Intiouuction

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Bell. No.
R7S Q6*0"/ ,"/."?"'-0"/















Bell is not a sexy topic. If you stait yapping about the wiath of uou most
people think you'ie intoleiant, aiiogant, anu unloving. It's not a fun topic, anu it's
not an easy one eithei. I'm moie comfoitable talking about sex than hell, but it's a
majoi concein within oui cultuie anu significant to uou, so I'm just going to go foi it.
Bio, uo me a favoi. Bon't be so quick to juuge me. Beai my aiguments out, anu we'll
go fiom theie.
Theie tenus to be two types of pieacheis. Theie aie those hell fiie biimstone
pieacheis that make eveiyone in chuich feel moie guilty than a convicteu felon in
couit. You know what I'm talking about. It's the type of pieachei that can't evei talk
about anything but how eveiyone's going to hell except him. Be talks about how we
neeu to "tuin oi buin". If we uon't believe exactly what he believes then we'ie all
going to be kinuling. Now most of us uespise those uuues because they'ie just too
much. Be's scieaming his heau off, he's got a ieu face, anu spits on eveiyone in the
fiist S iows.
Then theie is the type of pieachei that nevei talks about uou's wiath oi
juugment. Be's the type of uuue that talks about Tinkeibelle faiiy tale }esus that
spieaus loving faiiy uust on eveiyone anu poitiays uou as some cosmic genie. Be's
the uuue that says ciap like it's all-goou anu uou is only heie to make you happy,
healthy, anu wealthy. Be says uou's not upset with anyone anu uoesn't like to talk
about tough topics like sin anu hell at all. Be's a cowaiu. Be's the uuue that ciaps his
pants when you say the woiu sin. Be likes to only talk about uou's love anu
foigiveness without evei talking about what uou even neeus to foigive us of. Be's a
punk because uou talks about wiath anu hell in the bible anu you can't conveniently
avoiu the issue.
We think the fiist uuue is a punk because he's a bully with his bible. We think
the seconu uuue is a panzy because he's too afiaiu to even say the woiu hell. These
aie two typical extiemes anu most Chiistians believe somewheie in between these
two extiemes. I'm going to tiy not to be eithei one of these uuues. I'm going to fiist
anu foiemost be faithful to the bible anu be unueistanuing of the fact that you
piobably uon't believe this stuff. I'm going to iesponu to the piimaiy objections to
hell anu uou's wiath as expiesseu in the bible anu I hope it helps you unueistanu
why we believe these things.

"# In the beginning uou cieateu all things peifect anu goou. We see this in
uenesis 1 anu 2. Theie was peifect fiienuship, ielationship, anu peace between uou
anu man. Theie was no sin, no sickness, anu no pain. uou woulu meet face to face
with man anu woman as they woikeu in the uaiuen of Euen. Nan anu woman nevei
hau a single issue oi any uysfunction. Theie weien't pisseu off bosses. Woik wasn't
toil. Auam anu Eve uiun't cheat on each othei oi have the uesiie to. Relationships
weie natuial anu easy. Theie was no such thing as talking behinu someone's back.
Theie was no betiayal, anxiety, uepiession, abuse, oi acciuents. Theie weie no
Banu-Aius because theie was no such thing as pain. Theie was no such things as
foigiveness because theie was no wiong being uone.
Again that's how the woilu was oiiginally, as expiesseu in uenesis 1 anu 2.
Then uenesis S happeneu. 0ne uay the seipent appioacheu Eve in the gaiuen anu
tempteu hei to eat of the fiuit that uou commanueu them not to eat. With hei
actions she pietty much saiu "sciew you uou" anu hei husbanu joineu hei in open
iebellion against uou. Because of this, sin enteieu into the woilu. Sin is uiiect
uisobeuience to the commanus of uou. Because of this oiiginal sin, the bible says
that all men aie boin into sin. We aie boin with a uesiie to stiay fiom the
commanus of uou as we puisue oui own selfish ambitions. The bible also says that
the wages of sin is ueath. Because of sin, ueath enteieu into the woilu. This means
the ueath of oui human bouies ovei time. This means ueath of healthy anu peifect
ielationship between uou anu man. This means ueath of healthy human
ielationships, maiiiages, anu fiienuships. This means that the entiie univeise is
fiactuieu anu eveiy aspect of cieation is bioken. Sin uestioys mankinu's ability to
inteiact with uou because insteau of iemaining satisfieu in Bim we seek pleasuie,
uelight, anu joy in eveiything but Bim. Sin uestioys man's ability to inteiact with
spouses anu othei humans because of oui selfish uisposition. Sin within us causes
iampant uestiuction, violence, anu oppiession against mankinu anu the eaith.
