your Bibles ready, but before I preach this morning, I'm going to sing a hymn about a dream, a dream the man had of seeing God in His glory. It's well written and obviously fictitious, but biblical in the idea of what it is about. I dreamed of that city called glory, so bright and so fair. When I entered the gate, I cried, holy. The angels all met me there. They showed me from mansion to mansion And all the sights I saw But I said, I want to see Jesus The one who died for all I thought When I entered that city, my friends knew me well. They showed me all the ground and The scenes were too new rest to tell. They showed me Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Mark, Luke, and Timothy. But I said, I want to see Jesus, the one who died for me. on my knees and cried, Holy, Holy, Holy. I clapped my hands and sang, Glory, Glory to the Son of God. I bowed when I saw my I just fell right now. I come down. My friend of Calvary For I wanted to give praise to Jesus For saving a sinner like me That I bowed on my knees and cried, Holy, Holy, Holy I clapped my hands and sang, Glory! Glory to the Son of God! I'm so glad I got to see Jesus, the one who died for all. Amen. It's a good text, isn't it? All right, we'll dismiss the kids, go to class. And I hope you get to see Jesus, all right? I'm looking forward to seeing Jesus. and look forward to going to heaven. A lot of times, a lot of people, when we're in heaven, but they don't want to believe in the place that the Bible calls hell. I point out to unbelievers a lot of times, hell is real. By telling them, even atheists, and we talked about this morning, atheists even take God's name in vain, they use the name of God often because he exists. But even atheists will say something like, damn you, or go to hell. And when I say that, those words themselves are not sin. It's not like saying a curse word this morning. It's like saying something I can't say to somebody else because I'm not God. And it's a very real thing when an unbeliever sinfully says those things, but it's an even greater thing when the God of heaven seriously says those things as he commits somebody to an eternity in a lake of fire. Hell is so bad that God created it for the devil and his fallen angels. It wasn't even created for man. It was created for Satan and his group that rebelled against God. Matthew 25, 41, If you wonder what hell is about, why is it there? It is there because God made it as a place of eternal punishment. for Satan and the fallen angels that rebelled against God with Satan. And they're gonna go there. There's no hope today for a fallen angel. There's no hope today for the devil. The reality is that as the world ends, and as this judgment that we read about in our text takes place, for all eternity, they will be cast into the lake of fire. Mankind is not there, and I praise God for that today. I could preach this message on the streets of Edinburgh to a group of people that are godless and on their way to this place, and I could say to them, but you are not like those fallen angels, but you're as close to them as you can be. You're not in that place of consignment to the lake of fire for all eternity, because there is yet, as you are living, an opportunity of the mercy of God and the grace of God. But I will say this, they are condemned. And if that's you this morning, if perhaps you're here today and you're not saved, you've never been born again, you don't have God's gift of everlasting life, then the reality is, when you die, you'll spend eternity in the lake of fire. And I tell you this morning, you're condemned already. John 3.18 says, he that believeth on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed. in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And so, it's not like the devil was angels. You are condemned, but I would say this, by God's grace, there is still mercy. for anybody like that. And children, by the way, as I preach this morning, I want to challenge you to listen. I got saved as a little boy of five years old, sitting in a service as my father, who's a pastor, preached a message on hell. And as he spoke about hell, my heart as a child responded. I thought, I don't want to go to that place, but I know I'm going there because of my sin. And I went down to my dad's study afterwards and I asked my dad how to get saved. And that could be you today. So don't think this morning, well, Pastor Ben is speaking about something that I can't understand. You can understand this. It's very simple this morning. And God doesn't want anybody to go to hell. 2 Peter 3, 9 says, The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to us-ward, not knowing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. You know, this morning, it doesn't matter who somebody is that would be here out on the street that we can evangelize, that we can share the gospel with. Anybody that we've ever seen on the news, anybody that we've seen that has committed an atrocious crime, the Bible says about that person that God does not want them to go to hell. He's not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. He wants them to believe the truth. 