March 10th: The Last Judgment and Hell
Speaker: Chris Laws
The last chapter of the Baptist Confession of Faith on the Last Judgement raises large issues and throws into focus the amazing work on Calvary
Matthew 25.46 “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”
Heaven is the “eternal salvation of the elect” and hell “the eternal damnation of the reprobate” (BCF 32:2).
Doctrine of endless punishment. Christ warned of “the fire that shall never be quenched”.
Heaven and hell embody immense principles; we marvel at God, wonder at Calvary, are stirred to reach souls.
“Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep” (Psalm 36.6).
WRONG IDEAS ON HELL
In the 19th C liberals called the teaching into question, a crude medieval idea.
1. The OT teaches an underworld of the dead
Sheol = ‘the world of the dead’. Became popular in 19th C to think of an underworld for all. Not really hell, just the grave.
In KJV sheol is translated either the grave (30x) or hell (34x).
Unsaved: In the OT the wicked are warned about sheol. Eg:
“The wicked shall be turned into hell” (Psalm 9.17).
The loose woman: (Prov 5.5, 9.18) “her steps take hold on hell...her guests are in the depths of hell”.
Not the righteous or the virtuous woman. If an underworld for all and the righteous go there, not to be feared!
For the unsaved the grave is the gateway to hell. Irresistible, crushing power.
Saved: different. (Psalm 49.15) “God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave [sheol]: for he shall receive me.”
(Psalm 116.15) “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”
The body will go to the grave, but the soul straight to paradise. The Lord “swallows up death in victory” (Isa 25.8).
So death, now conquered by Christ, is made the gateway to Heaven.
So in OT all bodies go to one grave, but two destinations for souls. Not one underworld for everyone.
2. Hell is not eternal
The liberal says that the Greek word for eternal/everlasting (aeon) just means a long age.
But used of Heaven. It is eternal/everlasting; no one believes Heaven isn’t.
And Christ warned repeatedly of “the fire that never shall be quenched” and “the worm that dieth not”.
3. The unsaved are annihilated
Because hell is said to be eternal death.
“Fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10.28).
But the spiritually dead are described as conscious. The rich man in hell appealed to Abraham.
Annihilation would be considered a deliverance by sinful people. “Rocks fall on us!” Escaping punishment.
Hitler would have the same punishment as all others.
But the Lord speaks of “many stripes”, “few stripes” (Luke 12.47-8). He said: “It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah…”
4. Repentance is possible after death
Roman Catholics for example invented purgatory where souls can have a second chance.
Purgatory only found in the Apocrypha, not the Bible.
Others think that the Gospel will be offered to those who never had the opportunity.
Some German theologians said Peter teaches this: “[Christ] went and preached unto the spirits in prison; which sometime were disobedient…in the days of Noah (1 Peter 3.19).”
The verse means Christ spoke through Noah’s preaching of repentance to those people who are now in prison.
The truth is sobering: “It is appointed unto men once to die, and after this the judgement” (Hebrews 9.27).
No more opportunity for repentance.
THE PURPOSES OF PUNISHMENT
In this life, there are three purposes.
1 – to protect society.
2 – to reform the offender.
3 – to satisfy justice. People cry out for justice to be done when a loved one murdered.
Eg, ex FBI man spoke of “a special place in hell” for scammers.
Eg a massacre; if terrible sin is allowed to be triumphant, men cry out for justice. Govts must be brought to court.
Imagine huge invisible scales in the universe. They must be balanced. God’s universe will not be looked back on as corrupt.
At the last judgement, only this last purpose will remain.
God’s holiness and righteousness and perfect law must be upheld.
God will vindicate the law and satisfy justice. His laws will not be downtrodden in eternity.
Nobody will be able to say, “God’s universe was unjust, corrupt.” Satan will not be allowed to triumph.
“Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”
The only way to be acquitted is for Christ to satisfy justice and right wrongs.
WHY IS HELL ETERNAL?
Why should sins of a short lifetime be punished eternally? That doesn’t sound fair. Seven issues.
1. We all underestimate the extent of our sin. Eg Freud influenced millions, ruined lives.
The Son of God alone knows all our sin.
2. When the punishment is for reformation or protection of society, it may need years.
When for satisfaction of justice, the punishment must continue as long as the reason for it continues.
Hitler is no less guilty for his war crimes now than 80 years ago. Time in hell doesn’t lessen guilt.
Time isn’t the issue. A murder committed in seconds may earn a life sentence.
It is the nature of the crime which is decisive. And it is ultimately sin against Almighty God.
None but God Himself can take away our guilt.
3. Sin is endless – the only perpetual motion ever found.
A person in hell is described by “weeping and gnashing of teeth”, anger at God.
People don’t improve in hell. Sin will continue perpetually. For ever offensive to God.
In Heaven the righteousness given to us will be perpetual, eternal life.
4. Sin is irreversible, unalterable.
It remains forever a great blot on the record of life; a great insult to God’s law.
A murder cannot be undone. Neither can any sinful event cease to be true.
In Heaven Christ erases the record, and reverses the situation.
5. Sinners cannot possibly be admitted to Heaven – it would cease to be Heaven instantly.
Impossible – we would be burned up by God’s holiness.
We are welcomed into Heaven because Christ completely cleanses us and clothes us in glorious robes of righteousness.
6. The unsaved would hate Heaven. We all “love darkness rather than light” before we are saved.
The saved love being in the presence of their Father and Saviour, for at conversion Christ changed our tastes.
7. The sinner’s conscience will forever know the sentence is just. The rich man was silent about his guilt in hell.
In Heaven we will forever know our salvation was earned for us by Christ taking our just sentence.
CHRIST’S DESCRIPTIONS OF HELL
Christ used the word Gehenna. The valley of Gehenna was once used for Moloch worship – child sacrifice.
Used later on as a rubbish dump for Jerusalem – always smouldering, decaying.
Figurative: cast out like refuse, of no future use, offensive.
Wasted life, bitter regret; fit for nothing, total destruction of all pride.
CHRIST’S DESCRIPTIONS OF HEAVEN
“Father, I will that they also…be with me where I am.”
Our task is to proclaim the only way of deliverance of souls from an eternity away from God.
Revive Thy work O Lord in the midst of the years.