Notice how I saiu the woiu "us". I'm saying theie is sin insiue of eveiyone, Chiistian
anu non-Chiistian alike. I uon't caie if you'ie mothei Theiesa, The Pope, oi a pastoi.
I uon't caie if you'ie a uiug uealei, piostitute, oi uiunkaiu. We'ie all on the same
playing fielu.
I want you to see uou's heait towaius the sin that is now within us. You
might not have heaiu veises like these in the bible but they'ie in theie. In }eiemiah
44:4 uou talks about how Be hates sin. You even get a list of sins Be hates in
Pioveibs 6. uou makes his opinions about sin veiy cleai. Bave you evei wonueieu
why uou tiips out about it. Beie's the tiuth. uou cannot stanu sin because it iobs
Bis cieation of what they aie tiuly looking foi. When we sin what we'ie saying, "I
want sin because it's bettei than uou." uou knows that the gieatest thing in the
entiie univeise, anu the only thing that will biing the fulfilling joy anu satisfaction, is
an active ielationship with uou. Sin substitutes oui uesiies foi uou anu gives us a
uesiie foi something else.
Let me bieak it uown like this: if you puisue sex outsiue of maiiiage you aie
in essence saying "uou this feeling I'm going to have is bettei than what you have to
offei so I'm going foi it anu I'm not inteiesteu in waiting. You'ie way is too slow.
You'ie way isn't as fun. You'ie way is actually slowing me uown fiom tiue
happiness anu joy anu I want sex now. It will give me the tiue love I'm looking foi. It
will give me the tiue physical pleasuie I ciave. I'm going to uo this my way so step
off." In that moment of giving in to sin you anu I aie saying what Auam anu Eve saiu
to uou, "sciew you uou I'm uoing this my way because I'm smaitei than you anu I
know what my soul neeus bettei than you uo."
uou loves us feiociously. Bis passion foi all humans is infinite. Bis affection
foi us causes Bim to buin with angei towaius oui sin because sin iobs us fiom
getting closei to Bim. Sin iobs oui affections anu sets oui heaits on something oi
someone besiues Bim. This is why the bible says uou is jealous 9)- us. It uoesn't
mean that Be wants oui stuff. Being jealous foi us means Be yeains foi what is
iightfully Bis, oui love anu appieciation foi Bim. When we sin we iob Bim of the
ielationship anu gloiy Be tiuly ueseives. What is so sau in oui cultuie is that we
juuge uou foi this. We juuge Bim foi hating anu punishing sin. We juuge Bim foi
hating the one thing that is uestioying us. 0ui cultuie pieaches about not being
juugmental yet we accuse uou of wionguoing just because Be wants to stop us fiom
iunning fiom Bim. We aie the biggest hypociites because when we see otheis
sinning, we iesponu the same way uou uoes. If someone you ueeply love is
uestioying theii lives you buin with angei towaius the things that aie uestioying
the one you love. Foi instance let's say that youi fathei staiteu ueveloping an
alcohol auuiction anu because of it he lost his job anu became abusive towaius youi
family. If you actually love him anu want to see him get bettei then you woulu hate
the sin of alcohol auuiction. If you hau the powei to change him you woulu change
him. If he uiun't want to change then you woulun't want to continue living in the
abusive householu with him. You want the sin iemoveu, but if he uoesn't, then you
woulu sepaiate youiself fiom him.
uou's iesponse towaius sin is similai. uou won't stanu foi sin because of the
uestiuctive natuie of sin. Be won't let an ounce of sin sliue because one sin leaus to
moie sin, which woulu leau to moie uestiuction. In light of all of this sin, uou has a
iesponse towaius it. It's not simply oveilookeu, but insteau, Be foigives sin by
letting Bis son absoib the wiath we ueseive on the cioss foi oui sins. }esus Chiist,
who is uou the Son, put on human flesh anu became the peifect substitute foi
punishment. uou's peifect juugment against sin is satisfieu in }esus Chiist's ueath
upon the cioss. This is why we woiship anu love uou: because uou sent }esus to
become the scapegoat foi the wiath we tiuly ueseive.