1 Timothy 2, 1. I exhort, therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, our Savior, who will have all men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. God says pray for those that are in government. We don't have a godly government in our SMPs. I talked in witness to ours for a good look, and best I know, he's not a born again man. He's not a saved man. He's not a man that knows the Bible. I asked him back when you were voting on the legislation for homosexual marriage, you know what the Bible says about that? He said he didn't. But we ought to pray for him. We ought to pray for all those that are in authority. because God wants them all to get saved, and to come into knowledge of the truth, if they would. And he invites and encourages them to change their eternity. John 5.24, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. God invites them. God says, look, I'll give you a pardon. You won't have to come into condemnation. What we're going to look at this morning is the condemnation of God, the judgment of God upon those that reject Jesus Christ. But I, with freedom and liberty, say this morning, if that is you this morning under the condemnation of God, you don't have to remain there. God is willing to take that condemnation away if you put your faith in Jesus Christ. It's a very sobering topic that God has put before us this morning, but it's my prayer that the Spirit of God would use it to give us a burden for evangelism. And if you're here this morning and realizing in your heart that he died and you go to hell, that God would use this message this morning to encourage you that he wants to save you from that awful place. Let's pray. Father, I pray that the Spirit of God would give wisdom, liberty, and guidance as we come to the Word of God this morning. Father, I pray that you give us ears to hear. Father, help us to listen very attentively. I pray for the children. I know it's easy to be distracted, but I pray they would not be, but I pray that they would determine that they're going to listen to what this place, the Bible calls hell, is like and why they shouldn't go there, why they ought to run to Jesus Christ for his salvation. And so I pray the Spirit of God would guide in the service this morning. I pray that you'd help me as I speak. Father, I can't speak without your help. I can't declare your word as I ought to without your enablement. I do ask that the Spirit of God would guide me. I ask that he would guide my heart, my mind. Lord, I pray that you'd help me to communicate the word of God in a loving way as you intended. And Father, in a practical way that would change men's lives. And so I praise you and I thank you for your help. We pray the Spirit of God would have his way in this time. In Christ's name we pray. Amen. A lot of times, as you're witnessing, I've witnessed today, young people at times, you bring up the subject of hell, and you can almost have demonical laughter. It's very interesting at times, as you speak about the seriousness and the soberness of the place that God, the Son, died to save men from, People can respond in almost a humorous way. And I've looked at times and wondered, is that just like a reaction of, you know, wow, that's a really heavy trick? And I don't know that it's that. There are times where religion can get demonic. It's almost like laughing at something that is so sobering. And, you know, if somebody's like that, they're not bothered by hell, God would have them know some facts. found in our text, beginning at verse 10, and it is that people in hell are deceived. People in hell are deceived. It says, and the devil that deceived them. Okay, it's stated here in our text, verse 10, is getting cast into hell for eternity. We'll talk about that in a second, okay? But the devil got to deceive them. There could be somebody today, and they could hear us talk about this message after church. They could hear me preach this message, whether here or online. And they could say, ah, but I don't believe in hell. I don't think there is a hell. And I would say this, the majority of people in hell probably believe the same thing that you believe in life. They believe that it was just a lie, that it was just a fabrication of religion to try to force people to be religious and try to force people to get into church because they believe that lie that Satan gave. And Satan gives many lies. You know, atheism and evolution, as you think about the Great Reception that is taking place, we're studying it in Sunday School, Sunday mornings at 10 o'clock, as we look at the Book of Romans. But how has Satan so mesmerized people with this idea of millions and millions of years that they have rejected the Creator God? Evolution, I've said it so many times, but evolution can't explain life. Just ask an evolutionist, where does life come from? They can't explain where life begins. They can't explain design. They can't explain personality. They can't explain individuality. They can't explain conscience. They can't explain wisdom, knowledge, creativity. That's just a sampling of the things that evolution has no explanation for. But the Word of God in the very first verse of the Bible has the answer. It's in the beginning God created. And, you know, you look at this perverse rejection of God. You just stop and think about it. How can it be? And we understand in Romans chapter one, God has made it abundantly clear in his creation that he exists, and yet the devil that deceived them. They're deceived. People in hell are deceived. People in hell are baptized in fire. It says, and the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone. Satan is getting cast into hell after a thousand years of being down in hell. He's been released for a little while. We'll read about that in just a second. But now at this point in God's judgment, God is casting him into that lake of fire in brimstone. Did you know that young people? Hell is a lake. a lake that is on fire. I mean, can you imagine what that'd be like if you just took and put some petrol on top of a lake and set it on fire? My dad accidentally lit a church on fire one time. And we had a holiday Bible club and dad was doing a branding illustration. My dad grew up on a dairy farm out in Colorado. He had his Weber barbecue on a flat part of the roof outside the church auditorium. It had pea gravel, little stones all over that roof, and some water from rain that we had. And when Dad was trying to get it going, he realized, time-wise, he had to