While studying the gospel of Matthew this morning, I read through chapter 13, which predominately talks about the kingdom of heaven through a series of many parables. One parable is the parable of the good and bad seeds.
"24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”
Jesus explains the parable a little further in the chapter:
"36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."
Hell is a very real place, as is heaven a very real place. I need to remember this often when I'm interacting with non-believers, so that I will seriously consider their destiny, and what it means for them if they do not repent. Many people, especially in Ukraine and America, falsely believe they will go to heaven. They assume that because they believe in God, even profess Jesus was the son of God, and are not a "bad person", that this will save them a place in heaven. They may not even believe in Hell, because the thought of such a place of eternal agony and torment is not something bearable to think about.
Isaiah 66:24 talks about Hell as a place where "their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”
When I think about Hell, it is unimaginable exactly how horrible of a place it is. It seems that there are not words in the English language that could fully describe what an eternal place of torment is like.
In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus tells the story of Lazarus, the poor beggar who was faithful to God, and the rich man, while He thought he knew God, was not saved by his religion and suffered the consequences in eternity.
19 “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out,‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’
25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’
27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house— 28 for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’
29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’
31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”
From a Shepherd's Conference preaching by Steve Lawson, we can learn several things from this passage:
1. The Rich man represented the pharisees in this story...rich in Religion but devoid of real faith. He knew Abraham, and God, for he called Abraham "father." This is a term that only people who are familiar with the bible and God would have used at that time.
2. The poor beggar was rice in grace and spirit, which is why the angels carried him to heaven (vs. 22)
3. Hell is an immediate place - The rich man was died, buried and immediately was in agony in the fire in Hell. As in 5 seconds after his death, his soul was already in Hell...no waiting time, no second chance, no purgatory...just Hell, immediately upon death. (vs. 22-23)
4. Hell is a very separated place from heaven - "he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off " (vs.23)
5. Hell is a place of agony, torment, unquenchable fire, and it is unending (eternal) (vs. 24)
6. Hell is a haunting place - people there are fully aware, more than they were in their life, to every sin, every opportunity they had to repent and believe, every time they heard the gospel, and every mistake they ever made. They will remember their life forever. "But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish." (vs. 25)
7. Hell is an inescapable place - "And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ " (vs. 26). Who would want to try to cross from heaven to hell?...surely people who want to save their loved ones. However the chasm is so great that it is impossible for anyone to leave their eternal residence.
8. Hell is a place of desperation - The rich man desperately wanted to warn his loved ones (vs. 27-30)
9. God's word in the Scripture is shown to have full sufficiency and power to save us. "31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”" Many people say they will believe if they see a miracle or a sign from God that He is the true God...but think about all the people who didn't believe Jesus in his day...despite the many miracles and signs he performed and that he fulfilled the prophesies written in the new testament about the savior.
If you have read this far in this post, thank you, and I beg you to consider these things in your heart and repent if you do not have real faith in Jesus Christ, the savior from sins and Hell, and the only mediator between God and mankind. Today and now is the time to repent, for you could die at any moment, and your eternal destiny will be sealed in heaven with God, or in eternal torment in Hell with all people who have rejected Christ. It's up to you, but I beg you not to waste your life, and in the end to spend an eternity in Hell.
Here's the link to he Steve Lawson sermon if you'd like to listen to it.
http://www.shepherdsconference.org/media/details/?mediaID=7601
Christ is the only source of true happiness in this life. This is my blog all about life as Christians and GCM missionaries in Ukraine.
