Let’s Talk About It

Jesus, the very personification of love, talked a lot about Hell. In fact, He spent more time than anyone else in the Bible talking about Hell. Therefore, we don’t want to steer clear of this subject. To avoid this topic is a big mistake, even if it makes us uncomfortable.

We do, however, want a biblical understanding of what the Bible says. Ironically, the word hell is one of the most frequently used words in the English language, yet it is one of the subjects we talk about the least.

When the apostle Paul spoke on Mars Hill, he concluded his message by saying, “God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30–31 NLT).

Jesus talked about judgment. Paul talked about judgment. The apostles talked about judgment. The Bible talks about judgment. And we need to talk about it and have a proper understanding of what it’s about.

Some would say that it isn’t loving to talk about these things. Actually, it’s the most loving thing we can do. Let’s say, for instance, that you’re walking down the street and see a house that is on fire. You see people inside, but they don’t realize what is happening. Would it be a loving thing to just keep walking? Of course not. The loving thing would be to do everything you can to warn the people inside.

In the same way, if we believe what the Bible says about Hell and judgment, then we’ll recognize that people are facing judgment. And because we love them, we’ll want to talk to them about it and explain it.

The Bible is very clear in pointing out that at some point, our lives on Earth will end. Scripture tells us in Ecclesiastes, “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die” (3:1–2 NLT).

That time to die may come much later than we expected. Or it may occur much sooner. That is why the Bible reminds us to number our days and recognize how few they are (see Psalm 90:12).

Death is the great equalizer. It comes to everyone. And after death, according to the Bible, there are two destinations: Heaven or Hell. We decide now, not later, where we will go. After death, there won’t be any chance to decide. Yet there are thousands of chances before. And you decide where you will go.

As Christians, we should talk about life after death and Heaven and Hell because the Bible does. And if we really believe there is an afterlife and a final judgment, if we really believe that we will be held accountable for things that we say and do, then it will affect the way we live.

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