really hurry and get that iron hot so he could bring it on the board and show the kids the illustration he wanted to show them. So he thought, I'll just pour some gasoline on this and light it, and it'll light quickly. Well, it did light quickly. But the grates in the bottom of the Weber leaked petrol. And so we threw the match in, the fire actually went down to the rooftop and set that on fire. And I remember this distinctly as I ran up out of the basement with all the other kids at Holly Bible Club and my dad jumped off the roof and the fire department came. But you know, picture that flame of fire that's there. Fire's a very serious thing and a very scary thing. I saw a video this past week, a man and his father, his father's like 70, they're driving through a wildfire in California, and they're trying to escape, and I mean, you see the flaming trees all around them, and they're panicked, and you hear the guy crying out, my God, and Jesus, and help us, and they get up, and there's a fallen log across the road, and it's on fire. They had to reverse back out of there, and they actually had to be rescued by helicopter or something like that. God did save them. But that's a graphic picture of hell, the fact that it's a fire everywhere. It's all around you because that's what the Bible says about hell. Revelation 14.9 says, and the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if any man worship the beast in his image and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation, and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone, in the presence of the holy angels, in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascended up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name." What it's speaking about is during the tribulation period, there's going to be a one-world government. And by the way, with regard to Revelation, you ought to read it because it's coming. And it's coming soon. And some of the things in Revelation are taking place. Israel's already back in the land. They're back where God said they will be. But it says there's going to be a beast that rises up, the Antichrist, and a false prophet that preaches, worship the beast. And those people that are going to want to buy and sell are going to have to get a mark in their hand. They're going to have to get a mark in their forehead. We're already seeing today chips put into hands, chips put into different parts of your body that allow access to buildings, that allow information. The world's trying to think, how can we keep people from stealing bank accounts, bank cards, bank things? This idea of a chip in the hand and just easy payment and things like that is coming into place. We're seeing it. But this, this is not going to be, oops, I accidentally got the beast checked. This is going to be a mark of some sort that you will have to take in allegiance to the beast. And true believers are going to not take the mark because they worship God and God alone. But those that take this mark, the Bible says, are going to be cast into hell. They'll be tormented with fire and brimstone. I want to be clear this morning, hell is not described as a fire. Hell is a fire. It's a place that is constantly burning. They're baptized in fire. People in hell are baptized in fire. People in hell are deceived. People in hell are alive. Notice what it says in verse 10. Into a lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are. Okay, what's this about? The beast and the false prophet are there. How long have they been there? Does anybody know? They've been there a thousand years. How do we know that? Well, turn back with me to Revelation 19 and verse 19. It says, And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before. By the way, the Antichrist and the false prophet are men. Okay? They're people. They're human. They're taken. And then that worship is imaged. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire, burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of its mouth, and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years. And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more, till a thousand years should be fulfilled. And after that, he must be loosed a little season. Okay, where are we? Fast forward, we're a thousand years later. By the way, just quick history of, or future prophecy of eschatology. The next thing is the Lord's return, then the tribulation, then the millennium, okay? Tribulation is God's judgment on the world. The millennium is the reign of the Lord Jesus Christ in Jerusalem for a thousand years. After that, Satan is loose for a little while, and the armies of the Lord destroy him and all the ungodly, and then Satan is cast into this lake of fire. The Great White Plume Judgment takes place, which judgment we're looking at in our text, okay? It's where we're coming up to. And so, a thousand years before the beast and the false prophet were cast into that lake, a thousand years later, what do we find? They're still there. It's not annihilation. It's not this morning that when somebody is cast into hell, their body is destroyed and that is it. It's that in that hell, a place of hell, they are alive. They are there for all eternity. Jesus told a story about two men to describe the awfulness of hell in Luke chapter 16 verse 19. It says there was a certain rich man which was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus which was laid at his gate full of sores and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. More of the dogs came and licked his sores. It came to pass that the beggar died and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. Okay, heaven. The rich man also died and was buried. And in hell. He looked up his eyes to the informants to see if Abraham was far off and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried, and