Hell, The Hottest Place in the Universe

Luke 15:4–10 (CSB)

“What man among you, who has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it? When he has found it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!’ I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who don’t need repentance.

“Or what woman who has ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found the silver coin I lost!’ I tell you, in the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”

This Story I am about to tell you is a True Story

A few years ago I was involved in some Hispanic outreaches where I lived. It was designed to share the gospel with people who are extremely caught up in the superstitious realms of witch doctors, idolatry, black magic, & even Satanic worship.

Ironically, most of them claim to be Catholic or even Christian. It went rather well.

However, there was one gentleman in particular who stuck in my memory. He and my experience with him is the focus of today's message.

He most likely is an illegal immigrant from Mexico or another Spanish-speaking nation.I say this because he only spoke Spanish.

A week or so before

an event we had planned, I was at the church during a men's night prayer meeting.

I went outside to my car gathering some things, when he approached, & startled me.

He was dressed like he hadn’t changed or showered in weeks. Unshaven, bloodshot eyes, all the classic signs of a homeless drug attic.

Besides, although he seemed to be sober, he reeked of alcohol.

He asked me if I spoke Spanish, to which I said yes. He went on to ask me about the church, if it was indeed Spanish-speaking.

I took him inside that very moment, just as he was, dirty, unshaven, and all.

I introduced him to the pastor there at the time and to the rest of the men who attended that night.

He asked to be prayed for! After we laid hands on him and prayed over him, he said he needed some food. He was hungry.

He told us he was living in the woods

behind a local Mexican grocery store. Probably eating their trash, only he and God knows. But his pants were tied around his waist with many wrinkles as he struggled to keep them up because he was so skinny.

The Pastor I was with took all his details so we could find him again.

His name was Carlos.

That following Sunday, the Pastor went out to hunt him down in the woods, where he claimed to be living.

That's right, before service; he went into the woods looking for Carlos, but Carlos wasn’t there.

However, the Pastor found his things lying around in what looked like a makeshift campsite. But no Carlos.

He returned several times throughout the next several weeks, but we never found him. We didn’t see him again anymore until the day of our outreach.

He was drunk this time and with very vulgar speech.

We were praying for some people in a circle, when to my side I see the crowd that was waiting to be prayed for start to open a path for someone who was very belligerent.

This man who was hungry, and destitute a couple of weeks earlier, asking for our help, now came violently barreling straight through the confused crowd, and straight towards the Pastor and me.

Without hesitation, we recognized it was a demonic manifestation. We reached out to him, grabbed him, and began to rebuke the presence that had taken over him.

The Spirit that was in him, left and he regained his senses.

But, after that eventful early summer day, for the weeks that followed, every Sunday, Carlos was in church Amen.

“He had received Jesus as his Lord and Savior Amen!”

We lost touch with Carlos,

I am sure that he was still battling other life issues. But we know he isn’t alone in his life anymore.

He now has the Holy Spirit living in him Amen. Who knows? One day when I get to heaven, I might see Carlos again. I may not, but I know one thing is for sure, He has a ticket to get in now.

Another young man came to us,

saying he needed prayer and healing. But, to the dismay of one the quasi-deacons, he showed up to our men’s meeting high.

The quasi-deacon wanted to throw him out, but I wouldn’t permit it. Of all the places he could’ve gone, he came to us. The man came to church.

So, after praying with him, the next day he was shipped him off to a rehab center. But, before doing that, we baptized him in a local hotel swimming pool.

Last I heard of this young man, he is married and living life amen.

So, the question here is, why do we pastors try so hard?

What is so special about men like Carlos? I mean he doesn’t even speak English.

What is it about these guys that showed up high on heroin and drunk that pastors would go to search for them in the woods?

Why, after their vulgar speech, drunkenness, and self-pity should anyone of us have tried to save them at all?

I'll tell you why!

Because the miracle that Jesus performed when He raised Lazarus from the dead caused people to come to believe in Christ through the miracle of raising a dead man to life!

And every time that a lost soul turns his life to Jesus, I tell you, a miracle takes place.

Now others through this miracle, will become believers when they see this person who was better off dead than alive, go through a total life-changing transformation.

When I came into the church that next service and saw that man sitting there waiting to hear the word of God then later give his heart to the Lord.

My soul wanted to shout out, “Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!”

Another dead man has been raised from the grave!

That drug addict, that homeless illegal immigrant, that bumb living in the woods, that man without purpose, was created in the Imago Dei

In the image of God he was created! And now he's saved, amen

The Bible says that even the angels celebrate when a soul is won for Christ.

