still resisting Christ. Because now you have heard, now you are accountable to God for what you know.  You might ask, “If Hell is Divine Justice, then how can it be forever?”

Is Hell forever?

Doesn’t an “eternal sentence” seem overkill? This just doesn’t seem right to us. Because of that people have tried to come up with different options. One option is to take 1) Taking the “forever” out of Hell – Annihilation. This the idea that “Yes, there is a Hell and it is just, but at some point those in hell are finally consumed and cease to exist.” This way, Hell isn’t forever. The second option is 2) Taking the Hell out of forever – Universalism.  This is the idea that everyone will get to heaven somehow. Some may have to go through purgatory (not in the Bible). Some may have to spend a long time in Hell, but eventually God’s love will win the day and Hell will be no more.  If I had my way, I would pick either one. But I’m not God. And Jesus makes it crystal clear that Hell is not limited – it’s forever. MT 25.46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” The same word “eternal” he used for heaven, he uses for Hell. This idea even reaches back to the Old Testament. Dan 12.2 “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.”  When we sin against God, we sin against and infinite being. And that sin, carries and infinite penalty. While we may feel uncomfortable with the truth, the Bible teaches us that Hell is forever. It’s forever. There is no end in sight when you are in Hell. After you have suffered in Hell for a billion years, you will not have shaded one second off of your time to be spent there. You might be thinking, “Is there any hope?”

Will God give people a second chance?

The rich man knew there was no second chance for him, but he asked for Lazarus to go and warn his five brothers that were still on the earth. Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets (scriptures), let them listen to them.”(v29) But the man protested, “If they see a man come back from the dead, then they will believe. And Abraham replied, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, the will not be convinced even is someone rises from the dead.”(v31). Will God a give second chance? Yes. But that second chance is on this side of eternity. God has provided his Word, the Bible for you. God has provided friends, family members, pastors to warn you. But the time for forgiveness, to time to get right with God is now, today. The very fact that you are alive and you have an opportunity to miss Hell and gain heaven is a sign of God’s love and patients with you. 2 Peter 3.9 “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promises, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” I TIM 2.4 God is described as a Savior “who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” Key word is “Saved”. Saved from what? Saved from judgment. Saved from facing the penalty of your own sin. Saved from Hell.

Remember I told you to picture Jesus standing by the side of the road warning as cars pasted going 70 miles an hour. Jesus did more than post a warning, he provided a second chance. The Bible tells us that Jesus came from heaven to provide a way for you to miss heaven. All you sins (the lists of all the things you had done worthy of punishment) were laid on Jesus of Nazareth and when he went to the cross, he suffered the wrath of the Father on your behalf. Why would he do that? Love. John 3 .16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Today, all that you need to do is turn from your sin and trust Jesus. To place your trust in Jesus and not yourself. To bend your knee and ask Jesus to forgive you and lead your life. That is the second chance. And it happens now! But if you don’t take that offer, your on your own. The Bible warns you not to go blazing by Jesus. “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?” Hebrews 10.26-29