You CAN Go To Hell by Jeff Marshall Matthew 25:41 Osceola United Methodist Church March 6, 2011 Hell a word used in many different circumstances a swear word, a word to curse someone, and a place for the devil and his cohorts. In a national poll conducted several years ago by USA Today 67% of American adults said they believe in a hell. But less than 25% believed that they would go there, while 25% believe their friends will be there. On the other hand, if Hell is not real, and everyone is going to get to Heaven eventually, we might as well close the doors to this church and go home. An army chaplain reported to a base for his new assignment. Upon arrival some of the soldiers came to see him and asked this question, Do you believe in a literal hell? When he replied that he did not, the men asked him to resign. He asked them why, to which they replied, If there is no Hell then we don t need you and if there is a Hell we don t want you to lead us astray. Strangely enough a newer poll conducted by US News and World Report reveals that more Americans today believe in Hell than they did in the 1950 s or even 10 years ago. But most now think of hell as an anguished state of existence rather than a real place. I assure you that the Devil believes in a real Hell. You may not believe in hell, you may think that it is just a state of mind, but as the old revival preacher said to the skeptic, You not believing in Hell don t lower the temperature there one degree. We don t like to think about the reality of Hell and we often hear the statement, I don t believe that a good god will send anyone to Hell. That statement is based on error and inconsistency of the highest order. We never make the statement, How could a good judge sentence a mass murderer to death for his crimes? We don t say that because the judge is not responsible for the man being sentenced to death, his actions are. The Apostle Paul says in Romans 11:22, 22 Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. One of the tragic facts revealed by Jesus is that the majority of the human race will spend eternity in Hell. Jesus pleads in Matthew 7:13-14, 13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
2 My prayer this morning as we look at the topic of hell is that if you are one on the wide road headed for an eternity with the devil in hell, you will find it in your heart to come to Christ and be counted among those who are on the narrow road headed for an eternity with God in heaven. Jesus taught more about Hell than He did about Heaven. In fact, for every mention of Heaven, He mentions Hell twice as often. Yet, the Bible teaches that hell was not originally made for people. It s a place that God prepared for Satan and the demon powers that followed him. Speaking of His own work on Judgment Day, Jesus says of Himself, in Matthew 25:41, 41 Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. So what does Jesus reveal about this place prepared for the devil and his angels and for those on the wide road? First of all Jesus said that - 1. Hell is Like a Prison. One of the clearest pictures Jesus gave of hell was when he described it as a prison. He told a parable about the king s servant who was sent to jail for wicked behavior (Matthew 18:30-34). 30 But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. 32 Then the master called the servant in. You wicked servant, he said, I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you? 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. Jesus was saying that going to hell was like being cast into prison. Most people who go to prison look forward to that day when they will be released when they will have freedom again. And the prospect of some day getting out that hope is what keeps them going. But for those who have been condemned to hell, they won t get out. Once they are in, they are in for good. Once they are there, there are no other chances. Hell is a place without hope. When the Lord locks the doors of Hell, they are locked for all time. Jesus said of Himself, in Revelation 3:7, 7 To the
3 angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open. Hell is a prison from which no one is released and from which no one can escape. It is a place without hope. Jesus also described hell as - 2. the Ultimate Darkness. Have you ever been in a very dark place so dark that you couldn t even see your hand in front of your face? Last summer Gail and I took a weekend trip to Brown County State Park. On Saturday we drove on further south to Marengo Caves. The tour of the cave was magnificent and it was lit by lights along the path. It was awesome to see the beauty of the colorful stalactites and stalagmites. However, once we reached the deep interior of the cave, they briefly turned-out the lights and challenged us to try to locate our hand held before our faces. Needless to say, we could see absolutely nothing. It was pitch black. It was quite unnerving and I was happy when they turned the lights back on. Jesus compares Hell to a place of outer darkness. Matthew 8:10-12, 10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. 11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Jesus did not merely describe hell as darkness, but as the darkness, implying that it is infinitely worse than any physical, moral, mental, or spiritual darkness than any person has ever experienced on Earth. It is not just darkness. It is the darkness the darkest of all. Just think what it would be like to dwell in utter darkness forever - never again to see light - never to see anything ever again. No wonder there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth! 3. Jesus also described hell is a burning fire. And not just any fire, but He describes hell as a place where there was always a fire burning. It burned day and night. Jesus says in Mark 9:43-44, 43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It
4 is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. [44] Here, Jesus tries to convey the torments of Hell. He brings the horrible picture of worms grubbing and gnawing upon the body without end. And then He says that the fire that burns is never quenched; that is, it never goes out. It just keeps burning and torturing the person. In Matthew 13:42, Jesus says 40 As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Here, again, Jesus says the pain and torment will be so intense that there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. In Revelation 20:10, John says 10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. But, its just not Satan and his demons who will be thrown into that lake of fire. Verse 15 says that it will happen on Judgment Day, that 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire. Hell a prison, a place of darkness, a place of fire, a place that will be eternal for those whose names are not written in the book of life. Is your name written in the Lamb s Book of Life? Have you opened your heart to Jesus Christ and invited Him in? God doesn t want people to go to hell. In fact, God says, "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways!" (Ezekiel 33:11). One day, when Vice-President Calvin Coolidge was presiding over the Senate, one senator angrily told another to go straight to hell. The offended Senator complained to Coolidge, and Coolidge looked up from the book he had been leafing through while listening to the debate and wittily replied. I ve looked through the rule book, he said, You don t have to go. And he is right, you really don t have to go to hell, you can heed the Word of God, repent and be saved.
5 Hell it is a real place whether you believe so or not. Jesus spoke of a real place a place with a wide road leading into it. Are you on that road today? Or you on the narrow road the road that leads to eternal life and that place that Jesus has prepared for you in heaven. Here is the bottom line: You CAN go to hell. The choice is yours. Jesus says to each one of us, 20 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. He doesn t want you to go to hell, and He has provided the way for you to go to heaven through His death and resurrection. All you have to do is invite Him in. Today Jesus comes to dine with us in the bread and the cup. As you commune with Him, do so with the assurance that you are on the narrow road headed for an eternity with Him. You CAN go to hell, but you don t have to go!