What does it mean that those who believe in Jesus will not perish? In this message we explore the solemn truth doctrine of Hell. What is Hell like? What is Hell for? Who will go to Hell? Listen in to take an understanding of these sobering questions.
[powerpess]
The Danger: God’s Wrath
“shall not perish” – Jn. 3:16
We come this morning to our 4th message in this mini-series “John 3:16 – The Gospel In A Nutshell.” We have looked at the Motive of Salvation which is God’s Love. We have seen the Gift of Salvation which is God’s Son. We have seen the Condition of Salvation which is our faith. This morning we are going to look at the Danger in missing Salvation which is God’s Wrath.
According to a poll taken in 2003, 64% of Americans expect to go to heaven, whereas less than 1% expect to go to hell. Isn’t that interesting! Jesus said in Mt. 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” According to Jesus Christ, few people are going to heaven, and many are going to hell, while our present day culture says it is the exact opposite. So, what should that tell us? I think it should tell us that there are millions of people who are self-deceived. Millions of people think they are going to heaven, when in fact, they are on their way to hell!
Folks, there is no doctrine in the Bible that is more unpopular in the Christian church today than the doctrine of Hell. It may be part of a church’s confession of faith, but it may as well not be there, because preachers won’t mention it. We had a visitor here a few weeks ago, and after the service she told me, “I’ve been visiting all kinds of churches over the past year, and you said something that I’ve never heard before.” I said, “What’s that?” She said, “You said that every person in this room is going to spend eternity in heaven or hell.” I said, “Shouldn’t every pastor and preacher in the world be telling his congregation that? Is there anything more important for us to be reminding the people who come to our churches than that?”
Why is gospel preaching in America so weak and insipid today? I believe it may well be that we are unwilling to tell sinners what they need to be saved from. Turn on Christian TV, and see whether the preacher warns his listeners to flee from the wrath to come. It’s just not going to happen. R.C. Sproul has said, “we no longer believe in justification by faith; we believe in justification by death.” I’ve been to a lot of funerals, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard the word “hell” mentioned. No matter how wicked a man lived, as soon as he dies, we all assume he is “in a better place.” I have talked to hundreds of people who have told me that “this life is hell.” They don’t expect to go to hell, because they are already experiencing it right now. No, my friend, this life in no way, shape, or form, resembles the Hell that is to come.
In John 3:16 we are told that “whoever believes in Him shall not perish.” So, what does John mean by “perishing”? We find the answer in this same chapter. In the very next verse we read, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” Therefore, to perish means that we are not saved. Look now at verse 18, “He who believes in Him is not condemned; he who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” From this verse we learn that to perish is to be condemned by God. So, to “perish” means that we are not saved, and that we are condemned by God. Now, look at the last verse in this chapter, verse 36, “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” From this verse, we learn that “perishing” means that God’s wrath remains on a person forever. This is a fearful, fearful truth to consider.
This morning, I’m going to seek to teach you the truth about what the Bible teaches about hell. In order to do that, I’m going to ask you four questions:
1. What Happens To An Unbeliever When He Dies?
2. What Is The Biblical Description of Hell?
3. What Is The Purpose Of Hell?
4. What Are the Common Objections to Hell?
1. What Happens To An Unbeliever When He Dies?
There are three main responses to this question.
Universalism: There have been a very small minority of people throughout church history who have held to the doctrine of Universalism. This doctrine teaches that ultimately Christ will save every human being who has ever lived. Some Universalists believe in the existence of Hell, but teach that its purpose is that of purification. They believe that God will use Hell to convince sinners to repent. At that point, they say, the person is saved and spends eternity with God in glory. Other Universalists deny the existence of hell altogether. The early Christian theologian of the 3rd century, Origen, was a Universalist. George MacDonald, the fiction writer of the 19th century, and William Barclay of the 20th century are also universalists. The Unitarian Universalist denomination holds to this teaching.
Annihilationism: This is the doctrine that after death, a sinner may spend some time in hell until their sins are punished, but eventually they will be annihilated, and simply cease to exist. Some annihilationists teach that all unbelievers are annihilated at death, without undergoing any punishment in Hell. This view is more widely held than Universalism. Clark Pinnock, William Branham and John Stott were annihiliationists. Seventh-Day Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses hold to this doctrine.
