By: Erlinda Mejia-Olson
REVELATION 11:15-20 - The Great White Throne Judgment
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades 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."
On my first article about eternal destinies, we've talked about Heaven. Now, let us talk about the other eternal destiny called, HELL. I know that most people don't like to talk about Hell. And often times, I've been asked this question of why a loving God could allow someone to go to Hell. But the better question to ask is: Why should God save anyone of us, when we're all rebellious against a Holy God who created us? We all deserve Hell, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23). That's the very reason Christ came to die for our sin and take our Hell for us so that we don't have to go there (Isaiah 53:3-5). That's why Jesus, is the only way (John 14:6).
Before I go further about Hell, let me share with you the story of a Rich man and a beggar named Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. Now, some of you may already be familiar with this story in the Bible:
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 torments 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 him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead (Luke 16:19-31).
Like Heaven, Hell is also a real place. And Jesus used this parable to picture it to us. The skeptics may say, "it's just a story...it's not real!" For anyone who is alive today, you won't know until you die unsaved. Hell is a place intended for the dead unbelievers. He pictured it for us in this manner because He didn't want you to go there. It's a warning! As I've said in my first article, once you've made a final choice and you die, there's no turning back. So, there's still hope for the living. Remember, that every breath that the Lord lends you today is a chance to make a decision. There are no excuses.
Allow me to explain more about this place. The Hebrew word for Hell in the Old Testament is called 'Sheol' and 'Hades' in the New Testament. Hell consists of two compartments: the upper and lower Sheol (Luke 16:26). From the time of Adam and Eve until the death of Jesus Christ, the upper Sheol is called 'paradise or Abraham's bosom', where all dead believers at that time went. But when Jesus died He went to Abraham's bosom or upper Sheol and took all the saints (referred to as those who died saved) there to Heaven with Him. Now, no saved Christians go to Hades. That's why apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:8, "We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord." Therefore, if you die today as a saved Christian, you'll go straight to Heaven with the Lord. On the other hand, if you are an unsaved and you die, you'll still go to Hades and wait until the final judgment called "The Great White Throne" (Revelation 20:11-15), which is the Eternal Hell or also called the Lake of Fire or 'Gehenna' ( a Greek word), or the second Death.
"But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell." (Matthew 5:22).
Friend, however you want to look at it, Hell will be an awful place to spend eternity. It's a place where God is absent - a miserable, hopeless place. Someone once said to me: "For the saved, this life is the closest they can get to Hell, but for the unsaved, this life is the only Heaven they'll experience." The good news is that if you choose to follow Jesus, Hell is not an option. So, choose your destiny wisely, and don't procastinate.
Turn to Jesus while you still have the chance. I don't want you to go there.
Read Scripture References: Revelation 19:19-20; Revelation 20:10; Luke 23:43; 2 Corinthians 12:2-4; Ephesians 4:8-10; Psalm 16:10; Acts 2:27; Matthew 8:9-12; Matthew 12;40; Matthew 23:33; Jude 1:7
