Christians need to spell out terrifying reality of Hell
It’s sad that a child has to learn about life the hard way. He often has to touch a hot toaster to feel the pain of a burn. It’s a hard lesson, but one that’s important in life. If he feels pain, then fear will keep him from touching the toaster again.
Most of us are like children when it comes to understanding the power of fear. But we do get a measure of what it’s like to be gripped by fear through what we call a “night terror” or “nightmare.” It may be that somebody is attacking us with a knife, or we are drowning, or falling off a high cliff. Or we can’t breathe, or we’re being chased by Nazis who want to kill us. We wake up panting, heart palpitating, sweat dripping, sitting on the side of the bed to try to shake off that terrifying feeling.
But we are still children in understanding when it comes to what the Bible calls “the king of terrors” (Job 18:14). That is the scriptural way of describing the greatest nightmare you and I will ever have—one from which we will never wake. It is our death.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The world tries to dethrone the king of terrors by calling somebody’s death their “passing.” Or their “demise.” Nevertheless, the moment any guilty sinner is swallowed by death, he faces something even more terrifying: God. Death is merely the arresting officer by whom we are handcuffed. There is no escape from it, and its purpose is to drag us before the Judge of the Universe to give an account of the crimes we have committed against His Law.
The Bible says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). Fearful, because that Day will be the day of our trial, when every secret imagination, every idle word spoken, every deed done in darkness will come out as evidence of our guilt. And that will happen before the throne of a holy God. He will then pass sentence on guilty sinners. And the judgment will be eternal damnation in His prison—a place called Hell, from which there will be no parole.
Yet the Bible says that the king of terrors was dethroned the moment Jesus cried out, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). Jesus paid our debt to the Law and then rose from the dead, triumphing over the grave. The Bible says that God raised Him up, “having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it” (Acts 2:24). And now Almighty God can dismiss our case because the fine was paid for us on that cross.
How can we not run to this world and plead with them to get right with God? May He put a tear in our voice and a cry of urgency in our heart to seek and save the lost as we’ve been commanded to.
Recently my dear wife saved my life. For months I had driven my car with a red light on the dash that said “Brake.” It would come on whenever I accelerated, along with an alarming beeping noise. I checked my handbrake and it was fine. I didn’t want to go to the dealer to have it checked because a month or so earlier they had ripped me off. And so I put up with the beeping noise and the “brake” warning coming on every time I accelerated.
One day Sue insisted that a mechanic check it out when he gave my car a smog check. He did. The light came on because the car was low on brake fluid! Wow. That’s serious. Deadly serious.
I should have taken the warning more seriously. However, I would have done so if the car manufacturer had spelled out the words “Brake fluid low.”
The world would take us more seriously if we spelled out the word “Hell.” But the contemporary church uses other words, like “eternal separation from God.” And we hear much talk assuring sinners that Jesus will fix their problems, that God has a wonderful plan for them, and they are given promises of prosperity and peace and joy.
These presentations of the gospel do not alarm or awaken sinners and they are in danger of being swallowed by the king of terrors, having been given a false hope—because of the false gospel they have embraced.
Yet most would sit up and listen if we earnestly preached the moral Law as Jesus did, the message of God being holy, and the reality of Judgment Day.
Read this letter from a woman who responded to a video about the evil of abortion. Notice that she has embraced her image of God as a bulwark to justify her position on the murder of children in the womb.
Hahaha. This idiot and the shock play is ridiculous. People, please don’t believe this hateful punk. How old are you buddy? Do some research on Roe vs Wade. Every female has a right to decide if she is going to have her baby. This lady never said anything about ending her pregnancy. Ending her baby’s life. Hahaha. That’s what this sicko got out of the video. God bless you young lady for speaking the TRUTH. Prayers for you and your baby. I have three amazing, wonderful, loving kids. Seven fantastic, loving grandkids. I’ve been truly blessed. Motherhood is amazing. I’m happy for you and your baby. Sad that not every Mom is able to keep her baby. Different circumstances. Some because of the parents. Some because the fetus/baby is unhealthy, birth defects, medical problems that can’t be reversed, etc. Thank God for Roe vs Wade. Young kids that know nothing about Roe vs Wade. The reason some gals have to have an abortion is none of your business. Prayers for you all. —SG
May God give us courage to spell out the truth in love. May the world be alarmed when they hear us reason about sin and the terrifying reality of Hell. May they no longer hear about a false god who has no sense of justice or truth, and walk away with a false hope that they are saved from wrath when they’re not.
