The lake of fire was originally prepared for the devil and his demons, not for people. BUT… the souls of most people will be cast into the lake of fire for eternity!
Note the underlined text:
41 “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 (Matthew 25:41)
The Lake of Fire is a real place.
But did you know this about the lake of fire?
Satan and his demons have an appointment with a place called “the lake of fire”. They intend to take you with them.
The lake of fire was originally prepared for the angels that rebelled, not for humans. But, because of Satan’s deception leading to Adam’s sin, we come into this world under the same judgement as Adam.
Note the underlined text:
And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15)
Do you understand the meaning? The immortal souls of most human beings will be cast into the lake of fire. Many of them thought they were on the right “way” but they were not.
Sincerity in a false religion is not the way.
I’ve heard people say “God is love” implying that surely he will not send them to hell. But they ignore the fact that God is also justice.
Yet, in His great mercy, God has provided a way for us to enjoy eternal fellowship with Him: by surrendering their lives to His Son, Jesus.
In reality, people will be sending themselves to hell, refusing to believe that Jesus meant what He said in the Gospel of John:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me“. (John 14:6)
I’m going on about this because:
This Earthly Life Is A Sorting Process.
Here is one of the many Scriptures indicating that the souls of most human beings will not go to heaven.
Here is the entire Scripture passage:
Note the underlined text:
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. (Matthew 7:13-14)
Isn’t this what Jesus is saying?
- those who choose the easy road are many
- those who choose the harder way are few
There is no neutral ground here.
Jesus said, Whoever is not with me is against me…” (Matthew 12:30, Luke 11:23)
Here are several more:
Notice how each of the following Scriptures identifies a group of people who will not be going to heaven.
Here is the entire Scripture passage:
18 “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 corinthians 1:18)
You can see who is behind all this ignorance and unbelief: Satan and his demons!
Here is the entire Scripture passage:
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15)
You think it’s hot in Death valley, California? Well, it is. But that’s nothing compared to being cast into the lake of fire!
What sort of people ought you to be?
That was the Apostle Peter’s question:
8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace (2 Peter 3:8~14)
And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:17)
He [Jesus] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power. (Hebrews 1:3)
Ask any nuclear physicist…
One of the four fundamental forces of the universe is the strong nuclear force. It squeezes together all the positively-charged protons in the nucleus of all atoms. Without this sustaining force, the protons in every atom would immediately fly apart. To put it another way, all atoms would explode, were it not for the strong nuclear force.
Scientists have identified this force; they can observe it; they can even measure it’s strength. But they cannot explain why and how it exists.
And so the question remains: what holds all of these atoms together? Science does not have the answer — but the Bible does!
Recall the last part of Colossians 1:17 (quoted above): “… and in him all things hold together”.
Similarly, the writer of the Book of Hebrews says (Hebrews 1:3 — also quoted above) — “…He upholds the universe by the word of His power“.
Do you understand yet?
The immutable will and power of Jesus Christ has been holding together every atom in the universe since creation and He is continuing to hold it all together — right now!
First of all: repent of all known sin.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9)
And as quoted earlier from the Apostle Peter:
The Lord is … not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance (2 Peter3:9)
By the way: you don’t have to confess your sins to any other person; they cannot do anything for you. Jesus has already paid the penalty for your sins, and all you have to do is confess them to Him.
Note the underlined text:
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit (1 Peter 3:18)
If That’s Your Struggle, Here’s What To Do:
Any time the devil tries to guilt you by bringing up your past…
Just remind him of his future!
He has an appointment with the Lake of Fire, and he knows it.
So now his only satisfaction is to employ deception and misdirection, always looking for an opportunity to divide and conquer. He will entice as many as possible to reject a God-honoring lifestyle. Because then, HE HAS YOU! we’ll end up in the lake of fire also. Misery loves company!
The devil is able to influence our thinghts and our emotions.
Don’t give the devil the satisfaction!
Tell him that you know what he’s up to, and you’re not going to play is stupid games any more.
You have an opportunity that the devil doesn’t have
Satan and his demons were judged for their sins and sentenced to the lake of fire. Their sentence has no possibility of an appeal. So now they torment us by inflicting fear, doubt, worry, anger etc. because they know that God must judge sin. But for us, there is an appeal. Read my article Supernatural Problems Need A Supernatural Solution
Note the underlined text:
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. (Hebrews 2:14~16)
Notice how it says, “it is not angels that he helps,” {those are the fallen angels — Satan and his demons) but “he helps the offspring of Abraham” (That’s us)
The passage from Hebrews goes on to say:
17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (Hebrews 2:17~18)
That’s what Jesus has ALREADY DONE for us! He longs for us to take eternity seriously.
Bottom Line:
Thanks entirely to God’s grace, we have the opportunity to repent; the devil does not
But the devil is good at distracting us away from focusing on God:
Columnist Barry Goldman began an editorial for the Los Angeles Times with this anecdote.
