Hell Is No Place For You or Your Neighbor

Well, last week I spoke about Heaven in an attempt to inspire you to choose to go there.  Because of what Jesus has done through his sacrifice on the cross, the only thing missing is for us to accept that sacrifice on our behalf and choose to live for Christ instead of ourselves.  I hope that you have given consideration to your eternity and have chosen to live the rest of your days on the earth for Christ.  If you still wonder about the benefit of choosing Christ over a life centered on our own plans, let me take you down the road to a place called Hell.

I don’t want to take the course that some preachers take and try to scare the Hell out of you by making Hell so gory that you would simply choose to attempt to do the very minimum just so you could avoid Hell and squeak into Heaven.  These folks see church affiliation as some sort of spiritual life insurance.  Understand that Heaven is about spending the rest of eternity with God and if that sounds uninviting, please don’t choose it.  If you don’t like this church service then avoid Heaven because we will spend a good part of our future lives worshiping God in every activity we do.

I want to paint a relatively simple picture of truth.  Here it is: Hell has no God in it.  It contains no mercy, no love, no peace and no hope.  Hell is a place absent of generosity and void of gentleness.  It lacks any form of self-control and is completely with out reconciliation.  There is no relief and no escape.  There is no laughter in Hell as no joy of the Lord is present.  There is no victory in Hell because victory is found only in Christ.

Sadly, many so-called Christian churches are trying to weed the doctrine of Hell out of their respective Theology because they feel it is too restrictive or harsh.  They prefer a more palatable form of Christianity with only the positive side of the equation.  Their congregations are demanding a more culturally sensitive form of religion that makes it possible for everyone to feel good about himself or herself, with no need to become like Christ.  This church will not bend to that kind of public pressure no matter what the culture demands.  Note that this compromise of truth is not new to the church of Jesus Christ but it’s still dangerous.

(Matthew 23:33-34) “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?  Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.  

(2 Peter 2:1-10) But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men  (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard) if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment  This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority.     

Last week I spoke of how Heaven was a real place with all of God’s creation, minus evil and the curse.  This week you need to understand that Hell is a real place with none of God’s creation other than fallen angels and fallen man.  Its biggest reality is the absence of God.  This is my focus today.  When you remove God, you remove hope, healing, restoration and love.  When you remove God you remove peace, tranquility, joy and contentment.  

Like a parent who loves their child and warns them of the dangers of using illegal drugs, God the Father warns His children of the dangers of Hell and the extreme motivation to avoid it at all cost.

(Mark 9:47-48) And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where “ ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.’    

So, we understand now that Hell is a place with no God in it.  He isn’t there to rescue you when you fall or provide comfort when you ache inside.  God is absent from accessibility and unreachable to even the most repentant resident.  Hell is a place of inextinguishable torment because no relief can be found.

In scripture we see words for Hell like; the pit, the lowest pit, Gehenna, the grave, Sheol, death and Hades.  It speaks of this place as the future home of the wicked.  Hell is a place of separation from God and our neighbors are unaware of this truth in this politically correct world.  Let me read a portion of scripture that paints a clear picture of who is in Heaven and who is destined to Hell.

(Matthew 25:31-46) The Sheep and the Goats - “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

“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.  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”     

Which side of this coin describes your life?  Which image is reflective of how you live?  If you live for Christ and to serve Christ then you will enjoy your eternal inheritance.  Choose to be part of His church, which is the hope of the world.  I’m not speaking about organized religion but rather about a body of connected people who see their neighbor as worth inviting to an environment where truth can be heard.  In the end, the church wins!

(Matthew 16:18) And I tell you that you are Peter,  and on this rock I (Jesus) will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.   

Hell Is No Place For You or Your Neighbor.  It’s time we showed them the alternative of Heaven.

Notes from Pastor Pasch's May 31st message; to get a free CD of the complete message, contact Christ's Family Church @ 651.437.2340.