Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4

JESUS WAS A HELL FIRE PREACHER VOL 4
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
LUKE 16:19-31
The Rich Man and Lazarus
What should we learn from the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16?
videorich man and Lazarusaudio
Question:"What should we learn from the story of the rich man and Lazarus
in Luke 16?"
Answer: Luke 16:19-31 contains the accountof a very rich man who lived a
life of extreme luxury. Laid outside the gate of this rich man’s house, however,
was an extremely poor man named Lazarus who simply hoped “to eatwhat
fell from the rich man’s table” (v. 21). The rich man was completely
indifferent to the plight of Lazarus, showing him no love, sympathy, or
compassionwhatsoever. Eventually, they both died. Lazarus went to heaven,
and the rich man went to hell. Appealing to “FatherAbraham” in heaven, the
rich man requestedthat Lazarus be sent to coolhis tongue with a drop of
waterto lessenhis “agonyin this fire.” The rich man also askedAbraham to
send Lazarus back to earth to warn his brothers to repent so that they would
never join him in hell. Both requests were denied. Abraham told the rich man
that if his brothers did not believe in Scripture, neither would they believe a
messenger, evenif he came straight from heaven.

There is some question as to whether this story is a true, real-life accountor a
parable, since two of its characters are named (making it unique among
parables). Parable or not, however, there is much we can learn from this
passage:
First of all, Jesus teaches here that heaven and hell are both real, literal
places. Sadly, many preachers shy awayfrom uncomfortable topics such as
hell. Some even teach“universalism” – the belief that everyone goes to
heaven. Yet Christ spoke abouthell a greatdeal, as did Paul, Peter, John,
Jude, and the writer of Hebrews. The Bible is clearthat every personwho has
ever lived will spend eternity in either heavenor hell. Like the rich man in the
story, multitudes today are complacentin their convictionthat all is wellwith
their soul, and many will hear our Savior tell them otherwise when they die
(Matthew 7:23).
This story also illustrates that once we cross the eternal horizon, that’s it.
There are no more chances.The transition to our eternal state takes place the
moment we die (2 Corinthians 5:8; Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23). When
believers die, they are immediately in the conscious fellowshipand joys of
heaven. When unbelievers die, they are just as immediately in the conscious
pain, suffering, and torment of hell. Notice the rich man didn’t ask for his
brothers to pray for his release from some purgatorial middle ground,
thereby expediting his journey to heaven. He knew he was in hell, and he
knew why. That’s why his requests were merely to be comforted and to have a
warning sent to his brothers. He knew there was no escape. He was eternally
separatedfrom God, and Abraham made it clearto him that there was no
hope of ever mitigating his pain, suffering, or sorrow. Those in hell will
perfectly recollectmissedopportunities and their rejectionof the gospel.

Like many these days who buy into the “prosperity gospel,” the rich man
wrongly saw his material riches as evidence of God’s love and blessing.
Likewise, he believed the poor and destitute, like Lazarus, were cursedby
God. Yet, as the apostle James exhorted, “You have lived on earth in luxury
and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter”
(James 5:5). Not only do riches not get one into heaven, but they have the
powerto separate a personfrom God in a waythat few other things can.
Riches are deceitful (Mark 4:19). It is certainly not impossible for the very
rich to enter heaven (many heroes of the Bible were wealthy), but Scripture is
clearthat it is very hard (Matthew 19:23-24;Mark 10:23-25;Luke 18:24-25).
True followers of Christ will not be indifferent to the plight of the poor like
the rich man in this story was. God loves the poor and is offended when His
children neglectthem (Proverbs 17:5; 22:9, 22-23;29:7; 31:8-9). In fact, those
who show mercy to the poor are in effectministering to Christ personally
(Matthew 25:35-40). Christians are knownby the fruit they bear. The Holy
Spirit’s residence in our hearts will most certainly impact how we live and
what we do.
Abraham’s words in verses 29 and 31 referring to “Mosesand the Prophets”
(Scripture) confirms that understanding the revealedWord of God has the
powerto turn unbelief into faith (Hebrew 4:12; James 1:18;1 Peter1:23).
Furthermore, knowing Scripture helps us to understand that God’s children,
like Lazarus, can suffer while on this earth—suffering is one of the many
tragic consequencesofliving in a sinful and fallen world.
The Bible says our earthly lives are a “mist that appears for a little while and
then vanishes” (James 4:14). Our earthly sojourn is exceedinglybrief.
Perhaps the greatestlessonto learn from this story, then, is that when death
comes knocking onour door there is only one thing that matters: our

relationship with Jesus Christ. “What goodwill it be for a man if he gains the
whole world, yet forfeits his soul?” (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36). Eternallife
is only found in Christ. “Godhas given us eternal life, and this life is in His
Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Sonof God does
not have life” (1 John 5:11-12). The truth is, if we wish to live apart from God
during our time on earth, He will grant us our wish for eternity as well. As
one pastoraptly said, “If you board the train of unbelief, you will have to take
it all the way to its destination.”
https://www.gotquestions.org/rich-man-and-Lazarus.html
Third Millennium Study Bible
Notes on Luke 16:19-31
The Rich Man and Lazarus - Luke 16:19-31
In this parable, we observe that Luke agrees withboth John (1 John 3:17) and
James (Jas. 2:15-16). Theyall ask, "How it is possible to love God and not
help one in material need?" The answeris obvious, "you can't," "You don't."
While God does not save his people "by" goodworks (Eph. 2:8-9), he does
save them "unto" goodworks (Eph. 2:10; cf. Col. 1:10; 2 Thess. 2:17; 1 Tim.
2:10; 5:10, 25;2 Tim. 3:17; Tit. 2:7, 14; Heb. 10:24; 13:21, etc.). In essence, if
there are no fruitful abounding works then there is no genuine faith.
The parable begins with the lifestyles of the rich and poor. In essence, the rich
man (a man not even worthy of a name) lived like a king (Luke 16:19) and the
poor man as a mere destitute beggarnamed Lazarus (Luke 16:20-21). He was
so poor that he had been "laid" at the rich man's gates!He could not get there
on his own, he had to be put there. And in finality, dogs (possibly the rich
man's dogs) had more mercy on this beggarthen the rich man did!

At the appointed time (Heb. 9:27), both these men died. The "beggardied and
the angels carriedhim to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was
buried" (Luke 16:22). Note that the rich man was in "Hell" and was already
in "torment" before the final judgment (Luke 16:23) - see "Whatis
Annihilationism?" (below).
In Hell, the rich man recognizedLazarus (Luke 16:23-24). The rich man had
no excuse. He had seenthe destitute, he had seenthe poor, and yet he put up
defenses (gates)so they could not enter his earthy kingdom. Yet, this rich man
consideredhimself: (1) Not as an atheist, as he believed in God ("Father
Abraham," Luke 16:24). (2) Not a Sadducee (see "JewishSects"below), as he
believed in the hereafter. (3) Could he have been a "rich Pharisee" (Luke
16:14), who againstthe Law detestedthe poor (Lev. 19:18;Matt. 22:37-40,
etc.)? However, this once rich man was in Hell, not because he was not
generous enough, but because his lack of any generouslyat all revealedhe did
not really know God and believe in his Word. His works - or lack thereof -
revealedwho he really was.
On the other hand, Lazarus, knew God. He was at Abraham's side (Luke
16:22)- causing one to recallChrist's pierced side (John 19:33-34). He was at
a place of honor (cf. John 13:23). However, Lazarus was in Abraham's bosom
not because he was poor, but because he was the recipient of God's grace;his
name literally meaning "God has helped." As compared to the rich man, who
had depended upon himself and his riches, Lazarus was dependent upon the
grace ofGod. "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who
are sick" (Luke 5:31-32;Matt. 9:12-13;Mark 2:17).
The rich man cries out from the depths of Hell saying, 'FatherAbraham, have
mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool
my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame' (Luke 16:24). Note that the rich

man calls upon Abraham calling him "Father," (Luke 16:24, 27, 30). He
thought he was legitimate seed(cf. Gal. 3:29). Even in the depths of Hell he
remained blind (2 Cor. 4:4) and deceived(2 Tim. 3:13; cf. Jer. 17:9; 1 Cor.
3:18; Jas. 1:22)! He had forgottenthat God's covenanthas blessings for those
that are the rightful seedof the woman(Gen. 3:15) however, for those merely
claiming to be seed, cursings.
Abraham responds, 'Child, remember that you in your lifetime receivedyour
goodthings, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted
here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, betweenus and you a great
chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you
may not be able, and none may cross from there to us' (Luke 16:25-26).
Lazarus does not respond; he remains quiet throughout the entire parable.
Abraham was tender in his response calling the rich man "child"
understanding the sadness of his eternal estate, understanding that he had
already receivedhis temporary earthly comforts (Luke 6:24) and no more
remains - not even a "lick" - a drop of salvia - of a dog (Luke 16:21).
Hell is a horrible, but necessaryplace. There is a "greatgulf" betweenHeaven
and Hell. Some have speculatedthat this "greatgulf" separatesdifferent
dimensions both visible one to another, inciting thankfulness for those in
Heaven (understanding what they have been savedfrom) and adding fuel to
the fire (torment) for those in Hell (as they continually see the riches of those
that believed while upon this earth).
The rich man understanding now his greatdilemma cries out for his family.
He says, 'Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house - for I have
five brothers - so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of
torment' (Luke 16:27-28). Finally, finally, finally, after it is too late (Heb.
9:27), this rich man shows a concernfor others. Still not understanding the
Scriptures, the rich man thought to himself that if Lazarus were raisedfrom

the dead (Luke 16:30)than his brothers may hear and believe his words. Note,
that Lazarus' life had apparently been a topic of conversationatsome time in
the rich man's family. They knew of his existence. Theyknew of his death.
None of them have an excuse!Abraham replies, 'They have Moses andthe
Prophets;let them hear them' . . . 'If they do not hearMoses and the
Prophets, neither will they be convincedif someone should rise from the dead'
(Luke 16:29, 31). Jesus wouldlater tell the two disciples on the road to
Emmaus (Luke 24:25-27):
"O foolishones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
Was it not necessarythat the Christ should suffer these things and enter into
his glory?" And beginning with Moses andall the Prophets, he interpreted to
them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
If the rich man's brothers - if anyone (Rom. 10:13) - would give attention to
God's Word, they would need nothing else. However, only those God gives
ears to hear with will hear (Matt. 13:10-11;Mark 4:10-13;Luke 9:44-45;
18:31-34, etc.).
16:19-23 The Rich Man and Lazarus
Previous Next
Luke 16:19-23 “There was a rich man who was dressedin purple and fine
linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggarnamed
Lazarus, coveredwith sores andlonging to eatwhat fell from the rich man’s
table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. The time came when the
beggardied and the angels carriedhim to Abraham’s side. The rich man also

