Heaven, Hell and Everything In Between (part 9)

Father, thank you for this morning. Thank you for giving us this place to be and for all the blessings that we have as we even

Just think about the privileges. We have just by virtue of being in this country the rights that we have to exercise our

Faith in you to gather together to worship father. I pray that you would bless this time you just we study a difficult and Seemingly out -of -fashion topic father.

I pray that you bless our time in Christ's name. Amen Well, it's a beautiful day. So what a better day to talk about hell

Before we get into the material I Have a quiz that I found online you guys don't have it.

So don't bother looking for it This isn't going to be our typical quiz We'll see how you do

I got 10 out of 10, but I knew something that you are not gonna know till I'm done which could explain

Why I got 10 out of 10. No, I didn't have the answers number one and and because you don't have this don't feel shy about being wrong because Trust me you

Likely should probably get some of these wrong number one. What type of blasphemy yields eternal damnation?

What kind what type of blasphemy yields eternal damnation here your choices none

All sins are forgiven when the sinner accepts Jesus Christ as his Savior B a

B. I guess we can go a none B blasphemy of God the Father for he is ruler over all

C blasphemy of Jesus the son because he died for our sins D you can be forgiven for blasphemy

Jesus But blaspheming the Holy Ghost is unforgivable and begins your descent into the fiery abyss it would be

D Now can anybody guess what the information I'm holding back on you is yet All right.

Number two what words can earn you a one -way ticket straight to Satan's lair a

None God would never condemn any condemn someone merely for an angry utterance

Be Threatening the meek so they and their children are in fear of their lives when they have done nothing wrong

C calling someone a fool or D erroneously accusing someone of following other gods than him resulting in that person being wrongly executed

There are some pretty serious problems here aren't there Charlie? C Calling someone a fool right out of the sermon on the mouth.

Thank you for listening to Mike's sermons Number three what sex acts ensure an eternity in flames.

Do you still not know what the kind of the information? I'm holding back on you is Yeah, I mean, it's very these guys are extreme legalists

None God does not send people to hell just for having sex be all non -marital sex rape of a helpless woman

Okay, and obviously the answer is all non -marital sex number four

Failing to engage in which of the following acts of retribution can yield permanent residence in flames. Do you notice that?

I mean listen to the language eternal damnation Satan's lair Eternity in flames permanent residence in flames number four

Failing to engage in which of the following acts of retribution can yield permanent residence in flames Like to introduce you to a new apartment, it's a permanent residence in flames a

None God does not send people to hell for their sins be failing to amputate body parts involved in sinful acts

See failing to apologize to the family members of the persons whose lives or whose life you have unjustly taken

I'm really sorry. I killed And D failing to make reparations to the victims of your sin.

That's a tough one What's the correct answer? and again, I only know this because I clicked

I I I knew with the perspective these people were coming from and so I clicked on the answer and when you answer the right one by the way a little flash pop -up would come up and say

Glory to God four out of four glory to God five out of five. Good job You know,

I I don't know. I should have tried it again just to see what would happen if I got one wrong, you know

You're getting singed. It's getting a little toasty The answer to number four was failing to amputate body parts involved in sinful acts

Well, Jesus said what? if your right hand causes you to stumble it is better to Cut it off.

And so they just kind of take that Literally and but I won't say what the pastor pastor looks like because they you know, never mind

Number five, which of the following insincere acts results in damnation of your soul a

None, God does not send people to hell for instance I'm sorry.

Some of these are Lord to take be telling the congregation. You have confessed your sins when you really have not

See eating bread and drinking wine unworthily or D confessing your sins, but omitting the most egregious

It's see eating bread and drinking wine unworthily they're talking about communion Number six, which of the following insurers you will not go to heaven guaranteed cannot go to heaven a

Jealousy be intoxication see both of the above D. None of the above What's that They actually

I think got this one, right? Or No, they didn't get it, right Let me see what did

I think the answer they had for this was both of the above jealousy and intoxication? But it should have been none of the above You know, is that guarantee you're not gonna go to heaven?

