WEBVTT - Seven Things in Hell that Ought to be in the Church, Part 1 0:00:00.880 --> 0:00:03.160 There are some who say, well, you know, hell is 0:00:03.160 --> 0:00:05.760 right here. We're going through hell right now. And they 0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:09.280 don't realize that no matter how bad things are now 0:00:09.680 --> 0:00:12.960 is not as bad as it's going to be. Because 0:00:12.960 --> 0:00:14.760 if you're on your way to hell, you got to 0:00:14.800 --> 0:00:17.200 realize that this is your heaven right now. 0:00:24.920 --> 0:00:28.040 Welcome to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford, 0:00:28.040 --> 0:00:30.920 junior senior pastor at the Christ Bible Church in Chicago. 0:00:30.920 --> 0:00:34.040 I'm Steve Hillard. Glad that you're with us. And pastor, uh, 0:00:34.040 --> 0:00:37.520 for those who do know Christ, it's great to know 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:40.760 that this life is as bad as it's ever going 0:00:40.800 --> 0:00:43.040 to be. This is as bad as it gets. That's right. 0:00:43.080 --> 0:00:46.000 But for those who don't know, Christ, this is as 0:00:46.000 --> 0:00:48.000 good as it gets. 0:00:48.040 --> 0:00:50.000 And I couldn't have said it better myself. 0:00:50.000 --> 0:00:51.080 Steve, you know. 0:00:51.120 --> 0:00:52.240 You need to say that again. 0:00:52.240 --> 0:00:55.960 Okay? Yeah. For those who know, Christ, this life is 0:00:55.960 --> 0:00:58.520 as bad as it gets. If you don't know Christ, 0:00:58.520 --> 0:01:01.720 this life is as good as it gets. because as 0:01:01.760 --> 0:01:03.800 we're going to be beginning to look at in the 0:01:03.800 --> 0:01:07.360 next couple of broadcasts, uh, hell is a real place, 0:01:07.360 --> 0:01:11.399 and it is a place that none of us want 0:01:11.400 --> 0:01:13.680 to go. I think sometimes the culture we have, this 0:01:13.680 --> 0:01:15.399 perception that hell's going to be a big party, but 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:17.200 what does hell actually going to be? 0:01:17.240 --> 0:01:22.520 Wow. It's a place of torment. Wow. And even our 0:01:22.520 --> 0:01:25.839 Lord said where the worm dieth not. And they're not 0:01:25.840 --> 0:01:30.319 sure whether it's consciousness or the soul. Theologians aren't agreed. 0:01:30.360 --> 0:01:32.800 I would say. Why make it either or? Why can't 0:01:32.800 --> 0:01:37.160 it be both? And because that's exactly what's going to happen. 0:01:37.400 --> 0:01:41.360 And the tragedy is you don't hear much preaching on 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:45.640 the doctrine of hell today, which is very tragic because 0:01:45.800 --> 0:01:48.640 it is a reality. As a matter of fact, I 0:01:48.680 --> 0:01:51.720 stayed in the message. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ 0:01:51.720 --> 0:01:55.360 talked about hell more than anybody in the New Testament. 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:58.760 Sure. Yeah. And if it's something that Jesus spoke so 0:01:58.760 --> 0:02:01.400 frequently about, you would think that's something that we got 0:02:01.400 --> 0:02:04.400 to give some serious attention to. You call this message 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:07.520 seven things in hell that ought to be in the church. 0:02:07.880 --> 0:02:09.560 It's kind of a provocative title. 