""# Nany say that theie is nothing loving anu kinu about uou's wiath, anu,
since uou is a uou of love, Be can't be involveu with hell. Ny aigument is that theie
is a gieat element of uou's love as Be senus sinneis to hell. It's loving towaius those
whom Be iescues fiom hell to keep Chiistians anu non-Chiistians sepaiateu. A tiue
Chiistian uoesn't make a piactice of sinning but tuins towaius }esus with theii sins.
1 }ohn S:6 shows us this. An unbelievei is someone who uoesn't want to give his oi
hei sin to }esus. If Be alloweu Chiistians anu non-Chiistians to entei into heaven
then theie woulu be sin in heaven as well. Let me be abunuantly cleai, Chiistians sin
a lot. But the tiuth is that Chiistians iepent anu tuin fiom theii sin ovei time. To
iepent means to tuin fiom youi sins anu obey }esus's commanus. The uiffeience
between Chiistians anu Non-Chiistians is that Chiistians iepent of sins foi the gloiy
of uou. Non-Chiistians uon't caie to iepent of sins foi the gloiy of uou. Non-
Chiistians might stop sinning but it's not to honoi }esus as an act of woiship. If Be
allows the thief, who uoesn't want to change, to entei into heaven then the thief
woulu continue stealing fiom uou's people. If Be alloweu the muiueiei, who uoesn't
want to change, in heaven then muiuei woulu uestioy ielationships. If Be alloweu
the sexual ueviant, who uoesn't want to change, into heaven then the uamaging
effects of sexual sin woulu continue as they uo heie on eaith. 0n anu on I coulu go
about eveiy othei sin imaginable.
If uou alloweu sin into heaven then heaven woulun't be any uiffeient then
eaith, anu #(6# woulu be unloving of uou. Be piomiseu us an eteinity with no sin oi
teais. It's loving foi uou to piotect Bis Kinguom fiom sin anu sinneis. Let me put it
like this, if someone piomiseu to babysit youi youngei sibling in a safe enviionment
anu alloweu abusive, uiunk, uisiespectful people to hang out at the same house
woulu you be okay with that. If you actually love youi sibling you woulun't be
because you caie foi theii well being. In the same way, uou caies foi Bis people
gieatly, anu Be won't allow haim to befall them in heaven because Be piomiseu
theie woulu be no such thing as sin, pain, anu huit in heaven. A tiuly loving uou
woulun't allow uestiuction to pievail thiough sin if Be piomiseu an eteinity without
it.
0ne thing that I uo want to point out is that uou is extiemely loving towaius
you anu I iight now. The fact that Be allows us to even question, uoubt, anu ieject
who Be is anu what Be uoes without uestioying us is Bis meicy upon us. The fact
that Be allows humans to iun aiounu anu sin iight to Bis face anu still extenu Bis
invitation of ielationship is unpieceuenteu. uou uieu on the cioss to absoib the
punishment you anu I ueseive foi oui uoubting anu open iebellion against uou.
}esus also iesuiiecteu into new life aftei Bis ueath anu now offeis salvation thiough
faith in what Be uiu on the cioss foi you anu I. The fact that uou allows us to uoubt
anu still offeis the invitation to salvation is a woiship-cieating, beautiful tiuth.
"""# Some say it's not faii foi uou to senu someone to hell because they
committeu a few sins. Fiist of all I just want to say theie is no one that evei just
commits a few sins. Bave you lookeu at the fiist Ten Commanuments. I've liteially
bioken eveiy one of those commanuments at some level touay alone. You have too,
so uon't be quick to pat youiself on the back. That's just the fiist ten, bio. Theie aie
ovei six hunuieu of those commanuments to peifectly follow with peifect intentions
anu motives. You anu I uon't even know what they all aie, anu, even if you uo, you
uon't follow all of them to a tee with peifect intentions anu motives. Bon't tiy to
juuge uou anu say Be's not faii. uou uoesn't senu someone to hell because they
committeu a few sins. uou senus sinneis to hell. Let me say it again because this is a
huge point. uou senus sinneis to hell.
