Hell
Summer Growth Series 07/22/2007 AM
Hell
ME: Hello, and welcome to New Life. We have been in a summer growth series. That means that we have been dealing with some Bible doctrines and giving you some in-depth teaching on different topics.
We have been talking about what happens when you die. As a believer or an unbeliever there are several things that happen after you die before you get to your final destination.
The first step is death. Death is the separation of the spirit and the body. The second step is called the Intermediate State. This is the time between death and the resurrection of the body. This intermediate state is not with the body. So in this intermediate period those who have died in Christ are present with Him in their spirits, but they have not experienced the final resurrection which takes us to the rapture.
The rapture is a meeting in the air with the Lord. Believers will both come with Christ from heaven in their spirits and be raised from the dead in their bodies. The last day is portrayed as a time when the spirits of the returning saints are reunited with their resurrected bodies. Those who are in Christ will be caught up together with them in the air. That takes us to the next step which is called the judgments. Believers will be judged at the “Judgment Seat of Christ” and nonbelievers will be judged at the “Great White Throne Judgment.” Two separate judgments, two separate groups of people, one judge.
After our judgment each one of us will spend eternity in either one or two places: heaven or hell. Last week we talked about heaven so this week we are going to talk about hell.
WE: Most people say they believe in heaven but that they don’t believe in hell. Even fewer people say that they believe that they are not going to hell. Why is that?
Hell is a hard subject to talk about and we don’t like to talk about it. I told you that I was going to give you my opinion why people don’t believe in hell or even think about it. Here it is: hell is a place of pain. Our brain or bodies has the ability to surpass pain. Endorphins are chemicals in the control system used by the body to suppress pain naturally. So naturally we do not want to think about pain we want to suppress it. Nobody likes to think about a painful experience. We want to block it out.
Some people say that they believe that a loving God would not send them to hell. Just as heaven is an actual place so is hell. Jesus talked more about hell than any other biblical writer so let’s find out what God has to say about hell.
GOD: Luke 16: 19-31
From this passage of Scripture we see that a life lived pursuing the things of the world is a life wasted. The life lived pursuing and trusting God is a life that prepares us for eternity. One was carried, one was buried. One was in a place of happiness; one was in a place of agony and torment.
The Scriptures speak of 3 divisions of hell.
1) Sheol or Hades: Has gates and ia a place for the spirits of the departed dead
2) Tartarus: Used once in the NT (II Peter 2:4) and it is translated hell. It is a prison, or jail, specifically for sinning angelic spirit beings.
3) Abyss: also called the deep or the bottomless pit and is talked about in both the Old and New Testaments. The bottomless pit is seen to be a dungeon, a jail, and it the abode of demon spirits, a deeper pit than Sheol or Hades.
Just as accused criminals are placed in different jails and cells according to their crimes, each awaiting their sentence and final judgment of their case, God has various jails in which He locks up prisoners until the Great White Throne judgment, when all will be tried and sentence eternally to the final Hell, Gehenna.
Rev. 20: 11-15 tells us that Gehenna is the final and eternal hell. “Gehenna” is translated hell 12 times and is called the Lake of Fire 5 times. So those are the three divisions of hell and some different terms used to describe hell. But, what will hell be like? According to Revelation hell will be a place of:
Fire and brimstone: Rev. 19:20; 20:10, 14-15; 21:8
Horrible torment: Rev 14:9-11 with Luke 16:19
Continually ascending smoke: Rev 14:10-11
Mark 9:43-49 tells us that hell will be a fire that is never quenched
Hell is a place where the worm of conscience never dies (Isaiah 66:24; Psalm 21:9; Job 24:20 with Acts 12: 20-23; Mark 9:43-48). That means that whatever lust you surrender to on earth will torment you forever in hell. Your conscience will torment you of past guilt and rejected grace.
Hell will be the furnace of fire (Matthew 13:42, 50; 25: 41, 46).
Hell will last forever.
Hell is the second death.
YOU: The second death is eternal separation from God. No light, peace, joy, happiness, no salvation but only darkness, fire, and torment of conscience. Hell is a self-chosen and self-inflicted curse. It is the inevitable outcome of a life of sin. What you need to know today is that hell was created for the devil and his angels. If you choose to go to hell you will be an intruder.
God’s desire is that none should perish (2 Peter 3:9). God has provided a way out but you most choose to accept it. John 3: 16 says that God so loved the world that He gave. What do need to know to become a Christian? You need to know that God loved and that God gave. The verse goes on to say that He gave His only Son to die for you. What do they need to do? Two words. Believe in then receive. That is what you need to do. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth and you will be saved. The choice is yours.