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Bible Resource

What About Hell?

A Biblical study on the doctrine of Hell - its reality, characteristics, location, and duration, and why Jesus died to save sinners from it.

What About Hell?

Definition: The Bible defines hell as a place where the devil, his angels, and unbelieving persons will spend eternity. They will suffer eternal punishment and separation from the saved, and from God. There are 162 references to hell in the New Testament alone, which speaks of the doom that awaits the unbeliever and over 70 of these references were made by Jesus himself!

References include: Isaiah 5:13-14; Matthew 13:41-42; 5:29-30; 10:28; 11:23-24; 16:18; James 3:6; Revelation 20:13-14

A. Why Did God Create Hell?

God created hell because He is a righteous and holy God and cannot allow sin in His Heaven. Since all men are sinners, Jesus came into the world to save man from hell’s punishment by living a perfect sinless life, dying a substitutionary death, being buried and then raised by God. All this so that sinners could receive the free gift of eternal life (Romans 6:23) and have free access to heaven. It is by Jesus’ finished work on the cross that sinners such as you and I are allowed into Heaven.

Unfortunately, those who do not accept Christ’s gift and trust completely in Him are destined to go to hell because they are still in their sins (John 3:18,36; 1 Corinthians 15:16-17). Therefore, hell was created for Satan, his angels, and unsaved persons (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).

B. Characteristics of Hell

Read Luke 16:19-31

  1. It is REAL. It has a location, and effect on all who dwell in it.

  2. It is eternal (Revelation 14:11) - it is for ever, like heaven.

  3. It is a place of torment (Luke 16:24) - not annihilation (Matthew 23:33).

  4. It is a place of darkness, pain, suffering, and isolation (Jude 7).

  5. It is bottomless (Revelation 9:2)! It has no bottom, only sides!

  6. Those who died in Sodom and Gomorrah are STILL suffering the “vengeance of eternal fire” in hell (Jude 1:7).

  7. Everyone in hell is a “would-be” soul-winner (Luke 16:27-28)!

  8. It is an unnecessary place for people if only they will put their complete faith and trust in Christ’s all sufficient death on the cross - it was only made for the devil and his angels, not for any human!

  9. Therefore, hell is NOT the grave, but a horrible place that no man should go to, and from which Jesus died to save people from!

C. Where is Hell?

This lake of fire (molten lava) is somehow below us, IN the earth (Isaiah 14:12,15; Matthew 12:40).

Ephesians 4:9 states that Jesus descended into the centre of the earth before He arose.

D. How Long Will The Lost Be In Hell?

  1. The Bible says that all in hell will be there for ever (Revelation 20:10).

  2. Will God give persons in hell an opportunity to escape; a second chance? NO! When is the opportunity for people to be saved from hell (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)? RIGHT NOW! Let us get busy reaching the lost by preaching the gospel of salvation now, while people have the chance! This is God’s reason for Christianity’s existence - to warn the lost!

E. Jesus Died to Save Sinners from Hell!

Jesus did not come only to bring sinners to a wonderful place called Heaven, but more importantly, to save them from the real place called Hell (John 3:16)! A person needs to get saved TODAY because tomorrow may be too late (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)!

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