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David Mann
David Mann is on staff as one of the Pastors at Central Christian Church in Wichita and has served as both Pastor of Christian Education and Pastor of Communications. David has taught adult classes at Central for more than 20 years and is known for his teaching emphasis on the Character of God, The Nature of Man, and the work of Jesus on the Cross. David can be contacted by phone at (316) 688-4400, by e-mail at mannd@centralcc.org, or you can write him at: Central Christian, 2900 North Rock Road, Wichita, KS 67226.
Religion
2001-07-01 12:31:00
Is ‘Hell’ for real?
Question:  We’re in our mid-50s. It seems as though when we were younger, we heard a lot about "Hell and Eternal Damnation.”  We don't seem to hear that much anymore.  Is there still such a place or have the experts decided that it is "old hat?"
Answer:  Thanks for your good question. It certainly seems that Hell doesn't get the exposure it used to get and your question is one I'm sure is shared by many readers. Let's break your question into two parts and look to the "expert" for our answer.Part One - What is this idea of Hell and Eternal Damnation and where did it come from anyway?When we trace the origin of knowledge about Hell, we find that our information comes directly from the pages of the Bible. In both the Old Testament and the New Testament, Hell is described as a place of conscious, everlasting torment where mankind receives the just punishment they deserve for their sin against the laws and character of God.  In fact, most of the teaching about Hell in the Bible comes straight from the mouth of Jesus.  It's interesting to note that Jesus taught much more about Hell than He did about Heaven. So what exactly did Jesus say about Hell? Here are a few examples:•  Jesus taught that Hell is a place to avoid at all costs ( Matthew 5:22, 29-30).•  Jesus taught that Hell is a place where those who die outside of God's plan of salvation are thrown into eternal fire (Matthew 18:8-9).•  Jesus taught that those who are in Hell are conscious and aware of their agony (Luke 16:20-31).•  Jesus taught that the punishment of Hell is eternal, it never ends (Matthew 25:46).•  Jesus taught that God Himself is the one who condemns sinful men and women to eternal punishment (Luke 12:5).•  Jesus taught that the eternal fire of Hell was originally prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41).Even though Jesus was very clear in His teaching on this subject, incorrect ideas about Hell still abound among those who would like to lessen the frightening implications of Hell or who would like to do away with the idea altogether, in favor of a more pleasant message. Here are some common misconceptions about Hell.Some people mistakenly believe Satan rules over Hell. They forget that Hell is a place which was originally prepared for the punishment of Satan and his fallen angels and that God sovereignly rules over Hell, just as He sovereignly rules over all of His creation (1 Chronicles 29:11, Psalms 103:19, Matthew 25:41).  Some would like to think that if Hell exists at all, it is only a temporary punishment. This cannot be the case, however, since Jesus used exactly the same word for eternal when describing eternal life in Heaven and eternal punishment in Hell (Matthew 25:46).Some would say that because God is a God of Love, He would never condemn anyone to the eternal punishment of Hell. In saying this, many would conveniently ignore that the same God who tells us of His infinite love also tells us that Hell is a place of His infinite justice (Revelation 20:11-15).Some believe that Hell is merely the absence of God but the Bible says that in Hell, God is fully present in the pouring out of His divine wrath upon sin (Revelation 14:10-11).Some people say the idea of Hell in the Bible is really just a symbol showing God's displeasure toward our human failings. The problem with this viewpoint is that in the Bible, God uses symbols when the reality of the situation is worse than words can convey.  Not a comforting thought!  If all this sounds kind of scary...I think it was intended to. Part two of your question asked: ‘Why don't we hear much about Hell’, ‘If there is still a real place called Hell’, and ‘Have the 'experts' decided hell is old hat?’It is easy to understand why Hell doesn't rank high on many people's favorite topics list and why so little is said about the subject. It is certainly frightening to confront the Biblical teaching on Hell, but it would be even more frightening, and tragic, to ignore it. My hunch is that many in society and in various religious groups shy away from the whole idea, preferring to limit their focus to other, "more positive" aspects of life and living. Personally, I think most people would rather make their life decisions based on hearing the complete truth rather than a partial, 'feel-good' platitude that puffs up the self-image but leaves the soul empty.As far as what the 'experts' say about Hell and whether they have decided it is 'old hat,' it would seem that the opinions of men hold little weight contrary to the clear and unchanging teaching from the Creator and Ruler of Earth, Heaven, and Hell itself.Hell is the bad news. And good news isn't good news until you've heard the bad news.The good news is, that when Jesus taught about the very real horror of Hell, He also presented the very real alternative of Heaven. He presented Himself as the sufficient sacrifice to pay the debt for the sins of all those who would believe in Him and He promised that those who belonged to Him would spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Thanks again for the great question! Let's finish the topic with a passage that says it well: John 3:16-18, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.  Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.”
 
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