People's opinion of the biblical description of hell ranges from "slightly confusing" to "completely irrational." Although everyone agrees that the idea of punishment and suffering is distasteful, the Bible claims that hell is an actual place. At the crux of the matter lies a question we all must ask ourselves..."What do I believe about hell?"
What's Your Hell?
In my own life my first encounter with the idea of hell marks the beginning of my spiritual pilgrimage, I will never forget the experience of sitting on the front seat of our old Chevy, my feet not yet touching the floor, listening to a radio program with my mother. The radio preacher spoke on why we would all surely go to hell if we did not place our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour.
My parents raised me in a very safe and secure environment. We went to church regularly, and I believed in God with all of my heart. But until that moment I had never been told that hell was my certain destination unless God somehow intervened.
The next time I remember thinking about hell was in high school as we read Dante's Inferno. Dante saw hell as a place made up of levels of punishment descending into an abyss inhabited by Satan himself. Dante portrayed his personal enemies writhing in hell, suffering torments based on how they had lived.
Another concept is the "hell on earth" that we all experience while living in an imperfect world. We all seem to go through seasons of distress and trouble. My own mind flashes back to the war in Viet Nam, my parent's divorce and the terrible loneliness I sometimes felt as an adolescent.
No-one Wants To Go To Hell
By definition, hell is the worst possible place we could ever imagine. The Bible describes hell as a place filled with eternal suffering and separation from God. "Their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur...And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever." (Revelation 21:8; 14:11).
Jesus and Hell
Many people have no room in their "spiritual philosophy" for a place like hell but it is interesting to note that out of thirteen references to hell in the New Testament, twelve come from the very lips of Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus describes hell as a real place, inhabited by real people -- conscious, thinking people -- eternally regretting their misspent lives. Why do you suppose that Jesus Himself would be the primary spokesman on such a distasteful subject? It's because His very mission on this earth was to help us avoid that awful place. In fact, He poured out His life so we could get into a right relationship with His heavenly Father.
The Scriptures teach that hell was not created for you and me. Neither were we created for hell. Instead, hell was designed as a place of confinement and punishment for Satan and his angels when they rebelled against God. "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matthew 25:41).
Avoiding Hell
Yes, we all have some concept of hell, perhaps conjured up by bad experiences or exposure to fanatical preaching. But hell really exists and is described vividly in God's revelation to us in the Bible. We can choose to reject this concept because it is distasteful or seems irrelevant to us now, or we can come to grips with its reality, based on the authority of God's word but no matter how we choose to deal with this information -- the reality of hell remains.
The Bible tells us that we are saved (from hell) by faith alone. In John 5:24, Jesus says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." Whenever the Bible talks about salvation, it is always in reference to the eternal doom that awaits those who reject God. "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him" (John 3:36).
It's Your Decision
You see, we are all created for the purpose of knowing God and enjoying a relationship with Him. When we choose to exclude God from our lives, rejecting His desire to act as our loving, heavenly Father, we have made a decision with terrible and eternal consequences.
Many of us have not refused God outright...we have simply delayed making a decision about Him but psychologists tells us that we often deal with weighty choices this way. In effect, when we put off any decision -- that act itself is a choice. Jesus Christ said "he who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters" (Matthew 12:30). Today, I invite you to make the decision to receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour and enter into the privilege of becoming a member of His eternal family.
(written by Daniel Southern)
If you have decided to trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour, please e-mail us or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/ for more information.
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