"The Seven Certainties of Perdition"
(Psalm 9:17)
A companion of a newly converted Christian said to him one day, "Can you tell me where hell is?" After a moment’s hesitation the young Christian responded to his friend’s inquiry, "Yes, it’s at the end of a Christ-less life!"
A new believer was on a plane with an intellectual (a man educated beyond his intelligence). He sneered at her reading the Bible. Asked if she believed it, the young female Christian responded confidently, "Yes." "You believe "Jonah and the whale story,", the man asked. "Yes." "How did it happen," he asked. "Don’t know, but I’ll find out when I get to heaven." "What if Jonah isn’t there?" "Then I guess you’ll have to ask him for me!"
One of the most painful certainties of this life is the old adage that says: "…there are only two certainties in life - death & taxes!" You also hear just about everyone speak of a certainty of the next life - heaven. But, many today believe that everyone is going to heaven; no one will be left out, according to them. We know different, don’t we! God’s Word tells us that heaven will be a place reserved exclusively. No one will be in heaven that has not first met the requisite criteria! (John 14:6) "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (Acts 4:12) "…there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
Though heaven is exclusive, the alternative is as well. The requirements are not as strict; there is room for complete indifference and complacency. All a person needs to do is simply nothing! One may just "coast" into hell, if they so wish.
Two of the biggest misconceptions about the doctrine and teachings on hell are first, the belief that "God will not send anyone to hell." Well, this first misconception is true…God will not send anyone to hell; it is not His will for anyone to go to hell. (2 Peter 3:9) "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." So, we see that the Lord does not wish for anyone to go to hell. If anyone goes to hell, they will go literally tripping over the broken body of the Son of God, and they will go under the volition of their own will!
The second misconception is that there is not hell (though almost everyone who believes this has no trouble believing in heaven!). Well, Jesus referred to hell on a few occasions in His parables. (Matthew 25:41)
"…Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels…" Jesus was referring in this parable to those who will go foolishly into eternity thinking all is well, when it is not. In this parable of our Lord we can see that He believed in a place called hell. He believed in it so much that He utilized an illustration to warn people about its reality. In this parable Jesus attempts to warn any of us that fall into apostasy and spiritual slumber, only to wake one day into inevitable eternity and find out that not only hell is a real place, but because of our spiritual indifference, we will make our bed in its depths!
Folks, hell IS a real place! It is just as real as the heaven many of us say we are going to. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to go there!
I would like to notice seven certainties about hell…
I. Its Scheme.
When the Triune God-head drew up the blueprint for the creation of this world an d its inhabitants, hell was not an original part of the Divine schematic. When anarchy and mutiny arose among Lucifer and his cohorts, the God of heaven and earth needed a place to hurl these eternal vagabonds. It was then that God, in His divine wisdom, dug a pit, stoked the hole with an unbearable, eternal flame, painted the walls and atmosphere of this pit with the blackest of black, and cast the leader of this heavenly mutiny (along with a 1/3 of his followers) into this corruptible hole we now know as hell.
You see, a part of the grand and Divine scheme is heaven; this is the reason hell was created. Heaven can have no one or nothing sinful in shape, way or form! Heaven will be totally sin-free. In its inhabitants, its buildings, its sustenance and its atmosphere there will be not one trace of sin, corruption or unrighteousness. Therefore, there must be a place where the sin of this world will finally be dumped. So, anyone who is not ready for heaven (whether they are sinful to the "inth" degree, or simply complacent and indifferent) will be making the bed in hell!
The scheme of hell makes sense. It is logical. For those who do not love God and want nothing to do with the Church, God’s preacher or God’s people, would be out of place in heaven. This is what amazes me…most people demand justice in this world to be done. We cannot stand for injustice in any form. Many
were livid when OJ got off "scott-free" for a double homicide. But, most of the same people cannot or will not accept eternal justice! They just cannot see how a loving God will allow anyone to go to hell, even
though they have transgressed God’s law all of their lives. Even though they refuse to accept the remedy offered to each and every one of us by God Himself! God was just when He and the Council of heaven originated the sensible scheme of hell.
II. Its Society.
There is an old adage that says: "Birds of a feather flock together." I tell you that there are many imposters out there in Christianity (maybe that is what you are today). There are many out there that claim to be Christian…they even accept many tenants of the Church and Christian way. But, in their heart of hearts they are the farthest thing from "Christ-likeness" (which is the true definition of the word "Christian").
