What Happens When We Die?

Introduction

Please be turning in your Bible to Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10. In just a moment, we want to look at some thoughts from verse 28 in that chapter. Seems to me that men have sort of a love-hate relationship with the subject of death. Much of the time, it seems to me, death is a subject that is that is hated. Particularly when it comes to thinking about our own death, I think that’s just something that most people prefer not to think about at all. In fact, for many, death is the ultimate tragedy. It’s the thing in life most to be fought against and avoided, thought of which is to be put far as we can from our minds, never dwelt on, never pondered. But the problem is, the frustrating thing about that is, as much as folks may try not to think about dying, we’re never completely successful in that effort are.

While we would prefer not to ponder our mortality, the reminders of it are all about us. If it’s not the obituaries in the newspaper, it’s being forced to drive past the cemetery. If not that, it’s the car crash on the interstate. And those untimely losses of our friends and relatives, all of which serve to remind us that life is not just fragile and uncertain, but that its duration is limited. We’re going to die. And we’d prefer most of us not to think about that. And yet, while at first glance it may appear that death is a subject that nobody wants to think about, when you look again, you’ll discover that there is also a sense in which human beings seem utterly fascinated with the subject of death and dying.

I logged on to the internet yesterday, went to Amazon.com, typed in the subject death to see how many different books are available right now if you wanted to read more about that subject. Want to take a guess? More than 7,000 volumes are currently available that deal with the subject of death and dying. That doesn’t mean that’s all that’s been written, and the Bible wasn’t included in that number. But more than 7,000 volumes have been written. And it’s not, folks, that all those books are being stuck away at a warehouse someday because nobody wants to read them. You got all those books on that subject because folks are fascinated with it and they want to read more about it. We’ve had some very popular movies over the years who had as their theme the subject of death and the afterlife and what happens when we die.

Movies like Poltergeist and Ghost and more recently The Sixth Sense and What Dreams May Come. I hadn’t seen all those and certainly wouldn’t recommend all of them as being appropriate, but my point is that all of them had the theme, death. And many of them were hugely successful movies. Why? Because people are fascinated with that. I want to know about that.

People find themselves captivated with stories about near-death experiences. Ever heard about that? Maybe someone who is very ill, maybe even laying there on the operating table, and for a time their heart stops, and when they’re brought back and they wake up, they tell stories about seeing the bright light and going toward the light or rising above the table and looking around the room and seeing themselves, heard stories like that. People are captivated with that kind of thing. Why, there are internet sites that are just devoted to story after story of near-death experiences. There are websites devoted to the spiritual realm where you can go read all kinds of fantasies and thoughts about death and dying. In fact, some in our culture are so intrigued by that that they will pay large sums of money to consult mediums and psychics in the belief that they can actually communicate with the other side.

Communicate with the dead. And there’s an element of our culture that is so interested in them that they’ve even gone to those ones.

It’s a strange thing.

And yet at times it seems human beings are utterly fascinated with it. What is going to happen when we die? You know, the answer to that question really depends largely on who you’re asking. Ask an atheist what happens when we die. He says, we’re like rover, we’ll just be dead all over. To an atheist, to die means to cease to exist. He believes that because an atheist believes there’s nothing more to us than this physical machine. And when it stops functioning, well, folks, that’s just all there is. We cease to exist. I heard an atheist one time question about whether or not he was afraid of dying. And he sarcastically responded, not really. He said, I just assume that when I die, I’ll go back to whatever state I was in before I was born, and I don’t remember that being particularly unpleasant, so I’m not really worried about dying.

Strangely, the Jehovah’s Witnesses aren’t too far in their view of death from the atheists. The Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that when we die, we cease to exist. It’s just they also believe that the righteous live with the hope of one day being recreated by God and brought back into existence. Those who are at one with Mother Nature in our culture tell us that when we die, we are joined again with nature. I’m not sure what all that means, but I guess they do. I went to see a guy a while back to take him a tape who had watched the television program. And while I was visiting with him and delivering the tape, he wanted me to sit down there with his office because he wanted to explain to me what he believed happened when we die.

He believed that when we die, what actually happens is our spirits are placed into another body. A human body. Or maybe the body of an animal. That we would be reincarnated. And that that was a cycle that occurred over and over and over again until we got human life right and reached something that he called nirvana. And then we would stop being reincarnated. Well.

