Something In Hades Every Person Should Know

Introduction

Well, good morning to all. Good to see you and thankful to the Lord for the beautiful Lord’s Day morning enables us to come out. I hope you have your Bibles. I’d like to encourage you to open to the gospel according to Luke, chapter 16. In Luke chapter 16, Jesus is nearing the time of his crucifixion, is on his way to Jerusalem, but still across Jordan in the area called Perea. And it’s there that he teaches a couple of parables that are recorded in Luke 16. As indeed the Pharisees, the Sadducees had certainly complained that he associated with sinners. And Jesus, in fact, was replying and exposing their covetous disposition. In fact, as Mark read earlier as we began our service, in verse 14, the scripture says the Pharisees who were lovers of money also heard all these things and they derided him.

And he said to them, You are those who justify yourselves before men. But God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

What do men highly esteem? What do men regard as being successful in this world? Isn’t it usually what kind of wealth he has attained? That’s success, isn’t it? Or perhaps some position of power or authority. That’s success in and of itself, isn’t it? What men may highly regard as success is not really what always God would regard as success. And thus at the beginning of this chapter, he teaches the parable of the unjust steward. But after making these comments, then he leads into the story about the rich man and Lazarus. If you have your Bible, read with me, beginning in verse 19. Where Jesus says, There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs, which fell from the rich man’s table.

Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torment in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Then he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things. But now he is comforted, and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.

Then he said, I beg you, therefore, Father, that you would send him to my father’s house. For I have five brothers that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment. Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. And he said, No, Father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. But he said to them, if they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rise from the dead. Quite a sobering narrative that Jesus teaches here. And I would say right off that there are those who hold different points of view as to whether this is just a fictitious story that Jesus tells. Or would you really call it a parable like the many parables that he taught?

Or really is it a true story about true Lazarus and a rich man that lived. And there is debate about it, obviously, because it isn’t prefixed with some kind of statement saying he taught a parable and this is.

There, because in the parables, Jesus usually taught something that was true to life, illustrated, and then alongside of it, the word parable literally means to throw alongside of. So alongside of something that literally could happen, he told a truth. Parable of the sore. Obviously, we know it literally is true that as a farmer or a man goes out and he sows seed and there are different types of soil. So alongside of that, he made the application concerning the preaching of the Word of God and the hearts that men have who received the Word of God. But even in parables, we never have an illustration where Jesus called anyone by name. So then there’s the argument that, well, this perhaps may be a true story, that Jesus uses it as an illustration.

Whichever be the point.

This rich man who had everything that money can buy, so to speak, highly regarded among men, perhaps clothed in attire of the wealthy, able to live in splendor every day. He had anything that really money could buy, but because of selfishness, he was disgusting in God’s sight. While men may have counted him as as really some great one, God did not.

He was the beggar. In fact, he he survived on the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. And in fact, as far as that goes, proper medical attention was not his. I mean, dogs came and licked his sores. So opposite, you might say, as the world would view these two men. But both Lazarus and the rich man died. It doesn’t matter whether we’re wealthy or whether we’re poor, it is appointed a man who wants to die, and after this, the judgment. And so he certainly illustrates a point that we know is true to life. That they both died. Angels, God’s servants are described as transporting the spirit of Lazarus to Abraham’s bosom. And in this sense, Abraham’s bosom certainly is the dwelling place, you might say, of the spirit of dead men.

At least that’s where Lazarus’ spirit went, as though in the presence of the Lord himself.

Nothing said about angels taking him. In fact, nothing said about his funeral. He may have had a far as the world may go, but the men may have honored this rich man, as often that happens as we know in the world today, of those who are considered successful, but they couldn’t change the destiny of his spirit.