died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he lookedup and saw
Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.”
I need to say certainthings about this passageby way of introduction:
i] The most loving person this world has ever knowntold this parable. For
example, when they’d hammered nails through his hands and feet and
suspended him from a cross with all his weighthanging on those nails, Jesus
prayed for the men who did that, “Fatherforgive them; they know not what
they do.” He loved his hurtful enemies as he loved his hurting self. He showed
how much he loved every one of his people by becoming the sacrificialLamb
of God who would give his life in their place as atonement for their sins. What
a kind and lovely man he was;his perfect goodnesswasn’ta grumpy, sour
strictness. Jesus oftenspoke ofGod’s reign in terms of a wonderful feast, and
almost everywhere he went, people were inviting him to sit and eat with them.
In fact, he was involved in so many parties and was the focus of so much
happiness that some folks criticized him for not being stern and strict enough.
There was laughter and softness where he was present. So his enemies said
that Jesus had gotthe wrong kind of friends, and they were enjoying
themselves far too much. That happiness did not suit the guardians of dour
decency. But despite those complaints, Jesus keptmaking new friends who
were constantly throwing parties for him. It was, I say, this gregarious, kind
and loving man who said these words.
ii] It was this one who loves you today who once told this parable. He is the
one who has so arranged your providence that at this very moment you
happen to be hearing or reading these words. It is he who has causedthis to
occurbecause he personallycares about you. Maybe as you think of this you
can begin to appreciate that he’s been the one who perhaps has made you
agreeable to acceptan invitation to go where Christians gatherto worship. Or
maybe no one else at all was involved; there was just a growing convictionin

your heart that you should go where you could hear the word of God being
preached(or visit this website). It was the Lord Jesus who, because he loved
you, createdthat curiosity in your mind in order that you should know and
understand him better. He has made you aware that your earlier ideas were a
cobweb– perhaps the feeling you once had that this world was made by
chance and that everyone has to choose their own meaning for life and do
things their own way. You have now come to see that that is a greatmistake,
because you cansee order and purpose and designand beauty simply
everywhere, and that speaks to you of one living and glorious Creator. God
has seteternity in your heart and increasinglyyou have longed to know who
this God is. His love has homed in on you, and the result is that you are
hearing or reading these words. The Lord Jesus, the very bestof men, is
showing his love for you at this very moment.
iii] This man who spoke these words is also JehovahJesus, the true Almighty
God. The New Testamenttells us that Jesus Christ already existedin the very
beginning, and that he was God the Son. He is called God very directly by the
writers of the Old and New Testaments. Forexample, the prophet Isaiah
declaredthat the Messiahwould come and his name would be called,
“Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”
(Isa. 9:6). David in the Psalms addresses the Messiah, “Thythrone O God is
for everand ever” (Psa.45:6). Johnbegins his gospel, “The Word was God,”
and ends his gospelwith Thomas saying to Jesus, “MyLord and my God.”
Our Lord claims, “I and my Fatherare one.” Peterspeaks of“the
righteousness ofour God and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1). Paul speaks
of “our greatGod and Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). He tells the church
in Rome of “Christ who is God over all, foreverpraised, Amen” (Roms. 9:5).
He tells the Colossians aboutChrist, that “in him the whole fulness of deity
dwells bodily” (Cols.2:9).
In other words I am telling you that the man speaking these words here in
Luke 16 possessesby right all the names and titles of God. He is equal to God

himself; he is Jehovah Jesus, ElohimJesus, ElShaddai Jesus, Jesus Tzidkenu,
that he has all the prerogatives ofGod, to create and sustain and save and
resurrectand judge. He has all the authority and competence ofGod. Then we
are told that he became flesh. In other words, the secondperson of the
Godhead, the Sonof Godadded flesh to his deity whilst not ceasing to be
divine. It was a real addition and a realtransformation. The Creatorbecame
created;the Omnipotent became weak;the Sustainer of all things became
dependent; the Changeless changed;the Eternal one entered time and became
subject to it. He became a true man begottenby the Holy Spirit in the womb
of the virgin Mary, and hence having the larynx of a normal healthy man,
with a man’s tongue and lips. He could form words, and breathe and speak in
sentences withmeaning, and communicate to his hearers and also to God
exactly what he wanted to be heard. He had also been filled with the Holy
Spirit as he beganhis ministry, and his Father saidabout him that he was well
pleasedwith his Son. In other words, everything he said was endorsedwith
the additional authority of his Father and that of the Holy Spirit.
So these words of Jesus are inspired words, and true words, and powerful
words, and they must be helpful words intended for us to understand and
obey. All the authority of God lies behind Jesus’words. To be ashamedof
anything Jesus saidis to forfeit any hope of God’s blessing on your life. The
Lord Christ knows so much more than you and me. He knows his heavenly
Father better; he knows the ugliness of sin better; he know what contentment
without God deserves;he knows the state of the hearts of men; he knows what
takes place afterdeath; he knows everything about heaven and everything
about hell. So whateverhe says is worth weighing and taking on board. So we
will try to explain, “What are the implications of these words of Jesus for
me?” Those were my words of introduction.
IS IT NOT FOLLY TO GAIN THE WHOLE WORLD BUT LOSE YOUR
OWN SOUL?

Our Saviour told this parable of two very different men, one who never
achievedanything in life and yet went to heaven; another had everything this
world could offer and yet went to hell. That is the theme of this story, and it
majors on the fate of the wealthy man. We are told a bare minimum about the
poor man. We are told his name. He was a man with an identity, a real man,
not a symbolic man. It was a common enoughname. The brother of Mary and
Martha in John’s gospel, whomJesus raisedfrom the dead, also bore this
same name, Lazarus. We are also told that he had to beg in order to survive.
His pitch was outside a rich man’s house;he was so ill that he was coveredin
sores;he was so weak he could not drive off the dogs that came to him
growling and licking his sores. But we are told that when he died angels came
and escortedhis soul to heaven to the side of Abraham. That is all we know
today of the poor man. We are not told how he became poorand sick. We are
not told how he became a believer in the Lord.
All that is incidental to the messagethat you all need to lay to your hearts,
which is that it is possible for you in your lifetime to lose everything, your
possessionsand family and home and friends and health, living in the gutter,
begging in order to survive, and yet when you die you may enter the glories of
heaven for ever. You do not have to make it in the eyes of the world in order
to live with God for evermore. That is what Jesus Christthe Son of God is
saying. He turns the health and wealthgospelon its head. The beggarwho
possessednothing went to heavenwhile the lottery winner went to hell. You
may mock hell; you may believe this, that after death you are simply
annihilated, that those who had nothing in life will getless than nothing in
death. Once they had life at least, you see, but now they have non-existence.
They have been snuffed out. Rich men, of course, will also be snuffed out but
they, you believe, have at leastbeen dressedin purple and fine linen and have
lived in luxury every single day of their lives like the man Jesus spoke of
(v.19). They have lackednothing whatsoever. So the non-Christian message to
those who will listen to them is to getall you can while you can because the
day will sooncome when you are left with less than nothing, not even having
the memory of what you once had or once loved. You will simply ceaseto be.
So in their judgment the rich man is to be our role model. Getas much as you

can by any means you can because there is absolutely nothing when this life is
over. That is what this rich man did and millions like him today. That
philosophy lay behind the actions of the looters of last month. They were not
all from the unemployed destitute underclass. There were university
graduates and private schoolpeople who stole what they could because this is
the only life there is and no judgment lies before us, so we will get as many
toys as we cantoday, by any means.
The Son of God, in this parable of his, is telling us something very different,
that a man who lackedfor nothing in this life went to hell in the life to come.
Now we are told specificallywhy he went there, and this is the reasonfor his
condemnation, that though the word of God told him how he should live, and
what he and all men must do to get to heaven, this millionaire had refusedto
listen to God’s word. Abraham in heaven tells the wealthy man in hell of the
privilege that men possesswhenthey have in their hands the Word of God –
they have it in their community, and in their history, and in their hearing, but
that privilege Mr. Rich Man had disdained. Abraham said to him, “They have
Moses andthe Prophets;let them listen to them” (v.29). “Hear the Word of
God!” He is saying. He refused to do this and so he ended his brief existence in
this world by going to hell in the world to come. In fact the Lord Christ tells
us clearly that this wealthy unbeliever spent his eternity in hell in torment
(v.23), without God, because he had rejectedthe God of the Bible and lived
only to please himself. He had gained the whole world but he had lost his own
soul.
Our Lord was transparently clearin what he taught. He wanted everyone to
know what was his messagefrom God. He told this truth in the form of a
parable in order to make its truthfulness more vivid bringing it to bear
particularly on our emotions. Once C.H. Spurgeon was preaching on the
words of our Lord in Matthew 8, verses 11 and 12, “I say to you that many
will come from the eastand the west, and will take their places atthe feast
with Abraham, Isaac and Jacobin the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of

the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth” and in the sermon Spurgeon quoted a
minister who told his congregation, “Ifyou do not love the Lord Jesus Christ
you will be sent to that place which it is not polite to mention.” Then Spurgeon
gives us his opinion of that preacher:“He ought not to have been allowedto
preach again, I am sure, if he could not use plain words. Now, if I saw that
house on fire over there, do you think I would stand and say, ‘I believe the
operationof combustion is proceeding yonder’? No, I would call out, ‘Fire!
Fire!’ and then everybody would know what I meant. So, if the Bible says, ‘the
subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there
will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’ am I to stand here and mince the
matter at all? Godforbid. We must speak the truth as it is written. It is a
terrible truth, for it says ‘the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside’
(C. H. Spurgeon, New Park StreetPulpit [Banner of Truth, 1963], vol.1
(1855), p.306.)Whata misjudgment of catastrophic proportions, to gain the
whole world but to lose your own soul.
WE ARE NOT MISREPRESENTING JESUS.
If Jesus gothis beliefs about hell wrong then it is an error of immense
proportions. It is either something that he believed but which we feelwas
false, or it is the most ugly of scare tactics. In other words, Jesus was
frightening people through lies to turn and believe on him as Saviour. He was
causing anguish to the whole human race, to everyone who witnessesa loved
one dying and rejecting God, when in fact we are being encouragedto believe
today that everybody is going to go to the same place when he dies irrespective
of how he has lived and what he believes. The truth, our opponents believe, is
the very opposite of what Jesus is saying here. So either Jesus himself got it
colossallywrong and thus he is not infallible; you cannot rely on him utterly,
and he is not God, or that Jesus knew that hell did not exist but still used the
teaching to make people afraid in order to turn to him as their Saviour from a
non-existent hell. If that were the case Jesus is unworthy of our trust as a