Until at some future point someone awakens us. And then, of course, we get a lot of ideas from the movies. In the movies, we said we see dead people doing all kinds of interesting things, coming back in spirit form, unseen, and yet interacting with men, maybe coming back to settle a score, or even giving psychological counseling to a child. Well, the question is, what are we to believe? What happens when we die? I want to suggest to you tonight that I believe there’s a certain absurdity into buying into these theories and Hollywood fantasies that are going around. Folks, what I want you to realize is that when men today write and comment and create websites and create movie fantasies about what happens when we die, I want you to appreciate something about every last man that does that.

He doesn’t know anything about what happens when we die. How do you know that, David? Because he’s not dead. He’s not been there. He doesn’t have a clue. If a living person is telling you about death, one of the things you know for sure is he don’t know. Right? In fact, let me confess to you tonight. I don’t either. I’ve not been there. I’ve not died. And if all I had to share with you tonight was my wisdom, it wouldn’t be any greater than the fantasies that created in Hollywood. To me, there is a certain absurdity about all the speculation and all that’s being written 7,000 volumes from people who really don’t have a clue, and folks would invest so much confidence in such an absurdity.

There is another source. I would suggest to you tonight that we do have the option of consulting God. And I would suggest God, knowing everything, knows about death. We do have the option of consulting Jesus Christ. And I’d say something about Jesus. He has been there. Jesus did die and was victorious over death. And we can read what God and Jesus have revealed to us through the Holy Spirit in this book we called the Bible. And I’m convinced there we can find some answers that really have some substance to them. It disturbs me that most people’s ideas about death are shaped more by Hollywood fiction than by Bible fact. And tonight I’d like for you to consider with me some Bible fact. We’ve been studying on Sunday nights for some time now.

Questions that we are likely to encounter as we go out and try to share the gospel with others. And Lord willing, next Sunday, Brother Harkwriter will bring this series to a close with a couple of final lessons along these lines. But I want to tell you that the question we’re talking about tonight, I’m convinced, is a question that just plagues the minds of humanity. And in fact, I would suggest is one that is at the heart of the message that we want to share. You know, folks, the message of the gospel is not just designed or even primarily designed, I’m convinced, to help us live good, fulfilled lives here. It will certainly help us to do that. But I would suggest to you that primarily the message of the gospel is designed to help us prepare for when we die and for what comes after we die.

The gospel is designed to prepare us for eternity. That’s the crux of the message we’re preaching. Let me also add that I believe that what we believe about death and how we answer this question is just a matter of great importance. This is not just idle speculation where we can just kind of sit around and shoot the breeze and share our different ideas about it. What one believes about death has a huge impact on how he goes about living our lives. Even right down to the day-to-day decisions that we make. Well, what happens when we die? What I’d like to do this evening for a little while is just share with you four simple realities. It may not be as glamorous as the movies, folks, but these are four simple realities that God gives us to help us understand what for many is life’s greatest tragedy.

1. Death Is Not the End

But what doesn’t have to be. What happens when we die? The first thing, if you look there in Matthew 10 and verse 28, I want you to understand is we need to realize that death is not the end. The atheist is just wrong about that. Remember that the atheist says that when we die, we just cease to exist, that that’s all of it. That’s the end of it. But I want you to understand why an atheist believes that. The reason the atheist believes that death is the end, death is non-existence, is because of his conviction that there’s nothing more to you or I than this physical body. When the machine stops functioning, we are no more. I want you to understand that the Bible absolutely denies that.

Jesus denies it here in Matthew chapter 10. Jesus would teach in Matthew chapter 10 and verse 28 that there’s more to a man than just his body. Look there with me if you will. Jesus says, and do not fear those who can kill the body but are unable to kill the soul, but rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Jesus would describe man as having a dual nature. There are two parts to us. There’s more to you than just this physical body in which we dwell. Jesus says that there is a spirit, there is a soul of man as well. So first of all, I want you to appreciate that Jesus says there’s more to us than the physical body.

But notice also, secondly, in this context, that Jesus says the soul survives physical death. He said, don’t worry about men when all they can do is destroy the physical body, but they can’t kill the soul. Did you see that? You see, the physical body can die. But Jesus said, the soul abides. The soul continues. Man can’t kill the soul. It lives on. And I think we see that process at work over and over again in the scripture. If you look at Luke chapter 23 and verse 43, the scene is the cross of Jesus Christ, and you’ll remember that Jesus was crucified between two thieves. Two thieves that initially were reviling him. But over the course of those events, one of them had a change of heart and said to Jesus, Remember me.

