What is "Hell" ?


NOTE : This is taken from my blog at : http://pastorstahl.blogspot.com/

Brothers and Sisters ; in my last post I explained the REALITY of hell . In this post , I'd like to explain the BIBLICAL definition of "hell."

Now, I know that the very idea of Hell is mocked and ridiculed by many people in our modern world - especially the atheists , but they do so at their own peril . However, I still believe the Bible, and the Bible is clear in its teaching that there IS a place called hell ,   but I will get to that in a minute . But first , let me show you some biblical definitions : PLEASE NOTE : That all definitions are Greek lexicon based on Thayer's and Smith's Bible Dictionary plus others; this is keyed to the large Kittel and the "Theological Dictionary of the New Testament." These files are public domain.


HELL : The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon Strong's Number:   1067   

Original Word     Word Origin 
                                              gevenna       of Hebrew origin (01516) and (02011)

Transliterated Word

Geenna 1:657,113

Phonetic Spelling       Parts of Speech
gheh'-en-nah               Noun Feminine

Definition

Hell is the place of the future punishment call "Gehenna" or "Gehenna of fire". This was originally the valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem, where the filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned; a fit symbol of the wicked and their future destruction.

King James Word Usage - Total: 12
hell 9, hell fire + (3588) +&version=kjv 4442 3

HADES : The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon Strong's Number:   86   

Original Word                                                                                  Word Origin

a/&dhß from                                                    (1) (as negative particle) and (1492)

Transliterated Word                    Entry

Hades                                         1:146,22

Phonetic Spelling          Parts of Speech

hah'-dace                           Noun Location

Definition

name Hades or Pluto, the god of the lower regions
Orcus, the nether world, the realm of the dead
later use of this word: the grave, death, hell

King James Word Usage - Total: 11
hell 10, grave 1

So , as we can see from the above two definitions , we have also defined  "Gehenna"  , "Grave" , and "Death."

Now , The idea of Hell is usually attacked along three lines of thought.

1. Rationalism: The rationalist says, "There is no God, therefore there can be no Hell." Charles Darwin said, "This (referring to Hell) is a damnable doctrine." But I agree with the Bible which says, "Let God be true and every man a liar !"

2. Ridicule: Those who ridicule the doctrine of Hell say, "There may be a God, but it is silly to speculate about millions of disembodied spirits frying in a lake of fire somewhere." Or, "This is the twenty-first century ! Wake up !"

Robert Ingersoll, a famous atheist of the early part of the twentieth century said, "The idea of Hell was born of revenge and brutality on the one side, and cowardice on the other. I have no respect for any man who preaches it ! I dislike the doctrine, I hate it, I despise it, I defy this doctrine !" But I agree with the Bible when it says, "Let God be true and every man a liar !"  ( NOTE: Notice how , as I have mentioned on NUMEROUS past occasions , about these hypocritical atheists talking out both sides of their mouths . They allege that they don't believe in the Bible , yet , it NEVER FAILS , that they will ALWAYS quote from it when it suits their fancy ! Albeit , taking the respective verse / verses out of context . Hence , that FACT alone , indicates that they DO concede that there is a POSSIBILITY that God exists ! ) .

3. Religion: The religionist says, "There is a God, but He is a God of love and therefore He would not or could not send anyone to Hell." This is the position of all the cults and of the liberals.

Christian Science: "Hell is an error of the mortal mind."

Jehovah's Witnesses: "The wicked will not be punished; they will be annihilated."

Mormonism: "All will eventually be saved, and will not suffer eternal punishment."

Seventh-Day Adventist: "God will someday blot out all sin and sinners, and establish a clean universe once again. The lost will burn up like a broom sage field."

As I also have mentioned in the past , what none of these groups grasp (as well as our atheist friends ) , is the fact that God sends no man to Hell ! For a man to get into Hell he has to paddle his own canoe. The Apostle John makes it clear: “ For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 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.” (3:17-18) .

Religion is not the answer. I also agree with the Bible when it says, "Let God be true and every man a liar! "

Much of what we know of Hell, we learn from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He was the greatest hellfire and brimstone preacher in the Bible. Of the 162 references to eternal judgment in the New Testament, 70 were spoken by the Lord Jesus !