Why do you think that even the angels care about what happens to us?

Why are they happy?

Is it because we will be able to visit with them in heaven?

Or maybe because we can all sit around and I have a little cloud playing the harp together? No, that's not it at all.

It's because they know what kind of place he'll really is.

They can see with spiritual eyes, things that which we cannot. They have been in the know about heaven and hell since the fall, we have not.

To us, Hell has to be explained. To them, it needs no explanation.

And if even the angels celebrate in joy every time one of us mortal sinners escapes the pit of hell, then hell must be a terrible place.

So when Carlos gave his life to Jesus, he was saved from the eternal fires of hell.

That's why the more we study God's word and about the reality of hell, we will not only Want to go but feel compelled to go through not only the woods if we have to, but to the edges of the world if we have to in order to find people who need to be saved from hell.

You all look Somewhat confused!

You’ve all heard of hell, haven't you? Every Christian has heard of hell.

That place where a person goes if they reject Jesus as their savior.

Let's recap what we know about this place called hell then shall we?

It's the place where unrepentant people go for eternity.

Boy, eternity, that's a long time, isn't it?

Actually, thats not true is it? The word eternity by definition, encompasses a dimension outside of time.

So, a better phrase to understand the word eternity would be the word FOREVER!

Hell, is also referred to many times as a real literal place.

It is a burning lake of unquenchable fire.

How many of us in here have ever been burned?

I’ve had two third-degree burns in my lifetime. Those were not fun.

One burn was on my right foot, and the other was on my right index finger.

What I remember most is the relief I felt whenever I put something cold over the burn. What a relief.

Well, “hell” my friend is like that 3rd° burn but without the relief.

Why did God choose fire?

Slide 12

Why did God choose fire to be the eternal punishment?

I as a human can Hardly understand this thing about fire.

Even early civilizations knew of the power of fire, as they even thought the sun was God!

Slide

Ancient Greeks imagined the sun was a god named Helios driving a flaming Chariot across the sky.

Slide

The Babylonians thought the sun was a God, too. They named it shamash who provided laws for people to follow.

Slide

Egyptian sun God was called Ra. It was their nation's protector .

So, although I can't explain why God chose fire, as only He knows! I can tell you this, it's very effective.

The sun uses fire to hear this great planet from 93,000,000 miles away, with its surface temperature burning right at 11,000°F

Do you think that's hot?

The core of the sun burns at 27,000,000°F

Slide

We use fire to melt everything, even our precious metals, like gold. Gold melt at around 1500°F to 2000°F

Iron taken straight from the ground melts at 2750°F ,

Titanium, is what is used to make our space ships melts at 3034°F

And the strongest metal on earth tungsten melts at 6192°F.

But, in regards to the human body, let me read you a quote I got online about the human body

"human flesh requires extended exposure to 1400°F to ignite. The human body, which is 85% water, burned outside to inside in a rapid cycle of layer by layer dehydration and ignition. The heat dries out the skin; the dry skin ignites. That fire dries out the next layer of muscle and fat, which then ignites. And so on, until the internal organs are consumed"

That takes a lot of heat, wouldn't you agree?

Do you know how many degrees the human flesh will burn at, 130°F

Think about that the next time out of your anger, you tell someone, go to hell.

Or give up on that person just because they don't seem like they would take the Bible seriously.

You should try your best to save people who are lost, so they can avoid eternity in a real hell. That should be the last place you would want someone to go.

This is some serious torture. But according to the Bible, people go there all the time. Remember, Hell is torture and worse yet, it is a real punishment.

Jesus spoke more about hell than he did about heaven. Let that sink in for a bit.

Peter said, “it is not God's will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

In closing, I tell you that the apostle Paul wrote in second Thessalonians that murderers, rapists, and liars would go to burn in the lake of fire.

If fire wasn't enough torture to endure, try this one.

The law says, there is a place where people who break the law go, and that is jail, no matter what the offense.

God has a law too. And it says anyone who breaks the law, no matter what the offense will go to hell!

For the wages of sin is death.

But did you know we have a get out jail free card?

Don’t be mistaken, somebody has to pay your bail.

Brothers & Sisters, I am here to tell you that Jesus paid that bill for you.

And every time you see a lost person, and you just want to give up on them.

Remember just as Jesus paid the bill for you, he has paid the bill for everyone on earth. And just as the angels celebrate whenever one soul is won for the Lord and saved from hell, we should also celebrate when our neighbors receive Christ and have their name written in the book of life forever amen.

It should burden us whenever we see people not saved remember what hell is and this is where they are going if they don't receive Christ