Horrors of Hell
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Do you believe in Heaven? Many people do. Many people believe in a wonderful place where humans go after they die—a place that is perfect…a place of rest. What about Hell: do you believe in that place? Fewer folks believe in Hell, but if Heaven exists, then Hell must also exist. There can be no place of eternal reward if there is no place of eternal punishment. The existence of one logically demands the existence of the other. And we know that both places exist, because the Bible says they do. What is Heaven like? What kind of place is Hell? Today, we are going to look at a particular passage of Scripture that contains a first-hand account of what it is like to be in Hell. I hope you’ll stay with me, because even though the horrors of Hell are terrible to consider, we will also see how to avoid going there. Stay tuned!
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Good morning, and welcome to Truth for Today, a weekly radio ministry of Bible Baptist Church in Grand Forks, North Dakota. My name is Ethan Custer, and I serve as the assistant under Pastor Mike Custer, the regular host of this broadcast. We at Bible Baptist Church desire to be a spiritual blessing to you in any way that we can. We are located west of I-29 at 6367 Gateway Drive in Grand Forks. We meet several times each week to worship God, and our purpose in life is to obey and please the Lord Jesus Christ in all that we do. Our source of truth and guide for living is the Authorized King James Bible, the Word of God in the English language. In it He offers solutions for every one of life’s problems! If we can help you in any way, please let us know. We hope to have that opportunity. I’ll be giving our contact information at the end of the broadcast, so please stick around.
A moment ago, I mentioned that we will be reading a first-hand account of the horrors of Hell. As I said, this is a terrible and sobering topic. I don’t bring it up to frighten anyone or cause you to have nightmares. However, we know that the truths we’ll be studying today are important, because God put them in His Word. Not only that, but the Lord Jesus Christ personally told His listeners about them!
God’s top concern for sinners is their spiritual condition, and He is aware that sinners aren’t driven to Christ in salvation simply because they were scared while imagining the horrors of Hell. Fear is not the same as conviction over one’s sin, repentance of that sin, and faith in Christ and the Gospel. Why, then, did God include in Scripture such details about Hell as we’ll read this morning? He did it because we need to know the truth; we are not helped when the truth is hidden from us. When He reveals the truth about Hell to us, He expects us to believe it, and to allow that sobering truth to change our perspective about mortal life and about eternity, which will then in turn help us to be more receptive to the truth of Jesus Christ. It is Christ alone that will change our lives and our eternal destination! As we see what the Bible says about Hell this morning, I hope you will allow God to make you more serious about truth in general, and about Jesus Christ in particular.
Next month, on September 4th, Lord willing, we will study what the Bible says about Heaven. That is a more pleasant study to be sure, but it also must serve to direct us to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God! HE is our source of eternal life and hope for deliverance from destruction. We’ll talk more about that in a few minutes.
For our text this morning, we’ll be reading in the book of Luke, chapter 16. During His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ told many parables. Parables have been defined as “an earthly story illustrating a heavenly truth.” These stories are fictional, but the truths they illustrate are not. The four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—usually signal a parable with the words, “Jesus spoke a parable to them...” or something to that effect. There are other features of parables as well. For instance, generic details are used; no proper names, specific dates, or locations are mentioned.
In Luke 16, we read an account that some may consider to be a parable, but all the features of parables that I just mentioned are not present. The Biblical record does not tell us it is a parable. Christ does not liken His account to “the kingdom of Heaven” like He does with parables, and He includes details like proper names and specific locations. All these things indicate to us that this is not a parable, but a true account. This really happened. And so we ought to take it very seriously.
There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
First of all, I want us to notice that, as we noted in the beginning of the broadcast, there are two possible places that you and I may end up after our mortal life is over. We see these two places mentioned in verses 22 and 23. First, we read of a place called “Abraham’s bosom.” Christ called this place “Paradise” in Luke 23:43. As we just read, this is where the beggar named Lazarus went after he died. This is the place of eternal reward for those who have been forgiven of their sins. We will talk more about this place in the broadcast next month.
The other possible eternal destination for sinners after this mortal life is Hell. This is where the rich man ended up after he died. We are going to see some specific things that he was suffering after he arrived here. And if these things were true of him, then they are true of anyone who goes there. I don’t want that to happen to you! And it doesn’t have to, as we’ll see at the end of the broadcast.
First, I want us to see that no matter how successful you are in this life, that doesn’t mean you will be rewarded in eternity. Listen to these verses again.
Luke 16:19, 22–23 (KJV 1900)
There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
This rich man had everything! He had great wealth, which brought him much property, much comfort, and much luxury. Today in our country we are seeing prices of everything going up. Wouldn’t it be nice to be entirely unaffected by that? Wouldn’t it be nice to have so much money that we could purchase whatever we wanted, no matter the cost? That would be very comfortable and convenient, and that’s how this rich man lived. If you had that kind of money, you would probably feel very successful. But let me point out that as the rich man discovered, success in this mortal life does not mean you will have success in eternity. This rich man went from enjoying everything that money could buy, to being plunged into terrible suffering in the flames of Hell. His money couldn’t help him there. Don’t trust your earthly success to bring you eternal reward! Money, power and fame can never keep you out of Hell.