Many today say they are a follower of Christ, yet they get their marching orders from the world. There are many today that say they follow Jesus everyday, but they display little to no faith in Him. There are many today that once had a real relationship with the Lord, but have turned away from the very God that died for them. There are many today that "talk the talk," but they certainly do not "walk the walk!"
Heaven’s society will be filled with only those who have followed, to its fullest, the commandment that Jesus Christ called the "greatest commandment" - (Mark 12:30) "… you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength…" (1 John 5:2) "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments!" This is the "acid-test" as to know if you love the Lord. IF you love the Lord God with your whole being, then you will keep all of His commandments. Then (and only then) will you be admitted into the society of heaven.
But, the antithesis of this matter is simple: IF you do not love the Lord God with your whole being, you will not keep all of His commandments. Therefore, you are not a part of heaven’s society, but you will be a welcome member of hell’s community!
Hell’s community will have many neighbors. If you think your neighbors here on earth are bad, if you should make your way to hell, you have not seen anything yet! You will be a part of hell’s society if you are not very careful with your spiritual well being here and now!
The Bible tells us that the wicked will be judged one day by God Himself. (Rev. 21:6-8) "… I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him
who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
All of the wicked from all of the ages of mankind will march intro the Great Judgment Hall of the Almighty that horrible day. This promiscuous mob, this slum of society will have no prejudice that day, for you see, even those who simply tried to "coast" into heaven…those who really were not that bad, will be crammed into this mob of sinfulness that hour, and will be judged and will receive the same recompense as the pedophile, the Satan-worshiper, the drunkard, the drug addict, the fornicator, the back-slider, the embezzler, the woman-beater, the child-abuser, the homosexual, the cusser & swearer and the many others that will represent that vast crowd! This will make up hell’s society! These will be your neighbors, should you go!
What will these neighbors be like? Well, allow me to use this crude illustration (The Chemist, as told by Attorney David Gibbs, Jr.)… Will this be you? Will you be a madman (or woman) for all of eternity? Jesus tells us about the behavior of the socialites of hell (Matthew 13:41 & 42) "The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
The aspect of this uncontrollable behavior gives us a window into the madness of hell’s atmosphere. We see such anguish…such pain…such agony that it is impossible to explain or empathize with. (This leads us in to our third certainty of hell…)
III. Its Sensations.
In hell, the five senses will be active and emotions will be felt. In Luke 16:23 & 24, we see this elaborated upon - "… And being in torments in Hades… he cried and said, ’Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame!" The only water that will be available to any in habitant of hell will be the ever-flowing teardrops that flow from eternal remorse! Memory of the sparkling water that flowed from the kitchen tap of your sink will nearly dethrone all reasoning.
There will also be lust in hell. But, this lust will be to have just one more chance at becoming a Christian and doing his/her best at maintaining that gift of eternal life.
When I think about the sensations that will be in overdrive in hell, I think of the story we have all heard…The story of the truck driver pinned in behind the steering wheel of his rig as it is being consumed in flames. From the flames, the voice of the dying truck driver can be heard…often his voice was nothing more than tormented screams for mercy. Then, just before the flames burnt out the truck driver’s life, he was heard begging the state policemen that were standing hopelessly nearby to take their handguns and shoot him to death.
Hell will be the hospital of eternity where the sick never get well, but never die either. The pain is endless.
For just a moment, catch a glimpse of what they will not feel in hell. They will never again feel the breath of a cool winter day. Never again to come home from a long day at work and have little hands reach out to them. Never again to walk down the street on an evening stroll with their spouse. Never again to sit around the Christmas tree with family and friends. The mind is weary and the body extremely tired, but there will be no rest there in hell.
Will the Herods find any comfort in the memory of the empires they ruled? NO! The flames of hell will consume all of their hopes, devour their comfort, leave no balm for their conscience and destroy every vestige of mercy and pity. Dr. Wilbur Penfold, director of the Montreal Neurological Institute, says that the human brain retains a permanent record of a person’s past like a continuous film-strip with a soundtrack besides. When a surgeon applies an electric current to a central spot on the temporal cortex of the brain, a man can live his life all over again. He will even experience the same emotional responses as he had during the original experience. If the finger of a scientist can recall the whole of a person’s life by touching a spot on the brain, then what will happen when the finger of God touches the secret springs of the heart and mind!