Remember that? Remember what Jesus said to him on that occasion? He said, Today what? Today you will be with me in paradise. Now let me ask you all a question. What was going to happen to that thief’s physical body on that day? Well, folks, I don’t tell you how you cut it. He didn’t go to paradise. Not the physical body. The physical body of that thief was executed on that day. And gradually the life was drained from it through the process of crucifixion. And that body of the thief was taken down from the cross. It was put in a tomb and left there until it decayed. That’s what happened to his body. But Jesus said, Today you will be with me in paradise. There was more to that thief on the cross than just his physical body, wasn’t there?

There was a soul. There was a soul that would continue on after death that would be with Jesus in paradise even that very day. Look at Philippians chapter 1, and I think Paul illustrates the same point for us. In Philippians chapter 1, and starting in verse 21. Paul says, For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me, and I do not know which to choose, but I’m hard pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better. Yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. Paul says a crazy thing in verse 21.

He says that for me to die is what? To die is gain. Tell me, folks, if all there is to man is his physical body, how could death be gain in any sense of the word? If the atheist is right and this is all there is to us, indeed, death is the ultimate tragedy. It is the end of existence. But that wasn’t what Paul saw. In fact, Paul could say death is gain. Because death wasn’t the end. Death was departure. Death was moving to a new realm. He said in verse 23, having a desire to depart in what? And be with Christ. What was going to be with Christ? Not his physical body. The physical body of Paul when he died was put in a tomb, and it underwent decay.

But his spirit.

And we’re going to spend a lot of time in Luke 16 this evening. This may well be perhaps the best passage in all of the scripture that talks about what happens after we die. Look at Luke chapter 16, starting in verse 19. Let’s just get the first part of this story. We’ll read down from verse 19 to verse 26. Jesus says, Now there was a certain rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, gaily living in splendor every day. And a certain poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores. And longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table, besides even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. Now it came about that the poor man died.

And he was carried away by angels to Abraham’s bosom. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, Father, Abraham have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame. But Abraham said, Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things, but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all of this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed in order that those who wish to come over from here to you may not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.

But in neither case did that spell therein, did it. In both cases, both men continued to exist. Lazarus, we’re told, was experiencing comfort in the bosom of Abraham. The rich man was being tormented and begged to be relieved. But both continued to exist. Someone says, Oh, David, that’s just a parable. Well, maybe it is. Maybe it’s not. I’m not so sure that’s so. But folks, even the parables of Jesus were based in reality. Jesus didn’t make a fantasy to tell a parable. What he’s describing is the condition of men after they die. And while men may speculate otherwise, the word of God reveals that there is more to a man than the physical body, and that each of us, good or bad, possess a soul that lives beyond death.

Both the rich man and Lazarus died. But they both continue to exist beyond death. Well, if death isn’t the end. If there’s something beyond the grave, then that does make us even more intrigued, doesn’t it? What kind of existence do we have beyond the grave? What is the afterlife like? Are we asleep? Is it like a deep sleep in which we have no sense or awareness of our surroundings, only to be awakened at some point in the future? Is it is it a dream state? You know what your mind is like when you’re dreaming, don’t you? You’re not sure if it’s if it’s a dream or reality. It’s kind of hazy, it’s kind of foggy. Some people think death is that way. What will death be like?

2. The Dead Are Conscious and Aware

Well, let me say to you, secondly, tonight. That another thing we learn clearly from this passage is that the dead are conscious and aware. That there is conscious existence after death. Death is not extended sleep or a dream state. But in death we are lucid, aware. And clearly, I think that’s illustrated here in Luke chapter 16. Both of the men described here were conscious and aware of their surroundings. Let’s just go back through that context and note a couple of things. First of all, notice clearly that both had consciousness. Both were aware of their surroundings, weren’t they? They could feel, they could experience their surroundings. In verse 25, Abraham says that Lazarus is being comforted here. Folks, someone who is in the sleep and unaware of their surroundings can’t experience comfort, can they?

Someone who is in a hazy dream state can’t experience comfort. Abraham says Lazarus was being comforted. The rich man, too, was experiencing his surroundings. He felt agony. He was tormented. He pleaded for relief. I want you to notice as well that his memory was intact. Did you notice that? He recognized Lazarus when he was able to see him. Later in the context, beginning in verse 27, we read about how he remembered his brother. Read with me there. His brothers, I should say. Verse 27 of Luke 16. And he said, Then I beg you, Father Abraham, that you send him, that is, send Lazarus to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may warn them lest they also come to this place of torment.