No People of what religions are going to burn forever as Satan stabs their behinds with pitchforks for eternity

Hey, I mean, this is a serious, you know website a A None, God is not so fickle that he would condemn people just because they were brought up by families with a different religion

B Satanists only C Satanists Wiccans and other religions of the occult only or D Jews Muslims Hindus Buddhists and everyone else who is not a

Christian Okay, number seven was D Number eight who among the following think they're going to heaven, but will wind up in hell instead a

Those who accept Jesus as their Savior, but continue to sin be those who preach

Jesus's Word but consistently violated See those who believe

John 3 16 is the only Bible verse worth knowing or D all of the above D all of the above number nine women who declined to engage in which of the following are damned by the sin of Eve a

A None of the above the curse of Eve is a myth B having children

C prayer D confession of sins What's that They would say

B and that is the absolute correct answer glory. Yeah, never mind number 10 people who experience which of the following cannot experience

God's love a Nothing all people can experience

God's love B depression if you have depression you cannot experience God's love C low self -esteem if you have low self -esteem

You cannot experience God's love or D pleasures of the flesh if you experience pleasures of the flesh you cannot experience

God's love D of course That was from land over Baptist org

So and I have the complete link in case you want to take that quiz for yourself see all the pop -ups

And I thought you know, this is I thought it was kind of a good. I don't know if it's a good segue

But a good introduction because there on the one extreme you have people who have this list really of legalism

I mean if you're if you're a woman and you what how do they put it if you decline to participate in child?

I don't even know You know, what does that mean who declined to engage in which of the following are damned by the sin of Eve? Be having children.

What does that mean? Yeah, well, and it's also

I I think that's out of 1st Timothy 2 as well where it talks about Women not teaching and etc, etc, but Or 1st

Timothy 2 But the while I'm turning there, but the the point of all that is it's so over -the -top and Here it is

But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man

But to remain quiet for it was Adam who was first created and then Eve and it was not Adam who was deceived

But the woman being deceived fell into transgression, but women will be preserved or saved

Through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self -restraint. Well, I mean you listen to them and What they're saying and you know, you could say that an unbeliever who has children

You know could be saved so Women who declined to engage in the following and which of the following are damned by the sin of Eve I mean, that's just that's an extreme

Thing but I wanted it, you know, we're we've Taken a break here from heaven hell and everything in between We had a few weeks on ecumenism and then

Dave's been teaching about sanctification But hell is an important Doctrine and it's something

I've been reading this book and we'll be doing several weeks on hell In case you have some people who you think need to hear this

Reading a book called hell under fire And it really is Dramatic the assault that the doctrine of hell has been under over really about the last 150 or 200 years how it has declined in popularity

I mean whoever thought you know You do a survey of people who go to church every week. My favorite sermons are the ones that the pastor preaches on hell probably not

That's not something we like a whole lot but You know, I have there isn't my first point.

Why is this doctor so important? Well, first of all the Bible teaches it if the Bible teaches something we ought to believe it we ought to want to know about it and We need to proclaim it.

We need to talk about it Just to kind of open this up a little bit

Some other ideas hell teaches us a lot about God's hatred of sin We're gonna see that hell is

Eternal punishment eternal torment How much does

God hate sin a lot more than most people would like to think Tells us about God's justice

There are many folks some respected in the evangelical community who tend to think that there's a

Disproportionate punishment. What do I mean by that? Involved in hell disproportionate punishment. The punishment doesn't fit the crime.

How so it's only a little sin

In fact was reading here one day and he says I was reading the other day and the guy says look

If you as an earthly father Punish your child for doing something wrong

You know Beat them forever Why because the sin was a one -time occurrence or you know a

Pattern that occurred for a short period of time and to punish them in an ongoing way would be disproportionate

So why would God? Punish someone eternally

For something that somebody did once mate was a pattern for a period of years, but why would there be eternal punishment for sin?

