LOVE WINS
Restoration Fellowship
Romans 9:3 March 6, 2016
CONNECT: Listening to a preacher's
story: Did Jesus ever tell anyone to ’go to hell’?
TENSION: Have you ever uttered those words? I
have. In moments of anger or pain that epithet may come rolling out. You may
not have said it, but I’m sure some have thought it!
What a horrible thing to
say. Wishing eternal damnation on someone, even if they deserved it.
SOLUTION: There is a verse in the NT that has
always bothered me…
Romans 9:1–3 (NKJV) I tell the truth in
Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy
Spirit, 2that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3For
I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my
countrymen according to the flesh,
I thought, “I don’t now
if I have loved anyone that much!” Then I put it in the context of my wife, my
children and grandchildren. Of course I would give my life for them. Why? I
love them.
INSTRUCTION: Paul lived with
constant sorrow because he knew that those he loved were cursed! The Greek word
is anathema, marked off and devoted
to separation and destruction!
Listen to what Jesus
said:
Matthew 8:12 (NKJV) But the sons of the
kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth.”
Matthew 10:28 (NKJV) And do not fear those
who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to
destroy both soul and body in hell.
There it is: Jesus
talking about hell! In fact, He talked about hell more than anyone else in the
NT. He talked three times more about hell than heaven! Listen to some more that
Jesus said:
Mark 9:43–48 (NKJV) If your hand causes you
to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than
having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched—44where
‘Their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’ 45And if
your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life
lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that
shall never be quenched—46where ‘Their worm does not die and the
fire is not quenched.’ 47And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it
out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than
having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire—48where ‘Their worm does
not die and the fire is not quenched.’
Matthew 13:41–43 (NKJV) The Son of Man will send
out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend,
and those who practice lawlessness, 42and will cast them into the
furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43Then
the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He
who has ears to hear, let him hear!
Matthew 13:49–51 (NKJV) So it will be at the end
of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the
just, 50and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be
wailing and gnashing of teeth.” 51Jesus said to them, “Have you
understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”
Jesus’s “Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus”
has some sobering thoughts about hell.
Luke 16:19–31 (NKJV) “There was a certain
rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every
day. 20But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores,
who was laid at his gate, 21desiring to be fed with the crumbs which
fell from the rich man’s table. moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. 22So
it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom.
The rich man also died and was buried. 23And being in torments in
Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his
bosom. 24“Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me,
and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my
tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25But Abraham said, ‘Son,
remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise
Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26And
besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those
who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
27“Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send
him to my father’s house, 28for I have five brothers, that he may
testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29Abraham
said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30And
he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will
repent.’ 31But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the
prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”
I wish it wasn’t so, but hell is real.
1.
It is a place of
torment.
a.
Weeping,
gnashing
b.
Flames,
fire
c.
Worm
dies not
d.
Few,
many stripes
2.
It is a place of
separation.
a.
God
is there (Psalm 139)
b.
No
chance of relationship
c.
No
fellowship
3.
It is an eternal place.
a.
No
exit
b.
No
end
None of us wants anyone
to go there. Paul was willing to give
his eternal destiny for Israel.
Truth is, Paul could not
be cursed for someone else. I cannot be cursed for my loved ones.
INSPIRATION: The wonderful news is
that Christ has taken the curse for us! The sad news is that so many reject His
gift. Israel did, even with all the advantages they had. They were chosen
nationally, but they had to choose personally. We may be called by God, but we
still have to choose; we still have to decide for ourselves what to do with
Jesus!
VIDEO “You Can Go to
Hell”
This video points out some wonderful truths...
1.
Hell was not created for
man.
Matthew 25:41 (NKJV) “Then He will also say
to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting
fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
2 Peter 2:4 (NKJV) For if God did not spare
the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into
chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
2.
God does not want anyone
to go there.
2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV) The Lord is not slack
concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward
us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
God wants everybody
saved. Love wins! God has done it all. We just receive.
VIDEO "How Love
Wins"
ACTION STEPS: As we approach Easter,
let’s remember Jesus died so that people do not have to go to hell!
John 3:16–17 (NKJV) For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the
world through Him might be saved.
The Gospel is often
presented for what it gives today, but it is really about eternity!
Do I want the lost
saved? Oh I say I do, but when was the last time I wept over a lost person? That
is the issue! I really don’t love the lost. Either that, or I don’t take the
Bible seriously! Now, I am not pointing any fingers this morning; I have been
searching my own heart!
I realize my heart is
cold toward the lost. I need a touch. I need God to come and break my heart for
those who don’t know Him. They are going to hell and I act like I don’t even
care!
1 Corinthians 1:21
(NKJV) For
since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it
pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.
We have set a goal to
reach 100 people during this Easter season. To accomplish this, I must have, we
must have, a fresh revelation of eternity. We cannot manufacture it; we must
cry out to God for our own hearts before we can cry out to God for others.
HASHTAG: #Lovewins
