The Truth about Eternity

I have a friend who is a doctor, and sometimes he has the very difficult job of telling people they have cancer. To tell someone this truth is hard, but when he tells patients they have cancer, he can also give them hope for a course of treatment. He gives them the truth, but he also gives them the solution.

When we share the gospel, we not only talk about the promise of Heaven, but we also warn about the reality of Hell. Yes, there is a Hell, but we don’t have to go there. God has made a way out of Hell—if we believe in Jesus Christ. To promise Heaven and not warn of Hell, to offer forgiveness without repentance, to preach the gospel without the cross is a false message giving false hope. We want to warn people about this horrific place.

I wonder how many people have actually heard the gospel. I think a lot of people haven’t. If you really love people, then you will tell them the truth about eternity. You won’t hold back. You will lovingly engage them with the gospel but also warn them of the consequences of what can happen if they do not believe in the gospel.

I pray that God will give us a burden like we have never had before for people that we care about—that we will preach as dying people to other dying people, not knowing how long they have or how long we have. Just say, “I want to give you this message right now because I love you and because I care about you.”

So why should we share the gospel? The bottom line is that we don’t want people to go to Hell. Let’s make every effort we can to get the gospel out.