3. The Righteous and the Wicked Are Separated in Death

He remembered his brothers. He was concerned about their welfare. He continued to have feelings for them and pleaded their case before Abraham. Let someone go warn them. I don’t want them to come here. Folks, those are not the actions of someone who is in some kind of a dream state or a deep sleep. These were men who were lucid, conscious of their existence, who experience their surroundings. I want you to appreciate, secondly, that not only is death not the end, but that in death we are conscious and aware. But there’s a third thing I want you to notice tonight that really jumps out in this context as we look at it, and that is that the righteous and the wicked are separated in death. Did you see that?

It just kind of jumps out of this context as we read it that circumstances were not the same for Lazarus and the rich man in death. That the righteous and the wicked experience much different circumstances after death. Jesus told the thief on the cross, today you will be with me where? In paradise. Lazarus, we’re told, in Luke 16 and verse 22, was taken by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. Verse 25 again. There he was being comforted. Now, folks, I realize that’s not long on detail, but it’s clear and intent. And that is that the righteous after death experience a place of peace and comfort and tranquility and safety. What we know about the place of the righteous after death is that it is a wonderful place to anticipate and to look forward to.

Clearly, the rich man in this context experienced something much different. In fact, what we see in this picture of his faith is frightening. There are a number of things that emphasize that. In verse 23, we’re told that he was in torment. In verse 24, the rich man himself says that I am in agony in this flame. And so great was his agony that he said that he would find relief with just a drop of water being dropped on his tongue. And his agony was so great that even such a small gesture would give him relief. Verse 25, Lazarus alludes to the agony that he was suffering. Verse 26, we’re told about how the righteous and the wicked are separated. Did you catch that? Abraham says, and besides all this, between us and you, there is a great chasm fixed.

You can’t come over here, and we can’t go over there.

Rather, the message is unmistakable. And that is that the fate of the wicked after death is a frightening one. It is a place of misery and pain and agony. It is such a terrible place that those who are there wish they could do anything to keep their loved ones from coming there. You know, occasionally, there are people who don’t really understand that. Who will say something like, well, you know, I’m not going to obey the gospel, or I’m not going to obey what I know to be true. Because, you know, after all, this is what my parents believe. This is what my whole family has followed their whole life. And you know, if they wound up in hell, well, at least we’ll all be there together.

That is the statement of the ignorant. Let me tell you something, folks. If you’ve lost some loved one, and you fear because of the conduct of their life that they did not go to the paradise Jesus talked about. If you believe they’ve been condemned with the wicked, let me give you a guarantee. They don’t ever want to see you again. What they want more than anything else is for you to make a different choice. That you would not be where they are. Someone says, David, that’s hard stuff. Why does the Bible tell us that? There’s a practical reality in that message, folks. It is a message that is designed to cause us to take a look at our lives. And to think about what course we have charted and what direction that is taking us in.

4. After This Comes Judgment

Brethren, do we really want to choose a pathway of life that would bring us to the kind of end that the rich man experienced? Do we want to be where he is? You see, what we believe about death indeed has a big impact on the course of our lives. Right now. What we believe about death matters. Because it determines the choices that we’re going to make now. I want you to appreciate that death is not for you. That the dead are conscious and aware, and that the righteous and the wicked are having far different experiences in the afterlife. But I want you to appreciate that those three points are not the end of the story either. If you’ll be turning in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 9 and verse 27, as time continues, men will die and will experience either the fate of Lazarus or the fate of the rich man, but at last that’s not the end.

Because in Hebrews chapter 9 and verse 27, the Hebrew writer would say that it is appointed for men to die once, but that’s not the end of the story. He says, and after this comes judgment. I want you to appreciate that this process of men dying and suffering either the fate of the rich man or the fate of Lazarus, that process is going to continue until a point in time, and yet in our future when there will be a great day of judgment. And that grand process will come to a screeching halt. There’s some things we need to appreciate about that great day of judgment. If you’ll be turning to Acts chapter 1 for just a moment, I want you to notice with me first of all that the Bible says there is a day, an appointed time, when Jesus is going to come back.

In fact, at the very moment he last left this earth, the promise was made that he would come back. In Acts chapter 1 and verse 9, it says, And after he had said these things, he was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received him out of their sight, and as they were gazing intently in the sky while he was departing, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. And they also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way you have watched him go into heaven. The Bible says that there is an appointed time when Jesus Christ is going to come back.

