Category: sin

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

“And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city” (Mark 6:11 KJV).

Are there degrees of punishment in Hell and the Lake of Fire? Indeed!

Luke chapter 16 is the Lord Jesus describing Hell’s miseries: “[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. [26] And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

“[27] Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: [28] For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. [29] Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. [30] And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. [31] And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”

What a horrible place….

Monday, September 24, 2018

“And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city” (Mark 6:11 KJV).

Are there degrees of punishment in Hell and the Lake of Fire? Indeed!

Eternal judgment is undoubtedly the least popular Bible topic. Yet, dear friends, we must not pretend the Scriptures are silent on the subject. There is a most (!) terrible (!), everlasting (!) doom (!) awaiting those who leave this world without knowing Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour. As pleasant as Heaven is, is how dreadful Hell is. In abject agony, the souls of the hopelessly damned (even now!) let out their bloodcurdling screams, “Water! Water! We just want one drop of water! Tell our relatives and friends not to come here! This is a horrific place! What indescribable torment! Water! Water! One drop of water! Water! Water!” Throughout the endless ages to come, those chilling shrieks are heard loud and clear….

One frequent objection to the Bible doctrine of Hell and the Lake of Fire is that Almighty God simply cannot be fair in punishing everyone in the same place since some people lived worse than others. For instance, it is commonly asked, “How can a little, sweet grandmother wind up in the same place of torment as cruel dictators Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin?” Rather than God judging man (as it should be), man sits in judgment of God. Still, God already anticipated such complaints, and therefore provided answers in Scripture!

There are certainly degrees of eternal punishment. While it will all be “hot,” “flames,” “torment,” some temperatures will be much greater than others. Some damned souls arrive at a “warm” oven: here, it is “slightly uncomfortable” (comparatively speaking, of course). Other souls wake up in a scorching furnace: think of a sea of molten rock oozing from Earth’s interior or an enormous forest fire raging out of control. Whatever balminess, such suffering is totally unknown to us!

What factors determine the temperature of eternal judgment for a particular soul? The Bible says there are at least two issues that we must consider in this regard….