he said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me. And said Lazarus, and he dipped the tip of his finger in water and cooled my tongue, for I am, notice those words, I am tormented in this flame. He's there. But Abraham said, son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receiveth thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you, there's a great gulf there, so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot. Neither can they pass to us that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee, Father, that thou wouldst send unto my father's house, where I have five brethren, they may testify unto them, lest they also come, and there again, the physical reality of being in hell, into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them. And he said, Name, Father, Abraham. But if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. He said to him, if they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. Can I say this in a loving way this morning? If you know somebody in hell today, they don't want you to go there. See, I sometimes have witnessed the unbelievers, and they've gotten to the point of understanding the gospel to the point that they understand that those that they love must not have received Christ, as far as they know. Let me say this, God is a just God who's not gonna get it wrong. God is a merciful God. You never know what that person in their life at some point accepted Jesus Christ. You don't know, okay? And God's not gonna get it wrong, and God isn't unjust to send anybody to hell. We'll consider that this morning. But the reality is that in hell, if they could, they would come out of hell just to get on their knees and to beg you not to go there. Why? Because you exist in hell. Hell's not something that is of annihilation. It is a place, next, as we see, of torment. They're alive, and they're continually tormented. It says, and shall be tormented day and night. Now, again, this may seem repetitive and obvious, But hell never gets better. Day and night, it's suffering. It's constant suffering. A lot of times, you can be comforted when you get an illness or something. I don't know about you, but if I get a stomach bug or something like that, something that encourages me, it's like, this is not going to last forever. All right? I am going to get better. I am going to get through this. I have hope. Listen, somebody in hell has no hope. The pain that the rich man was in was such that he thought if just this beggar that sat outside my gate that had his body full of sores, if that beggar could touch his finger in a drop of water and put it on my tongue, that that would be a comfort because I am tormented in this way. Listen, if you're thirsty right now, would you like me to go get a dirty person to stick their finger in some water and put it on your tongue because you think that would make it better? You're not really as thirsty as a rich man, are you? The rich man in hell was so burdened by his torment that he thought, you know, just that drip of water on a filthy man's finger would be put on my tongue. It would comfort me because this flame is so bad. In Matthew, just from Matthew, this is what Jesus said. Matthew 8, verse 12, the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Have you ever heard somebody weep and kind of wail? I heard my wife do it once. She lost a ring. I've told you the story. She lost a ring that had her birth mom's diamond in it. And I didn't know that. And I called her dorm room. And I said, is Katie there? And they're like, she can't come to the phone right now. And I go, is that her? And I hear this, ah! And it's a neat story. God allowed me to find the ring. But anyway. If you've heard somebody crying out in agony, not that they've lost something, but pain. I've been in A&E at the Royal, and I've heard a woman screaming in agony. And that's what Jesus is describing, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13, 42, shall cast them into a furnace of fire, there shall be wailing, and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13, verse 15, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire. There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 22, 13, then said the king to the servants, bind them hand and foot and take them away and cast them into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24, 51, and shall cut asunder and point in his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 25, 30, casting the unprofitable servant into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. See, again, you might sit here this morning and say, I don't really believe in hell. Listen, Jesus Christ took the time, every time he spoke about hell in those verses, to say, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth in hell, because hell is a place of torment. people in hell are deceived, they're baptized in fire, they are alive, and they're continually tormented. Fifth, they're never coming out. They're never coming out. It says, shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever. Young people, forever is this, it is right now into eternity, without anything pointing back this way. It is no chance to ever go back. No chance to ever change. Hell is eternal. 2 Thessalonians 1 7. destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. Those that didn't obey the gospel, you know what the gospel is? The gospel is this, Jesus Christ loved Emily, Jesus Christ loved Parker, Jesus Christ loved Mr. Hyken, Jesus Christ loved everybody in here, everybody in our community so much. that Jesus Christ died on a cross to pay the price for our sin to keep us from going to hell. It's like this, Jamie Anne, if you're on your way to hell, Jesus Christ died on a cross trying to keep you from going there. He did everything in his power to stop the judgment that was against you because he realized that those in hell never get out. It is eternal. from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. You know what the glory of God's power is? The glory of God's power is that right now, if in your heart you think, I'm a sinner, the punishment for my sin is hell, I want to be forgiven, and you cry out to God and say, oh God, give me mercy, the power of God is such that He can save you from hell. Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it. We've sung it. That is God buying us back. That is God purchasing us. That's the glory of His power. We get this in hell. Even God will not reach into hell to get anybody out. It's eternal separation from God. Why, again, would I preach a message like this this morning? Well, I guess it's reason enough that God doesn't want you or anyone you know to go to hell. Isn't it? God doesn't want anybody to go there. He wants all to get saved. So my message really, and that was introduction this morning, but what does it take to go to hell? These people are in hell, what does it take? People in hell, what have they passed? What has taken place before they entered into hell? And so to go to hell this morning, you have to die. To go to hell, you have to die. Verse 11. It says, I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And verse 12 says, and I saw the dead. Those that are cast into hell, before they're cast into hell, at some point they had to die. You know what death is? Death is a one-way departure of your soul from your body. It's that point where your life leaves. You remember the story of Eudicus when he fell down out of the window? Paul was long preaching. He preached so long that there's a young man sitting up in the window and he got drowsy, he fell asleep. He fell down out of that upper window and they thought he died. But Paul went down to him and Paul said this in Acts 20 verse 10, troubled not yourself for his life is still in him. He's saying his soul is still there. He's still alive. But when that soul separates from that body, that body is dead. And that is what death is. I don't know about you guys, as far as rides that you like to go on. I like to go on rides, OK? But I didn't used to. When I was younger, I was terrified of things like roller coasters and things like that. But you know what happens when you get on a ride? Before the ride starts, you've got a choice, right? I mean, you can think about it and think, no, I'd rather not do that. But once you get onto that ride, that harness comes on, you know, locks in, that's you. I mean, you can scream all you want, and I have. Let me off! I'm sure you've heard other people do it. You know, let me off. I remember a Ferris wheel I was on with my dad when I was probably Nelson's age, and I don't know if a guy stopped the ride earlier or not, but I mean, I was crying, I was screaming, stop this thing as it went around. It was a really fast Ferris wheel. I'm just saying that to make me look good. But I wanted off, and I could get off until I got on, right? Until I passed that point of no return. Listen, death is that point that you pass and you can't get off. There's no option to say, you know what, I'd really like to go back to life. I'd really like to go back and change. We all like those movies about somebody that dies and they can go back and they can change something about their life and make things right. But listen, that's not the way life is. When somebody dies, that's it. And you know what? In God's mercy, At some point, they were confronted with the reality of who He is and what His Son had done for them. Okay, there with ISTH, Romans chapter 1, they see that there is a God, they understand there's a God, they can seek Him and find Him if they search with all their heart. But they pass that point. The hymn, God's Final Call, says, someday you'll hear God's final call to you, to take His offer of salvation true. This could be it, my friend, if you but knew. God's final call, God's final call. How can you live another day in sin, thinking some day with Christ you will begin? O, will you hear above the world's loud din? God's final call, God's final call. If you reject God's final call, grace will have no chance, your footsteps to retrace. All hope will then be gone, and doom you'll face. O, hear His call, God's final call. It's like this today, if you're here today and you're not saved, I hope that in your heart you're thinking, you know what, I should really get saved. And I'll tell you who that is, that's the Spirit of God, in the mercy of God, touching your heart and saying, look, before it's too late, do something about it, get saved. And I praise God that in this room, the Spirit of God can call men to get saved. I praise God that as this message is put online, the Spirit of God can call men to be saved. But listen, if you wanna go with me down to the cemetery, and walk those quiet lanes between those graves, those bodies that are there have passed that point of hearing God's final call. And the point would be this this morning, you don't know when you're gonna die. You don't know today, today could be the last day that the Spirit of God speaks to your heart. You don't know when you're gonna die. Let me ask you, those people driving across that bridge in Italy when it collapsed, sadly 40 some people perished. Did they know that they were driving across that bridge into eternity? They had no idea. They're on vacation and holidays and visiting family, visiting friends. They had their plans. They thought they had their life all planned out. They had their day planned out. Well, listen, their day changed. And so could yours. See, nobody knows the day or the hour that they're going to die. What's the important thing? Today is the day that somebody gets saved. Today