The Biblical Teaching: But what does the Bible teach? I’m going to argue for the traditional view of Hell, which has been held by the great majority of Christians over the history of the church. No one is in hell right now. When an unbeliever dies, they go to Hades, which is a temporary holding tank until the Final Judgment. Just as spending time in jail is just temporary and preparatory for prison, so Hades is temporary and preparatory for Hell. You can read about what Hades is like in Luke 16, where the rich man lifted up his eyes in Hades, in torment in flames. No one in Hades can pass over to heaven, and no one in heaven can pass to Hades. There is a great chasm between the two. At the Final Judgment, the souls of all people will be reunited to a resurrected body, will be judged by Jesus Christ, and all unbelievers will be cast into the lake of fire, which is eternal Hell. Revelation 20:14 says, “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
I have been mentioning the word “Hell” many times in this sermon, but perhaps I should define it. Hell is the place of endless suffering for the impenitent. The word “Hell” occurs 13 times in our Bibles. The word “Hell” is found on the lips of Jesus Christ 11 out of those 13 times! Imagine, the meek and humble, loving and gentle Jesus Christ. He spoke about Hell more than anyone else in Scripture.
Let’s move on to a second question.
2. What Is The Biblical Description Of Hell?
1) A Place: Acts 1:25 says “Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” We know that Judas died as a lost man. Jesus said in John 6, “Did I Myself, not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?” So, this lost man went to his own place. We know that heaven is a place. Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places.” If heaven is a place, it is reasonable to assume that hell is a place as well. We know that Hades is a place. Luke 16:28 the rich man begs Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers so that they will not come to this place of torment. Hell is a real place.
2) A Place Of Eternal Torment: Revelation 20:10 says, “And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” Sometimes people debate whether Hell will be for a period of time, or whether it will go on forever. Well, this text says it will last “forever and ever.” That phrase “forever and ever” occurs 20 times in the New Testament, and 16 times it refers to God. Rev. 4:10, “the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever.” So, as long as God lives, the wicked will be tormented. If God can cease to exist at some future point, their suffering can come to an end, but as long as He exists, they will exist in Hell.
3) A Place Of Punishment: Jesus says in Mt. 25:46, “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” I cannot even begin to imagine what it will be like for an all-powerful God to inflict punishment upon sinners. Notice also, that the punishment endures as long as the righteous experience eternal life. The same word “eternal” is used for each. Now, nobody believes that we will only enjoy Heaven for a time, and then we will cease to exist. When is the last time you heard a preacher say that? Nobody is writing books saying that Heaven will come to an end. So, when both Heaven and Hell are called “eternal”, why do we say Heaven will last forever, but sinners will be punished for a while, and then cease to exist? Do you want to know why? It’s because that’s what we want the Bible to say? But, my friend, we have no right to make the Bible say what we want it to say. We must believe what it actually says!
4) A Place Of Wrath: Listen to the words of Revelation 14:10-11, “he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; and they have no rest day and night.” Hell will be the place where the wrath of Almighty God is poured out on sinners forever and ever. Notice the duration spelled out here – “the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; and they have no rest day and night.” These people have no rest day or night, because their torment never ceases day or night. Oh what a fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of a wrathful God! Oh, if there is one place I never want to be is facing the wrath of God!
5) A Place Of Destruction: 2 Thess. 1:9, “These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction.” “Aha! says the Annihilationist! If the wicked are eternally destroyed, then they must cease to exist.” No, not so fast. The root Greek word for destruction can mean “to perish, be destroyed, be lost, or to die.” In Luke 15 it is used of the lost sheep and the lost coin and lost son. Now, tell me – did that coin, or sheep or son cease to exist when it was lost? Of course not. If I push my car off a cliff, I may destroy it, but I haven’t caused it to cease to exist. What do we mean when something is destroyed or ruined or perishes? We simply mean that it can no longer fulfill the purpose for which it was created. My friends, when a sinner ends up in hell, he has forever lost every opportunity to ever have a loving, obedient relationship with His creator. He is ruined, destroyed, lost, perishes!
6) A Place Of Death: Rev.20:14 says, “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.” Death speaks of separation. Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body. Eternal death is the separation of the body and soul from God forever. 2 Thess. 1:9 says, “These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power…” The only saying is very true: “Born once, die twice. Born twice, die once.” Hell is the place where sinners are forever separated from God’s merciful presence. They aren’t separated from God’s presence altogether. Rev. 14:9-11 says that they are tormented in the presence of the Lamb and of the holy angels. No, God will be present in Hell in wrath, but never again in mercy.
7) A Place of Weeping: Mt.8:12 “but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Why will sinners weep in Hell? Because of the utter despair and hopelessness that they feel. They realize that they have been cast into Hell, and they can never get out, and so they weep and weep and weep.
8) A Place of Gnashing of Teeth: Mt.13:42 “and will cast them into the furnace of fire; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Now, why are they gnashing their teeth? Is it because of the awful suffering they are feeling? No, I don’t think so. In acts 7 the people who heard Stephen preach gnashed their teeth at him in rage and fury, because Stephen had indicted them for murdering God’s Messiah. I believe sinners will gnash their teeth in hell is because of their hatred of God and their fury that He would cast them there.