0:02:09.639 --> 0:02:13.200 It is. And I'm trying to do two things at once. 0:02:13.560 --> 0:02:18.080 One lay a backdrop or a foundation for the doctrine 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:20.680 of hell, and then to go in by way of 0:02:20.680 --> 0:02:24.080 application and show things like, what are one of the 0:02:24.080 --> 0:02:29.760 things we'll talk about? Prayer. He prayed fervently. So he 0:02:29.760 --> 0:02:33.840 prayed like we ought to be praying the effectual fervent 0:02:33.840 --> 0:02:36.399 prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Here you have 0:02:36.400 --> 0:02:41.720 an unrighteous man in hell who is praying fervently, passionately. 0:02:41.840 --> 0:02:44.520 Now he wants to get out. Sure. But you get 0:02:44.520 --> 0:02:47.760 the sentiment that if we would pray in the church 0:02:47.880 --> 0:02:52.560 like they pray in hell. Wow. The effectual fervent prayer 0:02:52.560 --> 0:02:56.239 of a righteous man availeth much. So it's principles like that. 0:02:56.280 --> 0:02:59.079 Well, that's just one of those principles. And we're going 0:02:59.080 --> 0:03:01.350 to expand on that one, of course, and six more 0:03:01.350 --> 0:03:03.590 over the next couple of days, so if you can, 0:03:03.590 --> 0:03:06.150 I hope you'll open your Bible. Join us in Luke 0:03:06.150 --> 0:03:10.269 chapter 16 as we begin this message. Seven things in 0:03:10.270 --> 0:03:12.670 hell that ought to be in the church. Here is 0:03:12.669 --> 0:03:13.590 Pastor Ford. 0:03:14.310 --> 0:03:19.669 Okay, so the doctrine of hell has fallen on hard times. Uh, 0:03:21.470 --> 0:03:25.150 I guess you can say that, uh, in the church, 0:03:25.190 --> 0:03:31.750 hell has frozen over, uh, because 64% of people don't 0:03:31.750 --> 0:03:37.790 believe it even exists. Uh, worse than that, uh, 35% 0:03:37.790 --> 0:03:44.550 of Baptists say hell doesn't exist. 54% of Presbyterians say 0:03:44.550 --> 0:03:51.430 hell doesn't exist. 58% of Methodists say hell doesn't exist. 60% 0:03:51.430 --> 0:03:57.869 of Episcopalians say hell doesn't exist. And here it is 71% 0:03:58.070 --> 0:04:04.510 of all seminary Students say that they don't believe in 0:04:04.510 --> 0:04:09.750 a literal hell. And so of the 34% who believe 0:04:09.750 --> 0:04:16.029 in hell, 15% are certain they know somebody who's going there. 0:04:18.750 --> 0:04:24.550 Only 4% felt that they deserved to go. So? So 0:04:24.630 --> 0:04:29.230 even those who accept hell as a reality don't accept 0:04:29.230 --> 0:04:34.310 it as a possibility. And so I remember one of 0:04:34.310 --> 0:04:37.349 the students at, uh, Moody gave this to me. He 0:04:37.350 --> 0:04:39.589 was a single student in the marriage, was singing, and 0:04:39.870 --> 0:04:44.070 I joined the married choir for a little bit. And, uh, well, actually, 0:04:44.070 --> 0:04:46.870 just for the for the, uh, what we call chapel 0:04:47.110 --> 0:04:49.950 and sang. And so he brought me a slip of paper, 0:04:49.950 --> 0:04:52.349 and the slip of paper was a cartoon. And it 0:04:52.350 --> 0:04:54.309 was one of those cartoons where you put your own 0:04:54.310 --> 0:04:59.630 caption in, and the caption was two devils, and they 0:04:59.630 --> 0:05:03.070 were freezing and it was snowing and it was icicles 0:05:03.070 --> 0:05:05.190 and they were supposed to be in hell. And the 0:05:05.190 --> 0:05:13.789 caption read, I guess Pastor Ford has started his music ministry. Yeah, 0:05:13.790 --> 0:05:18.310 you get it, you get it, you get it. And 0:05:18.310 --> 0:05:20.830 so there are some who say, well, you know, hell 0:05:20.830 --> 0:05:23.710 is right here. It's we we going through hell right now. 0:05:23.870 --> 0:05:26.950 And they don't realize that no matter how bad things 0:05:26.950 --> 0:05:30.669 are now is not as bad as it's going to be. 0:05:30.910 --> 0:05:34.830 If