And being in torment in Hades, his state is such that he cried out, let Lazarus come and dip the tip of his finger in water and coo my tongue. It may be that some still read from the King James Version. And until just recent years in my life, everybody had a King James Version. If you’re reading from the King James Version, you read that being in hell, he was in torment. But as we’ve learned, really, that in the certainly with the new King James Version and other new translations, the Greek word that is found in the text here is not what we understand, or the Bible understands as the place of eternal torment called hell. Jesus spoke of hell more often than any other, but he spoke of it as a place where there’s everlasting fire and where there is no quenching of that fire.

Actually, the word here is different from Gehenna. Gehenna is the word that is uh is found really some eleven times, and and by uh Jesus used it in fact 11 times in the New Testament, and referring to the eternal place of everlasting fire. But the word here is Hades. And Hades is a place where even the scripture says Jesus went. If you’re reading, for example, in Acts chapter 2 in the sermon, you may remember where Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and uh he was preaching of the resurrection of Jesus, and he quoted from the Psalm how that his soul or spirit was not left in, well, King James Version was not left in hell. Actually, the New King James says his spirit was not left in Hades, neither does flesh seek corruption.

It was the prophecy that Peter was quoting to prove that even the resurrection of Jesus had been foretold. So his spirit went to Hades. It isn’t that he went to hell, Gehenna, but he went to the place that also sometimes, or at least the King James Version, was translated hell, but I think it only confused people. For in Hades is a place where even the righteous Lord went. And you might say, in Hades is a place where Abraham’s bosom was. But there’s described here a great gulf that separated those in Abraham’s bosom or where Jesus went, Hades. A great gulf that separated those from the place that is a place of torment. Actually, there is a third Greek word that’s found in 2 Peter 2 and verse 4, Tartarus, is where the scripture says the angels indeed are kept in store.

They’re being punished, and that word is translated hell as also. So it’d say in Hades, there ought to be a place that maybe you would say is Tartarus, where the angels are kept waiting until that final judgment in torment, in chain. But there’s also the place called Abraham’s bosom. But without going further into that, if you’re reading the Old Testament, in fact, I mean the King James Version from this story in Luke 16, you may be confused by saying, well, you know, he went to hell. I have to tell you that the lesson I want to talk about today from this story are some things in Hades that every person should know. You ever thought about that? Anything we ought to learn. On Friday, our brother Tim, who led singing this morning, writes me a note, and as some of our song leaders often do, they want to know what are you going to preach, and we’ll try to pick songs that’ll surround your topic.

And so I just wrote back, like the King James Version, there’s some things in hell that every person ought to know. And he quickly wrote back, I guess I won’t sing, won’t it be wonderful there. I thought, what a quick response. Because it won’t be wonderful in hell. But there are some things in Hades, and he led songs this morning about heaven, which I thought, well, that’s a good response, because indeed there is no night there, and there is no pain there. And Lazarus indeed was comforted in Hades, Abraham’s bosom, and for perhaps you might say, after the final judgment, eternal heaven itself. But I think there’s some great lessons that ought to be gleaned from the story of the rich man and Lazarus. You stop and think about it.

1. There’s Consciousness After Death

Here we are. What’s the point? What do we really glean from Luke 16? Some things that even are described in this text that are in Hades. That every person should know. I think really there’s some obvious that is pretty that are pretty easy for us to say, well, number one, there’s consciousness after death. I say that’s an important point because there are those today, even who say, well, you know, when we die, that’s just the end of all things. No doubt it grieves me almost every week at least, you’ll hear a story of someone who is maybe a man has killed his wife and then killed himself. Or committed suicide. Or no doubt there are people who think that after death, that’s the end of all things.

Either they go that way, or they’ve been deceived by some preachers thinking that everybody’s going to go to heaven. And so they don’t take second thought about taking their life or the life of someone else and then their life. The reality is the scriptures teach there is consciousness after death. In fact, more than one place. In Ecclesiastes chapter 12 and verse 7, the writer speaks how the dust returns to the earth from which it came, and the spirit returns unto God who gave it. What happens at death is there is a separation, our inward man from the outward man. The Spirit returns unto God who gave it, and there we shall dwell throughout eternity. A sense of consciousness.

