Sunday Sermons
Why Does Hell Exist?
Why Does Hell Exist?
According to a Gallup poll taken in 1991, about 78 percent of the American public believes in heaven where people who have led good lives are eternally rewarded. And about 60 percent of the public believes in hell. Back in 1988 Roper's USA reported that 74 percent of Americans believe there is a heaven and hell' In 1989 Newsweek magazine stated that while mainstream Protestant ministers are skeptical about the existence of God or of life after death, the majority of Americans are not. A poll by Newsweek revealed that 94 percent of Americans believe that there is a God and 77 percent believe that there is a heaven. A much smaller percentage, but yet still the majority, believe in the existence of a hell-58 percent. While the majority of Americans it appears believes in heaven and hell, not all have a correct view of either. I am concerned about how people view heaven and hell. Because it seems that one's misconception about either can greatly influence the way we live. C.S. Lewis noted, “I have met no people who fully disbelieved in hell and also had a living and life-giving belief in heaven”. The point he is making is: When people deny that hell exists, these same people usually end up losing their desire for heaven.
It is Eternal Punishment
Various attempts have been made either to deny the existence of hell or to tame its nature, yet there are just too many plain passages that teach that hell is eternal punishment, and the nature of this punishment involves conscious suffering. 1. Jesus described hell as a place where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12). 2. The rich man who found himself in torment was both eternally consigned there without any hope (Luke 16:26), and was suffering (16:23 “lifted up his eyes, being in torment”). 3. Jesus said that the fire described in hell is unquenchable (Mark 9:43), yet if hell is temporary or annihilation, then the fire is eventually quenched. Jesus further noted, “where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:44,46,48). Clearly, Jesus is warning us against anyone who would tell us that the suffering in hell is temporary, eventually ends, or is non-existent. 4. The wicked end up consigned with the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41)and this condition is called “eternal punishment” (Matthew 25:46). In addition, the suffering of the devil and all his followers is pictured as conscious suffering that never ends, “and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10). 5. The Holy Spirit speaking through Peter described wicked people as presently being under punishment (2 Peter 2:9).
Annihilation?
The idea that the expression eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46) means that people will cease to exist is a contradiction, for how can “punishment” be “eternal” if the punished have long ago ceased to exist? To reduce a man to unconsciousness or non-existence would make his punishment an impossibility. Consider the following:
1. If hell is non-existence, then the fate of the wicked is no different than the fate of the animals, which cease to exist at death. 2. Then the fate of the wicked is no different than one who has never been born, and yet Jesus argues that the condition of never being born is preferable to going to hell (Mark 14:21 “It would have been good for that man if he had not been born”). 3. The idea of hell as extinction is not a punishment for the wicked, for the guilty in all ages, have deemed the extinction of consciousness after death to be a blessing and not a curse! 4. The “eternal destruction” described in the Bible (Matthew 10:28) is not a loss of being, but rather a loss of well being, it is further defined as “eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord” (2 Thessalonians 1:9), and “There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil” (Romans 2:9).
Hell is Fair
“Even the question, ‘Is it fair?’ is hardly appropriate. Christians know that the Judge of all the earth will assuredly do what is right(Genesis 18:25; Hebrews 2:2 “every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense”)” (Through No Fault of Their Own? p. 13). “The eternal punishment is neither unjust nor unworthy of God, is evidenced by the unexpected appropriateness of God’s permitting the righteous and the wicked to realize their last dream, that goal to which their whole moral life tended. Is it not evidence of God’s final mercy to all that each is granted the unchangeable privilege of loving or hating Him forever, of living with Him or apart from Him forever? The impenitent continue to insist until, at last, because they will not accept what God offers, the Judgment grants them what they desired. But to their endless chagrin, they discover too late that their desires were self-destructive and horribly mistaken. So, because they shall have eternally what they desired (life apart from God), it shall be eternal punishment” (Matthew. Fowler p. 607). The point being made is that God respects the free-willed choice of every individual, and those who chose to live without God will get their wish, yet there are serious consequences of an existence apart from God, including an existence completely removed from God’s blessings, which include everything necessary for happiness(Revelation 21:4).
Excessive Punishment?