deeply flawedman. So one of the foundations of Christologyis the
truthfulness of what Jesus saidof hell.
You understand what I am saying? It is a dangerous thing to meddle with the
theologyof the Bible, to pick and mix what teachings ofJesus you are going to
receive and which ones you are going to reject, because immediately you do
that you have setyourself up over Christ. You are the Lord, and not him. You
are the judge of him and not he of you. You’re claiming to be more loving
than the incarnate love which is Christ. I am showing you that all the
teachings of the Bible are inter-related and if you remove some of them the
whole of the faith is affected. If you should cut out a portion of a ball like
removing a slice of an orange then you do not have a different ball or a
smaller ball. You no longerhave a ball. If you should remove a square inch
from the bottom of a rowing boat then you have not made a different boat or
a slightly lighter boat but you have made that whole boat unusable. To deny
one doctrine of Scripture is to imperil the rest. The theologyof the Bible has
been constructedlike an arch in which all the greattruths are key-stones.
When you remove one truth then the remainder falls. If you mock and claim
that Jesus is wrong, that men won’t perish, then you have taken something
central from John 3 verse 16 which tells us that the giving of the Sonof God
was made by God the Fatherin order that men might not perish. Why should
the Sonof Godhave to die the accurseddeathof the cross if none is going to
be lost in hell? Why the anathema, the agonyand bloody sweatofGod if all
are going to get to heaven anyway?
Yet there are many who believe that. There are even many ministers in the
professing church who believe that. There is a certain Klaas Hendrikse of
Gorinchem in central Holland who does not even believe that there is life after
death. Though his church services have readings and hymns his messageis
always, “Makethe most of life on earth because it will probably be the only
one you get.” His hero is not the beggaror even the Lord Jesus, but the rich
man dressedin purple and fine linen and living in luxury every day. Way to

go! How different is Jesus!Is there any way that this parable canbe explained
awayso that it teaches something else, something diametrically opposite to its
plain meaning? To discoverthat it is teaching that there is no hell? The great
word today is ‘hermeneutics’ the right principle of biblical interpretation,
knowing what is poetry and what is hyperbole and so on. I like good
hermeneutics. My son-in-law teaches hermeneutics in a Bible school, but when
I read these words of Jesus I do not find poetry!
i] Could there be any justification for the suggestionthatthis parable is a ‘one
off’ on the lips of Jesus, thatwe canscarcelyfind another reference to hell in
his teaching, and this parable was not written by him but an idiot thirty years
later and God allowedit to be placed in the gospel? Is that true? There is no
evidence for that at all. Could this parable merely be an extended hyperbole
intended as a warning to the wealthy not to ignore their duty to the poor? I
affirm that that is not the case. Jesus oftenspoke ofthe place of woe;he said,
“And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul, but
rather fear him which is able to destroy both souland body in hell” (Matt.
10:28). Again, he warned, “if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for
thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the
fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dieth not, and the fire is
not quenched” (Mark 9:43&44). There were others of his parables besides the
rich man and Lazarus where there are warnings of hell. The parable of the
wheatand tares concludes like this: “The Sonof man shall send forth his
angels, and they shall gatherout of his kingdom all things that offend, and
them which do iniquity; and shall castthem into a furnace of fire: there shall
be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 13:41&42);and in the parable
immediately following it, our Lord warns: “So shall it be at the end of the
world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wickedfrom among the just,
and shall castthem into the furnace of fire” (Matt. 13:49&50). WhenJesus
spoke about the Day of Judgment and the greatseparationwe read, “Then he
will sayto those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the
eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels’” (Matt. 25:41).

Even in the gospelof John there is no escape from Jesus’warnings. As he
looks forwardto the generalresurrectionof the dead, the Saviour declared,
“the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life;
and they that have done evil, unto the resurrectionof damnation” (John
5:28&29). Once he answeredpeople who had been disturbed by certain
tragedies telling them plainly, “Exceptyou repent, you shall all likewise
perish” (Luke 13:3-5).
So there is no way that we can make this parable of the rich man and Lazarus
some kind of one off, uncharacteristic of Jesus’teaching as a whole, something
out of keeping with the Sermon on the Mount and the profound discourses of
John’s gospel. In his greatprayer at the end of his life recordedin John 17 he
speaks to his Father in heaven about his apostles andhe says that, “they have
obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes
from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they acceptedthem”
(Jn. 17:6-8). So the Lord Jesus was convincedthat everything he said was
supported by all the authority of the God of truth, the mighty Creatorof the
heavens and the earth.
So, our Lord did not shrink from emphasizing hell in his ministry; in fact, he
frequently used parables and vivid imagery and symbolism to convey to his
listeners’thinking and feelings a sense ofits awfulness. Whatemphasis am I
giving to hell in my ministry? How frequently have I preached on this
subject? I fear that I have not spokenenough about it. I really do, to my
shame. Is that because I have unconsciouslyfelt that people would stop
coming here if I preachedwhat the Lord Jesus preached? Suchthinking has
emptied and destroyedthe churches of Europe in the past century and a half.
To refer to hell briefly or just occasionally, orto talk about it in vague terms,
is inadequate, for there is much biblical material on hell and it must be
preachedif we are to declare the whole counselof God. Am I seeking to do
this, or do I shy awayfrom preaching hell? Have you ever said to me, “It’s

been quite some time pastor, since we all heard a sermonon the last things,
judgment and hell. Don’t neglectthis.” A congregationshould saythings like
that to its pastor if it is true because sometimes a pastorcan have a blind spot.
Jesus spoke onhell to his disciples to strengthentheir battle with remaining
sin and with the seductionof the world.
Jesus nevermade jokes abouthell. Our Lord preachedthis truth as all other
truths with authority. There was nothing he needed to apologize for in turning
to this theme, and nothing diffident, and nothing uncertain in his
proclamation of judgment and hell. He doesn’t reminisce with his Fatherin
heaven at this moment, and he’s not saying, “Abba Father, you know I just
have one regretabout my preaching in Galilee and Jerusalem, that I preached
so much about hell. There was an imbalance in my ministry, and I am sorry
about that.” No, there is nothing at all like that. Jesus was referring to
something that needed to be spokenof with exactlythe emphasis that he gave
to the place of woe as true, certainand awful. Could it be said of me that I
have been as straight with you all as Jesus was with us all? One verse that
impacted John Bunyan’s preaching ministry is found in Revelation21 and the
fifth verse. He was rather diffident in his preaching; there was an element of
authority absent from his preaching, and then he read these words in
Revelation21, “he that sat upon the throne said . . .” Bunyan was made more
aware than earlier that the message he had been given to speak to men came
from the throne of the universe so that he was never mealy-mouthed in his
preaching subsequently but clearand forcefuland authoritative. I must be
like Bunyan. You must know this passage ofScripture before us in Luke 16,
how important it is, and what is your duty to respond to it.
ii] Could there be justification for the claim that in this parable Jesus is
contradicting his own exhortation that we should not judge others lest we be
judged ourselves? Itis in the Sermon on the Mount that Christ says, “Do not
judge, or you too will be judged” (Matt.7:1). That is true, but our Lord is
speaking there of dismissive judgments, and derisory judgments, and

censorious judgments, and self-righteous judgments that are all so ugly. But
he is not dismissing the need of evaluation, and assessment, and
thoughtfulness; he is not commending gullibility. He himself in the Sermon on
the Mount warns us to watch out for false prophets, for wolves in sheep’s
clothing. Make judgments, Jesus is pleading. At the end of history our Lord
shall return. We don’t know just how or when he will come. But we do know
he is coming. We also know two things that will happen. One will be the
resurrectionof our bodies. The other will be the last judgment. The
resurrectionwill not be in order for men to go on behaving in cruelty and
deceitjust as they behaved during their lifetimes. They will be raisedin order
to be judged for the deeds they themselves have done in their bodies.
What is a judgment? A judgment is a settledconclusionthat a thing is goodor
bad, or that an actis right or wrong. In some cases, as we know, persons
themselves are judged to be right or wrong, goodor bad, guilty or innocent.
Of course, we think at once of courts. A man or woman wearing a robe enters
a courtroom and mounts the bench, this person, when no jury is present,
makes judgments of guilt or innocence. He has the powerto find you guilty of
driving a carwithout insurance, or of looting a shop, or abusing your wife.
Other people make judgments too. A doctor makes a judgment about your
health. Teachers judge whether your mathematics answeris right or wrong or
whether your performance in your history finals is worthy of a first class
honours degree. Eisteddfodjudges determine who played an instrument best
or which choir sang most sympathetically and sweetly, whatpoem was
consideredworthy of obtaining a chair or a crown. Um-pires judge whether a
batsman was ‘L.B.W.’, leg before wicket.
You yourself make judgments every day. You judge safe distances ona bike.
You judge whether clothing fits you or whether it’s appropriate for a wedding
or funeral. You determine what books and music are pleasantand which
friends are best. A judgment is a determination, or an assessmentof some
actionor objector person. We deal with judgments all the time.

