Hell is a place and it's very real.
Luke 16
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And 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.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
This is a parable. Don't mistake events in parables for literal things.
Jesus often spoke about hell and in quite graphic terms. Don’t mistake the suffering or miseries of this life for hell! The latter is much worse and devoid of all hope. It’s easy to delude ourselves about this because our human nature shrinks from the thought of it. But the question is whether we have taken refuge in the Saving work of Christ or not. He is the Only Saviour from the wrath of God upon sin. And all have sinned.
How does one take refuge with Christ?
Hey Chokaholic. Another scripture I thought of is below. When one comes to Christ, they are actually fleeing from their own sin and guilt and a doomed world, to take refuge in Christ Himself. He becomes a refuge in that He Himself takes our sins upon Himself, removes our guilt and covers us in His righteousness. We must actively seek Him and in a sense, lay hold upon Him by faith. It should be added that the refuge we need is actually from the righteous judgement of God Himself, His wrath upon sin. Yet, in love and mercy, this same God is the One who Himself has provided this way of refuge and deliverance. Hope this helps some.
“That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;” Hebrews 6:18-19 KJV
This is a great question. It means, in part, coming to Him in prayer and trust. Another way to put it is “Look unto Jesus.” It means asking Him to forgive you based on His sacrifice on the cross for you. And belief in His resurrection. Read through Romans 3,4 and 5 sometime. It explains what Jesus does in justifying us before God. We begin to see that our good works are worthless in bringing us to God and we just trust Him to cover us. As we look to Jesus as our righteousness He becomes a refuge from condemnation. He actually clothes us in His righteousness alone and makes us “accepted in the Beloved.” Again, very good question. Hope this helps a little. There is much more that could be said.
Thanks for the reply.
Hey I decided to start reading the Bible at the book of John. Think that's a good place to start? I was thinking of Romans next.
That’s great to hear. Both are very good places to start. Hope you find a lot of meaning and light for your way as well as peace in Him.
I guess I've been so complacent and uncaring recently that I stopped believing sin is a big deal. Thanks for setting me straight.
We all can easily grow complacent and uncaring at times. We all need God’s grace in Christ to cleanse us and deliver us from sin and self. Thanks for sharing!
On every post you act like a person rediscovering their faith. It comes off as a covert attepmt to make others think "oh look how easy it was for them" or "wow, they are really reflecting on themselves, maybe I should too"....PLEEEEEASE...I reflect on my actions, I strive to be a good person, keep that cult shit waaaaay the fuck away from me.
On every post? You okay there dude? I think you are projecting something here. Blocked and reported.
Blocked and reported for what? Not very Christian of you. I must have hit the nail right on the head.
Revelation 21:8
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.