What Is Hell Like?

Luke 16:19-32

Thesis: To show what Hell is like.

Introduction:

1. There are three facts about the story of the rich man and Lazarus.

A. Two men lived;

B. Two men died;

C. The situation here was exactly the opposite in eternity as it had been in this life.

a. The rich man on earth became the beggar in Torment.

b. The beggar on earth became the rich man in Paradise.

c. The rich man on earth was clothed in robes of purple and clothed in fine

linen; but, in the next like was dressed in a garment of fire.

d. The poor man on earth was attended by dogs; but, in the next life he was

attended by angels.

e. The rich man fared sumptuously on earth; but, in the next life he could not

have so much as a drop of water for his tongue.

f. The poor man suffered evil things on earth; but, in the next life he was

comforted.

2. There is much we do not know about Hell; but, there is much we do know.

3. What is Hell like?

Discussion:

Hell is...

I. Eternal.

A. Three passages convey its eternal duration.

1. Matthew 25:46, “And these shall go away into eternal punishment: but the

righteous into eternal life.”

2. Romans 16:26, “…according to the commandment of the eternal God…”

3. Hebrews 9:14, “…who [Jesus] through the eternal Spirit offered himself without

blemish unto God…”

B. Some say, “Hell is too long.”

1. If the duration of Hell is 1000 years, then Heaven’s duration will also be 1000

years.

2. When Hell ceases, Heaven will also cease.

3. Some say that it’s wrong to condemn a man eternally for five years of

disobedience; then, it’s wrong to bless a man eternally for five years of

obedience.

4. Heaven is the same length as Hell.

C. Some say, “Hell is ugly”; then, Heaven is too beautiful for Heaven is on the one

hand what Hell is on the other hand.

D. Some say, Hell is horrible”; then Heaven is too wonderful for Hell is the extreme

on the one side as Heaven is the extreme on the other side.

E. Some say, Hell is too severe”; but Mt. 25:41 says “...these shall go away into eternal

punishment…,” which is the same as “torment” or “chastisement.”

1. 1 John 4:18 KJV, “…fear hath torment…”

2. Luke 16:23-25 KJV, “And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth

Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 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. 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. (Lk. 16:28) For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them,

lest they also come into this place of torment.”

3. Revelation 20:11, “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire

and brimstone, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall

be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”

4. Revelation 14:11, “and the smoke of their torment goeth up for ever and ever;

and they have no rest day and night….”

II. A place of darkness.

A. Let us notice some passages about darkness:

1. 2 Peter 2:4, “…God spared not angels when they sinned, but cast them down to

hell, and committed them to pits of darkness….”

2. Jude 3, “…for whom the blackness of darkness hath been reserved forever.”

3. Matthew 25:30, “And cast ye out the unprofitable servant into the outer

darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.”

B. Let us notice some passages about the light of God.

1. James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down

from the Father of lights…”

2. 1 John 1:5, “…God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”

3. 2 Thessalonians 1:7, “and to you that are afflicted rest with us, at the revelation

of the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire,

rendering vengeance to them that know not God, and to them that obey not

the gospel of our Lord Jesus: who shall suffer punishment, even eternal

destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might.”

4. Psalm 139:7, “Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy

presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: If I make my bed in

Sheol, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in

the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy

right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall overwhelm me,

And the light about me shall be night; Even the darkness hideth not from thee,

But the night shineth as the day: The darkness and the light are both alike to

thee.”

III. A place of fire.

A. Some passages that illustrate that Hell is a place of fire.

1. Matthew 13:42, “and shall cast them into the furnace of fire…”

2. Matthew 25:41, “…Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is

prepared for the devil and his angels.”

3. Mark 9:44, “where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”

4. Revelation 20:10, “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire

and brimstone…”

5. Revelation 20:15, “And if any was not found written in the book of life, he was

cast into the lake of fire.”

6. Matthew 3:12, “…but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire.”

7. Revelation 14:11, “and the smoke of their torment goeth up for ever and ever;

and they have no rest day and night…”

B. Can a fire have an eternal flame without extinguishing?

1. Moses ascended Mt. Horeb, and approached a bush that burned but was not

consumed (Ex. 3:2). If God could do it then, surely he could do it again.

2. God is an infinite God; Hell is an infinite place; and humans are finite creatures.

a. Surely Heaven is far more wonderful than we can know.

b. Surely Hell is far more terrible than we can know.

IV. A place of intense pain.

A. The Lord said there would be gnashing of teeth in Hell (Mt. 25:30).

B. They can hardly stand it.

V. A place of no rest.

A. Hell’s description is awful.

1. Revelation 14:11, “…the smoke of their torment goeth up for ever and ever; and

they have no rest day and night…”

2. Revelation 20:10, “…and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and

ever.”