9) A Place Where The Worm Does Not Die: Mark 9:47-48 says, “If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.” Now, why do worms die? They die, because they have nothing more to feed on. That’s why fires are quenched – there is no more fuel to feed on. The Greek word for hell in this passage is “Gehenna. It was Jerusalem’s garbage dump. The bodies of animals and executed criminals were cast into it to be burned. Fire burned there day and night 365 days a year, burning up city’s garbage. Further, worms (maggots) continually fed on the dead bodies of animals and filthy garbage. That is what Jesus compared hell to! But the worm in Hell will never die, meaning that it will forever be gnawing away at us. We will never be consumed, so the worm will never die. In Hell, we will be the garbage that the worm will forever feed on.
10) A Place Where The Fire Is Not Quenched: In other words, the fire never goes out in Hell. Of all the images used in the Bible for Hell, fire is by far the one used most often. I personally counted over 30 times in the New Testament where Hell is depicted by fire. It is called a lake of Fire, a furnace of fire, the eternal fire, the fiery hell, and unquenchable fire. Try to imagine what it would be like to have your hands tied, and then led to a large furnace with a raging fire inside, and then to be thrown in. You hear someone close and lock that handle, and now you realize that you can never escape. What awful torment it must be just to endure that first minute! Can you imagine what it might be like to consider what sufferings you would endure if you only had to endure 15 minutes in that place. However, Hell is not just for 15 minutes, or for an hour, or even for a day. Oh, how happy you would be in Hell, if it were announced that after 100 years, your torment would be over. But it’s not. It doesn’t just go on for 1,000 years or 10,000 years but forever. It goes on forever and ever without end!
11) A Place Of Darkness: Mt. 8:12 says, “but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Jude says of false teachers, “for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.” Hell will be a very different kind of place. On the one hand it is compared to being roasted in a furnace of fire. On the other hand, it is compared to black darkness and outer darkness. That phrase “outer darkness” is interesting. Why the adjective “outer”? I believe outer darkness is referring to being completely cut off and alone. You are out and away from all other company that might comfort or cheer you. It’s like the punishment of solitary confinement. You are in total darkness – no light, no company. You are alone with your thoughts. And those thoughts will haunt you, because you will remember all the opportunities you had to repent, but didn’t do it. You will remember the gospel sermons you heard, and the Christians that witnessed to you. Sometimes I’ll hear someone say, “Oh, hell won’t be so bad. I’ll just party on with my friends. We’ll have a good old time!” No, my friend, you won’t have a good time. You will endure endless suffering there. You will have no rest, day or night, as the smoke of your torment goes up forever.
12) A Place of Retribution: 2 Thess. 1:7-8 says, “the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.” This means that Jesus will bring retaliation or vengeance on wrongdoers when He returns. Romans 12:19 says, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”
3. What Is The Purpose Of Hell?
I can be brief at this point. Hell exists so that God will bring sinners to justice. It exists as a place where God will pour out His wrath and mete out His just punishment for sin. If Hell did not exist, Hitler and Stalin and Charles Manson and Ted Bundy would get away with the most wicked and violent of crimes. Hell is the place where God will exercise His strict and exacting justice. 2 Peter 2:9 says, “the Lord knows how to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment.” Justice has to do with the righteous execution of punishment upon wrongdoers. That is what the Lord will do in Hell. If there is no Hell, there is no justice. The absence of Hell means that sinners are never brought to justice for their crimes against God.
Folks, even in my fallenness I can be outraged by the injustices I see in the world. And God is not like me! God is infinitely righteous and holy, and hates sin with a perfect hatred. God’s wrath is His righteous response to sin. Right now sinners are storing up wrath, day after day, like the rising tide of a lake against a dam. But one day, that dam is going to break! Romans 2:5 says, “But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.” When that dam breaks, make sure you are not in the way.
4. What Are The Common Objections To Hell?
It’s Unjust! God would be unjust to punish a finite number of sins committed in a finite period of time with infinite, unending punishment.
How do we respond to that objection?
1) The greater the person against whom you sin, the greater the punishment will be. If I slap my dog, I won’t be punished the same as if I were to slap the President of the United States. Since God is the greatest of all Beings, our crimes against Him deserve an infinite punishment.
2) The wicked in hell will continue to sin for eternity. They will continue to have a sinful nature in hell; therefore, they will continue to sin by hating God and rebelling against Him. Thus, their punishment must go on forever, because they go on sinning forever. In Revelation 16:9,11,21 when men are suffering on the earth, they do not repent, but blaspheme the name of God. What do you think men will continue to do in Hell for all eternity? They will continue to blaspheme the name of God. In Revelation 22:11 in the Eternal State God says, “Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy.” Hell will not purify anyone of sin. Hell is not restorative. It is punitive. It was not created to purge sin. That was the design of the cross. It was designed to punish sin. Since sinners will always remain sinners, and will continue to sin forever, God will pour out His wrath on them forever.