Next, I want to point out that Hell is a place of torment. Many folks would already agree with this, but notice these particulars.
First, Hell is a fiery place. All burns, even sunburns, are painful. Perhaps some of you have sustained 2nd or 3rd degree burns over a large part of your body. Perhaps you have needed skin grafts and long-term treatment for burn wounds. You can attest to the pain involved with such burns! However, none of that can compare with the flames of Hell.
Next, the torment was so great, the man could think of nothing else. He speaks three times in this passage of Scripture, and every time, he is either talking about his great torment, or he is talking about others avoiding it. Have you ever suffered a terrible migraine, or perhaps a major injury, or even an extreme mental or emotional form of pain? When that happens, you cannot think of anything else! It means that you are essentially trapped in your suffering, both feeling it and thinking about it. This rich man was in great torment.
This torment might also be described as torture. Have you ever been tortured? We tend to use that word casually in the common vernacular, but I think about actual torture methods, especially those used in bygone centuries. Cruel individuals have found many ways to cause human pain and suffering! That’s the kind of torment that this formerly rich man was experiencing. This word “torment” has two ideas associated with it: pain and sorrow. Great pain usually brings great sorrow! This man was experiencing both of those things in the extreme. He was in torments.
We can also begin to gauge his torment by seeing the kind of relief that he was requesting. Verse 24 says this.
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
When we are tired, we may think of taking a nap in our comfortable bed. When we are hungry, we may think of a delicious steak dinner. When we are thirsty, we may think of a tall glass of ice-cold lemonade. However, when we are really suffering, anything sounds good to us! To the truly exhausted person, the ground looks as comfortable as a bed. To a starving person, food from the trash heap is appetizing. To a person dying of thirst, a muddy puddle looks delicious. And for the rich man, in his agony amid the flames of Hell, relief meant having Lazarus dip the tip of his finger in water, and touch it to the rich man’s tongue. Just a brief moment of contact with a drop of water…but his torment was so great, he considered this to be an act of mercy. How this man was suffering! Dear listener, the horrors of Hell are very real and very great. And you won’t escape them by achieving earthly success.
Next, I want us to notice that those in Hell retain their memory. Why is this notable? There are two reasons.
First, the rich man’s memory meant that in addition to his pain and sorrow, he was experiencing regret. Regret is another form of suffering! I think we all have things that we regret. Sometimes they are things we did, sometimes they are things that others did, sometimes they are things that just happened, and were unavoidable. But especially when we regret our past actions, that regret can be a heavy weight, and a source of acute suffering. Imagine how this rich man suffered!
We know that he retained his memory, because he recognized Lazarus. He also mentioned in verse 28 that he had five brothers. If he can remember all of that, he most certainly would have remembered how he had foolishly chosen to pursue his riches instead of following God. He would have remembered that he valued possessions and luxury more than he valued truth and God’s Word. And he would have remembered how he had loved himself more than he had loved God. As we so often do in the middle of our suffering, imagine how this rich man, immediately after arriving in the flames of Hell, would have replayed endlessly his sinful decisions that brought him to that place of torment! One of the horrors of Hell is assuredly this: those who go there will remember, and will regret.
Another of Hell’s horrors comes from retained memory, and it is this: the rich man remembered his five brothers, and he feared that they would come to Hell also. Sometimes people joke that they will have a big party in Hell with all their friends, but this rich man was not having a party, and he DID NOT want his friends and relatives to join him! He remembered and regretted how he lived during his earthly life, and he feared for his family. He was desperate for them to be warned, so they could avoid his fate! When we are truly suffering, we don’t want any of our loved ones to experience the same torment! To an extreme degree, this rich man feared for his brothers.
Fear is a terrible thing, especially when it is allowed to grow in our hearts and minds. It can become panic, until it consumes us. Perhaps the worst aspect of fear is being unable to confront the cause of it, and this rich man certainly experienced this. He was in Hell, and he feared for his brothers, but he was completely unable to help them. He couldn’t warn them, and he couldn’t stop them from making the same bad choices that he had made. He could only wait, and hope that they didn’t come to Hell also. What a horrible thing to experience!
There are two more horrors of Hell that I want to point out from our text this morning, and they are related. First, Hell is a horrible place because there is no escape. Notice what Abraham said in verses 25 and 26.