B. Rest is wonderful when you are tired.

1. What about your lazy chair or couch? Or falling across your bed when you’re

sorely tired?

2. Rest cannot be while tormented!

VI. A place of no relief.

A. As the rich man sat in the flames of torment, he desired for just a drop of water to

cool his tongue; but, he could get no relief.

B. The truth is he could have had ten gallons of water drip down over the sides of his

tongue and down his dry scratchy throat, but neither his thirst would not have been

quenched, nor his soul found relief.

VII. A place of no hope.

A. Matthew 25:46, “And these shall go away into eternal punishment: but the righteous

into eternal life.

B. How long is eternity?

1. You might spend a week in Gatlinburg, Tenn.; but you can’t spend eternity.

2. You might live to see the birth of three generations; but you can’t live

throughout an eternity.

3. Eternity is kind of like the boy that said, “I wish I had a candy cane with just one

end.”

4. Illustration #1: If the world were made of steel, and an ant walked the equator

that is 25,000 miles in circumference at his rate of 1 mile per every 17 hours,

how long would it take for him to wear a trail half an inch deep? How long

would it take to cut the world in half? That’s less than eternity!

5. Illustration #2: Suppose this building were made completely of wood, how long

would it take one termite to eat this entire building? If Andalusia were made of

wood, how long would it take to eat the city? If Alabama, then the state?

Nation? World? Sun, moon, planets, stars and all the celestial bodies? It’s less

than eternity!

6. Illustration #3: Suppose a ship carrying 30,000 cargo holding English peas,

tossed one pea out every 10,000 miles, how long would it take to empty the

ship? That, too, is less than eternity!

C. Could we stand Hell?

1. I could stand Hell if it was only 100 years. After 1 day, I could say that I’ve got

99 years, 364 days to go.

2. I could stand Hell if it was only 1000 years. After 1 day, I could say that I’ve got

999 years, 364 days to go.

3. I could stand Hell if it was only 1,000,000 years. After a couple of days, I could

say that I’ve got 999,999 years, 363 days to go.

D. Surely Hell is the tragedy of all tragedies and the calamities of all calamities.

VIII. A place where a man retains his mental capacities.

A. I will be able to see, hear, fell, talk and remember.

1. The rich man remembered…

a. His life (Lk. 16:25).

b. His five brothers (Lk. 16:28).

c. Probably the changes he could have made and the times he chose not to

obey God.

2. I will remember the points in my life when…

a. I didn’t listen to the pleadings of my wife.

b. You didn’t heed the call of your husband, Christian, elders or preacher to

commitment to the cause of Christ and to some service.

c. Dante, in his poem The Inferno said of Hell’s door: “Through me you enter

into the city of woes, through me you enter into eternal pain, through me

you enter the population of loss…Abandon all hope, you who enter here.”

d. Hell is a hopeless and a helpless place. Surely you don’t want to go there.

B. I will be able to recognize.

1. The rich man knew Lazarus (Lk. 16:24).

2. Some say they don’t want to obey the gospel because of daddy, mom and so on.

a. First, I don’t want others to be in Hell.

b. But, if your Mom, Dad, any family or friends are there, they don’t want to

see you there, too!

c. The rich man wanted to warn his five brothers (Lk. 16:28).

IX. A place where families will be divided.

A. At times we are plagued with sentimentalism.

1. Do you recall the words to this old familiar song, “Will the circle be unbroken

by and by, Lord, by and by; is there a better home awaiting in the sky, Lord, in

the sky?

2. Families are broken today.

a. A father and son will to Hell; a mother and daughter will go to Heaven.

b. A father and daughter will be saved; a mother and a son will be lost.

B. What are we doing?

1. We might be praying for our loved ones, which is noble; but, it must be more

than “Now I lay me down to sleep….”

2. Some are praying, but deep down they are saying, “Leave him alone,” for you

know that when you’re loved is converted you’re going to have to give up your

life of negligence and apathy.

3. There are some women here that taught your children to pray, brought them to

Bible class and worship every Sunday and Wednesday, taught them the Bible;

you’ve taught them righteousness, and lived it before them; you’ve done all

without your husband. GOD BLESS YOU!

Conclusion:

1. Hell is a place you don’t want to go.

2. How would you respond to the rich man’s plea if you were one of his brothers?

3. Would you come down this isle as we stand and sing? Or wait another day?

Sermon adapted from Jimmy Allen's sermon, "What Is Hell Like?"