Is Hell Real?
(Read Is Hell Real?, Part 1 First)
Is Hell Real? - Is Anyone Forced To Go There?
Is hell real? Yes, hell is real and God does not want anyone to go there. It is His desire that we all join Him in heaven; however, God cannot allow everyone into heaven. Heaven is a perfect place, and God is a perfect God, so if He allowed sinners into heaven without a covering for their sins, they would be consumed by His perfection. A loving God does not allow anyone to be consumed; so He designed the perfect plan of redemption in that He, as a perfect and holy God, came to earth as a man, Jesus Christ, and He died as a covering for our sins. If we choose Jesus Christ as our covering, we can enter heaven without being consumed, but if we do not choose Jesus Christ as our covering, God in His infinite love and mercy will not allow us to enter heaven and be consumed. He instead has a place of separation from Him where sinners can go and not be consumed. That place is hell.
God loves us, so He has given us many gifts. By far, the two most important gifts He has given us are free will and salvation by grace through His Son, Jesus Christ. He gave us the free will to choose to love Him and to choose not to sin, and then He gave us His Son to redeem us when we made the wrong choice. If we choose not to love God, and we also reject His Son, who was sent to redeem us from the wrong choice, what else can God do? In His infinite love and justice, He must allow us the freedom to make and stick by those choices, and the consequence of those choices is eternal separation from Him in hell. Revelation 20:15 says, "If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."
No one has to go to hell. God has provided us with a guaranteed plan for staying out of hell - redemption through His Son, Jesus Christ. All we have to do is follow that plan, and nothing can separate us from Him.
Is Hell Real? - What Will Hell Be Like? The Doctrine of Hell
If hell is real, then what will it be like for those who go there? Several times in the Bible Jesus speaks of the reality of hell and its outer darkness. He describes it as a pit of fire. He also said that in hell there will be wailing, weeping, and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 8:12 says, "But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." The Book of Revelation describes hell as a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
At the end of the age, the devil himself will be thrown into hell to receive punishment. Revelation 20:10 says that the torment will go on day and night forever and ever.
Is Hell Real? - What Is Your Answer?
Every person on earth must consider the question, "Is there a hell?" It is an essential question to your life! Are you prepared to answer it? If so, do you believe in a literal hell where God sends those who do not accept His free gift of salvation? Have you accepted that free gift God is offering you, sparing you from an eternity in hell? God desires that you spend eternity with Him in heaven!
What is your response?