The trouble is that human judgments are flawed. Sometimes they are plainly
wrong or even wicked. More oftenthey are partly slanted by our own
prejudices. Mostcourtroom judges, for example, are honest and wise, but a
few canbe bribed to help criminals go scotfree. Mostteachers are skillful and
caring, but a poor teachermight have it in for you just because he or she
didn’t like your father the preacher. Eisteddfod judges can be prejudiced.
Refereessome-times needa visit to an optician. You and I will make wrong
judgments about distances, clothing, friends, books, and music.
The Bible says that as we live in a moral universe, a cosmos which lives and
moves and has its being in God its Creatorand Sustainer, and as all men and
women are made in the image and likeness ofGod then at the end of history
there has to be a perfect judg-ment, a last judgment, a final judgment. All
those who are then raisedfrom the dead, plus those who are still alive at the
secondcoming—billions of people—will be judged. The killer and the torturer
and the rapist and the tyrant are not going to get awaywith what they have
done. They will be sinners in the hands of an angry God. The judges in that
day will be Jesus Christ and God the Father. The God of the universe and the
King of history will judge. This time there will be no slip-ups, no bribes, no
prejudices, no slantedjudgments. All the facts will be brought into
consideration. There is no way anyone canbluff his way into heaven. The
richest personin the world cannot influence God by his money or rank. The
most charming of men can’t hoodwink Jesus Christ. In that final, perfect
judgment the loose ends of the world will be tied up and both the friends and
the enemies of Jesus Christwill be exposed. The sheertruth of all history will
be publicly revealed.
The Bible makes one thing clear: all people will stand before God having
receivedgoodthings personallyfrom him during their lifetime (v.25). They
will stand before him as debtors to his kindness and patience. They will stand
before him having had the Word of God in some form and to some extent; the

heavens will have been declaring to them the glory of God eachday; their
conscienceswill have been bearing witnessing to them eachday; many of them
will know of Jesus Christ and his love. Have they listened to the voice of God
in creationand in conscienceand in Moses andthe prophets? Was there
thoughtfulness towards a man in need who lived on the pavement outside
their front door? Or has there been half-heartedness, selfishness, meanness,
cruelty, and dishonesty? It will all count for evil, especiallywhendone to the
least, the poorest, the most vulnerable. Of course, we are not going to be saved
by our goodworks. We are saved by grace and through faith in what Jesus
Christ has done for guilty sinners. But we are to be evaluatedaccording to
works. Forworks are the evidence of our faith. What we believe shows itself
in our priorities and actions through our lives. People sometimes have more
faith than they think they have. Their works show this, and sometimes people
have less faith than they think. Their lack of works shows this. In other words,
we acknowledgethat we expect surprises at the lastjudgment. So there is no
reasonto think that in this parable Jesus is repudiating what he saidin the
Sermon on the Mount not to dismiss and condemn people in some self-
righteous way.
Let me close:I once askedProfessorJohnMurray how long he had known his
wife Valerie before he married her. He hung his head and said quietly, “To
my shame, thirteen years.” He felt the guilt of neglecting Valerie and robbing
them both of the joy they might have had in marrying many years earlier. I
am saying to you that you should not neglectso greatsalvationin so greata
Saviour. ProfessorMurray had developeda side-stepwhen he talkedwith
every woman that he might not compromise her or himself, and that became
automatic and thoughtless, to his hurt. So it is with you and the salvationthat
is in Christ. There is the Bible but you side-stepit. There is the testimony of
those who love you and would see you saved, but you unthinkingly side-stepit.
There is the preaching of Jesus Christ in the free offer of the gospel, but you
automatically side step it. There is the issue of your soul and the Godyou
must meet so soon, and you thoughtlesslyside step it. There are my warnings
of hell, and you side step them without a shrug as my opinion because you’ve
always done it. Your attitudes have become actions, and your actions have

become habits, and your habits have become your character. You need to be
born again– born from above. Pleaseconsiderand think of what Jesus Christ
said. What will it profit a man if he gain the whole world and loses his own
soul and loses it in a place like hell?
Justice will stand before you one day as you approach the throne of God. The
Father will say to the Son, “Here is another who spurned a father’s prayers
and hardened himself againsta mother’s tears. He had no desire for Moses
and the prophets.” Now what is the future of this man? Not the hope of
annihilation – as fearful as that is. Imagine that the best you can experience is
non-existence, but that is not for you. It is to become a companion of the rich
man for ever, to be where he is. I say that only if what Jesus Christsays is
true. I have no other grounds for making a statement like this unless Jesus
Christ is the way, the truth, and the life and that no man comes to the
Father’s heart and love exceptby what the Lamb of God has done for us. This
is what God the Sonhas said. And so let us not neglectwhat we have heard
this day. Let us lay these truths to our hearts. Let us cry mightily to God that
he will enable us to believe them, and to appropriate Jesus Christthe
deliverer from hell as our greatdeliverer. Let us give God no rest until we
know that we are safe. How shall we escape if we neglectso greata salvation?
One day the day of grace will be over and you, unprotected, and without a
Mediator, you must face your neglectedCreator. Pleasebe ready. Please find
this Christ who is willing and able to save you as your Saviour today and
receive him into your heart as your eternalLord. There was once a Welsh
woman who was very poor but she had true wisdom, for she said againand
againto anyone who would listen to her, “Jesus and I exactlysuit one another,
for I have nothing and he has everything.” Lazarus had nothing; but Lazarus
had it all from Christ. The rich man had once had everything for a brief life,
but now the rich man has worse than nothing for ever.
4th September2011 GEOFF THOMAS

16:22-26 The Rich Man and Lazarus 2
Previous Next
Luke 16:22-26 “The time came when the beggardied and the angels carried
him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where
he was in torment, he lookedup and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by
his side. So he calledto him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send
Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and coolmy tongue, because I am
in agony in this fire.’ But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your
lifetime you receivedyour goodthings, while Lazarus receivedbad things, but
now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between
us and you a greatchasmhas been fixed, so that those who want to go from
here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross overfrom there to us.’”
Our conviction and premise when we read these words is that the man who
spoke them is the most loving personthis world has ever known, and that he
tells this history to you now because he loves you personally. He is also
JehovahJesus the one true and living God. The messageofthis incident is that
it is utter folly to have gained the whole world but to have lost your own soul.
It is possible never to achieve anything in life and end up sleeping on the
street, a sick beggarlickedby mongrels, glad of the crumbs that fall from
another’s table, and yet to end in heaven. While it is equally possible to have
everything that this world has to offer, live in luxury and yet end up in hell.
We believe that such a plain reading of this parable is the only legitimate
understanding of it. You sayit is too simple, but we are simple people. The
fact is that Jesus oftenspoke of hell; the most solemn utterances about it fell
from his lips; he wept over a city that rejectedhis teaching. The truth of the
reality of hell may not be removed from the Bible. If it is then many other
Christian teachings are affectedand you have a different Christianity. In no
way does it contradictJesus’own exhortation not to judge others. By that he

was speaking ofcensorious self-righteous judgments. He was not warning us
about evaluating what we hear and being thoughtful and weighing up claims
and offers we meet. We have to make judgments of what we see and hear
every day, but we are conscious that they are not infallibly perfect
assessments. However, we ultimately to face the final judgment, the last
judgment, God’s ownjudgment of every life which he has been sustaining and
evaluating for we have lived and moved and had our being in him. The
outcome of that judgment is either guilty or not guilty; it is either heaven or
hell; it is either for Christ or againsthim. The beggarwas justified and went
to Abraham’s bosom while the rich man went to hell.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE RICH MAN?
There are three clearemphases in the New Testament, all of which come from
Jesus Christ.
i] What the rich man was deprived of in hell. All that was humane and loving
and familiar was his no longer. He had five brothers and some affectionfor
them, but they were with him no longerand he had no desire for them to be
with him in hell. Was that merely because they would have made things worse
for him there? A theologianfriend of mine has expressedhis conviction that
all that reflects the image of God in man will not be found in the people in
hell. In other words, “whateveris true, whatever is noble, whateveris right,
whateveris pure, whateveris lovely, whateveris admirable – if anything is
excellentor praiseworthy” (Phils. 4:8) then it could not be anywhere in hell in
the rich man or anyone else. Those virtues will not be found in hell. So the
people in hell will not be the same people you’ve known and loved and
admired in this life. It is a state of being shut out from all God’s goodness. The
picture Jesus usedwhen he spoke of it was ‘outer darkness.’It is being absent
from a bright city of light and bustle and holy energy. It is being absent from
a magnificent feast. The door is closedto prevent you sharing in that

celebration. Hell is to be shut out from all joy, and community, and life. It is
characterizedby tears;it is simply a place of relentless sorrow, oftotal
unalleviated distress, the wailing and sobs of hell.
The Lord Christ has one particular graphic image of hell. He describes the
inhabitants as ‘gnashing their teeth.’ The Bible itself explains the meaning. A
man calledStephen was the first Christian martyr. His story is recordedfor
us in the New Testamentin chapters 6 and 7 of the book of Acts. He was a
bold witness for Christ with a greatintellectual gift.
Stephen had brought such a powerfully convicting message to the Jerusalem
authorities who were opposing Christianity and had so refuted all their
arguments and proved his case thatwe read, “When they heard this, they
were furious and gnashedtheir teeth at him” (Acts 7:54). They hated him so
much that they went on to stone him to death. They couldn’t speak because
they were bursting with so much fury. All they could do was gnashtheir teeth.
In hell are people who have been at enmity againstGod all their lives. When
they had a chance of killing Jesus of Nazareththey found the most fiendish
lingering way of torturing him to death that one could imagine. Death has
changednothing in these men and women. What was contempt for God
beforehand when they walkedthis earth is contempt still. Hatred before is
hatred still, and now they show it by gnashing their teeth againsthim. In
bitter anger men and women grind their teeth. They are in such a depth of
fury towards God that is impossible to express in words. So the rich man was
deprived of all that was true and goodand lovely.
ii] How the rich man was punished in hell. We are told that “In hell . . . he was
in torment” (v.23). He says himself, “I am in agonyin this fire” (v.24). This is
how Jesus reportedthe rich man’s condition. To the south of Jerusalemin
Bible times there was a valley calledthe valley of Hinnom, or in the Greek
Gehenna. At one time it had been associatedwith the worship of the pagan

god calledMolech, to whom children were sacrificed. But there’d been a true
religious awakening under the Old Testamentking Josiah, and it had led to
that idol shrine being smashedto pieces. But the reputation of the place lived
on and the valley was made into the sewagepit of Jerusalem. Deadanimals,
the corpses ofcriminals and every-thing that was countedas rubbish were
thrown into the valley and set on fire. The fire there just burned continually, a
pall of stinking smoke hung over the place. So the valley became a symbol in
common speechfor hell.
Jesus endorsedthat image. He himself used it as a picture of what hell is like,
a place of ceaselessunquenchable fire. Jesus nevertired of correcting the
misconceptions ofhis day. One only has to recallthat repeatedrefrain from
the lips of Jesus in the Sermonon the Mount: ‘You have heard that it was said
. . . but I tell you . . . .’ He was anxious to sort out people’s fancies and errors
and prejudices. Yet Jesus neversaid, “You have heard people talking of the
fires of hell, but I say unto you it is not like that at all . . .” Ratherhe
confirmed the idea of eternal fire. In other words, he saw the consequencesof
sin as terrifying.
He saw sin as leading people to this place of indescribable torment and agony,
and so he told us of the rich man and Lazarus. He was shockinglyurgent and
direct in his warnings. He said, “Woe to the world because ofthe things that
cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through
whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes youto sin, cut it off and
throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to
have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternalfire. And if your eye
causes youto sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter
life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell”
(Matthew 18:7-9). Jesus wasn’ttalking about mutilating yourself, but he was
using this strong language to drive home the fact that hell is such a
horrendous and unthinkable destiny that we should spare nothing to avoid the
rebellion and indifference to Jesus Christ that takes people there.