They've sinned against an infinitely Holy God So the problem when we look at the doctrine of hell

There are so many things involved the holiness of God the justice of God The you know to get sin where it is in today's church

You really have to take or to get hell where it is in today's church, which is not a big doctrine you have to take sin and Remove all the or a lot of the impact out of it

You have to take God's holiness you have to bring it down you have to take God's justice You have to bring it down.

You have to bring take his righteousness. You have to bring it down You have to take the atonement even and bring it down Daniel Daniel says that when people consider their sins, they're not looking upward

They're not considering as the psalmist said against the and the only have I sin what they're concerned about is how they measure up against Their neighbors against other people in the church

Pam Yeah, it's things of the much sins of the mind that our thoughts are not really so bad in fact

Maybe they're not even sins at all because really who's involved in it. It's just us. We're not sitting against anybody

And so by redefining sin by redefining holiness by redefining righteousness by redefining

God's justice makes it a lot easier to Diminish hell

Charlie, let's close in prayer.

Yeah, I mean this Goes back never play with your microphone while you're talking It goes back to what we were

Discussing earlier, you know if we're going to talk about God as holy and righteous and just and All of these things.

I mean, what does the church want to focus about today? The love of God God is love.

I mean it's The Church of today, and I don't mean every church, but I mean the

Christian Church at large Basically has a view of you know

Mike likes to talk about George Burns who even knows I mean who how many of you know who George Burns is?

Okay, it's about half. How many of you have ever seen Oh God? the only reason I saw

Oh God is because you know You can forgive me later, but I was a

John Denver fan Okay, nice nice crack of the neck but Here's what

I would say. I would say the God of today's church and again. I'm not talking about this church

I'm not talking about every church. I think is more akin to Cupid He's running around.

He just wants to shoot you in the heart with a little love arrow He's just he's just a you know, just a loving

God who wouldn't want to hurt anyone I Mean this this thing in Haiti, I mean, of course you have goofballs, you know saying that this has to do with You know some pact that Haiti made with the devil to get out of France's rule and reign, you know 150 years ago or whatever or it could just be

That in the providence of God sin is punished all over the world That from time to time these things happen and it's just a reflection of the sinful nature of the world the things aren't perfect the way they ought to be a reminder that God's wrath is kindled The judgment is one day coming but today's church doesn't like this idea of a holy

God a Wrathful God a God who is going to judge every sin because after all if he does that Who can stand yeah, that is the point but but today's church it isn't like that You don't go to a church to have the pastor tell you you know

What your failings are and how you need to repent or you're going to hell and you need to rely completely upon Jesus after all

We got dressed up to go to church and we're pretty good people and we don't need somebody telling us how bad we are I put down here in point

C hell tells us a lot about the suffering of Christ how so How does hell inform us about the suffering of Christ Okay, we know that he paid a great price and think about what that delivers us out of It was the first time on the cross first time that the

Trinity had ever experienced a kind of a separation You know the the pain of that but the physical suffering of Jesus When we think about what we deserve as Result of our own sins, and then we think that Jesus took the penalty for our sins upon himself

If we think about an eternity of punishment that we deserve

Then we multiply that times Millions Billions however many

Ultimately wind up in heaven. We think all of that wrath all of that eternal punishment poured out in the space of what a few hours

It's been said by the

Prophet Isaiah that Christ suffered more than Any man that he was marred more than any man and when we understand the full

Fury and wrath and justice and righteousness poured out on him

On the cross we understand a little bit more about what we've been saved from which leaves me right at a point

D We think about hell Think about eternal punishment

We think about one sin meriting eternal punishment the full wrath of God poured out for eternity

Then we really realize what it is that we've been saved from I was saved in 19 whatever in 2009

I was saved last week whatever the case is When you realize what you've been saved from are you more thankful or less thankful?

I mean the doctrine of hell should be a great reminder of what our Savior has

Accomplished on our behalf it is not some sterile doctrine It ought to scare us a little bit not because we're concerned for ourselves, but when we think about our loved ones and our friends

This doctrine is very sobering because when we understand rightly what hell is all about How can we just?

silently watch as our friends and our family pass in To the eternal fires of hell, how can we do that?

How can we not say I I don't want to be embarrassed I Don't want to be cut off.

