Luke 16:19-25
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: 20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, 21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 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; 23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 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. 25 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.
When you and I think about eternity, we are prone to think about heaven and how great it will be. We’ve been told about streets of pure gold (Revelation 21:21), pearly gates (Revelation 21:21), and sinless perfection (Revelation 21:1-8). If you read through the gospel accounts (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), what you will find is that Jesus spoke much more often about another place where people will spend eternity. It is a place that we still know very little about, we certainly hear very little about, and we wish to think very little about. It is a place most commonly known as “hell.”
What is hell? The Bible does not include a lot of detail, but the detail that the Bible does include is abundantly clear. Hell is referred to as a place of “outer darkness” (Matthew 8:12; 22:13; 25:30); a “furnace of fire” (Matthew 13:42,50; Revelation 9:2); a place of “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12; 13:42,50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28); “torments” (Luke 16:23); and a “bottomless pit” (Luke 8:31; Revelation 9:1-2,11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1-3). Perhaps the most well-known characteristic of hell is that it is a place of fire. There are 20+ references in the New Testament to hell being a place of fire. In fact, the final hell is referred to as the “Lake of Fire” (Revelation 19:20; 20:10,14-15; 21:8).
From these very basic concepts we can conclude that hell is not a place that anyone that is in their right mind would want to go to. Jesus referred to hell with the term Gehenna. This was an actual place in Israel just outside Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom. In Jesus’ day, Gehenna was a valley full of perpetually burning trash. It contained all sorts of filth and was constantly burning to dispose of all of the putrid waste that accumulated there. Jesus took this actual place and used it to describe what the place of eternal torment called “hell” is like.
From the parable that Jesus tells (that could have been an actual account of real people) He mentions two men, one wealthy and one extremely poor. The purpose is not to show that wealthy people go to hell and poor people to heaven, but to show that what man highly esteems does not guarantee us a certain eternity. Instead, what we do with Jesus is all that matters. Our lives will end and one thing that is certain from the Bible is that hell is real. It is a place of both physical and spiritual suffering. Matthew 10:28 tells us that both “soul and body” suffer in hell. One day the lost will be raised and given bodies for eternity. However,, though our bodies now stay in the ground and our spirit and soul go to heaven or hell, this rich man suffered in some kind of physical way. He had eyes. He had a tongue. He could feel torment and agony. He recognized that he was in a flame. Suddenly, all that he had spent his life doing and all that he thought was important changed. He would have given anything for just a drop of water. Imagine how bad hell must be for a drop of water to make a world of difference.
Some may ask, “Why would a loving God send people to hell?” The answer is that our sin against God is cosmic treason. We have sinned against an eternal and holy being. Our punishment and His wrath for our sin is eternal. Hell is absolutely just. However, because God is a loving God, He sent His only begotten Son as our representative to take that wrath on Himself on the cross. Jesus died on the cross because hell is real. He didn’t come and die for us to have our “best life now.” He didn’t come and die to make us healthy, wealthy, and prosperous. He didn’t shed His blood to give us physical healing. No, Jesus died to save sinners from hell. He died to keep you out of hell and to reconcile you to God. “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17).
Hell is an essential part of the gospel. Sadly, many of us have never heard a sermon on hell. Many of us know nothing of its horror and therefore have no urgency to plead with people to come to Jesus. The famous words of John Chrysostom ring true, “If we think always of hell, we shall not soon fall into it.” Let me ask you today, do you know Christ? Have your sins been forgiven? Some say that we should not scare people into salvation. I would argue that God is not so concerned that we would be scared out of hell, but that we would be comforted into it. The only answer for us and for our loved ones is Jesus. God has made every provision needed for our salvation in His Son. Will you receive Him? Will you share Him with someone who needs Him?