"THE TRUTH ABOUT HELL"

INTRODUCTION: The humanists say "Promises of immortal salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful; there is no credible evidence that life survives the death of the body" (Humanist Manifesto II) Humanism and most other religions, believes that there is no such thing as a literal Hell.

THE TRUTH ABOUT HELL FROM GOD'S WORD:

TEXT: LUKE 16:19-31 (NOT A PARABLE!)
There are several Greek words that are translated "Hell" in the Bible. In actuality, there are five distinctive departments in the underworld of departed spirits:
1. "Tartarus"
2. "Paradise"
3. "Sheol-Hades"
4. "Abyss" or "The Bottomless Pit"
5. "Gehenna" or "The Lake of Fire"

1. "TARTARUS":
1 Peter 3:19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
1 Peter 3:20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
2 Peter 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down
to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
Jude 1:6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own
habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.

This is a special prison for fallen angels that sinned before and after Noah's Flood.
There is no record in Scripture of Humans ever going into Tartarus. These spirits
kept in chains until the Judgement. Proving that Hell is not the grave or some place
where the spirits sleep. Otherwise chains would not be needed to hold them.

2.  PARADISE:
Luke 16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth
Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Luke 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt
thou be with me in paradise. '
Paradise was the abode of the righteous souls who had died in faith prior to the
death of Jesus Christ. From the Scriptures we know these truths about Paradise:
A. It is a place of comfort and bliss: Luke 16:19-31 (Lazarus)
B. It was a "holding place" until Christ delivered them out: Ephesians 4:7-11
C. This is where the penitent thief who was crucified next to Jesus went: Luke 23:43
D. Paradise is located in the "heart" or "lower parts of the earth": Matthew 12:40
and Ephesians 4:7-11.
E. When Jesus Christ died on the Cross, He not only went into Paradise, but also
into Tartarus where He preached to the fallen Angels. He captured all the
righteous souls in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high:
Ephesians 4:7.
F. NOW, when the righteous leave their bodies, they go immediately to Heaven.
Paradise is now either empty, or has been taken over by Sheol-Hades.
2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:21-35; Hebrews 12:23; Revelation 6:9-11;
Isaiah 5:14.

3. SHEOL-HADES:
Revelation 20:11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from
whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Revelation 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
Revelation 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Revelation 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
The torment department of the unseen world is called "Sheol-Hades". It is the abode
of all the wicked souls of men from the beginning until the end of the millennium. Then they will be resurrected, judged at the Great White Throne Judgement, and cast into the Lake of Fire forever.

"Hades" literal means "unseen world". "Sheol" is its Hebrew counterpart and is
never used to denote the grave, Tartarus, Paradise, or The Lake of Fire. It is a holding place for wicked souls who are now in a conscious state of torment (Luke 16:19-31). It is like being in a county jail while waiting trial before going to the penitentiary.

Some Truths about Hades-Sheol from the Word of God:
1. It is located inside the Earth: Matthew 11:23 and Luke 10:15
2. Its inhabitants are the wicked dead. Psalm 9:17; Proverbs 5:5
3. It is a place of torment with feelings, pain, suffering, memory, full consciousness.
Psalm 116:3; Isaiah 14:9-20; Isaiah 38:10; Revelation 1:18.
4. It is a place of fire: Deuteronomy 32:22 For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and
shall burn unto the lowest hell. See also: Matthew 5:22, 27-30; Matthew 18:9; Mark 9:43-48
"Where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched" is spoken 5 times.

THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DEATH AND HELL: Revelation 20:11-15
Death is associated with the grave and the bodies of mankind. Hell is associated with the spirits and souls of mankind. Thus Death and Hell are mentioned separately here in this passage.
Also in Matthew 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

4. THE ABYSS OR THE BOTTOMLESS PIT:
Revelation 9:1-3,11; 11:17; 17:8; 20:1-10; Luke 8:26-31
This is the prison of demons and angels. No humans ever go into the Abyss.

5. GEHENNA OR THE LAKE OF FIRE:
This is the final eternal abode of wicked men, demons, fallen angels, and all rebellious creatures who have ever rebelled against God. It is called the "Gehenna of Fire", the "Second Death" in Revelation 2:11, 20:6,14; 20:10-15; Isaiah 66:22-24; Matthew 25:46.
Jesus mentions Gehenna twelve times in the New Testament.
There is no record of anyone being there yet. The Beast and False Prophet will be the first to go there (Revelation 19:20). At the end of the Millennium, the Devil or Satan, will join them in Gehenna. (Revelation 20:10-15)

Some Truths about The Lake of Fire from the Word of God:
1. The Fire is Literal: Revelation 14:9-11; 19:20; 20:10; 21:8; Matthew 13:42,50;
25:41,46; (it is called the "Furnace of Fire" and "Everlasting Fire"
2. Its punishment is eternal and those who go there never get out:
Matthew 25:41, 46; and Hebrews 6:2

WHAT IS MEANT BY "ETERNAL DEATH"? It simply means eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire. It does not mean annihilated or put out of existence. The word "destroy" in Matthew 10:28 ("destroy both body and soul in hell") is from the Greek word "apolluni" meaning to destroy in the sense of to kill the body, punish by torment, cut off spiritual life, to lose something, to mar, to be lost in Hell (John 17:12; 18:9; 2 Corinthians 4:3) The word does not mean annihilation.

CONCLUSION: It is clear that endless punishment is taught in Scripture for men who persist in going to Hell. Such men are not children of God. They are children of the Devil. If they choose to go to Hell with the Devil and his angels, God is not to blame for their choice or destiny. God will not suffer one of His children to go to Hell but He cannot be responsible for the Devil's children who chose their own destiny with the Devil by the life they live. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11), but He has promised to separate them from eternal society if they reject His plan, and He is obligated to preserve society and to finally rid the earth of all rebellion. No man needs to god to Hell if he will accept Jesus Christ and conform to the plan of God.

Hell is real. People are going there. They will never get out. The only escape is to call upon the Lord in true repentance, turning away from sin and rebellion, NOW while there is time!
Those who delay and get caught unsaved, will exist in eternal torment and be forever lost! Don't delay! Get right with God today!

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 
John 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
John 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
John 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

   Our Mission is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.....
Pastor Ron Thomason

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Last modified November 18, 2008