I once asked my Aunt Mary what her beliefs were on the subject of life after death. She said: “Whatever Jews believe, that’s what I believe.” Aunt Mary’s view was that there were people whose job it was to consider such things. She was not such a person herself, but she was confident that the guys assigned that task were doing their job, and it was all written down in a book somewhere. If you were sufficiently interested, you could look it up.
And thus, Aunt Mary gave herself permission to do nothing; to know nothing; to wrap herself in a false security that merely identifying with (in her case) the Jews would result in salvation.
Be Quick To Forgive.
22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (Mark 11:22~25)
Forgiveness is a big deal in the Bible.
Trust God! Take Bold Steps Of Faith!
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5~6)
The biblical definition of “faith”:
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
So “faith” means you don’t have the details. If you did have all the answers, it wouldn’t be faith.
7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 4:7)
36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. 37> For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; 38 but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” 39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls. (Hebrews 10:36~39)
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. (Romans 3:23-27)
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16~17)
The concept of “walking by faith” is illustrated in this short excerpt from “The Prayer of Jabez”, by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson
But as the prophet Isaiah asked:
Who has believed our message? (Isaiah 53:1a)
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
9 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness (Romans 4:5)
Begin a practice of internalizing God’s Word!
51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” (John 8:51
Did You Know this?
There are some 3,900 Scripture passages in the Bible that command us to get God’s Word into our minds and into our hearts.
Wouldn’t you agree, then, that our obedience in memorizing God’s Word is a very high priority with our Creator. He gave us His Word so that we would have guidelines to live by, and that through His Word we would come to know Him.
Here are two that come to mind:
6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. (Deuteronomy 6:6~7)
You can see the imperative commands in that passage: “Shall be”; “Shall teach”; “shall talk”.
The next example is a much more subtle:
Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)
As we can see, that verse doesn’t read like an imperative command: “DO THIS!” or “DON’T DO THAT!”. But although the command is more subtle, it is nevertheless put into the Bible to urge us to know God’s Word.
Here are several of the many passages in which Jesus Himself commands us to know His Word.
31 Jesus said… “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31~32)
15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14:15~17)
21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.” (John 14:21~24)
Did you notice the underlined “conditions” in the passages above?
- If you remain in my word
- If you love me
- Whoever has my commandments and keeps them
- If anyone loves me
This next passage literally astonished me!
The writer of the letter to the Hebrews quoted these Words from the Prophet Jeremiah, who wrote this under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit about 700 or 800 years before Jesus Christ came into the world as a human person:
The New Covenant
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 11 And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 12 For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (Hebrews 8:10~12)
Look at what that new covenant promises:
Verse 10:
-
“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel…”
Notice he says, “I WILL make”, not “I HAVE made”. The writer of the book of Hebrews was quoting from the Prophet Jeremiah, written hundreds of years earlier, and looking to a future time.
By quoting this prophecy, the writer of Hebrews brings the prophecy of Jeremiah into the New Testament era. The writer is saying, “This is now the beginning of the time Jeremiah was referring to”.
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“I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts”
Aside from the prophets and the apostles, has this ever happened without the discipline and diligence of committing God’s Word to memory? I believe the writer is referring to our part in the covenant. He will motivate us. His Holy Spirit will work God’s Word into our hearts.
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“I will be their God, and they shall be my people”
YES!! THAT’S HE LONGS FOR!!
Verse 11:
-
“And they shall not teach…”
No need to teach; everyone will know!
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“for they shall all know me…”
Our Creator’s Ultimate Purpose: HE LONGS FOR US TO GET TO KNOW HIM!
And how do we know Him? The same way we know each other We know each other by what we say and what we do.
In the same way, we get to know God by knowing what He said and by knowing what He did.
Therefore, the more we know the Bible, the more we know God.
Verse 12:
-
“I will be merciful toward their iniquities…”
And do we not all need His mercy?
-
“I will remember their sins no more…”
His love for us is so great that He chooses to “forget” — to overlook our sins.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6)
And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8~10)
Begin a practice of praising God!
I’ve already written an article on the subject of praising God, so I won’t repeat it again. Here’s a short excerpt from that article.
Did you catch that?
There is an incident described in detail in 2 Chronicles wherein God’s people were facing an impossible situation. But instead of freaking out, they began to praise God in advance. They trusted Him — and so can we. I invite you to Click Here to read the article Praise God! He Loves That in a separate window.
A Couple Of Closing Thoughts
1) Jesus is waiting for an invitation from you.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. (Revelation 3:20)
2) Be a follower of Jesus, not a fan. Become His disciple.
The Seventy Return with Joy
17 Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” 18;And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10: 17~20)
Is your name in the Book?
- Jan
- Why The Universe And The Human Race Exist
- PERFECT Was Not Good Enough
- Satan Is NOT In Control ~ Part 1
- Satan Is NOT In Control ~ Part 2
- Satan Is NOT In Control ~ Keep short accounts with God
- Satan HATES You!! [but why??]