Bon't tiip out on that. Theie's a veiy impoitant uistinction about oui position
befoie a holy anu peifect uou. You anu I funuamentally misunueistanu sin. Sin isn't
just an action but a state of being that uictates actions, thoughts, woius, anu
intentions. You uon't just uo sin. You aie a sinnei. You uon't just think sinful
thoughts. You aie a sinful human being. You uon't just say sinful things. You aie a
sin-centeieu peison. The heait is the centei of who we aie, anu, since the heait is
sinful, you will sin. This means that you anu I have a pieuisposition to iebel against
uou, anu this pieuisposition has affecteu anu maiieu eveiy aspect of oui existence.
This means that oui thoughts, woius, ueeus, anu motives aie bent towaius sin
insteau of uou.
No one has evei just committeu a few sins. People aie boin into a heait
centeieu on sin anu apait fiom }esus' salvation theie's no hope foi heait-
tiansfoiming change. Sinneis can't make themselves non-sinneis. Bumans uon't
have the powei to change theii own heait. Suie we can change oui behaviois,
thoughts, woius, anu patteins, but those aie all symptoms of the sin that staits
within the heait. No mattei how moially goou you aie, you anu I both know that,
ueep uown insiue, you anu I aie selfish people, anu the most impoitant peison in
this woilu is ouiselves. Some of you still uon't believe me so let me give you an
example. If I hanueu you a hunuieu uollais iight now, what's the fiist thing you
woulu uo. Seiiously think about the fiist thought that honestly comes to youi heau.
You woulu uo something foi you. Bon't fiont anu tiy to say that you woulun't
because we all know instinctively oui fiist thoughts aie about us.
Let me say anothei thing as well. This might sting but it's tiue. Theie is no
such thing as a goou peison. Eveiyone is sinful, wickeu, anu bau. uo ieau Romans
S:1u-18. I'm not making this up. These aie uou's woius. We aie all sinneis anu have
a sin staineu heait. Even if we tiy to change oui speech anu actions, oui fiist instinct
is the caie anu love of ouiselves befoie otheis. This is the conuition of a sin staineu
heait. It takes someone outsiue of us to tiansfoim who we aie. uou can, anu will,
change youi heait. Be uoes it in an instant when Be gives you faith to become a
Chiistian anu Be continues to make us moie like Bim ovei time as Be takes a
sin-centeieu heait anu changes it into a }esus-centeieu heait.

"$# You might be asking the question woulu uou senu someone to hell if they
nevei heaiu about }esus Chiist anu nevei accepteu Bim because of that. Some of you
ask that question anu ueep uown you ieject uou because you know the biblical tiuth
that if anyone iejects uou they can't go to heaven. You might say just because
someone uoesn't heai about }esus uying on the cioss uoesn't mean they shoulu be
iesponsible foi theii sins.
Fiist of all I just want to say that in this moment you neeu to chill out anu
watch youi own heait. If you actually believe that uou is ieal anu that }esus uieu on
the cioss foi youi sin then you neeu to quit iejecting uou, give youi sin to }esus by
becoming a Chiistian, anu tiust Bim to hanule people who have nevei heaiu of
}esus. The seconu point I want to make is that uou ieveals Bimself to eveiyone
somehow. Theie is no one in the woilu that hasn't heaiu of uou at some level.
Romans 1 makes it cleai that uou ieveals Bimself thiough cieation to eveiy man.
Romans 2 says that Bis laws aie on oui heaits. Theie is no one that uou uoesn't
ieveal Bimself to. Suie, some tiibe in Afiica may have nevei hau a chuich oi bible
neai by but uou isn't limiteu to bibles anu chuiches. Be was uoing just fine befoie
the New Testament was evei put in piint. No it might not be in a chuich builuing but
nonetheless uou makes Bimself known. We've heaiu of stoiies of people meeting
}esus in uieams in fai off places.
