The Who, What and Why of Hell
Luke 16:19-31
The summer I started seminary in Dallas, TX, I called a Jewish friend from Tulane who lived in North Dallas. She invited me over to her house. When I got there, she asked if I would like a tour of the house. I said, ‘Sure!” She showed me the living room, the kitchen where I met her mom, the dining room and then we walked down a long hallway where she showed me her bedroom. When she turned on the lights, I saw a wall that was covered with 4” x 6” pictures. As I drew closer, I saw one guy was in a large number of them. I asked who he was and she told me he was her best friend in high school who was killed by a drunk driver. I told how sorry I was and as I continued to look, I said, you sure have a lot of pictures of him. And that’s when she said, In the Jewish faith, when someone dies, we believe they drift off to nothingness. The only way to remember they were alive is through our memories and that’s why I have so many pictures of him up on the wall.”
What she was sharing was the Jewish belief about death and Sheol, which is a Hebrew word meaning a grave or pit. Sheol is found 65 times in the Old Testament. Jews believed this was where the dead went after death separated from the living. It was believed to be located beneath the earth. The dead were thought to lead a conscious shadowy existence there. They were not in torment, but had neither hope nor satisfaction. People went sorrowfully to Sheol, therefore, it was viewed as a gloomy place. Both the good and the evil went there. It appears to have been thought to have many levels because the belly of Sheol is referred to. People, on occasion, were thought to be able to leave Sheol. Some Christians think Sheol, rather than hell, is what is referred in Apostle's Creed which states Christ, after his crucifixion, descended into hell. Jews believe that all deserving the eternal reward of heaven will rise up at once and enter heaven when the Messiah comes; therefore, Sheol is an intermediary resting place.
A Pew Forum on Religion survey found that while 87% of Americans believe in God and 74% believe n heaven, only 59% of believe in hell. Hell is one of those subjects that makes people uncomfortable. When hell is discussed by Christians, it’s usually tied to either condemning someone for their sins or used to scare people to living differently. We hear stories of hell being a place of fire, demons, and endless torment. Even preachers don’t like to preach about it. At one pastor’s Conference, preachers were asked who had preached about hell and not one raised their hand. Throughout history many authors have written about it -- Dante's Inferno, for example. Even Hollywood has made it the subject of many movies. Whatever the context, whatever the belief, hell is definitely taught in the Bible. The purpose of this message is not to judge or to frighten you but to inform you of the Bible’s teachings about hell.
There are two Greek words in the New Testament translated as hell. The first is Hades which occurs 10 times in the New Testament and literally means the place of departed souls. “Hades” was where the dead are separated from the living named after Hades, a pagan god who presided over the realm of the dead. The saying “Go to hell” referrs to Hades because pagans thought it to be an accessible passageway to the underworld. Hades is said to be a mighty city with 7 gates. In Biblical times, gates were not only defensive structures but signs of power of that city. The fact that it had 7 gates, 7 being a perfect number, also speaks to the power of Hades. When Jesus said, “…I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matt. 16:18b), he was standing at the base of a mountain near Caesarea Philippi where there was a cave with flowing water out of it. A pagan temple was built in front of this cave because it was believed to be the entrance to Hades. Acts 2:27, 31 teach us that both the righteous and the wicked go to Hades.
In our Scripture today, Jesus tells the story of Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus is a poor man who suffers during his life. The rich man has lived a comfortable and self-centered life. Both die. The rich man goes to Hades and Lazarus goes to heaven. In Hades, the rich man lifts up his eyes to heaven and sees Lazarus. He cries out to Abraham and asks for mercy because he is in agony in the flames. Abraham says no. Then he asks if someone from the dead could go warn his brothers to avoid this terrible place. Again, the answer is no. Some say that this is a parable. However, if it is, it is unique because no other parable actually names a person. And parables are meant to teach a single lesson, so what could the lesson be other than to live as God commands and avoid Hades. Everything points that this isn’t a parable but is a real story about a real place.