It is going to be a grand, momentous occasion. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and verse 16, Paul says that the Lord will descend from heaven with a shout, with a voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds and shall meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, comfort one another with these words. There is a grand, momentous occasion coming. It’s not going to be some secret snatching away some rapture as our premillennial friends talk about. Listen, folks, when Jesus Christ comes, everyone’s going to know it. And it’s going to be a grand, glorious occasion, and we don’t know when it’ll be.

If we keep reading in chapter 5 of 1 Thessalonians, now, as to the times and the epics, brethren, you have no need of anyone, anything to be written to you, for you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. He’s coming back. That’s guaranteed. The only thing we don’t know is when. But what we do know is that when Jesus comes back at that appointed time, there’s going to be a resurrection of the dead. In fact, that appears to be at least part of the concern that motivated Paul to write what he wrote here in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. That some were concerned about the dead. In verse 13, he says, but we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as the rest who have no hope.

He said, We don’t want you to worry about those who have died. Why? Because when Jesus comes, verse 16, the dead in Christ shall rise first. There’s going to be a resurrection of the dead. And again, contrary to what our premillennial friends tell us, and what our Jehovah’s Witness friends tell us, it’s not just going to be some who are going to be raised. There aren’t going to be multiple resurrections at different points in time. There’s going to be one grand resurrection of all the dead in John chapter 5 and verse 28. The Lord Himself says, Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs shall hear his voice and shall come forth. Those who did good deeds to the resurrection of life, those who committed evil deeds to the resurrection of judgment.

Jesus is coming back. And at that moment when he returns, those who have died, who have gone on either to a place of paradise or a place of punishment, are going to be resurrected from the dead. And then thirdly, I want you to appreciate tonight that when that happens, when Jesus comes and men are raised, there is going to be a great day of judgment. In 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 10, the Apostle Paul taught that there is a coming appointment which every man has with God, in which we’ll account for our lives. 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 10, Paul said, For we all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body according to what he’s done, whether good or bad.

That’s a sobering thought. And we need to ponder it seriously. I know that men believe they can kind of escape through life doing their own thing and without regard for God, indifferent to his will, irreverent to him, and feel like they’re getting away with something. In fact, sometimes it seems like they are, doesn’t it? Sometimes it just seems like the wicked are out here and they’re just resisting God and his will, doing unbelievably evil things, and not only getting away with it, it seems, but even gaining advantage, sometimes it seems that the wicked are able to get ahead and prosper and in our perception enjoy life more because of their wickedness, and the righteous are held back and prevented from that because they’re being righteous, and we think that’s not fair, it’s so unjust.

And they’re under the altar, crying out, How long, O Lord? How long are you going to put up with this? Before you take action. And sometimes we get frustrated that way. How can God put up with this? How can the wicked prosper, it seems, and get away with everything? Folks, let me tell you something. That’s a delusion. They’re not getting away with anyone, anything. They’re like the one who would rush ahead of the crowd to fall off the cliff. Listen, folks. One day it’s all going to come out. One day a righteous standard will be enforced on our world, and men will be forced to give an account to that standard. Count on it. Doesn’t matter how things appear now. Jesus Christ is coming back. Everyone’s going to be raised from the dead, and they will give an account to that standard.

John chapter 12 and verse 48. Jesus told us that men would be judged by his word. Speaking of those who would who would refuse to accept his message. In John 12 and verse 48, Jesus says, He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings as one who judges him, the word I spoke is what will judge him in the last day. I just cringe when I hear men’s sometimes irreverent attitude toward the word of God. When I hear men laugh and scoff at the teaching of Scripture.

And you know, that there’s a time that’s going to come when those folks are going to have a much different attitude about what God’s word says. And they’re going to wish that they had opportunity to take more seriously what God said in this book and the will that Jesus revealed, and it will be too late. And rather than the words of Jesus guiding and instructing them, the words of Jesus will condemn them. That’s the choice we make about the will of Jesus Christ, folks. Either to let it be our guide, or in the end to be judged by those words. That’s a choice we’re making every day in our lives. I want to tell you something else. On this great future day of judgment, a perfect judge will be rendering the verdict in every case.

And that’s important because we understand well in our society how sometimes justice is perverted. Don’t we understand that? Sometimes the rich can buy their own form of justice, can’t they? And sometimes the conniving and the deceptive can hide the facts so that justice is perverted. Let me tell you something, folks, not with Jesus Christ. He knows all things. Nothing will be hidden from his eyes. He is a righteous, holy judge. No one will be able to buy him off. In fact, what is going to happen when this grand and glorious day comes is that a verdict will be rendered in the case of every man, and that verdict will be absolutely right. I don’t know whether that’s good news or bad news for you and I.