you're going to hell. Uh, because if you're on 0:05:34.830 --> 0:05:37.589 your way to hell, you gotta realize something. And you 0:05:37.589 --> 0:05:42.590 know what that is? That this is your heaven right now. Hell, yeah. 0:05:42.589 --> 0:05:45.870 This is about as good as it going to get. 0:05:46.310 --> 0:05:47.910 So I was talking to a guy and he said, 0:05:47.910 --> 0:05:51.190 I don't believe in hell. He's like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, 0:05:51.190 --> 0:05:53.110 I went there, I went there. Me and my boys 0:05:53.110 --> 0:05:56.790 went there. Hell was so full, uh, that, uh, I 0:05:56.830 --> 0:05:59.710 got sent back. What you got to say to that? 0:05:59.830 --> 0:06:04.710 I said, well, Isaiah chapter five verse 14 says, hell 0:06:04.870 --> 0:06:10.310 hath enlarged her borders. Uh, so, so hell was like 0:06:10.310 --> 0:06:14.589 the womb of a pregnant woman. Uh, whatever, whatever needs 0:06:14.589 --> 0:06:16.750 to be in there is going to grow and, and 0:06:16.750 --> 0:06:21.110 the capacity is going to stretch to fit it. Amen. 0:06:21.430 --> 0:06:27.710 And so, uh, Proverbs 2720, uh, tells us, uh, that, uh, 0:06:27.750 --> 0:06:32.110 it will definitely be something, uh, that will expand to 0:06:32.110 --> 0:06:35.789 fit those who are going. And so it says, uh, 0:06:36.070 --> 0:06:42.070 hell hath enlarged her coast. And Proverbs 2720 says, there 0:06:42.110 --> 0:06:45.830 are some things that are never full. Hell and destruction 0:06:45.830 --> 0:06:50.030 are part of them. C.S. Lewis, the great writer, said, uh, 0:06:50.070 --> 0:06:53.310 he laughed when he read the epitaph. Here lies an 0:06:53.310 --> 0:06:58.070 atheist all dressed up and nowhere to go. And so 0:06:58.110 --> 0:07:01.230 I'm sure he wishes now that that were true. And 0:07:01.230 --> 0:07:03.990 some say hell is living with their husband, living with 0:07:03.990 --> 0:07:07.990 their wife, living with their children, living in in the ghetto. 0:07:08.029 --> 0:07:11.190 You know, all that kind of stuff. No, no no, no. Uh, 0:07:11.190 --> 0:07:15.950 so there is a hell and, uh, the Bible teaches 0:07:16.070 --> 0:07:20.950 now there's, uh, a place called Tartarus. Some of you 0:07:21.310 --> 0:07:25.790 know this very well. There's a place called Tartarus and, uh, 0:07:25.790 --> 0:07:32.990 not tartar sauce. Uh, it's the temporary abode of the angels. Yeah. 0:07:32.990 --> 0:07:34.990 So let me give you the passages. We're not going 0:07:34.990 --> 0:07:38.030 to look at all of them. Second Peter two four. Uh, 0:07:38.030 --> 0:07:39.590 I just want to give it out to you so 0:07:39.590 --> 0:07:44.750 you can see second Peter two four, Jude six, Jude six. 0:07:45.150 --> 0:07:48.870 And this is translated hell. It's translated hell. There are 0:07:48.870 --> 0:07:51.910 several words translated hell. And I want to give them 0:07:51.910 --> 0:07:56.230 to you now, uh, Tartarus is a place, uh, where 0:07:56.510 --> 0:08:01.870 the angels that sinned, uh, there in Genesis chapter six, 0:08:02.070 --> 0:08:05.310 and they are called the sons of God, the sons 0:08:05.310 --> 0:08:08.270 of God. That's a phrase in the Old Testament that 0:08:08.310 --> 0:08:13.510 refers to angels. How do we know that? Job one 0:08:13.750 --> 0:08:16.910 and job two. There came a time when the sons 0:08:16.910 --> 0:08:20.950 of God. Uh. What is that? Angelic host? And so, 0:08:20.950 --> 0:08:24.190 in the Old Testament, sons of God, uh, are angels. 