I Don't want to lose my inheritance Whatever the case is We should leave

When we think about how we should leave the room we should leave this church, whatever with a compulsion to talk about Christ Without the biblical truth of hell or if we water it down we have lost something true

Because the Bible does teach it and a doctrine that distinguishes Christianity from false religious systems

When the church is shy when this church will not teach the truth about what the

Bible contains about anything when it says about anything But what it won't talk about hell and wants to you know say well, you know, let's not really

Get too involved in that what they're really saying is We don't want to stand out we don't want to be like anybody else we don't we don't want to We don't want hell or anything else to be a stumbling block or a rock of offense

And it really it always goes back to the cross Because when you think about the cross that does separate us from other religions when you think about hell

Well, what does that say if people can actually go to hell for not believing in Christ? Then that suggests that there really is only one way and so this doctrine of hell eternal torment eternal punishment by God on sinners forever

Separates us from every other Religion now some some might say well, you know, there are other religions that have hell well, yeah like Islam does but the funny thing about Islam is

And I've said this before you can obey all of well,

I don't know that anybody could obey all the rules, but you can obey all the rules and still wind up going to hell because a lot is

Capricious he is Not obligated to do anything Christianity is a unique religion because we have a

Doctrine called hell it is a real place. It is a place where billions will spend all of eternity suffering in torment for their sins not because They're worse than other people

Not because they're more foolish in the physical or Sense that we think about foolishness, but because They refused to believe in Christ, let's look at what

Wayne Grudem has to say about hell Hell is a place as a point number two hell is a place of eternal conscious punishment for the wicked

What does that rule out just that statement there purgatory,

I'm sorry annihilation Eternal conscious punishment for the wicked also rules out the idea that maybe you'd be in some kind of Coma, you know not feeling a thing conscious punishment

Scripture teaches in several passages that there is such a place. Let's turn to Matthew 25

Thank you. And by the way Anybody want to tell us what a talent is if you say guitar playing your own?

That's a skill. No It's money. It's a it's an amount of money. Thank you

Carl. I Thought it was interesting and I'll get back to this in just a second just this idea because ultimately what this is talking about is eternal eternal rewards and eternal punishments and I don't know about you, but sometimes when

I think about eternal rewards, I don't want to say

I you know, I don't want any Because I think everybody here who's a Christian who loves the

Lord wants to hear well done now good and faithful servant but it just seems kind of like Really I Mean, I I don't know.

I mean we're gonna get rewards based on what we do, but but I just somehow think I go I know me.

I know there's nothing good in me. So Maybe I won't get here but but It's just kind of an amazing concept that everything that is done

That I do is not something that I do. It's Christ at work in me and then How how then would

I be rewarded for that and you know, then there's the idea of casting the crowns at the Savior's feet and I don't know it just kind of gets me a little bit emotional to think that I would have any part in That but anyway get back to the notes here

James Montgomery Boyce who is Currently rejoicing in the presence of the

Lord Says here that William Hendrickson who is also rejoicing in the presence of the

Lord has tried to capture the tone of the Conversations in this parable I think he is right that the decisive matter is the way in which the two servants and the good

Servants and the one bad servant related to the master The faithful servants served well because they loved him and wanted to please him

While the wicked servant failed to serve well because he actually hated and resented his master

Does that sound like a Christian someone who would love or who would hate and resent their master?

The answer is no when the master returns for their accounting and the faithful servants tell what they have done

Their words do not merely report. They have doubled the amount they were given The man who was given five talents seems to have come with two bags each containing five talents and what he literally says is master

Five talents you placed in my hands look an additional five talents. I have gained

You can almost feel his proper pride in his achievements now, he's not saying you know,

I I think it's like any child or anyone who has a boss and wants to Prove that they've they've done what that parent or what that?

Boss one of them to do the same kind of approach Hendrickson comments the man's eyes are sparkling

He is bubbling over with enthusiasm is thoroughly thrilled and as it were invites his master to start counting

The man has been waiting for this moment and is pleased to have done so well The master is equally delighted.

