Hell (Part 2)

If I may, just a few more thoughts on Hell and then I'll let the subject go.

I must admit that I don't like the doctrine of Hell. I don't think anyone does. If I had an option to remove any doctrine from the Scriptures, this would be the one I would take out. But we can't. It has the full support of the Word and Jesus taught on it several times.

For the many people out there that say "I can't believe that a loving God would send anyone to Hell", I would ask the following question: "What are you asking God to do?" Would they have Him wipe out all all their past sins and give them a fresh start? He's already done that on Calvary. All they have to do is repent. Would they have Him forgive them? All they have to do is ask. Do they just want to be left alone? If they don't repent and ask for forgiveness, that is exactly what He will do ... leave them completely and utterly alone.

For those that are cast into outer darkness, they will forever endure the freedom that they have always demanded for themselves.

Whenever we talk about Hell, there is for most people (I know it is true for myself) the inclination to think about the possible damnation of my family, friends and acquaintances. I think that is why the thought of Hell can be so disturbing to us, especially when we see these people as "good people". That may be why so many people have problems reconciling the idea of a just God with the concept of Hell. However, keep in mind that we really only know others from the "outside". But the odd thing is that when we look at ourselves, we know (if we will just admit it) that "in us dwells no good thing". In the light of our own sins and failures, we know that God is just.

If we really believe that we are living in the last days and if we really believe that there is a Hell ... then we need to re-double our efforts to save the lost. Tell someone about Jesus that you've never told before. That person who you gave up on because they just would not listen - give it one more try.

Lastly, we need to re-commit ourselves - to our local church, to the Word and to prayer, but especially to Christ Himself. Those TV shows that we just can't miss, those hobbies that take up so much of our time - do they really matter in the light of the day we are living in? Even more so today than ever before, we should strive to keep ourselves pure, blameless and unspotted from the world.

2 Peter 3:10-14 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless.

Hell

Do you think it possible that a person would choose Hell over Heaven? Even as I type that sentence, I must admit that the question itself seems almost ludicrous. How in the world would any sane person choose the torments of Hell over the blessings of Heaven?

Jesus speaks of Hell using several different analogies or symbols. One of the symbols He uses to describe Hell is "outer darkness". In fact, he does this three times in the book of Matthew:

Matthew 8:12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Matthew 22: 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen.'"

Matthew 25:30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

I don't pretend to understand exactly what "outer darkness" is, but by definition darkness is the absence of light. Think about your house at night - while you are inside or on the porch it is lit up with the different sources of light. But as you go outside and move further and further from the house lights the darkness gets blacker and blacker. So "outer darkness" is describing a place so far away from a source of light that the blackness is complete. Now I don't believe that Jesus is talking about a physical darkness but a spiritual darkness. Since He is the Light, "outer darkness" would be a place void of the presence of God.

John 1:9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world

John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

John 12:46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.

Even as I write this, I'm trying to imagine a place without Him and I can't. I'm not sure the words to describe a place like that even exist. Everything that is good comes from Him - without Him, I just can't even get it in my mind how horrible that would be. As opposed to Heaven, which is prepared for God's people, Hell is a place that was never prepared for us but for the devil and his angels. In fact, compare the "outer darkness" description of Hell to this description of Heaven found in Revelation:

Revelation 22:5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

So back to my original question - would people choose Hell (darkness) over Heaven? Although it seems beyond belief that they would, look at what the Scriptures say:

John 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

As a child, we hear stories or sermons about Hell and we get a visual image of what it is. Whether that image is right or wrong, we tend to carry it with us throughout our lives. The image I've always carried has been of a sinner being cast kicking and screaming into the the hell fire, an image of being 'sent' to hell. Although out of chances, if they could just get one more chance they would choose right. Maybe it is as simple as that, but I'm not so sure. Someone who spends their whole lives loving darkness rather than light has had multiple chances to make the right choice - to choose light over darkness - to choose God over self - to choose heaven over hell.

When I read the parable of the king's marriage supper, I find something very revealing hidden in just a few words:

Matthew 22:11-12 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 'Friend,' he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless.

Speechless. No arguing, no protesting, nothing. Just like he knew his choice had been made.