And they were asking, well, you know, uh, uh what if if you say uh uh there’s going to be a resurrection, you know what’ll happen? Here’s this uh here’s this man who marries a woman and he dies before they have any children, and according to the law of Moses, uh his brother was supposed to be marrying him and raising up offspring for his brother. And so the brother marries this woman, but he dies before there’s offspring, and then a third, and then a fourth, and until there’s seven brothers that marry this same woman, whose whose wife will she be in the resurrection? They thought, well, that’s that boy, that’ll trick Jesus for sure, no doubt. The response of Jesus in Matthew 22 was, you’re mistaken, not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God.

For in the resurrection, they neither marry nor are they given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven. And then in verse 31, Jesus said, Concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. As ought to say, even though long ago Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob died physically, they’re still the living. And so it is that even here, Lazarus, as well as the rich men are pictured as conscious after death. There are other places to illustrate. I think in Revelation chapter 6, if you’re reading through the book sealed with seven seals, and when the fifth book is open in chapter six, there are souls who had been put to death for the testimony of the Lord.

And they were clothed with white robes, but what they were doing was crying out unto the Lord, How long, O Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood? And they were told to wait a little while. And then, of course, that God would take care of it. But for themselves, in other words, don’t be impatient about the matter. It will be that they will be avenged. So, but they’re conscious, crying out before the Lord, even though physically they have been put to death. There’s a consciousness after death. There are those among our materialists, we call them, particularly Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, that teach a doctrine that once we die, we cease to exist, except in the memory of God. And therefore they conclude that really all the word hell means is simply the grave, that when we die, we’re put in the grave, and there’s simply no existence thereafter except in the memory of God.

2. There’s No Second Chance After Death

And then among some who teach that doctrine, they say, well, there will be some of those that are going to be raised later, but the willful wicked won’t be. That’s just the end of their existence. Well, stories like this certainly say that’s just not a true doctrine. That’s wrong. It’s against the scriptures. What this does say is, and there’s no second chance after death. There are those who go along with that doctrine and say, well, those who have been just wicked, not willful wicked, however, they make a judgment between the two. The willful wicked is a person who’s an opportunity to hear and to know, and you’ve refused the doctrine that there come teaching, therefore you willfully reject it. There’s no hope for that person. But maybe the thousands or millions of people who’ve just never really heard, they’ll be given a second chance.

Even our Mormon friends teach a doctrine of baptism of the dead. What they’re saying is, and you know they run genealogical tables, and there’s a reason because then they’ll be baptized for someone in their ancestry. And as though that gives that person a chance later, they’ll accept the baptism that’s been in for them in real life here, and then uh maybe someone died a thousand years ago that’s in their lineage or a hundred or six hundred or whatever years, and they accept it. Well, I have an idea. Every rich man in torments, like our story, if he’s given a second chance, he learns that some relative later on in life was baptized for him, don’t you know? He’ll say, Oh, yes, I’ll I’ll accept it now.

It’s too late. And that’s really the story here, isn’t it? For the rich man is too late. There’s no second chance after death. It is appointed for men once to die after this the judgment. Hebrews 9 and verse 27. In fact, in Acts chapter 17, the scripture said at one time God overlooked ignorance, but commands all men everywhere to repent. Because he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising him from the dead. Indeed, there’s going to be a day of judgment. It isn’t that we just cease to exist. But there is a great gulf between the two. And as Jesus says, one cannot pass to the other.

3. Torment Is Worse Than Death Itself

Jesus did warn Matthew 10, 28, fear not them who are able to kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. It’s important that we have a recognition that how we live here now determines our destiny. And that once we die physically, there is no second chance. The time to obey is now, not right after we die, as though, oh, the Lord will save us anyway, or there’ll be a second chance. Don’t be deceived by such. Fact is, I believe this story of Jesus that he told teaches us that really torment is worse than death itself. You think about it for a moment. That torment, the scripture says that in verse 24, the rich man cried out and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me.