0:08:24.190 --> 0:08:26.990 So then what we had was, uh, the sons of 0:08:26.990 --> 0:08:30.990 God saw daughters of men, and they cohabited, and they 0:08:30.990 --> 0:08:37.190 created a superhuman race of individuals called the Nephilim, called 0:08:37.190 --> 0:08:43.990 the Nephilim. And so they were angelic and they were human. 0:08:44.550 --> 0:08:46.750 And so when they did that, what they were trying 0:08:46.750 --> 0:08:49.470 to do was stop the line of our Lord and 0:08:49.470 --> 0:08:53.670 Savior Jesus Christ by polluting it. Uh, you'll find it 0:08:53.670 --> 0:08:57.870 in first Peter chapter three, and I hope you'll go 0:08:57.870 --> 0:09:01.140 home and do some some studying on this of First 0:09:01.140 --> 0:09:05.260 Peter chapter three, verse 18, so that when they cohabited 0:09:05.260 --> 0:09:08.420 and created the superhuman race of people, God brought the 0:09:08.420 --> 0:09:13.420 universal flood, killed all of them, and then started all 0:09:13.420 --> 0:09:17.579 over again with Noah and his family. But the angels 0:09:17.780 --> 0:09:21.100 that did this, and Jude says they kept not their 0:09:21.100 --> 0:09:25.140 first estate. In other words, angels neither marry nor are 0:09:25.140 --> 0:09:29.699 given in marriage. And so they violated what God had 0:09:29.700 --> 0:09:34.860 set up, and they, uh, cohabited with, uh, women. Now, 0:09:34.860 --> 0:09:38.540 some people don't believe that that's possible. Uh, but yes, 0:09:38.540 --> 0:09:42.620 it is. Uh, supernatural beings can hook up with human 0:09:42.620 --> 0:09:46.020 beings and have a child. How do you think Jesus 0:09:46.020 --> 0:09:51.740 got here, a man? So it is not impossible. But 0:09:51.740 --> 0:09:54.340 you study these, and if you'll study them, you'll see. 0:09:54.340 --> 0:09:57.380 So what did God do? Uh, God says he put 0:09:57.380 --> 0:10:03.740 them in hell. Tartarus. Okay. And so they then, uh, 0:10:03.740 --> 0:10:07.460 those part of the one third that fell, that cohabited 0:10:07.460 --> 0:10:10.100 with women. He said, you're not going to do that again. 0:10:10.100 --> 0:10:13.780 And he put them in a place called Tartarus. And 0:10:13.780 --> 0:10:18.500 it's translated hell in first Peter chapter three, verse 18, 0:10:18.540 --> 0:10:21.180 at least in the King James it may be, uh, 0:10:21.340 --> 0:10:25.219 and it's 18 through 20. Uh, so and so you 0:10:25.220 --> 0:10:30.420 have these individuals, then these angelic beings that are cast 0:10:30.420 --> 0:10:35.100 down into Tartarus or in hell. As a matter of fact, 0:10:35.100 --> 0:10:39.340 the Bible tells us, uh, that Jesus went there. So 0:10:39.340 --> 0:10:44.179 this is where he went to preach the gospel or 0:10:44.179 --> 0:10:48.540 to inform them, because the word is not you and I. 0:10:48.660 --> 0:10:51.780 What's that word mean to preach the gospel? But it 0:10:51.780 --> 0:10:57.740 says he proclaimed Kerygma or Caruso. It literally means to proclaim. 0:10:57.740 --> 0:11:00.780 What did he proclaim? Well, we can just about figure 0:11:00.780 --> 0:11:04.260 it out, can't we? He went to hell and he proclaimed, 0:11:04.460 --> 0:11:08.420 you tried back in the book of Genesis or 4000 0:11:08.420 --> 0:11:12.260 years ago to subvert my line so that I would 0:11:12.260 --> 0:11:18.140 not be who I am. And you have been circumvented. Uh, 0:11:18.140 --> 0:11:21.980 I have died and paid for sin. Uh, which which 0:11:21.980 --> 0:11:25.940 you tried to stop through birth. So then the second word. 0:11:25.940 --> 0:11:32.020 The second word translated hell, uh, is the word Gehenna. Gehenna. 