The Unavoidable Subject

One of the biggest obstacles many people face when it comes to evangelism is a reluctance to talk about the unpleasant parts of the gospel message. They’re happy to share that “the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23 NLT). It’s the first part of Romans 6:23, “the wages of sin is death,” that trips them up (NLT).

But we must not lose sight of the fact that Jesus talked a lot about Hell. In fact, He talked about Hell more than any other preacher in the Bible. Therefore, we don’t want to steer clear of the subject. Instead, we want a biblical understanding of what the Bible says so that we can share this information with others.

The apostle Paul concluded his message on Mars Hill with these words: “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).

The author of Hebrews certainly didn’t shy away from the topic of judgment: “And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:27–28 NLT).

We need to talk about it, too. Of course, in order to do that, we must have a proper understanding of God’s judgment—what it is and what it isn’t. Some people say that it isn’t loving to talk about such things, that it’s resorting to scare tactics. But I couldn’t disagree more. I think talking about these subjects is the most loving thing we can do.

Imagine that I see a house on fire. And through a window I see that there’s a person inside who doesn’t seem to know the house is on fire. Would it be a loving thing for me to kick down the door, grab him, and lead him out of the burning house? Of course it would.

On the other hand, it wouldn’t be a loving thing for me to walk by and say, “Oh, that house is on fire! Very interesting. Oh, well, let me be on my way.” That wouldn’t be loving at all.

If we really believe there’s an afterlife—and more specifically, a final judgment—and if we really believe we’ll be held accountable for the things we say and do, then it will affect the way we live. So, we need to give others the opportunity to hear and respond to the truth about God’s judgment.

Don’t avoid the topic of judgment. It may be instrumental in changing people’s lives.

Reflection question: What’s the best way to talk about God’s judgment with unbelievers? Discuss this with believers like you on Harvest Discipleship!

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