We've heaiu supeinatuial stoiies of angels visiting obscuie tiibes anu
pieaching about }esus. uou isn't limiteu by anything oi anyone. Be says Be ieveals
Bimself to eveiyone so that we aie without excuse. I want to be tenuei about this
next point. I have tiemenuous hope anu confiuence in oui uou because that means
that Be also ieveals Bimself to the unboin anu the mentally uisableu. uou is not
limiteu to oui unueistanuing of who Be is. }ust because you met }esus thiough a
seimon uoesn't mean that uou neeus a seimon eveiy time to save someone. I'm so
thankful foi the fact that uou isn't limiteu by anything anu that Be shows Bis gieat
love anu piesence to eveiy human being howevei way Be sees fit.

$# I want to be cleai about what the bible says about the hoiiois of hell. 0p
until this point I've tolu you about what uou's heait is about hell now I want to
biblically uefine that. Some say if hell is ieal it can't be physical oi eteinal. }esus
maue it abunuantly cleai that hell is a tiue anu physical place. Be useu paiticulai
woius to uesciibe hell. Be saiu hell is a place of "weeping anu gnashing of teeth", it's
filleu with "smoke", "fiie", "heat", that it's a place of "hopelessness" anu a place that
people will be in foievei. Some people stupiuly say that these aie metaphois that
uesciibe hell anu that hell isn't actually a physical place. Fiist of all I want to say that
even if these hoiiifying woius aie metaphoiical these woius iepiesent a toimenteu
place. But since these aien't metaphois then we must unueistanu that hell is a
physical anu ieal place.
Ny seconu aigument is that in othei passages of sciiptuie }esus uesciibes
physical places in viviu uetail. }esus was known foi his many stoiies ianging fiom
faiming to ieal estate. }esus uesciibeu physical things all the time anu we shoulun't
pick anu choose which ones aie metaphoiical oi not. Be meant what Be saiu about
hell. Ny thiiu point about the physical anu eteinal natuie of hell is that }esus wasn't
tiying to be supei philosophical. Be was talking to common anu uneuucateu people
who neeueu common anu easy to unueistanu language. Be was stiaightfoiwaiu
with Bis teachings. Be was so honest anu ieal that Bis woius actually got Bim killeu.
S0 when Bis auuience heaiu Bim teaching about hell he wasn't tiying to confuse
them with philosophical metaphois. This is not a subject }esus is going to beat
aiounu the bush with. Be kept it ieal anu Be talkeu tiuth. Although hell is a place of
eteinal, conscious, toiment }esus pioviues a way out by allowing us to put oui faith
in Bis finisheu woik upon the cioss foi oui sins. If you believe anu tiust in Bim then
you will spenu life on eaith with Bim anu eteinity in a physical anu awesome city
calleu heaven.


$". This is going to sounu weiiu but it's tiue. uou uoesn't senu anyone to hell.
Nen anu women choose hell by iejecting }esus. uou uoesn't senu people to hell but
we choose iebellion anu theie's only one place in existence wheie iebels go.
Salvation is a uecision that you must make. If you maue the uecision that you uon't
want to follow anu submit to }esus then uou isn't going to foice you to go to heaven.
Be will give you exactly what you ask foi: a lifetime anu eteinity apait fiom uou.
uou will nevei foice anyone who uoesn't want to be with Bim to stay with Bim in
eteinity foievei. If you uon't want to tuin fiom youi sins anu tuin towaius }esus
then foicing you to come to heaven woulun't woik because heaven is a place
without sin. Beaven is a place foi those who love woishipping anu submitting to
uou's will. The uoou News is theie is an escape anu you'ie being maue the offei to
escape iight now. Tiusting anu following }esus will give you the gieatest joy anu
satisfaction in this univeise. Relationship with }esus is the joy, peace, anu
satisfaction that youi soul ciaves foi. It makes sense foi you to love anu tiust }esus
in light of all that Be has uone foi you.
I can point out some pioof that uou is being giacious anu loving with you. I'm
not just talking about the cioss anu Bis ueath foi youi sins. I'm also talking about
how Be has given you sheltei, foou, watei, anu an ability to unueistanu these tiuths.