3) We commonly give long prison sentences for crimes of short durations. A man may break into a home and steal all of the valuables. The crime may only take 15 minutes, but we give him 20 years in prison. Was that unjust? A man pulls the trigger and kills another man in a split second, yet we sentence him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Is that unjust? Of course it is not.
It’s Unloving! A Loving God Would Not Bring Endless Suffering on People
My friend, wouldn’t it be wiser and safer of you, to bow, and submit to the revealed word of God, rather than to declare your own wisdom? You will always end up in confusion, if you try to compare God with yourself or other humans. God is not a man! God is God. The only way you and I can discover what God deems just is by consulting His Holy Word. And in the Bible, we have seen over and over, that God deems sin worthy of eternal Hell.
I Don’t Like It! Do you think that really matters? Look, there’s no committee on this. God hasn’t given you a vote. God is sovereign, and does what He pleases. It doesn’t whether we agree with God on this, or like this. My friend, He is the potter, and you are the clay. Who are you, o man, who answers back to God?
5. Who Will Go To Hell?
We have the answer to that question in our text. John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Whoever believes in Jesus Christ will not perish in Hell. But, as we saw last week, faith in Christ is not simply an agreement with certain historic creeds or confessions. It is not just a head knowledge of Christian truths. It is knowledge, assent, and trust. Saving faith is not just knowing about Jesus Christ and what He has done in His incarnation, perfect life, substitutionary atoning death and victorious resurrection. It is not even agreeing that those things are true. It is strapping Christ on your back, like a parachute, and jumping out of the plane. It is staking everything, your never-dying soul, on His person and work.
And whenever a person exercises that kind of faith in Jesus Christ, certain other things are also taking place. The person with faith in Christ discovers that God has given him a new nature. He has been born from above. He is a new man, with a new heart, and a new love for Christ and righteousness, and a new hatred for sin and evil. He not only believes in Jesus as His Savior, but he believes in Him also as His Lord. He bows to Him in surrender and obedience. His delight becomes knowing, obeying, and serving this great King. He also begins to find joy and satisfaction in Christ Himself. He finds Himself grieved with His sin, and honestly and sincerely repenting of it before the Lord.
Now, my friends, when a person exercises this kind of heart-felt, living faith in Jesus Christ, and this faith endures through trials and temptations, you can be sure that they have passed from death to life. The person with this faith will not perish, but has eternal life.
Application
Well, having seen the Biblical teaching for the doctrine of Hell, how should we respond?
1) Fear God: Mt.10:28 “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” Folks, if any of you after hearing the truth about this great God have no fear of Him, you are either dead or unconscious! This dread Sovereign God reigns over all! He does whatever He pleases, and you can’t make Him do otherwise! Fear Him!
2) Flee From the Wrath to Come: Mt.3:7 “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” In the Old Testament, God directed the Levites to appoint six different cities as Cities of Refuge. If an Israelite accidentally killed another Israelite, without premeditation, he could flee to one of these cities and find safety. The avenger of blood could not pursue him within the walls of the city to kill him. However, if he ever stepped outside those city walls, he was fair game, and could be killed by the avenger of blood with impunity. My friends, Jesus Christ is the City of Refuge. Flee to Him! Get into Christ! He is the ark. In the days of Noah, only those 8 persons inside the ark were saved from the flood of judgment. Get into the ark! Get into Christ! Trust Him! Believe in Him! Surrender to Him!
3) Make Sure You Are Saved: Mt.7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” Here we are told that many will be cast into hell who thought they were going to heaven. They were self-deceived. Oh, how important it is to find out the truth about our spiritual state before God now, before it is too late! Do not think all is well between you and God simply because you attend church, or can quote the correct answers to a catechism. Are you doing the will of your Father habitually? Or, are you religious but lawless? Examine yourselves, to try your case and discern whether God has saved you.
4) Deal Ruthlessly With Your Sin: Mt.18:8-9 “And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.” In this passage Jesus teaches us that there is no sacrifice too great in this life, as long as we escape hell in the next! My friends, this text should also cause us to pull up short if we are going on living in known sin. Jesus threatened that Hell will swallow up those who live in sin. It is better to enter Heaven with one hand, than Hell with two hands!
5) Warn Others To Be Saved From It: Luke 16:27-28 “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house – for I have five brothers – in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.” Jude 23 “…save others by snatching them out of the fire.” I do not doubt for one moment that if the rich man had come back from the dead, he would have warned his five brothers to flee from the wrath to come! We need to be about urging sinners to flee from the wrath to come. The one thing you will never be able to do in heaven is bring sinners to Jesus. Make the most of every opportunity now!
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