The rich man said, “I am in agony in this fire” (v.24), and we are asked, ‘Are
these things to be takenliterally? Are we to think of literal fire and literal
darkness?’Generallywe saythat it isn’t wise to make a guess whenScripture
is not explicit. We know that the fire is “prepared for the devil and his angels”
(Matt. 25:41). They are spirits and so the fire must be something more than
physical fire, but because it is in part picture language, it does not mean that
we can read the words without feeling apprehensive. Let no one here think
that the fire is only symbolical and so not very terrible. Rather think this, that
if the symbol, the mere picture of fire, is already awe-inspiring and fearful,
how horrific must the actual reality be. Whatever is clearfrom the history of
the rich man and Lazarus, it is that Jesus doesn’twant us to toy with the
possibility that hell might be bearable. It was unbearable to the rich man. He
who had lackednothing in his life was now begging for a single drop of water
to fall on his tongue to coolit. His tongue burned with heat. The mere symbol
of something is never greaterthan the thing itself. The reality itself is always
greater.
iii] Hell is a place of disintegration. The rich man cansee things getting worse.
Should his own brothers arrive there, it would be worse for him. It can never
get better. He can never think “Tomorrow will be different.” How did Jesus
make that vivid? By saying, “the worm does not die there.” Our Lord is
actually quoting from the prophet Isaiah. He is describing constant
dissolution. Hell is a place where people disintegrate and personalities
disintegrate. Think of a sleepless night as you toss and turn with worry. You
can’t think of anything else, and you can’t stop worrying about this. No rest.
No acceptance.No peace. No coming to terms with it at all. The worm doesn’t
die and stop its gnawing awayat you; you face eternaldisintegration. So that
is what happened to the rich man in hell.
IS HELL FOR EVER?

Will hell ever end? Will there ever be a time when those there will be freed
from it? Abraham speaks to the rich man and tells him, “Son, remember that
in your lifetime you receivedyour goodthings, while Lazarus receivedbad
things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all
this, betweenus and you a greatchasm has been fixed, so that those who want
to go from here to you cannot, nor cananyone cross overfrom there to us.’”
(vv.25&26). A greatgulf has been fixed betweenheaven and hell. It has been
fixed by God himself, and the result is no one may leave either place, ever, and
no one wants to. The rich man in hell does not say, “I long to be in glory with
the Lord.” He did not say that when he was on earth and he does not say it in
hell. The torment there has not removed his hatred of God. It has given him
no longing for God. He wants the agonyto be alleviated, that is all. He does
not want Jesus and heaven, but he cannot getthere, and those in heaven never
want to leave that blessedness.So will hell ever end? Three points:-
i] Jesus spoke ofboth heaven and hell as the final states ofmen and women.
He gave no indication that hell was temporary, or that there was another state
after hell of non-existence achievedby annihilation.
ii] Jesus spoke plainly of the ‘eternity’ of the punishment and eternal fire. He
used the word ‘eternal’; he chose that word. Eternal does not mean
temporary; it means for ever. It is sometimes arguedthat the New Testament
word ‘eternal,’ has more to do with the quality of life than the duration of life.
Of course it also embraces quality, yes, but its primary meaning is duration.
Any Greek lexiconconfirms this; the Arndt-Gingrich Lexicon records just
three meanings of the word ‘eternal.’It means ‘without beginning,’ or
‘without end’ or ‘without beginning or end.’ I’m saying that its fundamental
meaning concerns duration. The connotationof endless conscious anguish
can’t be avoided.

iii] Jesus spoke ofboth heaven and hell as being eternal. At the end of the
parable of the sheepand the goats, Jesus tells us of the rebels, “Then they will
go away to eternalpunishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matt. 25:36).
There is an exactbifurcation of destinies. They are there in parallel. The same
word ‘eternal’ is used to describe both heavenand hell. If we take the position
that hell is capable of termination then, to be consistent, we must believe that
the same could be true of heaven also, but, from the rest of the Bible, that is
plainly not the case. Heavenis for ever; we are bound to the plain meaning of
the word ‘eternal.’ Hell is as eternala state as heaven.
3. HOW CAN THE FATHER OF JESUS CHRIST SEND SINNERS TO
HELL?
[In this sectionI’ve had help from Paul Helm’s The Last Things, (Banner of
Truth)].
We are askedhow can a just and loving God send anyone to an eternity in
hell? In other words the personasking that question assumes that love is the
dominant characteristic orattribute of God, and that God’s love is
overwhelming, that it is the only characteristic ofGod that matters, so that
every other attribute of God may safelybe ignored. So, they think, if love –
pure benevolence – is what God is (‘love is all you need’ sang the Beatles) –
then how can there be anyone in hell? Exactly, if God were pure benevolence.
But God is not only benevolence, not if the Christian gospelis true. We may
wish that he were only benevol-ence;we may long that God were another sort
of God, but when we see who Godis in Scripture he is not only benevolence.
And wishing he were, and imagining he were, and longing that he might be
only love is not going to change the characterof God one iota. What is the
rational approachto thinking about God and judgment and eternity? How is
the thinking man to respond? More, what is the man who worships Jesus
Christ as the true man, and the wise Messiah, and the incarnate Godto think
of judgment and hell? Surely he must adjust his thinking to the facts. They

may be unpalatable facts, and unpleasant facts, but they claim to be a
revelation of the only God there is, and he is love, yes, praise God, but he is
also light and in him is no darkness at all, and he is a consuming fire, and his
wrath is revealedfrom heavenagainstall ungodliness and unrighteousness of
men. To bring that into considerationis to think like a Christian, and to think
in the light of Scripture. Not to think like that is to indulge in religious make-
believe.
Men and women, what I am saying to you is central to an understanding and
an acceptance ofwhat the Bible says, and what the fate of these two men in
Luke 16 describedby our Lord is saying, and what the Christian church has
taught and confessedabouthell. If God is supremely just, and just in a sense
which is recognizable as just by his human creatures, and if hell exists, and
exists because it is ordained by God, then hell must be just. If hell is where one
callous rich man receivedhis deserts at the hand of God, then those deserts
were just. For hell is not a place of corruption; it is not a diabolicalsociety;it
is not a community out of God’s reach. Hell is where corruption is
impeccably punished, and punished according to strict justice. God had
reigned over this rich man during his life as he reigns over the whole world
and all of you today. He gave this rich man every goodand perfect gift, and all
the extra luxuries that this man knew, hour after hour, day after day, because
he lived and moved and had his being in God. Every day God blessedhim and
God spoke to him through the creationaround him and through his
conscience. He warned him when he drove out of his gate in his chariot and
turned his face awayfrom the outstretchedarms of the poor man. The rich
man defied God and was content to live his life without God in a totally selfish
way. Now the God who during his lifetime reigned over him and decreedwhat
day by day would happen to him is continuing to reign over this man in hell,
but now he has takenhis toys away. Nothing that is not in accordancewith the
strictestjustice is permitted to enter hell, or to take place in hell. Please
understand that hell is not a place of demonic anarchy where the devil and his
legions do what they like to sinners. That is the cartoonworld of red devils
with horns and scales andtails holding tripod spears. Hell may be a place of
pain, but it is not a place of defiance or resistance.It is not a demonic colony

which has gained unilateral independence from God. It is under the authority
of Abraham, that is, under the authority of the God of Abraham. The rich
man has to address Abraham and listen to what Abraham’s responses are,
and that is it. There is in hell a full recognitionof God’s justice. In hell God’s
characteris vindicated, and hence glorified, even by those who in this life have
defied him and who suffer for it.
God reigns over hell as he reigns over heaven, and so we can be satisfiedthat
whateverhappens in hell is just and scrupulously fair. No-one may complain
about hell from this world; no-one may complain about what is happening in
hell from heaven, and no one may complain in hell that what is happening
there is unrighteous. The people in hell hate God still but they don’t saythat
what is happening there is unjust.
It may be difficult to you to believe that what happened to the rich man was
just. This is because youhave preconcep-tions, and anticipations of what hell
must be like, most of them drawn from fiction or drawn from your own
imagination. But Jesus Christhimself, the wisestand the most loving man that
the world has seen, he who is the incarnate God, is telling us of these two men,
the rich man and Lazarus the beggar. He is doing so because he wants to save
you from enter-taining fanciful and erroneous preconceptions as to what hell
is or is not like, and who will be there. That is not obvious. There will be
surprises; men will cry out, “But Lord, Lord . . .” but we will see the perfect
justice of God and we will adore. Nothing ought to be judged before the time
(I Cor. 4:5) and in any event it is not we who are the judges;God is the Judge
(I Cor. 4:4). But Scripture says that many that are first will be last, and the
last will be first. Many will be shockedby the divine verdict; the self-confident
will be overturned, while those whose confidence is only in Christ will be
vindicated and delivered.