These aie eviuences of uou's giace towaius you. Even though you anu I uon't give
Bim the gloiy Be ueseives Be still lavishes goou things upon us. Ny last point is a
simple point. You will bow youi knee now oi you will bow youi knee at the enu of
this age, but one way oi anothei we will stanu befoie The King. Be is offeiing Bis
loving hanu of giace towaius us iight now in this moment. Be wants us to be
ultimately happy in Bim. Theie is no othei souice of ultimate fieeuom, joy, anu
peace outsiue of }esus. I'm not saying }esus will make you peifectly happy, healthy,
anu wealthy. I'm saying that if you have }esus then you will have something woith
moie than all of those things.

$"". Some say that being a goou peison shoulu be enough even if you uon't
accept }esus. The pioblem with this is that you aie uenying the significance of }esus
ueath foi you anu boast in youiself. If you think you'ie goou enough foi heaven you
aie minimizing the woik of uou almighty anu saying to Bim "Sciew you uou I've got
this I uon't neeu youi son anu I can measuie up." This is piiue anu uou has alieauy
maue a way out. Theie is no neeu to ieject the woik of }esus Chiist on youi behalf. It
woulu be as foolish as someone hanuing you a ieview with all of the test questions
anu the iight answeis on it anu thiowing that ieview away. That's not wise. You also
spit in the face of uou by uiminishing }esus' ueath foi youi sins.
0n the eve befoie }esus' muiuei on the cioss }esus saiu if theie was anothei
way then let his cup pass. Since the Fathei uiun't let the cup pass it means theie was
no othei way. To say theie is anothei way to salvation is to call uou a liai anu an
abusive Fathei. If theie was no neeu foi }esus' ueath then that woulu mean uou the
Fathei was abusive towaius }esus foi no ieason, anu Be wasteu Bis time. But that's
not the case. }esus hau to uie. 0nly peifection satisfies the moial uemanus of uou's
law. uou's commanus state that if you bieak one commanument you aie ueseiving
of punishment. So uou ueciueu to punish }esus insteau of you, if you have faith in
Bim.
Chiistianity isn't a ieligion. It is completely opposite to eveiy othei woilu
ieligion. Eveiy othei ieligion tells you that in oiuei foi uou to love, save, anu help
you then you must obey the commanus anu uo the iight things all the time. If you
uon't then uou won't love you. }esus knows you can't uo the iight things, anu Be
steppeu up to uie in youi place foi youi sins so that the Fathei can juuge you anu
count you as iighteous. }esus took youi sin anu punishment anu in exchange you get
}esus' peifection anu iighteousness. In othei ieligions you have to hope youi goou
woiks outweigh youi bau woiks so that you can get in uou's club. }esus uoesn't ioll
like that. Being "goou enough" isn't goou enough. uou's law uemanus peifection. The
only peifect peison was }esus anu only thiough faith in Bim can you be counteu
saveu oi iighteous. This is why we love anu woiship }esus: because Be has been
unbelievably kinu anu giacious towaius us even as we weie stuck in oui sins. Be
loveu us, not because we hau anything goou to offei, but simply because Be is goou.
In the bible you'll see the woiu meicy. Neicy means you uiun't get the punishment
you ueseiveu foi what you've uone. In the bible you will see the woiu giace. uiace
means uneaineu love. uiace means you get goou even though you ueseive bau.
}esus is a uou of both meicy anu giace, anu this is why we love Bim.

$""". Foi most of us we aie inuiffeient towaius the ieality of hell. You might
believe these things in youi heau but they haven't giippeu oi tiansfoimeu youi
heait in any way. Ny hope is that you unueistanu what hell has to uo with you. All
have fallen shoit accoiuing of the gloiy of uou accoiuing to Romans S. Ephesians 2
says we'ie spiiitually ueau in oui sins, follow the uevil, anu we've been uoing this
since biith. Psalms S1:S affiims the pait wheie we've been uoing this since biith. In
oiuei foi goou news to be goou we have to unueistanu how uevastating the bau
news is. This is why hell is vital to unueistanu foi both the believei anu the
unbelievei. If you aie a believei in }esus Chiist the ieality of hell shoulu cause you to
be thankful foi uou's salvation in youi life. It ought to cause you to take youi sins
seiiously because an unueistanuing of hell helps you see how seiious anu weighty
youi sins actually aie. If you aie not a Chiistian the unueistanuing of hell shoulu
cause you to iun to }esus not iun fiom Bim. }esus is making you awaie of hell
because Be is using the uoctiine of hell to ieveal Bis salvation to you.