Some argue that an eternity of suffering is excessive for an act or attitude that happened during this lifetime. Yet Jesus said that eternal suffering awaits not only those who commit such sins as murder and adultery (Revelation 21:8), but also for those who fail to help their brethren who are in need (Matthew 25:41-46). Consider the following: 1. Human punishment is only approximate and imperfect, not absolute and perfect like God’s punishment. It is not adjusted exactly and precisely to the whole guilt of the offence, but is more or less modified, first, by not considering that the crime was a crime against God. “Earthly courts and judges look at the transgression of law with reference only to man’s temporal relations, not his eternal. They punish an offense as a crime against the State, not as a sin against God” (The Doctrine of Endless Punishment, W.G.T. Shedd, p. 132). 2. Human punishment, unlike hell, is often for the purpose of reformation. Hell does not exist for the purpose of reforming the sinner; rather the attempt to convert the sinner is what happens in this life (Acts 17:30 “God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent”; 2 Peter 3:9 “God is not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance”). Hell is rather the just consequence for rejecting God and ignoring His will (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). Notice how Jesus expressed it, “and committed deeds worthy of a flogging” (Luke 12:48). Or, what Paul said, “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23); “who will render to every man according to his deeds” (2:6). If we have a problem with endless suffering, it means that we have not yet fully comprehended the wickedness of human rebellion, and we have failed to grasp how evil it is to go contrary to the will of God. Shedd is very pointed when he notes, “The opponent of endless retribution does not draw his arguments from the impartial conscience, but from the bias of self-love and desire for happiness. His objections are not ethical, but sentimental. They are not seen in the dry light of pure truth and reason, but through the colored medium of self-indulgence and love of ease and sin” (p. 141).
Paul noted, “The God who inflicts wrath is not unrighteous, is He? (I am speaking in human terms.) May it never be! For otherwise how will God judge the world?” (Romans 3:5-6)
Hell and the Death of Jesus
The very fact that the Son of God came to this world and died for our sins inherently demands that the eternal consequences for our sins are not temporary, but they are indeed serious. Paul noted, “having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him” (Romans 5:9).
Endless punishment for those outside of Christ or who are unfaithful is demanded because of the endless nature of guilt that is not forgiven by the blood of Christ. Hell is eternal punishment because the guilt of the sinner is always present. Reject Jesus and there is no sacrifice for your sins (Hebrews 10:26). “The continuous nature of guilt necessitates the endless retribution”(Shedd p. 129). Too many people are under the impression that the lapse of time converts guilt into innocence and such is not the case with God. “When a crime is condemned, it is absurd to ask, ‘How long is it condemned?’” (Shedd p. 129). If this were true, then human suffering would be morally equal with the death of Jesus upon the cross. Yet, God clearly notes that suffering the penalty for doing wrong has no moral value (1 Peter 2:20 “For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience?). One writer was right when he noted that every alternative to the Biblical teaching on hell ends with us calling into question what Jesus actually did on the cross. Some ask, “How can everlasting torment be construed as the just penalty for a finite offense?” The answer is that Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins demonstrates that sin is not a finite offense, rather, a sin against God is infinite, for the only act that can forgive such a sin is the death of the Son of God. In this life we often say concerning someone who was imprisoned and then released, “They have paid for their crime”, yet this isn’t true. No amount of time behind bars can “atone” for any crime. Imprisonment or fines in this life are human punishments, yet such punishments when fulfilled do not erase the guilt of the crime before God. Unless, the criminal seeks God’s forgiveness, and complies with His terms for forgiveness, they are still just as guilty of that sin, regardless of the fine they paid or the time they spent in prison.
The Unreached?
Many speculate about the condition of people who have never heard the gospel, yet when we examine the Scriptures, can we say that anyone is truly “unreached”? Paul noted in the Roman letter that every human being who has ever lived has been given the same overwhelming evidence of God’s divine nature and power (Romans 1:20), so that mankind is without excuse. In addition to this evidence that every man and woman is given, every human being is also created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), which means that God has endowed all humanity with the categories of morality, reason, and a spiritual awareness. As with the Gentiles described in Romans chapter 1, many of us here can testify that prior to our conversion we knew that God existed, we knew we were doing wrong, and we knew about a final reckoning for our actions. While the timing of the final judgment will take people by surprise (1 Thessalonians 5:1-3), I would argue that the fact of the final judgment would not take people totally by surprise.
The Good News
God has lovingly and sacrificially devised a plan whereby anyone can avoid the final consequences for their sins (2 Peter 3:9; John 3:16 “should not perish”). Yet Jesus also warned us that one cannot be casual about this offer of salvation or the need to repent and obey God (Matthew 5:29-30). This is not something that one can drag their feet about or put off until another time, this is an extreme matter of urgency, that demands our complete attention and effort (Luke 13:24 “Strive to enter”). In addition, the motivation we need to make this choice cannot come from the crowd or the society that may surround us (Matthew 7:13-14),rather, it is a determined individual choice to “save ourselves” (Acts 2:40), in spite of what others may or may not do.
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017
beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