Of all the passages that deal with the eternal afterlife of the unrighteous, the one before us is the greatest of all. In this passage, Jesus literally rips the lid off Hades and allows us to look into the things that are happening there. We are allowed a glimpse into a place called hell.

Now, before I get into the message too deeply, I just want to clarify one fact. This place  is NOT the Lake of Fire. The Lake of Fire is where the lost will go AFTER the Great White Throne Judgment.

When a person leaves this world without Jesus as his/her Savior, they go to HELL and they STAY there until they are called out to face God in judgment. THEN. .  they are cast into the Lake of Fire with the Devil and all his fallen angels !!

If you are saved, may you be moved to a burden for the lost who are headed to this awful place.

If you are lost, may you see your need of coming to Jesus for salvation this evening. God help each of us to do what we need to do today ! Let's join the Rich man in Hades for a Glimpse Into A Place Called Hell !

For those of you who are just reading this , please refer to my prior post and / or your (KJV) Bible (Luke 16:19-31 ) .

 Notice that in Hell, the Rich Man can See, he can Hear, he can Speak, he can Feel, he still has Desires, he still has Needs, and he still has the ability to Think and Express himself.

Even though his body is in the grave in which it was buried, this man has some sort of a body that allows him to continue to exist in this place called Hell.

My friends, NEVER let ANYONE mislead you at this point !! If you die with your faith in Jesus, or if you die lost, you will not spend even one second in the grave. But, you will at the very INSTANT of your death, go either to Paradise to be with the Lord Jesus (2 Cor. 5:8) or you will go IMMEDIATELY into HELL (Hades ) , if you die lost. (Luke 16:22-23)

Never believe for an instant that death is the end, or that man is no different than an animal, which dies and is no more. Man was given an immortal soul and that soul will live on forever whether in Heaven or in Hell. And, after death, that soul will be clothed in some sort of a body that can indeed experience the sensations that were so much a part of life.

Hell is a place of sensation ! It is real and it will be a sensorial experience for all those who go there !

 Notice also that the Rich Man found himself separated from Lazarus and Abraham by a great gulf.

The Bible says that this gulf is "fixed." That is, it will never be taken away. This separation is eternal ! This Rich Man found himself separated from everything that Lazarus enjoyed.

No doubt, one of the greatest torments of Hell will be the separation from all the joys and wonderful things that life itself has to offer.

For instance, there will NEVER be a sunrise or sunset in Hell. There will NEVER be heard the laughter of a child, the gentle blowing of a summer breeze, the fragrance or beauty of flowers. There will be NO ONE to tell you they LOVE you. There will be NONE of the little things that make life worth living. Hell will be devoid of the good things of life. NO family, NO friends, NO fellowship. There will be NOTHING but endless isolation and ETERNAL separation.

In Hell, the lost sinners will NEVER hear another sermon, another Gospel song, nor will anyone EVER witness to them again ! They will NEVER be handed a tract. They will NEVER be able to see or read a Bible. There will be no churches in Hell. None of the things that point the lost to Jesus will make their appearance in that place called Hell.

But, of all the things the sinner will not see in Hell, the worst will be fact that he will never see God, 2 Thes. 1:8-9. " In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power."

Imagine being in a place where there was NO mercy, NO grace, NO love or presence of God. There will be nothing but an endless separation from the One who loved you more than any other.

We also see that the rich man is in a place of extreme pain and torture. The verb "tormented" in verse 24 is in the "continuous present" tense. This reminds us that the torments of Hell do not cease. Man does NOT simply burn up as some of the cults teach, but he endures the pain and torment of Hell. . .ETERNALLY !!

If this were the only place the Bible speaks of Hell as a place of suffering, we might be able to write this off as a mere story. However, the Bible tells us in many different places that Hell is a place of torment and suffering. Notice a few of those places.

1. It is a place of Unquenchable Fire - Mark 9:43; Luke 16:24

2. It is a place of Memory and Remorse - Luke 16:25; 27-28

3. It is a place of Unquenched Thirst - Luke 16:24-25

4. It is a place of Misery and Pain - Luke 16:24-26; Rev. 14:10-11

5. It is a place of Frustration and Anger - Luke 13:28; Matt. 24:51

6. It is a place of Eternal Separation - Rev. 21:8

7. It is a place of Undiluted Wrath - In Hell, the wrath of God will be given full vent !

Of all the agonies of Hades, perhaps the worst one of all is depicted by the word "remember," v. 25. This word tells us that men in Hades have the capacity to remember the events of this life and that they are forced to deal with those memories eternally.