So how can God consignunbelieving rebel sinners to hell? Becauseonly the
God before whom the angels hide their eyes and cry, “Holy, holy, holy!” – he
alone knows what sin is, and what sin deserves. Hellis a place of divine
justice, where divine punishment is dispensed not in accordancewith the
warped and partial and ignorant procedures of human society, but
immacul-ately, in accordancewith the standards of him who is supremely
just. There will be no cause for complaint. Every factorwill be brought into
consideration;every mouth will be stopped, not forcibly but by the
recognitionof the justice of the proceedings. And every tongue will confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord (Phil. 2:11), even the tongues of those who are justly
condemned in hell. But there is another objectionthat we hear . . .
IF SALVATION IS BY GRACE WHY SHOULD ANYONE GO TO HELL?
If God actually secures salvationfor sinners through the work of the Son and
the Spirit, why doesn’t God so arrange things that none is lost? Why should
any be lost, if Godcould save all? There is no answerto this question. There is
no explanation in the Bible. This is one of the secretthings that belong to God.
Scripture is silent about this. All we have in the Bible is the affirmation of the
sovereigntyof God – “Even so Fatherfor so it seemedgoodin they sight.” If
you press questions like that long enough and far enough, you come down to
the matter of the nature of God himself, his ultimate will and purposes. It’s
children who ask such questions:Why is there a universe at all? Why is there
a universe like this? Why are there preciselythe numbers of people that there
are? Why is sin allowed? Why is salvationprovided for sinners? Why is the
Christian message made knownextensively in some places and some eras and
not in others?
To all such questions the only possible answer, and the only satisfactory
answer, is that this is God’s universe, and he has willed it in this way. The
reasons why things are as they are concerning those questions are secret

things that belong to God. Who are you dealing with? Who are you
interrogating? You are face to face with the divine sovereignty, and there is no
avoiding it.
We know this, that this sovereignLord is not whimsical or caprici-ous in
anything he does, but all he does he does for a goodpurpose, and in
accordancewith the holiness and goodness ofhis character. I say that we do
not know what the reasonis why every single persondoesn’t go to heaven
because it has not been disclosedto us.
One thing we certainly know, and it is that what the rich man had to suffer in
hell – the endurance of everlasting punishment for sin – was in no waythe
triumph of evil. People say, “Look atthat rich man with his evil nature,
unregenerated, untransformed, self-centred, God-hating, and remaining like
that for all time. This universe at the beginning was not like that. It was
createdall-good, but because ofhell it will remain for ever less than all good;
it will contain evil people. So evil has triumphed.”
Is hell the triumph of evil? There are two reasons for thinking that it is not.
One is that while there is pain in hell (and pain is in some sense anevil), the
pain of hell is deservedpain. It is penal pain. If pain per se is an evil, then hell
is the triumph of evil. But if, on the other hand, hell is a just place, because
none suffer there exceptthose who deserve to suffer, and none suffer more,
nor less, than they deserve, then hell is not evil. Furthermore, from the point
of view of the original creation, and looked at in isolation, hell may be an
anomaly. Of course the Creatordetermined to create an all-gooduniverse,
and he did so. Hell is the final culmination of the sinful departure of creatures
from the original order of things, but hell is not an anomaly from the point of
view of God’s purpose or decree. Forit was God’s nature to punish sin in hell.
It is required by God’s holiness, and by the enormity of sin as rebellion
againstGod. So that although according to Scripture hell is a place of

indescribable woe, neverthelessin hell, no less than in heaven, the justice of
God reigns. Heaven is founded upon the justice of Godin accepting Christ’s
righteousness onbehalf of sinners; hell is founded on the justice of God in
punishing sinners. But it is impossible to probe the matter further, and to ask
why this particular beggarLazarus is in heaven, and why this rich man is in
hell. The answerto all such questions is, in the final sense, where it properly
belongs, in the hands of God.
Christians have thought of this for years, and older Christian writers claim
that, far from being an anomaly, or the triumph of evil, hell demonstrates the
glorious justice of God in a public, unmistakable way. His justice againstsin is
manifest in punishing vile rebels. His grace is demonstratedin providing his
Son as a substitute for repentant sinners who are as undeserving of the saving
goodness ofGodas are any one in hell.
The trouble is that many people who go to church tend to measure a doctrine
not by how scriptural it is, nor from a perspective which naturally and
habitually places Godat the centre of his creation, but from a perspective
which places mankind there, and then it is hardly surprising that the
problems begin to pile up.
Unbelievers face the same problem with the rich man being kept in hell for
ever with the great gulf stopping him ever escaping anywhere. Many people
will nod and say that they’re quite willing to acceptthe existence of a ‘fantasy
island’ like purgatory. But, they ask, how could everlasting punishment ever
be justified? Isn’t it monstrous that an actionwhich has had only limited evil
consequences, ora desire which has had no public evil consequencesatall –
for example lust or covetousnessin my heart – not registering in any outward
actionat all –how can it be just to punish such finite sins without limit? Isn’t it
monstrously disproportionate? How can there be justice in that?

This is to forget what is basic to what a man or a womanis with his dignity
and image of God and human responsibility. God is sovereign, yes, but man is
accountable to his sovereign. In other words, our accountability is
fundamentally directed towards God. Each of us lives primarily in God’s
sight, and only derivatively in the sight of others. All other responsibilities, to
individuals and to communities, derive from this basic responsibility, and that
can’t be ducked or shed.
Hell is without limit because the offences being justly punished have been
committed againsta God of infinite, immeasur-able holiness and goodness.
And heaven is without limit because the atonement of the Saviour is of
immeasurable value. Hell’s purpose is not remedial; it is not to amend the life
of anyone; the time for such change has passed. There is no grace and no
redemption and no sanctifying Spirit in hell to transform sinners. The
purpose of hell is to mete out with exactand final justice what every
unrepented-of sin deserves. Hell is not the result of the petulant temper of a
capricious and unstable God; it is the scene of exactand righteous justice.
The rich man in hell defined and recognizedhell for what it is “I am in agony
in this fire,” and the justice of being there. Otherwise hell would be a breeding
ground for further injustice, and further resentment, and further sin. Hell is a
place of sinners, yes, but there is no reasonto think that it is a heaven for
sinners, a fool’s paradise. As we see from the positionAbraham occupies in
hell the place is under the direct control of God.
What does Scripture teachus? We are informed that before Christ the Judge
every knee shall bow and every tongue confess thatJesus Christ is Lord to the
glory of God the Father(Phil. 2:11). And this language implies that the rich
man recognizes the essentialjustice of his plight. He too had to recognize
Christ’s Lordship, and he confessedhim, not with love and adoration as a
Saviour, but as the Lord God Almighty, his just Judge..

HOW DO WE PREACHHELL?
Fire and brimstone preachers are figures of fun. They are amusing and sad
because they have one string on their banjoes. I have never met one such a
monomaniacalpreacher, and I am glad of their rarity for such a figure would
be unacceptable to me or to any sensible Christian who want balance and all
the counselof God preachedand Jesus Christpreached most of all. It is
enough for us to know that here before us in this part of Luke’s gospelis the
preaching of the Lord Jesus Christ on hell. Hell can only be understood in
terms of the central messageofthe gospel, that we deserve hell because we are
sinners, but Jesus Christ because he loved us endured hell for us on Golgotha,
that if we entrust ourselves to him we shall never perish in hell but have
everlasting life. Hell is separationfrom all of that, from the grace and
salvationof God in Christ. There unrepentant sinners will bear the just
consequencesoftheir own sin and folly. It is in hell that the judgment of God
upon sin is experienced. It is often known in this life, but more often withheld
and postponeduntil after death. The goodness ofGod is in order to lead
sinners to repentance. Rememberthat the factof hell is not sadistic;hell is not
revealedso that perverted people can gloatover the thought of suffering or
write beautiful poetry about the inferno. Jesus preachedon hell to warn men
and women. We are told of the wrath to come and urged to flee from it. How
shall we escape if we neglect so greatsalvation? There is a wrath to come, and
preaching on it is aimed at encouraging everyhearer to run to Jesus who
welcomes everyone who comes to him giving them rest.
11th September 2011 GEOFFTHOMAS

16:27-31 The Rich Man and Lazarus 3
Previous Next
Luke 16:27-31 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my
father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will
not also come to this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses
and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but
if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If
they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convincedeven
if someone rises from the dead.’”
Our Lord Jesus Christ told of two men, a rich man who rejectedGod and a
beggarwhose trust was in the Lord. Both of them died, and the man who
possessedwentto heavenwhile the rich man who had lackednothing went to
hell. One of the reasons he told this story was that we may know something of
what lies after death. Many will enjoy the pleasures ofheaven but others
suffer the horrors of hell. Either one is the conscious experience ofall who die.
There is no other door. There is no purgatory; there is no second chance after
death; there is no soul sleep;there is no limbo. There is no such thing as the
annihilation of the soul, but there is after death the judgment and then there is
the greatseparation, heavenor hell. The Son of God is emphasizing here that
souls do not die as bodies do, but after death the souls of men and women live
on and are consciously, intelligentlyaware of the love of God or of his wrath
immediately.
I have sought to help you understand the judgment of hell in severalways,
first to tell you that hell is not a place of anarchy, where the devil has created
a sphere of unilateral independence of God. God reigns in justice over heaven
because allwho are there are there through God’s just dealings with their sins
in the death of the Son of God. God also reigns in justice over hell because all
who are there are there because they shunned the atonement of the Lamb of
God and lived for themselves. The rich man in hell is under the authority of

