Then He will also say to those on the left hand, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:41)

The Doctrine Of Hell

Eternal damnation is not a popular subject. Statisticians try to quantitate the beliefs of humanity about Hell, but the reality since the beginning of time is that accepting a consequence to sin has never been popular. The early world of Noah proves that all but eight people accepted the teaching of divine judgment. Critics point out that the Old Testament seldom refers to Hell, yet men like Abraham, Moses, David, and Daniel were moved to live righteous lives. If there were no consequences to sinful lives, why live holy lives? The Hebrew writer pointed out that faith believes God is, and He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. What if a man does not seek God – is there a punishment? Hell is a Bible doctrine from beginning to end.

What is remarkable about the doctrine of Hell is the preacher of righteousness that said more about Hell than any other character in the Bible is Jesus Christ. Noah would have been a good choice considering the world he lived in. The prophet Amos is a frontrunner for fire and brimstone, and John the Baptist was man with a clear purpose in address the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders. Paul wrote most of what is preserved in the New Testament, but his writings do not carry as much information about Hell as the words of Jesus. The doctrine of Hell is real because Jesus is real. If 48% of the population believes in Hell, that means only 48% of the people believe in Jesus. Whatever the number is, to deny the doctrine of Hell is to deny the word of Jesus Christ. Most polls show many people believing in Heaven, yet on the same study, most deny Hell. The contradiction is enormous.

Whether a person believes and accepts the doctrine of Hell is immaterial to its reality. It is imperative to embrace the idea of eternal torment because, according to Jesus, most people will be cast into outer darkness where there is the weeping and gnashing of teeth. That is a hard lesson to consider and not readily accepted. Why are most people going to Hell? Most people deny the word of God. Rejecting the Bible as the word of God will judge a man to perdition. Refusing to believe Jesus is the Son of God condemns a person to eternal damnation. Not doing the will of the Father will send most honest people to the lake of fire. Hell will be filled with fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, sodomites, thieves, drunkards, extortioners, liars, murderers, and all those who deny the authority of Jesus Christ as King and Lord. Jesus told the eleven to preach the gospel to every creature under heaven, and those who refused to be baptized would be judged with eternal damnation or condemned.

If Hell is not real, why did Jesus die such a miserable death? What did He come to save man from if there is not a judgment of condemnation waiting for the unbelieving, unrepentant, and unloving? The doctrine of Hell is as real as the hope of Heaven. There is a type of fear that convicts men of sin, and Hell would be one of those fears. Salvation is not gained through fear of Hell. The hope of Heaven is found in the grace of God to remove His wrath from the predicament of man. Jesus preached a lot on Hell to show how much His Father loves humanity. The cost of eternal life comes through the price of obedience. Hell is real. Jesus said so more than any other man. Believe in His words and obey His word. Heaven waits.