Depends on what’s going on in our lives. For the evil man, that is the sentence of doom. For the righteous man, it’s a wonderful promise. A fourth thing I’d like for you to appreciate about this grand day of judgment is that as with death, the righteous and the wicked will find themselves separated at judgment. Look, if you will, at Matthew chapter 25. You know, that’s a passage that periodically it’s just healthy for Christians to go back and read and consider. In Matthew chapter 25, starting in verse 31, Jesus would describe the great judgment scene. He said, But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. That’s what 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and verse 16 were talking was talking about.

And all the nations will be gathered before him. Everyone will be there, every soul will be raised. But, verse 32 says, And he will separate them from one another. As the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. As with death, the righteous and the wicked go their separate ways, so in judgment. Two groups are described here in Matthew 25. And these two groups are told two different things. First of all, in verse 34, it says, Then the king will say to those on his right, come, and just underline that in your Bible. Come, you who are blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

Those who are on the right, those who are his sheep are going to be told, come. There’s an inheritance that’s been awaiting you. Folks, heaven is not a myth. It is the Christian’s wonderful reality. In 1 Peter chapter 1 and verse 3, the reason we can have confidence in our heavenly inheritance is because it is built on the hope of a risen Savior. Our hope is alive because Jesus is alive. And our hope is built upon Him. For those who trust in God and who submit to His will in their lives, there is the promise of a wonderful paradise awaiting us. God’s faithful and righteous will be told in that great day that’s coming. They’ll be told, come. But that’s not the only group present at judgment.

Remember, Jesus made a separation. Sheep on the right, goats on the left. And those on his left are told something different. In verse 41 of Matthew 25, it says, Then he will say to those on his left, depart. Underline that in your Bible. Depart from me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels. Different words spoken. Far from the paradise that is described for the righteous.

Into the eternal fire. Prepared for the devil and his angels. As much as heaven is a reality, brethren, so is hell. I marvel that there are actually people today who believe in heaven but reject the concept of hell. Folks, it’s a matched set. You don’t get one without the other. The only place where you learn about heaven teaches the frightening reality of hell at the same time. You’re free to reject hell if you want to, but at least be consistent enough to admit there’s no heaven either. As much as heaven is a reality, so is hell. Frighteningly described in the scripture, even in the same context in Matthew 25, going back up at verse 30. Hell is described as a place of outer darkness, a place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Folks, I tell you the worst thing about hell. The worst thing about hell is at the same time the most wonderful thing about heaven. You know what that is? It’s in verse 46. Speaking of the wicked, it says, and these will go away into eternal punishment. But the righteous into eternal life. You know what the best thing is to me about heaven? I mean, the Bible describes all kinds of wonderful, beautiful things to us about heaven. But the best thing about heaven is that it is eternal. Then once we get to heaven, that’s the end of it. It just goes on and on forever and ever. I know the mind can’t comprehend that, but it’s wonderful to try, isn’t it? The best thing about heaven is you take all the wonderful things that God says about it and the scripture reveals and realize it just goes on and on and on and on without end is what makes the thought of hell so horrible.

Conclusion

Because the same adjective defines the duration of both. Hell won’t end either. Its horrors go on and on and on. Brethren, I want you to appreciate with me tonight what hangs in the balance. This is about eternity. This is something that we’ve got to get right if we get nothing else right in this life. Folks, I could care less whether you achieve your career objectives, whether you own that car that you always hope to own, whether you get that dream house on the property with all the things that you want. If we miss everything else in life, don’t miss getting this right. Because it’s forever. And once we die, or once the Lord comes, there’s no changing that faith. Let me ask you tonight. What’s worth missing, heaven.

Jesus asked that question another way in Matthew chapter 16 and verse 26. When he said, For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul. Let me ask you tonight. What’s worth going to hell for? I don’t know what’s standing in your way tonight. What might be keeping you from obeying the gospel? What might be keeping you from addressing some sin that’s in your life? Bear with me. Please don’t start packing up yet. This is too important. But let me ask you if the Lord should come and tomorrow you wake up in eternity separated from God in that terrible place called hell that the scripture describes, what will you be able to pick your head up in hell and say, well, that was worth going to hell?

What would it be?