Abraham and the God of Abraham, and he is receiving what he justly
deserves and nothing more than that. Hell is no blot on God’s universe.
Then I have also told you that everything that reflects the image of God in the
people you adore who are not Christians, that makes them such lovable and
grand people, will not be found in hell. In other words, the dearfamily you
treasure and should cherish, but who reject Jesus Christ, will be barely
recognizable in hell. All that is of God in them will not be in them there.
Then I have told you that Godwill take accountof all the relative differences
that there are in sin and in sinners. Few men are as evil as the man who came
to be calledthe Yorkshire Ripper, or as Hitler was. As there is infinite
diversity in men and women on this side of the grave so it will be on the other
side of the grave. God’s goodness andlove will remain eternally inviolate. The
writer of the Lamentations says that God does not willingly afflict, and that
also applies in hell as it applies to mankind now.
Today we come to examine the conversationof this rich man suffering the
torments of hell with Abraham. It is with this patriarch in particular because
Abraham is the father of all who believe. God once had spokento Abraham
and made greatpromises to him. He pointed out to this man the stars and said
that he would so bless Abraham that his progeny would become as numerous
as the lights of heaven. He would give Abraham a child in his old age and
through this child all the nations of the earth would be blessed, because one
day in the line of Abraham’s own son a child would be born who would be the
Saviour of the world.
Abraham responded by believing all that God said. He left his house in Ur and
setout with his family to this unknown place which God said he was

preparing for him. In such trust Abraham became a real model – a father
figure – for all who similarly hear the Word of God, believe and are justified.
So the Lord Jesus told this parable. There are three main characters,
Abraham, the rich man and Lazarus. Abraham is the spokesmanforGod.
The rich man represents everydefiant and unrepentant man. The name
Lazarus means ‘God helps’ and so the poor beggar signifies those who have
receivedthe saving help of God. The parable has this greattheme of being
‘too late.’The rich man notices the beggarLazarus too late; he sees the
unbridgeable chasmtoo late; he worries about his brothers too late; and he
heeds the law and the prophets too late.
1] THE REQUEST MADE FROM HELL.
Now the first conversationof the man in hell concerneda request that he
might be relieved of his unbearable torment. But Abraham told him that that
was impossible telling him in effect, “all your lifetime, day after day, you
receivedan abundance of goodthings from God without any acknowledgment
that it was the Lord who was blessing you. Your conscience reminded you of
the certainty of death and judgment; you were warnedto flee from the wrath
to come; you had been told of the mercy and longsuffering of the grace of
God; you were told to seek that mercy and find peace through the Gospel.
What goodthings you had for so long.” After death it is too late. Mercyis
unattainable; death fixes the destinies of men and women for ever, and in hell
he is receiving nothing but his just deserts.
The rich man’s condition, then, cannotchange;there is no hope that it will.
There is a greatgulf fixed betweenthem and those who are in the presence of
Abraham, because those who are there did entrust themselves, their lives and
every detail of every day, into the hands of a faithful Saviour. Whether they

ate or drank they did all to the glory of God. They presented their bodies a
living sacrifice to God; they did not serve themselves. So those who are in hell
cannot cross overthat impassable gulf. There is no possibility of a change
from the one estate to another. None whatsoever. Abraham tells the rich man
that awful fact. That is the first exchange.
2. THE SECOND REQUEST FROMHELL.
The secondrequestof the man in hell deals with his five brethren. The rich
man is left to the agony of his ownreminiscences for ever, and now he gets
obsessedwith his brothers. These men were still in the world, so the man in
the pit devised a scheme by which they would not join him there, because their
presence, no doubt, would make his hell five times worse. He had done
nothing to warn them or urge them to avoid the wrath to come. This
successfulbusinessman’s ignoring of hell had had a profound influence over
his brothers. So in hell he devised a plan of evangelism – which many human
beings do. He imagined a way of delivering his siblings from the place of woe.
The five brothers all knew the beggarwho lived his life at the gate of their
rich brother’s house. He was always there – that was his patch – and they all
knew that he had died. So the rich man said to Abraham: “Send that poor
man, Lazarus, from your side back to my brothers to show himself to them as
someone raisedfrom the dead. The result of that will be that they will all
become believers, especiallywhenhe tells them about hell. If a man should be
raisedfrom the dead and speak to them of what is happening to me they will
change. They will no longercurl their lip and say, ‘Nobody’s ever come back’
they’ll have to believe in God and they’ll escape hell.”
That is the wisdom of a man in hell. That is his proposal. From that request
arises a discussionbetweenAbraham and the man in hell. Abraham argues
one side and the man in hell argues the other side. Abraham is defending the
position of those who believe in God through the Lord Jesus Christ, and the

man in hell is defending the position of those who use human reasonand
refuse to trust the Saviour in this world or the next. This argument is going on
still, and it is important for us to see what this argument consists ofand the
difference betweenthe two approaches.
On one side there is Abraham and all who believe as he did. One thing is true
of every one of them, and that is that they are satisfiedwith the Bible.
Theologicallywe would say that they hold to the sufficiencyof the Scriptures
to save any personfrom hell. In verse 29 Abraham says:“They have Moses
and the prophets; let them hear them.” Moses wrote the first five Books ofthe
Bible. There is Genesis which tells us that God is a personalGod, an almighty
Lord, how He made the world, and how because ofthe rebellion of man the
world is in the state it is. It speaks ofthe greatanswerto man’s rebellion in
the Messiahwho one day will come and bruise the serpent’s head. Then in
Exodus we are told of the Passover, ofthose for whom a lamb had died
substitutionally, and how the angelof death had passedoverall of them who
were coveredby blood atonement. Becauseofthe death of the lamb they were
forgiven. The Book ofLeviticus then underlines this, telling us that “without
shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.” It points to the sacrifices of
redemption instituted by a loving God. The Book ofNumbers tells us of the
brazen serpentlifted up in the wilderness and if men did what they were told
and look on who and what that represents they will have life. The Book of
Deuteronomy tells us of the covenantrelationship betweenGod and his
people, JehovahGreat I Am, pledging himself to be their God and Saviour for
ever and ever.
“Theyhave Moses,”Abraham says, and the rich man’s brothers had all the
rest of the Old Testamentwritten by the prophets who togetherspeak ofthe
Lord Jesus Christ. He is there in it all. So Abraham says, “Letthem listen to
them.” How much more should we today listen to those who were eye-
witnesses ofJesus’majesty, who were with him in the upper room, and heard
his cry, “Peace be still!” and saw the waves obey him, and who helped unloose

risen Lazarus from his grave-clothes. Should we not listen to them who by the
Holy Spirit were led into all truth in what they wrote? Do you see Abraham’s
argument? The Scriptures are enough to bring a man to faith in Jesus Christ.
The Scriptures themselves are more than sufficient to save a man from hell.
The problem is not the evidence; the problem is the heart of man refusing to
think seriouslyabout the evidence presented to him.
Then Abraham adds in words to this effect, in verse 31:“If they do not listen
to the Bible, nothing else will convince them; nothing else will do any good,
not even the spectre of a resurrectionbefore their very eyes.” Abraham had
seenfrom heaven the Red Sea openedand the delivery of the children of
Israel, walking through on dry land. Then he had seentheir subsequent
behaviour. That generationdied in its rebellion againstGodin the wilderness.
Abraham had seenfire fall from heaven on the sacrifice on Carmeland he
had seenthat generationcontinuing in its unbelief. He watchedMary and
Martha’s brother, Lazarus rise from the dead at the command of Jesus, and
then seenthe Pharisees arguing with Lazarus and plotting the murder of
Jesus. No. The world has the record of the mighty acts of God; it has the
teaching of the Sermon on the Mount. It would soonhave the most undeniable
event in the history of the world, the resurrectionof Jesus of Nazarethfrom
the dead. If men refuse to believe that then another resurrection is not going
to impress them.
So the question is this, Do you agree with Abraham? On the one side of the
debate (verse 27) the man in hell is saying that it seems a greatidea to him to
send a man back from the grave to the world of the living to warn them. But
Abraham says, “Theyhave the Scriptures, let them hear them.” “No,” the
rich man says, “the Bible is not enough.” He has no confidence in the Word of
God. He is saying, “They need something more than the Bible if they are going
to be savedfrom hell.” This man thinks that the Bible is an ineffective book,
that you cannotexpect anyone to getserious about eternal life and flee from

the wrath to come simply by reading the Bible, or by hearing sermons from
the Bible.
Now, it is very interesting that here the man in hell addresses Abraham
respectfully and he calls him, “FatherAbraham,” and that the patriarch
acknowledgesthatand responds to him with the word “son.” In other words,
this man was a fellow Jew – a member of the Old Testamentcovenantpeople.
He has been circumcised, and ethnically and outwardly he is a son of
Abraham. The Lord Jesus in Luke 16 is speaking to fellow countrymen. He is
addressing the Pharisees who are sneering at Him – “And the Pharisees also,
who were covetous, heardall these things: and they derided him” (v.14). They
could not imagine that they themselves were in any danger of hell. Even when
they saw Lazarus raisedfrom the dead they continued their plotting to kill the
Lord Jesus Christ.
This rich man, then, grew up saying, “We have Abraham for our father,”
attending the Synagogue, being taught the Scripture, hearing it week by week.
But he never obeyed it, nor did he love it, finding it irrelevant. He never
dreamed for a moment that he would end up in hell. He never thought that
one day there would be a great chasmfixed betweenhimself and Abraham.
There are many like him who hear the Word of God preachedwith the Holy
Ghostsent down from heaven. Judas heard it; Ananias heard it; Sapphira
heard it; Demas heard it; the Judaizers heard it – but all were lost.
Now, you see what the rich man is saying from hell – “If the Scriptures are the
only thing that you are going to give my brothers, well . . . I had them, and
what gooddid they do to me? They did not change me.” In fact, he is saying in
hell, deep within his heart: “It is perfectly understandable that I didn’t believe
and that they don’t believe – all we had was the Bible. I know my brothers; I
am aware how they live; I know where they are going. The Bible is not going
to touch them – those kinds of men need something more.” In effect, he is

saying: “It is excusable;if only I had seena miracle that thrilled me, I would
have believed. If a man had been raisedfrom the dead and spoken to me, then
I would have paid attention. If I could have gone to a meeting where amazing
things happened, it would have been different. But all I had was the Bible. The
Bible!” That is what many people saystill. “You don’t expect the world to be
attractedby the Bible, by preaching the Scriptures, by texts outside chapels,
and verses on railwaystation hoardings, and tracts with Scriptures on them,
and memorising the Bible, and lessons from the Bible to children in Sunday
School, and camps where young people are taught the Bible, and conferences
where the Bible is proclaimed. You don’t expectpeople to be attractedby
that? We need concerts!We need drama! We need costumes!We need bands!
We need disco lighting! We need choreography!Bring in the drums and the
synthesizers. Send for the clowns!Then the people will come. We need
superstars and celebrities to give us their testimonies – not just the Bible!”
But, you see, Abraham was unyielding. “The Bible is sufficient,” he said.
Now there are many religious people who argue like that man from hell. The
Roman Catholic Church says that the Bible is not enough, we must have
SacredTradition too. The Quakers saythat the Bible is not enough, but there
must be an inner voice in the congregation. Modernists sayScripture itself is
not enough, it must be interpreted by “the assuredresults of modern
criticism.” They say that we must go back to sources “behind” our present
gospelnarratives to find the “authentic” sayings of Jesus. Everycult says that
the Bible is not enough, men must obey a Book – the Book ofMormon, or
Science and Health With a Key to the Scriptures by Mary BakerEddy, or the
Watchtower’s productions of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Manycharismatics say
that the Bible is not enough, that it needs to be authenticatedby miracles and
signs. All such people are saying that the Bible alone is not good enough. They
say: “It’s a goodstart, but it needs a bit of help from us.”
There is a preacherwho has written that when the apostle Paulwas preaching
in Athens he slipped up and as a result few were converted. Paul used wrong