Send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame. I pause to say, I’m often asked, do you really think that hell will be a place of literal fire, like we know fire? I doubt that. Like we know fire. Fire is a description of some of the worst things we can think of. The torment and what he is going through is torment. And we really aren’t told if we could even understand it, what it’ll be like. The reason I make that kind of a statement is when we read in Revelation chapter 21 and 22, a description of heaven, it’s going to have a street of gold. How many of us think there’s going to be literal gold in heaven itself?

You know the story there, those who say, well, the rich man’s going to put aside gold bar so he can take it with him when he gets to heaven. He probably won’t make it to heaven to start with. But if he did, all he’s bringing is pavement. And you know, who thinks that literal gold’s going to be in heaven? It’s not going to be there. So if you don’t think that if you think that’s an illustration simply of some of the finest thing we can think of here, so it is fire, the worst we can think of. What is descriptive is that torment is worse than death. You know, death is not, maybe it’s not something we’d say, oh, yeah, hurry up, come on, I’m ready to die.

But death itself is not the worst thing that can happen. Look with me if you have a Bible to Hebrews chapter 10. And Hebrews chapter 10, verses 28 through 30. I will start with verse 26, where Jesus said, if we sin willfully after we receive the knowledge of the truth, there’s no longer, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins. Understanding the context of Hebrews, he is trying to urge Christians, Jewish Christians, not to grow weary and go back under the law of Moses. If you reject Jesus Christ, there’s no other hope for you. There’s no sacrifice for sin other than the through the Christ. But so therefore don’t reject him. But in fact, verse 28, uh verse 27, those who would, there’s a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment do you suppose? Will he be thought worthy? Who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of Grace. You notice the difference. Under Moses’ law, you may be stoned to death. That’s awful. Hard to think of dying that way. How the stone, I suppose, hit you right in the head, whatever kills you. That’s an awful way to die. But he says it’s sore punishment for those who thought worthy, trampled underfoot the Son of God. Indeed, what a horrible way of describing death. So, whatever we read passages like in Revelation chapter 20, where he describes the judgment scene in verses 14 and 15, death, and hey, these were cast into the lake of fire.

This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. And he goes further in chapter 21 and verse 8, where description the cowardly, the unbelieving, abominable, murderous, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. That is, we die first physically. The second death is that eternal separation from God, but described as being worse than death itself, or it’s in a place that is described as a lake of fire and brimstone. You no doubt remember the story in Matthew 25, where Jesus in fact illustrates the great judgment scene, where he separates the sheep from the goats, the sheep being righteous, and those on the left being described as the goats who did not obey and serve the Lord.

4. Hearing God’s Word Is Essential

And in Matthew 25 and verse 41, he said, He shall say to those on the left, Depart from me. You cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. And then in verse 46, these shall go away into everlasting punishment for the righteous into eternal life. Indeed, do not take lightly the warnings the Lord has given about hell and about the place of those who’ve rejected the Lord. Don’t think like maybe many in the world do. Oh, well, death will just end it all, and it’ll be better off after death. It may not be better off after death at all if you’ve not been serving the Lord. But then another thing that every person should know that we learn from this text, that hearing God’s word is essential.

It is so important that we spend some time with the Word of God, that we not only for ourselves, but also for those we love, plead and beg and teach the will of God. In 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, and verses 7 through 9, this speaks of the coming of the Lord, chapter 1, verses 7 through 9. How that come in flaming fire with his mighty angels, taking vengeance on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power. Do not know the Lord? Do not obey the gospel? Who can say, oh, just take it lightly? It doesn’t really matter.

How many times do we really waste our hours without even reading the Bible, without thinking about lessons that we’ve come together to learn? We just go on our way, and sometimes even with our loved ones, failing to really urge and teach and garden their souls by teaching them the gospel. Jesus said in John 12, 48, He that rejecteth me and receiveth not my sayings hath one that judgeth him in the last day. The words that I have spoken, the same shall judge him. I’ll tell you that’s pretty serious, isn’t it? That we know by what means we shall be judged. By the word of God. Have you obeyed it? Is there anyone in this audience today who hasn’t really obeyed the gospel? Would you put it off?