They will remember every sermon they heard and rejected. They will remember when the Lord convicted their hearts and they turned a deaf ear to the pleas of the Holy Spirit. They will remember how God manifested Himself in thousands of ways to draw them unto Himself. They will remember and they will know that they have no one to blame for their situation but themselves !

What will YOU remember when YOU get to Hell, my lost atheist / sinner / unsaved friend ? Will you remember all the saints of God who witnessed to you and prayed for you ? Will you remember how you wasted your life on foolish things and condemned your own soul to Hell's fire ? Will you remember how good God was to you and how you spurned His great love ?

This rich man is in Hell. He finds himself in a place of flames and of divine punishment. However, he is not changed in the least. This is seen is several ways in this passage.

In verse 24, he STILL thinks himself superior and would see Lazarus sent into Hell so that his needs might be met. He is STILL selfish and self-centered !

Verses 26-31 tells us that now this man has a burden for the lost, but he cares for none but those in his family. He is selfish !

Verses 29-31 tell us that even in Hell, he still hasn't figured out what it takes to keep a man from that awful place. He stubbornly begs for the salvation of his family, and won't hear the truth that they must turn to God.

The whole point is that even in Hell he is totally unchanged. His old nature is still as self-centered as it ever was. There is no change !

These verses tell us that even when men find themselves in Hell, they are still wretched, they are still lost and they still have no room for God in their lives.

Finally , Please allow me one quick rabbit chase. Let me speak just a moment about Purgatory. Catholicism teaches that there is a place called Purgatory. It is a temporary place from which one might go to heaven or hell, but that depends not on their faith or lack of it. It depends on their family and friends on earth praying for them and doing good deeds on their behalf to encourage God to let them into heaven.

Dear Catholic Friends, let me just say that you can read the (KJV) Bible from cover to cover and not find ANY suggestion whatsoever that such a place exists or even should exist. This life is the ONLY chance you have to make your eternal decision to accept Christ or reject Him. No one can make that decision for you, and once death comes or the Lord returns, there is no more chances offered !

As I have said many times to my Catholic friends when the subject of praying for the deceased comes up , "If they died in Christ , they DON'T NEED prayer ! If they died NOT in Christ , then all the prayers in the universe will NOT help them - BECAUSE THEY ARE IN HELL !! "

A while back I recall reading that an ABC News poll revealed that 70% of Americans surveyed believed in a place called Heaven. However, only 56% believed in a place called Hell. People don't like to think about the reality of that awful place of torment, punishment and separation. But, just because they don't believe in it, does not change the reality of it ! Hell is real ! Hell is eternal and Hell is bad !

The good news , though ,  is that no person has to go to Hell ! Jesus Christ died on the Cross, shed His blood and rose from the dead to pay for our sins. If you will place you faith in Him, you WILL be saved and you WILL go to Heaven, not Hell when you leave this world.

In fact, Hell wasn't even created for you. According to Matt. 25:41, Hell was created for the Devil and his fallen angels. Therefore, if you choose to go to Hell instead of coming to Jesus, you choose to go to a place where you were never intended and are not even wanted. You will go to Hell as an uninvited intruder. My friend, I beg you, please don't be like this rich man. Come to Jesus and be saved !

I'd also like to close this post by asking you all to please pray with me for the following atheists Salvation , as well as ANY you all may know .(I am only going to use their first names .  )

"LORD , I ask that one day , before it's too late for them , that  Phil , Caleb , and janidebar , as well as ALL other unbelievers , accept the free gift of salvation offered by your Beloved Son , JESUS CHRIST , who has cleansed us all of our sins by His precious blood on the Cross , and promised to all who have accepted Him as LORD and Savior of their lives , ETERNAL LIFE WITH HIM . IN Jesus' Name , Amen ."

Until next time , "The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace."  ( Numbers 6:24-26 )

Yours in Christ ; Pastor Mike