0:11:33.340 --> 0:11:37.100 That's the second word in the New Testament translated hell. 0:11:37.660 --> 0:11:41.180 And so Gehenna. Uh, when you look at Gehenna, what 0:11:41.179 --> 0:11:45.260 you need to understand is it's the final destination of 0:11:45.260 --> 0:11:52.459 fallen angels and unsaved humanity. In the Hebrew, it's Gehinnom, 0:11:52.700 --> 0:11:55.380 or the Valley of Hinnom. And what they would do 0:11:55.420 --> 0:12:00.140 is take, uh, trash and refuge and other things, and 0:12:00.140 --> 0:12:03.059 they would have a perpetual fire and they would throw 0:12:03.700 --> 0:12:06.380 things in there. As a matter of fact, some idol 0:12:06.420 --> 0:12:12.300 worshippers would even throw their children there. Yeah. And so 0:12:12.340 --> 0:12:15.380 they took that valley. And just like they do, everything 0:12:15.380 --> 0:12:18.540 else in the Old Testament made it a symbol of 0:12:19.020 --> 0:12:21.939 the final hell to give you a picture in the 0:12:21.940 --> 0:12:25.020 Old Testament of what was going to happen in the 0:12:25.020 --> 0:12:29.420 New Testament, so that we would understand what hell was 0:12:29.420 --> 0:12:32.140 going to be like. So then you have you have 0:12:32.140 --> 0:12:36.580 the word, uh, Tartarus. You have the word Gehenna. Now, 0:12:36.700 --> 0:12:39.900 when you look at, uh, Gehenna, what you're going to 0:12:39.900 --> 0:12:45.500 find then is that in the New Testament, in revelation 1920, 0:12:45.780 --> 0:12:48.700 it's called the Lake of fire. It's called the Lake 0:12:48.700 --> 0:12:54.300 of fire. And in revelation 2014, it's called the second death. 0:12:55.420 --> 0:12:59.820 So Gehenna the final destination. So then this is the hell, uh, 0:12:59.900 --> 0:13:04.260 That nobody's in. This is the hell that Jesus talked 0:13:04.260 --> 0:13:07.459 about as being a real place right here in Luke 0:13:07.460 --> 0:13:08.579 chapter 16. 0:13:10.980 --> 0:13:13.780 You're listening to Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford and a 0:13:13.780 --> 0:13:16.780 message called Seven Things in Hell that ought to Be 0:13:16.780 --> 0:13:19.500 in the church. Really a provocative title, and you may 0:13:19.500 --> 0:13:22.740 want to go back and listen to this message again. 0:13:22.940 --> 0:13:25.340 You can do so by coming to our website. It's 0:13:25.340 --> 0:13:29.780 Treasure Truth Radio org. There you can stream today's program. 0:13:29.780 --> 0:13:32.140 You can also download MP3's for free, or you can 0:13:32.140 --> 0:13:35.660 order copies of this broadcast on CD. You'll also find 0:13:35.660 --> 0:13:38.780 a link to begin podcasting this program. Again, stop by 0:13:38.820 --> 0:13:43.380 Treasure Truth Radio. Back to the message. Here's Pastor Ford. 0:13:44.540 --> 0:13:47.699 So hell is not as bad as you think. It's worse, 0:13:49.300 --> 0:13:55.180 it's worse. And so Jesus talked about heaven once. He 0:13:55.179 --> 0:14:01.340 talked about hell 11 times. He talked about heaven once. 0:14:01.340 --> 0:14:06.420 He talked about hell 11 times. And so here we 0:14:06.460 --> 0:14:11.580 find then, uh, in this, uh, narrative, a certain rich 0:14:11.620 --> 0:14:14.900 man and in, in a person named Lazarus. So here's 0:14:14.900 --> 0:14:18.059 what people will say. Well, this is a parable. And 0:14:18.059 --> 0:14:21.340 parable is not about real people. No, parables don't have 0:14:21.340 --> 0:14:24.620 the names of real people. And so Jesus took it 0:14:24.620 --> 0:14:27.380 out of the realm of parable when he called the 0:14:27.380 --> 0:14:33.220 name Lazarus. So this is in Lazarus is a historical person. 0:14:33.620 --> 0:14:36.180 So then here's what we know about hell according to 0:14:36.220 --> 0:14:39.979 this text. It is a fact. It is a reality. 