Well done. He says we might almost translate his reply as excellent Great or wonderful.

It is the same with the servant who is given two talents He says the same thing and receives an identical word of commendation

By contrast we can hardly fail to hear the angry Self -justifying accusing tone of the servant who hid his master's talent in the earth

Master I knew that you were a hard man Harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed

So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See here is what belongs to you

Now whose fault is all that? According to the servants. It's the master's Look, I I probably wouldn't have done it this way, but I knew how how tough you were

Voice goes on to note. This accusation was not true. The master was not a hard man He had been generous and giving his servants much wealth to work with but this man hated him

We can hear his contempt as he resentfully throws his talents on the table I mean he's kind of taking a little license here.

Here is what belongs to you. He says It was returned exactly as the master had given it not a bit more and no less

In response the master condemns him both for his wickedness and for being lazy Wicked because he accuses master unjustly and lazy because he did not faithfully use what he was given the master then gives the talent to the one who has ten on the principle that Everyone who has will be given more and whoever does not have even what he has will be taken from him

And then the servant lazy servant is cast outside into the darkness

I Like what he says here. We must avoid a do -nothing Christianity, of course

One commentator wrote to have done. No harm is praise for a stone not for a man

But the situation here is worse than that to have done Nothing is to prove that we do not love

Christ do not belong to him and have no share in his kingdom It is to perish forever

Yes Well, I think the key there is and and anytime you're talking about a parable

I think we not need to try not to extract too much out of it. Basically. He's just saying that He's explaining

How he has this reputation for being a difficult Master and so he's just kind of giving an illustration of how difficult he is, you know, you expect to get

Crops where you'd having him and so and seed and everything you're brutal So that's the idea, okay, this is one among several indications that there will be a consciousness of punishment

After the final judgment similarly at the judgment of the king At the king

Oh Similarly at the judgment the king will say to some depart from me cursed Into the fire prepared for the devil and his angels in Matthew 25 41 and Jesus says that those

Thus condemned will go away into eternal punishment But the righteous into eternal life now listen to this.

This is Matthew 25 verses 41 and 46 In this text the parallel between eternal life and eternal punishment

Indicates that both states will be without end in other words There there are no that I know of there are no

Evangelicals who would say that once you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ you go to heaven and That's gonna last for a very long time and then it's gonna stop but there are plenty evangelicals who will say

If you don't believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you'll go to hell But that might be temporary punishment or Maybe you'll just be annihilated or maybe there'll be soul sleep or something else

There'll be some other kind of punishment, but it won't be eternal MacArthur says this in the

MacArthur study Bible the authorized notes Everlasting punishment in eternal life the same

Greek word is used in both instances The punishment of the wicked is never ending is as never ending as the bliss of the righteous

The wicked are not given a second chance nor are they annihilated? No second chance.

We're going to read plenty of evangelicals who say yes, there's a second chance Jesus refers to hell as the unquenchable fire in mark 943.

What does unquenchable mean? Means it can't be quenched

Nothing will stop it. I Mean if you had a fire in California and the fire chief comes out and says we can't stop it.

What would that mean? It's about to burn out. It's gonna last for a couple days. He'd say

I have no idea Jesus also says it is a place where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched in my mark 948 let's go ahead and Turn since I didn't leave myself a bad bad move

I think we're in the parable of Lazarus Where is it?

Okay, that's right as soon as you said that I go, yeah, that's right Luke 16 starting in verse 19 and I'll read that now there was a rich man and He habitually dressed in purple and fine linen now does that mean that men should wear purple?