5. The Judgment Day Proves That God Is Just

If you know the Lord teaches he who believes and is baptized shall be saved, and you’ve not been baptized. Is that really, is that really something to say, well, later on, not now, but later I’ll take care of it. I’ll say to you, there will be a judgment day coming. And somebody say, well, you know, if if if this story in Luke 16 is simply talking about the place prior to the final judgment day, why would that be? I think the scripture does teach how, and in fact, Paul said to die, to depart to be with the Lord is far better. That those who faithfully serve the Lord will be in Hades, but in the place as Jesus went, for Abraham’s bosom. There will be, as though the scripture says a final judge.

Why could that be? Well, in our system, our court system, we have someone in our news here recently, there’s Marquet Lloyd, and he’s killed a policeman, he’s killed his girlfriend and the baby she had, and he’s in trying, he’s on trial. But he’s not going free yet. Why? What do we do with him? Well, we bring him to a system of justice. That whatever punishment he gets will be just and righteous. And so it is the judgment day on the Lord’s side is to prove that God is just, that he is righteous in his decisions. In fact, the scripture in Jude verse 15 says there how that to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against them.

There are people who arrogantly have spoken against God. And if they suffer as in an eternal way of torment, like the rich man, will God be just and punish them? Indeed, the scriptures show that God is just. And what will happen is to show them that God is just. That’s a day of reckoning when God’s righteousness will be put aside. You know, the book of Revelation is a story of how God’s going to put down a wicked empire, the Roman Empire, backed by the devil trying to abolish the church. And so in this letter of Revelation, God shows that here’s how he’ll bring to pass the fall of that ungodly empire backed by the devil. But in the process, there’s there are words of showing God doing this is righteous.

Conclusion

God is just in this. Revelation chapter 15, verse 3: Great and marvelous are your works, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, O King of the Saints. Who shall not fear you, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. But all nations shall come and worship before you, for your judgments have been manifest. Indeed, Philippians 2 says, Every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess. There’s going to be a time when all will recognize the justice and the righteousness of God, even for those who spend eternity in a place of torment. Lake of fire and brimstone is described in the Bible. I want to close by asking, what would the rich men say to you? What would the rich men say to you?

I think most of our audience here this morning that I know at least are faithful Christians. I hope everybody can say in my heart, I’ve served the Lord to the best of my ability. But if you haven’t, if you know there’s something that God’s commandment that you still need to obey, I hope you won’t put it off. For the rich man may be saying to you that, well, your material wealth won’t help you. What your mother or father did won’t help you. You’ll have to stand to judge for yourself. I once had a man say, Well, my mother wasn’t immersed, so if that’s good enough for her, that’s good enough for me. What a sad statement. The fact is that we all need to, for ourselves, take the word of God, make the application personal.

And we are not prepared now to meet the Lord should He come this hour. That we do something about it. We’ll close with a prayer. But you recognize that even this hour, this day, if you need to make your heart right with God, that you’ll do it, that you’ll not put it off to some other time. That we, each of us, live every day to the fullest in our service to the Lord, that we’re ready if even today should be the time we’re called home. Would you bow with me as we close in prayer? Almighty God, we are thankful for this good day, the Lord’s day, for the opportunity we have to serve. We’re thankful for your word that helps us to understand that even material wealth is not the measure of right or success, but rather whether or not we’re serving you faithfully.

Bless us in our own lives, and bless us in our efforts to tell others about the salvation that’s through Christ Jesus our Lord. May we be warned, in fact, that you are a just God and that you will punish those who have refused to obey your love and your will through Christ Jesus. Help us, even this day, that now as we serve you, that our worship will be acceptable, that we’ll honor and glorify your name and all that we do. Keep us now and save us finally. We humbly beg in the name of the Christ. And amen.