0:14:40.220 --> 0:14:43.260 Whether you believe it or not. So remember the Baptist, 0:14:43.300 --> 0:14:46.060 the Methodist and the positive thinker. They all died and 0:14:46.060 --> 0:14:50.300 went to hell. What the Baptists say I thought I 0:14:50.300 --> 0:14:55.260 had it, but I didn't. What the Methodists say I 0:14:55.300 --> 0:14:59.140 had it, but I lost it. What the positive thinker say. 0:14:59.610 --> 0:15:03.130 It's not hot and I'm not here. It's not hot 0:15:03.170 --> 0:15:08.450 and I'm not here. And so the first occupants of 0:15:08.930 --> 0:15:13.570 Gehenna is the beast and the false prophet. Revelation 1920. 0:15:13.570 --> 0:15:16.210 Let me say it again. You're in the final destination 0:15:16.250 --> 0:15:22.490 of fallen angels, demons, unsaved humanity. Uh, Lake of fire 0:15:22.490 --> 0:15:27.850 in Revelation 1920, second death in revelation 20, verse 14. 0:15:27.850 --> 0:15:31.810 And the first occupants are the beast and the false prophet. 0:15:32.090 --> 0:15:35.810 Revelation 1920. So nobody's in hell. So when you hear 0:15:35.850 --> 0:15:38.210 me say, you know all the time, that gives you 0:15:38.210 --> 0:15:41.530 a context, doesn't it? When people say things like Satan, 0:15:41.810 --> 0:15:45.050 I rebuke you and consign you to the pit of hell. 0:15:46.250 --> 0:15:50.210 And the devil say, you don't know your Bible because 0:15:50.210 --> 0:15:55.650 nobody's there yet in the final hell, nobody's there. Okay, 0:15:55.690 --> 0:15:59.490 then then the third word is Sheol in the Old Testament. 0:15:59.570 --> 0:16:03.170 S h o l. That's the word in the Old Testament. 0:16:03.210 --> 0:16:10.010 Hades in the New Testament. Hades in the New Testament. 0:16:11.050 --> 0:16:17.210 So it is Hades. Now it's transliterated, not translated. What? 0:16:17.210 --> 0:16:21.130 What does that mean, Pastor Ford? That the spelling is 0:16:21.130 --> 0:16:25.170 brought over into the New Testament, not the meaning. So 0:16:25.370 --> 0:16:28.210 they brought the spelling over because there wasn't a word 0:16:28.850 --> 0:16:33.010 in the English that would be equivalent. So somebody tell 0:16:33.010 --> 0:16:35.170 me another word that they did that to. We talked 0:16:35.170 --> 0:16:40.810 about it plenty of times. Baptismal got a star girl. 0:16:41.090 --> 0:16:46.050 Baptismal is transliterated. What is the meaning? So then Hades 0:16:46.210 --> 0:16:51.810 is the place of the unseen. It literally means not 0:16:51.810 --> 0:16:56.010 to see. Everybody still with me? Okay. So then, uh, 0:16:56.010 --> 0:16:58.770 when you look at, uh, this here's here's the picture 0:16:58.770 --> 0:17:02.290 you get. I hope you can understand this. And remember, 0:17:02.290 --> 0:17:07.970 it's not purgatory. It's not purgatory. There's no such place 0:17:08.170 --> 0:17:13.930 as purgatory. Now, now, what's this between Hades and Purgatory? Purgatory. 0:17:13.970 --> 0:17:17.730 You can get out. All you gotta do is pay 0:17:17.730 --> 0:17:20.410 your way out. You can pray your way out of. 0:17:20.450 --> 0:17:24.130 Has somebody pray. Pray you out of purgatory. So here's 0:17:24.130 --> 0:17:27.609 what happens in the Old Testament. Because Jesus Christ had 0:17:27.609 --> 0:17:30.930 not died. Uh, then your spirit went back to God. 0:17:30.930 --> 0:17:34.250 Who gave it? Uh, your body went to the dust 0:17:34.250 --> 0:17:39.290 of the ground and your soul either went to, according 0:17:39.330 --> 0:17:49.010 to Luke 16, Abraham's bosom or Paradise. Then there was 0:17:49.010 --> 0:17:53.570 a great gulf, fixed a separation. Then there was a 0:17:53.570 --> 0:18:00.250 place of torment. Just call it pot for short. And 0:18:00.250 --> 0:18:04.490 so when Jesus, before Jesus died, our sin was only 0:18:04.490 --> 0:18:09.610 covered because the word atoned in the Old Testament means 0:18:09.609 --> 0:18:14.050 to cover something. So they look forward to Jesus Christ 0:18:14.050 --> 0:18:17.010 coming and dying on the cross when Christ died on 0:18:17.010 --> 0:18:23.810 the cross. The Bible says that he went down into 0:18:23.850 --> 0:18:29.210 Tartarus first and proclaimed to those angels I have redeemed mankind. 