Absolutely not May it never be no, it's just purple is a is a

Ancient symbol of riches. Yeah and purple and fine linen joyously living in splendor every day and a poor man named

Lazarus was laid in his gate covered with sores and Longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man's table

Besides even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. I mean that is a poor

You know, he's the lowest of the street people here Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom thus proving that if you're poor you go immediately to heaven

No Again you can read too much into the parables and that's not the point here and the rich man also died and was buried in Hades He lifted up his eyes being in torment and saw

Abraham far away and Lazarus the poor man in his bosom and He cried out and said father

Abraham have mercy on me and said Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue

For I am in agony in this flame but Abraham said child

Remember that during your life you received your good things and likewise Lazarus bad things but now he is being comforted here and you are in agony and Besides all this between us and you there is a great chasm fixed so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able and That none may cross over from there to us 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 they will not also come to this place of torment but Abraham said

They have Moses and the prophets let them hear them But he said no father

Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent But he being

Abraham said to him If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead

Leon Morris Talking about this parable says nothing has been said about the religious state of either

But Lazarus was evidently a faithful servant of God for when he died the angels took him to Abraham's bosom

The expression is not common, but it plainly notes felicity or happiness The bliss of the saved is pictured as a great feast in which one in which the favored one

Reclines with his head on the bosom of the great patriarch. That's how they would eat They would sit at these tables and they would recline like leaning on one another

They didn't have great big armed sofas. And so you acted as the arm for whoever was next to you

And that's the style in which they ate seems rather uncomfortable with me but you know There is no corresponding joy for the rich man after his death now again

This is not to say rich people go to hell poor people go to heaven, but it is in keeping with What Jesus talked about in the

Sermon on the Mount with regard to priorities? If you want to live for today if you want to store up treasures for yourself here

Well, guess what all those things are not going with you They are going to be destroyed by rust by moss by the forces of this world

If you store up things in the kingdom of heaven Your joy will be great there

He goes on to say Hades is normally a colorless term signifying the abode of all the departed whether good or bad in the

New Testament, however, in other words outside of the Bible Hades can be rather neutral idea

In the New Testament, however, it is never used of the saved in other words the saved never go to Hades as some kind of holding tank here it seems to be the equivalent of Gehenna the place of punishment the trash heap of Jerusalem where they would burn trash

Constantly, which was a foul foul place obviously

Not only so but he was able to see Lazarus and to note his happiness his felicity.

So here's Abraham or I'm sorry. Here's here's the rich guy

And he sees Lazarus in Heaven basically and here's this fixed chasm where he can't get across and he is suffering

The rich man's attitude. I thought this was interesting the rich man's attitude to the great patriarch is deferential father

Abraham, right? But there is a note of unconscious arrogance in his attitude to Lazarus because he assumes

That he can have the poor man Senate, you know Send send send forth father

Abraham Lazarus to dip his finger to the water He has not realized that earth's values no longer apply

And we'll wrap this up here in a minute Abraham gives a reasoned refusal of the request his Address son is tender, but he points to a reversal in the life.

The rich man had the good things The adjective your is significance. He said, you know, he says you had your good things

He had what he chose. He had his priorities We've talked about that a little bit but The rich man can know how it is with Lazarus.

He can see his state He can see that he's in a pleasurable place and there's this gap that is fixed and cannot go away and there is the rich man suffering in The place where he belongs in a place that really pictures what hell is like no relief

No refreshment crew nothing there's no Communion luncheon you're just there forever

Suffering the wrath of God Well, we're gonna pick it up next week and we have a lot more to come

But I I think this is a very important doctrine for us to understand

Properly for us to think of rightly for us to not shrink from declaring You know if you go to give the gospel to someone and you tell them they're a sinner.

They probably agree with that You might even be able to get them to understand that God will judge sin

The elements that are most difficult is understanding how bad sin is to really get that sin is an offense against a holy

God a Sin one single sin is such an egregious violation of God's command

That it is enough to deserve the wrath of God not just for a little time not five years in San Quentin But eternity in hell eternity facing the wrath of God Let's pray father we are soberly reminded of the fact that those who do not trust in the work of your son

Jesus Christ will not face some menial or minimal punishment

But we'll face the full fury and deserved wrath Of you for all eternity

Well, there are many in this room who have unsaved family and friends and neighbors Loved ones

Father I pray that you would be merciful to them. I pray that you would even use those of us in this room as as It were ambassadors of Christ Urging begging pleading with people to be reconciled to the

Lord Jesus That through his work many

Would be saved and Through our words many would come to believe that he is the