Hope

There is a car in the parking lot where I work that has an Obama bumper sticker on it that reads "got hope?". Now I could take off right now and blog about putting your hope in God and not a man, but that's too easy. I've been seeing that car every day for weeks and I've really been thinking about the word "hope" and what it means. I've come to the conclusion that the modern concept of hope is not consistent with the biblical concept.

In the modern context, when someone says they are hoping for something there is always an element of doubt. For example, "I hope she comes tonight" really means "I want her to come tonight, but there's a chance she won't". Or if someone says "I hope that isn't true", they are saying "I don't want it to be true, but there is a chance it is true". Now contrast that with what we find in Romans:

Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

This scripture has always sort of thrown me for a loop and here's why. I can understand that suffering produces perseverance (i.e. endurance) for it most certainly does - I can understand that perseverance produces character, which it also most certainly does - but why is the end result that character produces hope? But maybe the reason I didn't understand it was that I was looking at "hope" in the modern context.

The Greek word used in these verses is "Elpis". Look at what it means:

joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation

Do you see the difference? We tend to use the word hope today precisely because there is an element of doubt in the outcome of what we desire. But in the New Testament, the word hope carries no hint of doubt, but a confident expectation of what the outcome will be. With that definition, the following phrase makes much more sense.

... suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

That is why we can rejoice when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. Or to put in another way, the more we suffer the more confident we are in the outcome. Now that's a blog for another day.

A Vote for Holiness

With the election almost upon us, we are being inundated with commercials on television and radio. Even the phone is ringing with recorded statements from this or that candidate telling me how much they need my vote. But does my vote really count - does it really change anything?

I went into a barber shop the other day. While I was sitting in one chair getting a haircut, a man entered and sat in the chair beside me and began to get his hair cut by another barber. They began to make conversation and with nothing else to do, I listened in:

Barber: Are you going to the game this weekend?

Client: No, my daughter is getting married at our house and I've got to get the yard cleaned.

Barber: Is this her first marriage?

Client: Yes, this is her first.

Barber: Does she have any kids?

Client: Yes, she has two boys.

Barber: Is she marrying their daddy?

Client: No, he's not the daddy, but he's been living with her for a couple of years.

Needless to say, that conversation would not have taken place 25 years ago. First of all, once you found out it was going to be someone's first marriage, the assumption would have been that there were no kids to be found. And to ask a father after that if there were kids would probably have gotten your teeth knocked out. But these two men had this conversation as though it was the most normal thing in the world. As I sat there and listened, I just felt really sad - sad that my children and grandchildren will have to grow up in this kind of society - sad that my country has fallen so far from the biblical principles that it was founded on.

It seems to me that most of us want to take the easy way out, to vote for a man and then hope that man will change the direction of our country. I will vote in this election and I encourage you to do the same. But let's never think that a vote will change what is wrong in this land. Some believe that they can change this country one vote at a time, but America can only be changed one heart at a time.

What I'm talking about is holiness. It's not something we talk a lot about, but it's something that is desperately needed in our homes and in our society if we really want to see a change. If I can live a holy life I can affect others - in turn they can affect others andit goes on and on. There were only 120 people in the upper room, but they turned the world upside down.

It starts with you and I.

2Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Amazing Grace

At our men's Bible study the other night, we studied the parable of the prodigal son. It's a story that we're all familiar with, a story of forgiveness and unconditional love. But as we discussed what it meant to each one of us around the table, it got me to thinking about grace.

Phillip Yancey wrote a book entitled What's So Amazing About Grace (if you've never read it I'd recommend it highly). In the book he tells a true story, one which I'll paraphrase here for the sake of brevity:

"Not long ago I sat in a restaurant and listened to a good friend tell me that, after 15 years of marriage and 3 children, he had met a younger woman. He was thinking about leaving his wife and family for this other woman, and as a Christian he knew full well the personal and moral consequences of what he was about to do. I listened to his story with sadness and grief, but then he dropped the bombshell, asking me the question 'Do you think God can forgive something as awful as what I'm about to do?'".