0:18:29.450 --> 0:18:33.970 Then he went into Abraham's bosom, and he released all 0:18:33.970 --> 0:18:39.609 the souls that were there waiting for him to do it. Uh, 0:18:39.609 --> 0:18:41.729 waiting for him to die on the cross. Then the 0:18:41.730 --> 0:18:46.369 Bible tells us he led captivity captive and gave gifts 0:18:46.369 --> 0:18:50.450 unto men. That is, he took these souls, ascended into 0:18:50.450 --> 0:18:54.449 the heavens. How many heavens are there? Three. So he 0:18:54.450 --> 0:18:59.129 went through the sky. Then he went through the universe. Verse. 0:18:59.970 --> 0:19:04.290 Then he went into the third heaven or the throne 0:19:04.290 --> 0:19:08.770 room of God. And he took those souls and brought 0:19:08.770 --> 0:19:11.970 them into the presence of the Lord, so that now 0:19:12.450 --> 0:19:15.409 absent from the body on this side of the cross, 0:19:15.410 --> 0:19:18.970 you don't no longer go to Abraham's bosom or Paradise. 0:19:18.970 --> 0:19:22.649 So immediately then spirit goes back to God, who gave it. 0:19:22.650 --> 0:19:25.930 Body goes to the dust of the ground, and the 0:19:25.930 --> 0:19:29.250 soul goes to be in the presence of the Lord 0:19:29.250 --> 0:19:34.609 Jesus Christ. Why absent from the body present with the Lord? 0:19:34.850 --> 0:19:40.850 So then, uh, hell is a real place. And you 0:19:40.850 --> 0:19:44.530 remember this one, uh, when, uh, the professor said, uh, 0:19:44.530 --> 0:19:46.610 I don't believe in hell and I don't believe in 0:19:46.609 --> 0:19:49.570 the Bible. And the believer said, well, I do. And 0:19:49.570 --> 0:19:51.690 he said, I don't believe some of the miracles in 0:19:51.690 --> 0:19:54.929 there either, like Jonah swallowed up by a fish. I 0:19:54.930 --> 0:19:57.570 don't believe it, Christian said, I do. He said, how 0:19:57.609 --> 0:19:59.290 are you going to be sure? He said, when I 0:19:59.410 --> 0:20:02.050 get to heaven, I'll ask Jonah. He said, well, wonder 0:20:02.050 --> 0:20:06.810 if Jonah ain't in heaven. He said, then you ask him. Uh, 0:20:06.810 --> 0:20:10.570 so Billy Graham said this if there were more hell 0:20:10.730 --> 0:20:14.170 preached in the pulpit, there would be less hell in 0:20:14.170 --> 0:20:18.570 the pew. That's a good quote. That's a good quote. Now, 0:20:18.570 --> 0:20:21.050 what are the characteristics of hell? We study this too. 0:20:21.369 --> 0:20:24.090 So what are the characteristics of hell here? Here's what 0:20:24.090 --> 0:20:27.090 it says. Uh, look at Luke 16. Look what it 0:20:27.090 --> 0:20:30.889 says in Luke 1619 through 31. Let me give you 0:20:30.890 --> 0:20:38.010 the characteristics of hell. Characteristics of hell. Number one is 0:20:38.010 --> 0:20:43.530 for self righteous sinners. What's the problem with the rich man? 0:20:43.890 --> 0:20:48.850 It isn't that he just didn't share. He demonstrated that 0:20:48.850 --> 0:20:52.929 he did not have the love of God in him, 0:20:52.930 --> 0:20:57.930 according to all Old Testament passages. And so, uh, he 0:20:57.930 --> 0:21:04.399 is a self righteous sinner. Secondly, it is a place 0:21:04.400 --> 0:21:08.600 for souls. It's a place for souls. So it's a 0:21:08.600 --> 0:21:12.680 place for self righteous sinners, and it's a place for souls. 