methods; all he did was to preachthe Word of God sensitively to the
philosophers who were gatheredthere on Mars Hill and only a few were
converted, so Paul went to Corinth and he drasticallychanged his methods
and performed miracles and many were converted. But the conversionin
Athens of one of the members of the Greek supreme court named Dionysius,
plus a woman named Damaris as well as a number of other people also
converted(Acts 17:34)would be consideredby us to be very encouraging for
the first meeting in a community that had never heard the gospelbefore. But
people are taught that this is not ‘power-evangelism,’“Unless we cando
miracles then there will be no converts.” “No, FatherAbraham,” says the man
in hell, “not the Bible alone – the Bible plus. The Bible plus informal
entertainment; the Bible plus backgroundmusic. You choose the plus; you
enthuse about it; you give lectures about it and write books about it; you can
grow rich on it – “How I found the plus that helps the rather inadequate
Bible.” You can hold summer schools andconferences andtell the world the
method that you discoveredof compensating for the failure of the Scriptures.
Just like this man in hell who had no love for God – he thought of a way that
could make up for the inadequacies of the Bible.
Now remember Abraham was in heaven before Moses wrote the first five
Books ofthe Bible. Abraham had a unique perspective on the Books ofMoses
and the prophets. Abraham was there in the presence of God when the Lord
gave the Word to Moses andto the prophets. He was listening to the Lord on
those occasions whenGod commanded the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of
illumination, “Go to Moses andhelp him write the life of Abraham. Help
Samuel, David, Solomon, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Jonahand Daniel.
Assistthem to understand my word, and proclaim it and write the Scriptures,
to the jots and tittles.” Abraham had heard God speak, and he knew the
source and power of that which had come from the Throne of the Universe.
From the lips of the living God had come those words. Abraham knew and
loved them: they were Spirit and life. They were powerful words, as effectual
as when God had said, “Let there be light” and there was light. The Almighty
has brokenthe silence of the heavens. God has spokento sinners. He has
opened his heart and revealedhis inmost Being. He is there and he is not

silent. We have his Word. “God, who at sundry times and divers manners
spake in time pastunto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days
spokenunto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by
whom also he made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:1-2). He is a speaking God, but
now in these last days he has spokenby his Son – the Lord from heaven, the
speaking Saviour, the Prophet, God’s final Word. The Lord Christ has said
that no one knows the Father save the Son, he alone having that infinite
acquaintance. There is the immensity of the Almighty and only the Son knows
him comprehensively. When at the end of his life he is praying, he is thanking
the Fatherfor all the help that he has had to discharge the commissionwhich
the Fatherhad given him. He had omitted nothing, and when Jesus sends his
apostles into the world he gives them the Holy Spirit to lead them into all
truth, and they also have omitted nothing. Everything has been provided for
all that is needed for the 2,000 years ofthe church’s history so far. When Paul
acknowledgeshimself as an apostle he says, “And then last of all to me also.”
In other words, Paul was the last apostle. No more apostles are needed. No
house needs more than one satisfactoryfoundation. It is futile because it is
unnecessaryand wastefulto lay other foundations. We have a foundation for
every church and every single Christian to build on
We have Moses, we have the prophets, we have the Gospels andwe have the
epistles. We have them all in our ownEnglish language. We may hold them in
our hands and we can read them. When John Jewel, one of the greatEnglish
Reformers who became the Bishop of Salisbury, was preaching on the
Scriptures he ends by rousing his congregation:“Are you a father? Have you
children? Read the Scriptures. Are you a king? Readthe Scriptures. Are you
a minister? Read the Scriptures. Has God blessedyou with wealth? Readthe
Scriptures. Are you a usurer? Readthe Scriptures. Are you a fornicator?
Readthe Scriptures. Are you in adversity? Read the Scriptures. Are you a
sinner? Have you offended God? Readthe Scriptures. Do you despair of the
mercy of God? Readthe Scriptures. Are you going out of this life? Readthe
Scriptures. Are you going to hell? Read the Scriptures.”

Abraham was saying words to this effect: “Do you want your brothers to see a
miracle? Your brothers have got a miracle; they have in their hearing at every
visit to the synagogue Mosesand the prophets. They may purchase for
themselves Moses andthe prophets. They may readand memorise Mosesand
the prophets.” We who live twenty centuries later have more, having the
Gospels, the Acts, the letters and the book of Revelation. These new covenant
writings are the miracle which leads the church into the new millenium. When
I take this Bible in my hand, I am holding a mighty work of God. I have
something absolutelyunique. Here is something miraculous in its
independence of thought, in the comprehensiveness ofits theme, its utter and
invincible confidence that it is the most relevant word to my own life and to
that of every man. Sometimes in moments of doubt our minds must rest in this
– “I have the Bible.” I have this greatintrusion from heaven, this Book that
comes from another world in which men may hear the unique utterances of
the Sonof God. I have read much of human literature at its best but I find
here in this Book something that is discontinuous with everything else. Here is
a book which is absolutelyunique. The Bible is a Word from God that knows
me, that describes me, that searches me, that finds me. It savedme from hell.
The Scripture speaks to man’s deepestneeds. Here are words that contain
concepts ofunsurpassable grandeur, in words that are invincible in their
sheeroriginality. Every Sunday when gospelchurches meet they do so around
this miracle. Every single service has at its centre this miracle – not just those
red letter Sundays when everything is just right. Notmerely when the Holy
Spirit comes, convicts and moves, but every time we are gatheredin the Name
of the Lord Jesus Christ and this Book is in the centre of our gathering then
we are meeting in the presence ofa miracle. Do you sayyou want a miracle
and then you will believe? Well, here is a miracle! Abraham says “No!” to
signs and wonders as the means of saving sinners today, because here is the
Bible and it is a miracle. “So then, faith comes by hearing the message,and
the messageis heard through the word of Christ” (Roms. 10:17). Abraham
knew that this was the Divine method. So then, you must go to a church where
there is a man sent to preach the Word of Christ. That has been and always
will be the means of saving anyone. Not since the apostolic age has a single

person come to faith in Christ through seeing someone walk onwater, but
millions have become believers through hearing the Word. Abraham knew
that all the children that were now there with him in the presence of God had
been savedthrough the Bible, and that the millions more who would join him
there would getto heaven in the same way. It was the Scriptures which made
them all, “wise for salvationthrough faith which is in Christ Jesus”(2
Timothy 3:15).
God in mercy has said: “I have as many people coming into the kingdom as
the sands on the seashore – they are all going to share heavenwith me. They
are corrupted rebels. They provoke me dreadfully, but I will forgive their sins,
and I will do this for all who have believed in Jesus Christ. And this will be the
way – by bringing my Word to them. I will send them a Christian neighbour;
I will put them in a university and there they will meet witnessing students. I
will work through a member of their family, or through the woman who
works in that office with them, and I will bring them all to a congregation
where they will hear the Word of God preached. That is the way I will rescue
them from hell. They do not have to be scholars to understand the Scriptures,
but I will open their understanding to know the way of salvation through faith
in Christ as that is found so plainly in the Bible.” “The testimonies of the Lord
are sure, making wise the simple.” Ordinary folk can read or hear this
messageofthe Gospeland understand it. It tells us that we deserve eternal
hell because we are sinners, but Jesus, becausehe loved us, died for us that we
might be saved. We have that message. If men will not listen to it they will not
be convinced even if God should change teeth fillings from amalgamto gold.
The Scriptures are sufficient to make the man of Godperfect. How far can the
Scriptures take you? They cantake you to total maturity, that is to “be
thoroughly equipped for every goodwork” (2 Tim. 3:17). What lies before us?
What duties, challenges and sacrificeswill we be calledupon to meet? The
Bible will completely equip us for them. How may we grow and put away
childish things? How canwe become mature men and women? How will we

become wise? How may we become conformed to the image of Christ?
Through the Bible – that is the divine way. The Scripture sanctifies and
perfects what is imperfect. It thoroughly enables us for the challenge of every
goodwork in whatever God asks us to do. Every mountain God asks us to
climb, every burden God asks us to bear, every service God asks us to give,
every pressure God asks us to endure, every sacrifice Godasks us to make –
the Scriptures can enable us to do it all by comprehensively preparing us for
every single goodwork. They tell us how to do it, why we should do it, give us
strength for the task, and they also warn us how not to do it. Godthrough the
Scriptures will complete that good work which he has begun in us. The Bible
helps us to put away childish things. The Bible saves a man from being a
wimp, and delivers him from being a nerd. It transforms him into being “the
man of God … thoroughly equipped for every goodwork” (2 Tim. 3:17). It is
a supernatural blessing to have the Bible.
Our Lord Jesus Christ ends the Sermon on the Mount by speaking about a
wise man who built his house upon a rock and the storms, winds and floods
came, and the house still stands. That man was building his life on the
teaching of the Lord Jesus and it stood. Christ was looking forwarddown the
centuries, even looking into the hideous 2Oth century in which we have lived
for so long. Christ knew all the storms that would be hurled at little Christian
boys or girls; the gales ofscientific pretension, of philosophy and humanism,
of materialism and fleshliness, yet every young Christian who stoodon the
teaching of Jesus would survive any storm. The Saviour is absolutely
confident about it.
The professing church is in a hopeless demoralisedstate whenits members
begin to believe that the Bible is insufficient for delivering sinners from hell.
The Roman Catholic Church, the Quakers, the Modernists, the Cults and the
Charismatics are all looking for some additional signs and voices. None of
them is in a healthy state; none of them is convinced about the sufficiencyof

Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4

Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4

Similar to Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4 (20)

More from GLENN PEASE

More from GLENN PEASE (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Jesus was a hell fire preacher vol 4