IV. Its Sounds.
Recently I learned that years ago, a team of scientists created a flame that was virtually invisible and 20 times hotter than any known source of fire. They experimented with a dog to study the emotional reactions that occurs to a living being while in the center of such a flame of fire. The scientists watched in horror as they witnessed a horrific scene unfold before them. The dog screamed and whined like never before heard by any canine. The flesh literally fell of the poor animal.
The scientists hurriedly turned down the heat to try to spare the dog any further pain, but to no avail. The dog disintegrated before they could lower the heat. The scientists were probably haunted until their deaths of the howls and wails of that poor animal. So, what is the sound of hell?
I remind you of Matthew 13:42 - "… There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." Did you know that the most painful death is that by fire! People react to all sorts of pain, but when they die in the flames, they produce a form of wailing never heard before; it curdles the blood and uneases to the bone.
If we may try to listen into the sounds of hell for a moment, I wish to elaborate on what we might hear. It is possible we can hear one wailing: "Why didn’t I heed the wooing of the Holy Spirit when the altar call was made!" We could possibly make out another screaming: "O Lord! Save Me! I’m sorry I didn’t wake up when I had the chance; save me!" Maybe we could hear through the noise of eternal torments one wailing these words: "Why did I allow what others did or say to sidetrack me! O for another chance!"
V. Its Scenes.
Memory will paint scenes so vivid that they will play back in the recorders of the minds of the damned with such perfection that they will be relived over and over again.
The darkness of hell itself will cause the light of memory to shine so bright. The only thing that will dissolve in the darkness and torment will be hope. Never again will you come home late and see your mother on her knees praying for your soul. Never again will you look into the eyes of the pastor while he pleads with you about your soul. Faded from your sight will be that hour in which you walked out of this meeting (and every other meeting) while you were being pulled toward the altar. The new scenes of hell will be utter darkness…darkness that can be felt. Though you will ever recall every single opportunity you had to get right with the Lord, it will be overtaken by the scene of darkness that you will never adjust to for time and eternity!
VI. Its Sadness.
(Luke 14:16-24) " Then He said to him, A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, Come, for all things are now ready. But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused. Still another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to
his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind. And the servant said, Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room. Then the master said to the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper!"
We see here many that were invited to the supper table of the Lord in time before they died. They chose to make excuses. Here we see the earth and its madness. In the 15th chapter, we witness the story of the Prodigal Son, and here we see heaven and its gladness. The third picture in the 16th chapter of Luke, we witness hell and its sadness. Here we see a picture of many that turn down an invitation to avoid going to this horrible place. O, the sadness of this picture!
Go to any prison and you will find that every one sentenced there are "innocent." They have excuses, and they attempt to justify their acts by saying they could not help themselves, they were dropped on their head as a baby, acted in self defense, or the witnesses lied on them. But, there will be no excuse on that inevitable Day of Judgment! This in and of itself is a very sad situation…Nevertheless, it will be a fact because Jesus paints the horrible picture of that day for us. (Matthew 7:13 & 14) "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it!"
(Lastly…)
VII. Its Security.
The wardens of hell keep an endless vigil. There are almost a million roads that lead to perdition, but not one road that leads out of it! The gates of hell never swing outward. Once you are there, you are there for good!
This final point reeks with a scent of finality. Once you die, that is it! It is final! There is no turning back…There are no second chances…There are no "grace periods" offered in eternity. The only uncertain thing about you this day (if you do not really know and love Jesus Christ…If you have never asked Jesus Christ into your life…If you have slid into a life of indifference or apostasy…If you are back-slid this hour) is that you will die one day. Be it sooner or later, the fact still remains, YOU HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH DEATH! All that remains is where you will spend eternity! And, that choice is only made before you make your mortal journey…Not after! The only eternal security this preacher believes and teaches is that death and eternity are final…That you can be secure in!
(Hebrews 9:27) "…it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment…" H. Alford once wrote in his The New Testament for English Readers: "The most dreadful torment of the lost, in fact that which constitutes their state of torment, will be this coming to themselves, when too late for repentance!"
I DON’T WANT TO GO TO HELL, FOLKS! I WANT TO DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO MAKE IT! But, I am not guaranteed heaven…I must be on my guard…And, so must you! (Mark 14:38) "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." (1 Thess. 5:6) "Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober."
WHAT ABOUT YOU? ISN’T IT TIME YOU DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR INEVITABLE ETERNAL MEETING? THE QUESTION IS: HOW BAD DO YOU NOT WANT TO GO TO HELL?
