Sermon Tone Analysis

Hell: An Eternity of Separation

Luke 16:19-31

 

It is not popular in the churches of America today to talk about hell.

In the August 12, 2002 issue of /Newsweek/ the front cover read: “Visions of Heaven.”

The article inside expounded the virtues of heaven and had a contrasting view of hell.

A supplemental article by Kenneth L. Woodward was entitled: “Why We Need Hell, Too.”

It was subtitled: “Churchgoers Take Comfort: Hell has all but disappeared from modern Christian theology.”

In response to that article, Southern Baptist evangelist, Freddie Gage wrote: “It’s a sad, sad commentary that /Newsweek/ magazine has to tell Protestant and Baptist preachers that they need to preach on hell.”

He went on to say…

 

Ø  “If there is no hell, is not Calvary, with all of its suffering and sacrifice and finished atoning work, a blunder?

If a man accepts the cross of Christ, he must accept the dogma of hell.

If there be no hell, there can be no heaven!”

Others have said similar things…

 

Ø  William Booth (founder of the Salvation Army) said, “If I had my way, I would not send any of my preachers to Bible School, but I would put each of them in hell for twenty-four hours.

It’s the best training a preacher could have.

When they came back out of hell, they would be flaming evangelists.”

Ø  Billy Sunday said, “If there is no hell, let’s close down the churches and build a monument to an atheist.”

Ø  Charles Spurgeon said, “Preaching that ignores the doctrine of hell, lowers the holiness of God and degrades the work of Jesus Christ.”

Ø  W. A. Criswell said, “If you say there is no hell, you say the Bible is not the Word of God!”

 

Well, this morning I want us to look at the subject of hell—the only alternative to heaven.

Before we begin looking at specific questions related to the subject, I want to give you some background information.

In the Scripture there are actually three words that are translated “hell” –Gehenna, Hades and Tartarus – but each one speaks of a different place.

Gehenna is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word Ge-Hinnom (or Valley of Hinnom).

This was a deep, narrow valley to the south of Jerusalem, where the idolatrous Jews (under the reign of King Ahaz) sacrificed their children to the false god, Molech.

After the time of Josiah (when this practice was halted), Gehenna became the “city dump,” where the bodies of criminals, the carcasses of animals and all kinds of debris and trash were thrown.

Like land fills today, it always smelled and smoldered (there were constant fires burning in the valley, as the waste was ignited in order to make room for more).

Gehenna refers specifically to the “Lake of Fire,” described in Revelation as the final (and eternal) dwelling place for Satan, his demons and nonbelievers who have rejected God’s salvation through the ages.

The second word is Hades.

The word itself literally means, “The Unseen.”

The Hebrew synonym for Hades was Sheol.

Both words refer to the invisible realm of the dead where nonbelievers are being held until the Great White Throne of Judgement when they will be cast into the Lake of Fire (Gehenna).

Now, note that this is not “purgatory” (which the Bible doesn’t even say exists).

The idea of purgatory comes out of Roman Catholic doctrines, but has no biblical basis.

According to Roman Catholic teaching, people can eventually leave purgatory.

The difference in what I’m describing and the Roman Catholic belief in purgatory is that there will be no second chance for those in Hades.

The third word that is translated “hell” in Scripture is “Tartarus.”

This is a special prison set up for the fallen angels that intermarried with humans just prior to the flood in Noah’s day (Gn.

6:1-4; 1 Pt.

3:19-20; 2 Pt.

2:4; Jude 6).

This morning, we will be focusing our attention on the first two (Hades and Gehenna).

*Luke 16:19-31 (NASB95) \\ *19 “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.

20 “And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, 21 and longing to be fed with the /crumbs /which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.

22 “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.

23 “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and ~*saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’

25 “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.

26 ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and /that /none may cross over from there to us.’ 27 “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— 28 for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

29 “But Abraham ~*said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’

30 “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’

31 “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

As we look at this story (which I believe to be true because the characters are named), I want us to answer three important questions:

 

 

*1.

**Who will be in hell?*

 

Contrary to what some may infer, the rich man did not go to the place of torment because he was rich, and Lazarus did not go to paradise because he was poor.

The Bible is clear on this subject in other passages.

Jesus said in…

 

*John 3:16-18 (NASB95) \\ *16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

17 “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

18 “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

These individuals went where they did based on whether or not they had entrusted their lives to God.

Lazarus went to a section of Hades (the realm of the dead), called “Paradise.”

(Jesus, you remember, said to the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with me in Paradise”).

It is also called “The Bosom of Abraham.”

The rich man, on the other hand, went to the section of Hades that had no designated name, but was described as a place of torment.

Both of these areas, the place of torment and paradise, were separated by a great gulf (or chasm) that could not be crossed.

Now, let me explain all of this *. . .

[explain].*

*2.

What will hell be like?*

There are several graphic terms, which are used in Scriptures to describe hell.

I just want to highlight a few:

 

1)       *“Weeping”* – Weeping is not something that we get a grip on; it gets a grip on us!

We weep when we feel totally alone and abandoned.

*Luke 13:28 (NASB95) \\ *28 “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out.

2)       *“Fiery Furnace”* – If you have ever been severely burned, you know the excruciating pain that you felt.

Well imagine that pain all over your body, and it never ends!  /Never/!

*Matthew 13:42 (NASB95) \\ *42 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

3)       *“Gnashing of teeth”* – Perhaps this is a result of anger or bitterness; or perhaps it is a result of being too weary to cry any longer.

| *Hades~/Sheol* |

\\ *Matthew 8:12 (NASB95) \\ *12 but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

4)       *“Darkness”* (Matthew 8:12) – *[read “That Hideous Doctrine” by John Tomas, /Moody Monthly Magazine/,1985]*

Imagine the person who has just entered hell – a neighbor, relative, co-worker, friend.

After a roar of physical pain blasts him, he spends his first moments wailing and gnashing his teeth.

But after a season, he grows accustomed to the pain, not that it’s become tolerable, but that his capacity for it has enlarged to comprehend it, yet not be consumed by it.

Though he hurts, he is now able to think, and he instinctively looks about him.

But as he looks, he sees only blackness.

In his past life he learned that if he looked long enough, a glow of light somewhere would yield definition to his surroundings.

So he blinks and strains to focus his eyes, but his efforts yield only blackness.

He turns and strains his eyes in another direction.

He waits.

He sees nothing but unyielding black ink.

It clings to him, smothering and oppressing him.

Realizing that the darkness is not going to give way, he nervously begins to feel for something solid to get his bearings.

He reaches for walls or rocks or trees or chairs: he stretches his legs to feel the ground and touches nothing.

Hell is a “bottomless pit” (Revelation 20:1-2); however, the new occupant is slow to learn.

In growing panic, he kicks his feet and waves his arms.

He stretches and he lunges.

But he finds nothing.

After more feverish tries, he pauses from exhaustion, suspended in black.

Suddenly, with a scream he kicks, twists, and lunges until he is again too exhausted to move.

He hangs there, alone with his pain.