The doctrine of eternal punishment is a foundational doctrine for believers in Jesus. Hell is not a popular subject and certainly not preached much anymore. Even in church settings, it is statically a fact that fewer and fewer people believe in hell.
Today some who call themselves Christians deny the doctrine entirely. Even some religious high profile television preachers admittedly avoid the doctrine. The pastor of one of the largest churches in the country located in Texas told CBS reporter Tracy Smith he refuses to preach on hell. He said people already feel guilty enough.
A recent survey on Hell reports that 71 percent of adults in the good old USA believe in hell, but don’t want to hear about it . Why? Because the influence of a secular society that stresses individualism over authority and the human psyche over moral absolutes.
The Pope has pubically said, Hell is not so much a torment by fire but it’s a separation from God. The worlds most popular evangelist, who preached to multiple thousands is on record as saying “He believed hell is essentially separation from God. Whether there is actually fire in hell or not, he said “He did not know.”
Jesus spoke often of hell with graphic details of torment from flames that never went out. In the book of the Revelation, John had a vision of a lake of fire. The pastor of the Crystal Cathedral in California is on record as saying, “I don’t ever want people to become Christian to escape hell. Why not? In Luke 15 Jesus said to fear Him who can cast your soul into hell. Hell appears 23 times in the KJV, 14 times in the NIV, but it’s changed to words like Hades, “the depths” and “the grave”. It appears 13 times in the NKJV.
The gospel is good news because it makes our life better, because Jesus paid the price for our sin so we can have eternal life and escape the eternal death. Many who claim to be Christians do not believe that.
The truth is that Jesus spoke more about Hell than anyone else in Scripture. Jesus referred to Hell as a real place and described it in graphic terms. He described it as a place of fire that burns but doesn’t consume, an undying worm that eats away at the damned, and a lonely place of darkness. Jesus says the unsaved will be thrown into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth – Matthew 8:12.
Jesus taught that an unbridgeable chasm separates the wicked in Hell from the righteous. The wicked suffer terribly, remain conscious, retain their desires and memories, long for relief, cannot find comfort, cannot leave their torment, and have no hope – Luke 16:19 &31, Our Savior could not have painted a bleaker picture of Hell.
The clear teaching of the Word of God on both heaven and hell stands or falls together. If the one is real, so is the other; if the one is a myth, so is the other. The best reason for believing in Hell is that Jesus said it exists.
Isn’t it strange that we’re fine when Jesus says, My peace I leave you, my peace I give to you. We love it when Jesus says things like: Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you. However, we’re not so excited when Jesus says things such as: John 5:28-29 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
Matthew 25:41: Depart from me ye cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever believeth not the Son of God will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.
We cannot make Hell go away simply because the thought of it makes us uncomfortable. If I believe the bible I must believe Hell is just and right.
So, those who want to believe Hell is not hot anymore are seriously wrong. Hell is hot but Heaven is sweet.
Thank you Lord Jesus, because I trusted you as my savior I am going to the beautiful Heaven not a hot hell.