0:21:12.880 --> 0:21:16.320 So then this teaches us and the other passages about it. 0:21:16.320 --> 0:21:22.520 There's no such thing as annihilation that a soul is eternal. 0:21:22.520 --> 0:21:26.040 And so everybody in here, whether you know Jesus Christ 0:21:26.040 --> 0:21:32.440 or not, you are going to live forever somewhere. Those 0:21:32.440 --> 0:21:35.800 of us who know Jesus will live forever in heaven, 0:21:35.800 --> 0:21:38.480 and those who don't are going to bust hell wide open. 0:21:38.600 --> 0:21:43.040 In the words of my mama. And so, just because 0:21:43.040 --> 0:21:47.960 we don't believe it doesn't change anything. Notice then. So 0:21:48.000 --> 0:21:50.320 it's a place for self righteous sinners. It's a place 0:21:50.320 --> 0:21:54.720 for souls. Then thirdly, it's a place of suffering. 0:21:57.160 --> 0:22:00.560 Really a sobering message today here on Treasure Truth with 0:22:00.560 --> 0:22:03.520 Pastor Ford. But the topic of hell is a topic 0:22:03.520 --> 0:22:08.000 that we just can't ignore. You know, this program exists 0:22:08.000 --> 0:22:10.840 to teach and equip you to be an effective Christian, 0:22:10.840 --> 0:22:13.760 not the kind who hears the word and then immediately 0:22:13.760 --> 0:22:16.920 forgets what it says, but one who applies the word 0:22:16.920 --> 0:22:19.840 to life and then shares it with others. With that 0:22:19.840 --> 0:22:22.119 in mind, we have a book today called How to 0:22:22.160 --> 0:22:25.919 Witness to Anyone by Doctor R.A. Torrey. You know, the 0:22:25.920 --> 0:22:29.399 Bible is clear that salvation is only possible in Christ. 0:22:29.400 --> 0:22:32.040 And as Christians, it's our job to spread the good 0:22:32.040 --> 0:22:35.320 news so that people everywhere can repent and grow in 0:22:35.320 --> 0:22:38.200 their relationship with God. And when you give a gift 0:22:38.200 --> 0:22:40.840 of any amount to support treasured truth, we're going to 0:22:40.840 --> 0:22:43.199 send you this book by R.A. Torrey called How to 0:22:43.240 --> 0:22:47.160 Witness to Anyone in Scripture. God gives us everything we 0:22:47.160 --> 0:22:49.640 need to answer all of the doubts and longings in 0:22:49.640 --> 0:22:52.919 the human heart. Doctor Torrey was an evangelist and a 0:22:52.920 --> 0:22:55.560 Bible teacher who traveled the world at the turn of 0:22:55.560 --> 0:22:58.679 the last century, and he compiled the most useful and 0:22:58.680 --> 0:23:02.600 helpful scripture passages and arrange them by topic to make 0:23:02.640 --> 0:23:06.600 sharing the gospel easy. So give a donation and request 0:23:06.600 --> 0:23:12.760 how to witness to anyone. Call us at 888644 7660 0:23:13.000 --> 0:23:17.160 or go online to Treasure Truth Radio.com. You can also 0:23:17.160 --> 0:23:19.879 automate your giving and support Treasure Truth by becoming a 0:23:19.880 --> 0:23:23.359 monthly partner as a monthly partner. You enable us to 0:23:23.359 --> 0:23:27.240 present Pastor Ford's teaching each and every weekday. So call 0:23:27.240 --> 0:23:32.760 us at 888 644 7660 or go online to Treasure 0:23:32.760 --> 0:23:37.160 Truth Radio.com. Hi, I'm Steve Hiller. Our producer is Amy Rios. 0:23:37.200 --> 0:23:39.680 We're going to hear from Pastor Ford again tomorrow with 0:23:39.680 --> 0:23:42.960 the conclusion of this message. Seven things in hell that 0:23:42.960 --> 0:23:45.919 ought to be in the church that's here on treasure. Truth. 0:23:45.960 --> 0:23:50.280 A production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.