In fact, Jesus teaches us that Hell is real place of eternal torment. Perhaps that is why Jesus spoke more of hell than heaven and spent so much time warning people of Hell. After all, if people at death just stopped existing, why warn them? Some people argue that hell was a temporary place for those sent there. But if it were eternal, then the warning is strong. That’s why Jesus said, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” Matthew 5:29
The second Greek word for hell in the New Testament was ‘gehenna’ and can also be translated "the fires of hell.” Every Jew knew that ‘Gehenna’ referred to a ravine outside Jerusalem where human sacrifices to the Ammonite god Molech were offered during the reigns of the wicked Kings Ahaz and Manasseh in the 8th century BC. This, it became a symbol of pain and suffering. It later became a garbage dump where trash was burned, and symbolized the flames of eternal damnation. Gehenna or hell was considered to be the place of punishment for sinners. It is usually associated with the final judgment and depicted as being an eternal, unquenchable fire. Gehenna came to represent the consequences of sin.
While Hades was considered to be a holding place for the dead, Hell is a place of eternal punishment and the final destination for sinners and unbelievers. Jesus said, "and these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal". Matthew 25:46 It is described in Scripture using various terms such as eternal fire, outer darkness, a place of weeping and torment, the lake of fire, the second death, fire and brimstone, burning wind, fiery oven, eternal punishment and pits of darkness. The most terrifying reality of hell is that it will be a place of complete, unending separation from God. Whereas people were thought to be able to leave Hades on occasion, punishment and residence in Hell was Eternal. Those condemned to hell experience torment, no rest day and night (think sleep deprivation), weeping and gnashing of teeth, (Michael Hoodman says this can be compared to hitting one’s thumb with a hammer, squeezing the eyes closed and grinding the teeth together hard in reaction to the pain) and finally all experience death.
Who will go to hell? Hell was primarily created by God as a place for Satan and the other rebellious, fallen angels. Because God is a Holy and Perfect God, he cannot be in the presence of sin. Thus, hell also became a destination for those who rebel against God, sinners. So what sends you to hell? Idolatry, theft, swindling, discord, dissension, lying, sorcery, slander, adultery, greed, impurity, jealousy, factions and envy, cowardice, sexual immorality, hatred, murder, prostitution, drunkenness, witchcraft, fits of rage, orgies, unbelief and selfish ambition. Anybody completely innocent of these sins? The reality is this list includes some things that all of us have done. When we die, we will be judged to see if we have committed any of these deeds. If you have, you deserve to go to the lake of fire. The good things that we have done do not change or makeup for our sins. God does not grade on the curve, so all people who have been guilty of any one of the violations above will be sent to the lake of fire. The only hope we have is forgiveness through Jesus Christ. He died on the cross for our sins. He paid the price we would have paid at the day of our judgment and if you accept that gift, believe in him and seek to live as he did, then you will be washed as white as snow, be forgiven and receive the gift of eternal life rather than eternal punishment.
Hell is real. In his book, “Beyond Death’s Door,” Dr. Maurice Rawlings, a heart surgeon and professed atheist, had an encounter with hell through one of his patients. In his practice, he had resuscitated many people who had been clinically dead. As an atheist, he always thought death was nothing more than “a painless extinction.” But in 1977 that dramatically changed while he was resuscitating a 47 year old US mail carrier, who came back to life terrified and screaming, "I am in hell!" He was terrified and pleaded with Dr. Rawlings to help him. He was scared to death and had a terrified look worse than the expression seen in death! This patient had a grotesque grimace expressing sheer horror! His pupils were dilated, and he was perspiring and trembling — he looked as if his hair was standing "on end." Then he said, "Don't you understand? I am in hell. . . Don't let me go back to hell!" He was in a panic like I had never seen before." Dr. Rawlings said, “no one, who could have heard his screams and saw the look of terror on his face could doubt for a single minute that he was actually in a place called hell” He asked me to pray for him and so he gave a fake prayer as an atheist to a God he didn’t believe existed. And then he writes, “After this was all over, I realized what really happened. It was a double conversion. Not only had this make-believe prayer converted this atheist (mailman)… it had also converted this atheist doctor that was working on him.”
Heaven or hell? It’s real but it’s also a choice and the choice is yours. Give invitation. Amen