It just so happens this week that I'm reading through the book of Romans, which reveals a grace so unlimited that Paul says "where sin increased, grace increased all the more". I wonder if Paul struggled with questions like those in the story above? What's to keep a person from exploiting God's wonderful promise of forgiveness? More than once, Paul returns to this predicament: "What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?".

So what about it? Will God forgive the man who leaves his family, knowing ahead of time that it is wrong? This is how Phillip Yancey answered his friend:

"Can God forgive you? Of course He can. But because of Christ, forgiveness is now our problem, not God's. What we have to go through to commit sin distances us from God - we change in the very act of rebellion - and there is no guarantee we will come back to Him - no guarantee we will ever ask for forgiveness. You ask me about forgiveness now, but will you want it later, especially if it involves repentance?".

I've always thought there was a lot of wisdom in that answer. There's something in us that makes us think that we can just step off the path and then step back on whenever we want to. But playing with sin is a dangerous game and Phillip Yancey is right - sin changes us. Coming back to God always involves repentance, and as long as the flesh is involved that will never be an easy thing to do.

Although it seems that God took a great risk by announcing forgiveness in advance, the reality is that because of Christ the risk has been transferred to us. As we sat around the table reading the parable, I couldn't help visualizing the father in the story. He was always there, day after day, night after night, always watching and waiting, always ready to forgive. But the responsibility was on the son. He had to make the decision to repent and return.

Romans 6:1-4 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

Trust in the Lord (Part 2)

As I wrote in last week's post, we are to trust in God. I believe that with all my heart. Sometimes trusting him seems so easy ... other times it can seem so hard. In fact, there have been times in my life where it seemed to me that God was even deliberately making it hard. So let me share with you a lesson I learned a couple of years ago about trust and faith.

I was reading through the book of Genesis and came to the story of Abraham. As I was reading a story that was very familiar to me, I came across something that struck me as odd. When we first meet the man named Abram, God promises him that He will make of him a great nation. At the time of this promise, Abram was 75 years old.

The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.

But as soon as this promise is made, 10 years go by without any sign of the promise being fulfilled. At this point, Abram gets antsy and tries to fulfill the promise himself through his wife's maidservant Hagar.

Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, "The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her." Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife.

Abram is 86 years old when Hagar gives birth to Ishmael. After that, the Bible is strangely silent. As far as we know, the next 13 years go by with nothing ... no sign .. no voice ... nothing. God finally shows up when Abram is 99 years old and fulfills the promise within a year.

Now the LORD was gracious to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

So if you do the math, Abraham had to wait 25 years for the word that God had given him to come to pass. But at least now the promise is fulfilled and Isaac his son is born. Now God can really start to work and build up this family. But here's where the oddest thing occurs. Look what happens to Isaac:

And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to be his wife. And Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived. And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red all over like a hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was 60 years old when she bare them.

As you read this story you can't help but be struck by the irony. God promised to make a great nation out of Abraham, then his wife is barren. After waiting 25 years for the son they've always wanted, now that very same son has to wait another 20 years for his own barren wife to conceive. And here's what we forget ... the bible says that Abraham lived to be 175 years old ... so he was still alive while his son Isaac was going through this. He was 140 when Isaac got married and 160 when the twins were finally born.

Now as if it wasn't enough that both Abraham and Isaac had barren wives, the same thing happens to Isaac's son, Jacob. He marries Rachel and she is barren.

Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, "God has taken away my disgrace." She named him Joseph, and said, "May the LORD add to me another son."

Three generations ... three barren women. What kind of game was God playing? What exactly did he want? What God wanted was faith, and that is the lesson that Abraham learned through all the years of waiting. He learned to believe when there was no reason left to believe. Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Rachel ... they all experienced the promise of God followed by dark and lonely times of just waiting. Empty time that only faith can fill. The Bible uses the phrase "by faith" to describe what they went through.

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from which they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly country: therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he has prepared for them a city.

So what lesson did I learn? When I had read that story before, I always focused on the high points ... the times when God was talking, moving or acting. But this time I really saw the "silent" years and what those years really meant in the lives of these great men and women of God. I've experienced those same times in my life, times when He seemed a million miles away. But as I look back over those periods I can see now that those are the times when I really learned to trust in Him, to believe when there didn't seem to be a reason to believe. Those are the times when real, enduring faith is born.