- The Meaning Of Life Is What?
- God Needs To Lighten Up
- Supernatural Problems Need A Supernatural Solution
- The Lake Of Fire Was Created For Evil Spirits
- God Is More Powerful Than The Devil
- There Will Be Scoffers
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The Lake of Fire is symbolic and it means the 2nd death Revelation 20 :12-15
Mary, you are correct. The Lake of Fire is indeed symbolic. The Lake of Fire is not a physical Lake of Fire. The Lake of fire is symbolic of a Spiritual Lake of Fire for the purpose of Divine Purification.
My name is Alan Finch. I became a Christian 42 years ago.
WOW, I was taught and believed that multitudes upon multitudes of humans will suffer eternal torment for 100 trillion years, and then another 100 trillion years, and then another 100 trillion years, and it goes on and on with no hope of it ever ending. I am certain that each one of us, deep inside of our very being, know that something just does not add up, but we just can’t quite figure out what is it that we are not understanding correctly from the Scriptures.
The true biblical teaching is neither the traditional Christian view of hell, nor the view of annihilation. Our great God is neither a great torturer nor a great annihilator, but He is the great Saviour of the world.
The mystery of the finished work of Christ on the Cross will one day reveal the perfect plan of God for the entire human race, which does not include eternal torment or eternal annihilation for one single person!
I was a Christian for 38 years before I gained a better Scriptural understanding of some Biblical truths that I had not properly understood in regards to the finished work of Christ on the Cross.
I am responding to Candy’s question ” What are we being saved from”. Matthew shows that Jesus came to save the people from their sins. How did we receive sin? Romans 5:12 says ” That is why just as through one man sin entered in to the world and death through sin and so death spread to all men because they have all sinned” .Romans 6:23 says The wages sin pays is death but the gift God give is everlasting life by Christ Jesus..1 John 3:4 says that sin is lawlessness or disobedience. Through Adams sin his disobedient lawless act we inherited his sin and death. Jesus comes to the rescue 1 Corinthians says ” Just in Adam all are dying so also in Jesus Christ all will be made alive” Ephesians 1:7 By means of him Jesus we have the release by ransom through the blood of that one yes the forgiveness of sins. In conclusion Sin and death was brought in to the world by Adam we being his children inherited sin and death. That is what we need to be saved from is sin and death Through Jesus he comes in to the world of mankind and through his obedience he dies for us doing away with sin that causes death .In God’s appointed time all sin and the traces of sin that causes death will be completely eliminated .This will happen at the 1000 year ruler ship of Jesus Christ 1 Corinthians 15: 26 Jesus will bring an end to death. I hope this answers your question
Hello Sir,
I used to follow a very bad life up until 12 or so years ago. I am now 67 I have repented and confessed of all my sins that I can remember. They were many many. Mostly sexual sins. I now read the Bible on a regular basis and pray. Still I do not seem to have inner peace. I so want my name to be written in the book and for my heart to be flooded with the love of Jesus, rather than mind knowledge which I feel I Have. Other than confessing my sins and repenting, should I be doing anything else. I hope you could answer this question. Regards Hugh
Hugh, I’m so glad you asked!
Let’s let David tell us what to do:
To put it another way, David did some Scripture memory.
A few verses later David wrote:
Here is the point: as I have explained in great detail in various places, Satan and his demons want every human soul to be sent to hell with them. Satan’s greatest weapon is deception. Those feeling that you have are an indicator that Satan is worried over you. He is worried that you will actually begin to take hold of God’s Word and live by the wisdom in the Bible. After all, the Bible is the one thing in this world that Satan cannot control. BUT: he can try to influence your thoughts such that you believe that God does not care about you and that God will never help you. But here’s how much God loves you:
Writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul said:
Paul is urging all of us to allow the Holy Spirit to be in complete control of our lives. The more we do that, the better go our lives.
Then we can say — as David said just a bit later in Psalm 119:
With Jesus, it’s all about relationship, not rules and restrictions. He as set us free from the tyranny of sin.
I urge everyone reading this to read Romans chapters 6, 7, and 8 every day for a while. Watch what id toes to you. The more times you read a somewhat complex letter like Romans, the more clear it becomes.
And don’t tell me you can’t do it. You have the same 24 hours in each day as I do. Also, don’t try to say you’re too old. I’m almost 76 years old, and I’m doing all these things every morning. I just have to go to bed earlier,, so I can get up earlier.
God will never command you to do something that he has not equipped you to do.
Read my series of articles on Scripture memory. Then you’ll see how easy it is to put God’s thoughts into your mind. That’s how you get rid of all those negative things that keep you troubled. It works. Then, instead of thinking Satan’s thoughts, you’ll be thinking God’s thoughts. And His thoughts come loaded with His power to over come the lies and deceptions of the devil.
Jan
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