But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
The rich man could see Abraham and Lazarus in Paradise, but he could not reach them. He was trapped in his torment, and there was no escape. Some folks are resourceful and tenacious, and they can invariably find a way out of pretty much any predicament that overtakes them in life. But eternity is not that way; it is permanent. Others have the opinion that if they get to the end of life, and they die and then stand before God and find out they missed the boat during their life, that there will be a way to make up for things. There is also a mainstream religious denomination that teaches that there is a temporary place of fiery judgment, and once that accomplishes its purpose, then the individual can proceed to Heaven, but the Bible does not teach that. Friend, please listen to me when I say this: there is no escape from Hell.
That brings me to the last horror of Hell that I want to mention this morning, and it is this: Hell is a horrible place because its fire is eternal. There is no escape from Hell, and there is no end to Hell. I think that the permanence of Hell is the worst part. If Hell was a place of temporary torment, we would still want to avoid it, but we would solace ourselves in remembering that eventually we would escape it and be ushered into Heaven. The pain of Hell could be managed if we knew that it was temporary. But the Bible is very clear that Hell is forever.
The Lord Jesus Christ said this in Mark chapter 9.
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
This seems to be a curious command from the Lord, but He is merely showing the importance of settling your sin debt with God, and making sure you’ll be in Heaven when you die. If it cost you a hand, or a foot, or an eye, in order to be right with God, it would be worth it, because Hell is forever. Those who burn in Hell will never be burned up, and the fire will never be quenched. Their suffering will never end. Just moments after entering Hell, the rich man was desperate for a drop of water. But there was no relief and no escape. A week after entering Hell, the rich man was still there, permanently. After 100 years of burning in Hell’s flames, the rich man was no closer to rescue. As of this morning, he has been burning in terrible agony for over two thousand years, and his punishment has just begun. Ten thousand years from now, he will be no closer to release, because there is no escape from eternal judgment! Hell fire is unquenchable. It burns and burns and burns…forever. It will never end; it will never decrease.
As I said earlier, this is a sobering message. We don’t like thinking about a horrible place like Hell, and we especially don’t like to think about going there! It won’t help us to be panic-stricken about it, but we do need to be honest about its existence. Once we are, then we are ready to consider how we may avoid it…because Hell may be avoided. Today’s text reveals that!
Notice Luke 16:27-31 again.
Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
The rich man was frantic to help his brothers avoid Hell, and he reasoned that sending Lazarus back from the dead would help persuade them to change their ways. What a wonderful realization this is for us: if we make certain decisions in this life, we may avoid Hell! And as we see in Lazarus’ example, we don’t need to be rich and successful on this earth in order to go to Heaven! Heaven is open for anyone who will obey the truth.
So, what exactly is the truth that must be obeyed? Abraham tells the rich man that the way to avoid Hell is to hear and follow “Moses and the prophets,” referring to the Scriptures. Of course, today we have even more than the Old Testament to point us to Heaven. We have the New Testament, which contains much truth about Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. This, my friend, is how you can avoid the horrors of Hell! Your earthly success won’t keep you out of Hell; the rich man proved that. Religion in general won’t keep you out of Hell, because all denominations, except for one, contradict what the Bible says. There is only one path to Heaven; every other possible path leads to Hell. Jesus Christ said it this way:
Matthew 7:13–14 (KJV 1900)
Enter ye in at the strait [narrow] gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Jesus also said this in Luke 24.
And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Friend, there is only one way to avoid joining the rich man in the eternal torments of Hell, and that one way is Jesus Christ. The writings of Moses and the Old Testament prophets all pointed to the coming Messiah, who would shed His own blood for the sins of mankind. If you reject that truth, you will die and go to the flames of Hell. The New Testament very clearly describes the person of Jesus Christ, what He said, and what He endured for our sin. He IS the Son of God, and He DID die to pay the penalty of man’s sin! However, if any sinner denies and rejects that, they will not escape eternal damnation in Hell. Once in Hell, there is no escape, and there is no end.
If you have not believed the Gospel, you are yet unforgiven. If you have not trusted in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation, you are still in your sins. Don’t remain there! Don’t trust your earthly success to make you right with God! The rich man would tell you that that doesn’t work. Don’t ignore what the Word of God says about your soul! The rich man would beg you to reconsider. However, no one can force you to believe on Christ. No one can change your mind for you. It is your choice alone…and if you choose to reject God’s gift of salvation, then the horrors of Hell will be yours as well.
If you have any questions about this broadcast, please let us know. We want to give you Bible answers! Hell is too serious an issue to ignore.
You may contact us in a number of ways. First, you may contact me via email by writing to truthfortoday@bbcgf.org. You may also find our website at www.bbcgf.org. Bible Baptist Church is located at 6367 Gateway Drive in Grand Forks, and we have regular Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and Wednesday evening services. You are welcome to attend any of them. If you would rather watch the livestream of our services, or if you would like to watch archives of past services, you may find them on our website as well.
Thank you for listening today! Please tune in again next week at this same time for more truth from God’s Word, on Truth for Today.