is the day that somebody ought to obey the gospel. Let me ask you this, as believers, let's think about this message in a different light just for a second. There's people that know they're going to die and they're going to go to hell. Do you really want to hear about your neighbor's funeral and think, man, I wish I told them about Christ? Does your pride really matter so much that you're ashamed to knock on their door and give them a verbal witness and care enough about them to say, look, I just want you to know that I love Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has saved me. And I am burning for you. I'm praying for you to get saved. And you may not even know this, but there's a punishment for sin. There's a place called hell. There's a place called heaven. And Jesus Christ will die for you. See, at a funeral, you might have regrets. Or you could be at a funeral at night. I went to a funeral of a man that I shared the gospel with. Sadly, I feel like I know somebody in hell. He didn't repent. But I'm glad I could hand his daughter... I keep a journal. I keep a journal of what I do every day, ministry-wise, and witnessing opportunities. I was able to take pages from my notes, give to his daughter of times I've spoken to her dad about salvation. And so I don't know whether her dad would have accepted Christ as his Savior or not. This is not even safe. to impact His eternity. You know? Those in hell have to die. The dead are brought up before the Lord. To go to hell, you have to face the judgment. It said, I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God. You know, it doesn't matter your status. The dead, small and great, hey, it doesn't matter, prime minister, queen, president, or janitor, or whatever you wanna put, janitor, I don't wanna make it seem like a janitor's not a respectful job, you know what I'm saying, okay? But it's not as glamorous as being queen. But does it matter what somebody has done in life? They'll all stand before God. And the books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And then the Judge. Hebrews 9.27. It says, as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this, the judgment. Let me ask you something. Who is the judge? After they die, they face the judgment. Do you guys know who that is? Who's the judge? The judge is? You're right. But who's the judge of eternity? Jesus. Yeah, Jesus is the judge. The Bible says that in John 5.2, the Father judged no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. So when you see the great white throne and him that sat in it, from whose face the heaven and the earth fled away, the person sitting on the throne is Jesus. Let me ask you this, what do you see when you look at his hands? Nail prints. What do you see as you look at his forehead? Prints from the crown of thorns. You see the lamb slain. Are you going to be able to look that lamb in the face and say, Judge, I curse you. You didn't care about me. You never tried to save me. You never tried to do anything for me. All you care about is your judgment. You're just going to cast me into a lake of fire and you care nothing about me. Those people are going to have to look at the man. the Son of God, the judge that so cared about those that would stand in his court someday, that took off his robes of judgment and his authority and power. He didn't come into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. Think about it. I sang about seeing the Lamb in his Lord. We look forward to it as believers, but it's gonna be an awful day for those that stand in his courtroom condemned for their sin against God. Romans 5.8, God showed His love toward us, commended His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Everybody on trial is going to see the Savior, and every knee is going to bow, and every tongue confess that He's Lord. And so, to go to hell, you have to face the judgment. To go to hell, you have to be accused and condemned for your works. It says that the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works. These people have not had their list of crimes against God cleansed at all. They can't. Okay, listen, your list of crimes is either cleansed in total or it's not cleansed at all. And so it's going to be a lengthy judgment as God The son judges man for their for their sin everything in that book. They're gonna get an account for it They're gonna have to stand up and face the judge With what they did in their life. In fact the Word of God says Matthew 12 36 I say to you that every idle word that men shall speak shall they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. Young people, have you ever gotten upset at somebody and said something you shouldn't? You got upset and you got angry and you said something nasty, the Bible says those that this judgment, every idle word that they've spoken of, they're gonna give an account for before God. It's gonna be a very serious judgment. Do you know good people don't go to hell? Bible says, in Revelation 21 verse 8, but the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall be part of the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Listen, good people don't go to hell. People like you and like me go to hell. Do you get it? Do you know why? Because there's no such thing as a good person. The Bible says, Romans 3.10, as it is written, there is none righteous, no not one. You know, people, you could be here today, or adults, you could be here today, think, you know, I'm a good person, surely God isn't gonna cast me to hell. I mean, look at all the nice things, the good things I have done. Surely God will accept me, except the Bible says there's none righteous, no not one. Romans 3.23, for all sin. You know what sin is, Jamie? that breaks God's law, right? It's when I broke God's law, and the Bible says we've all broken God's law. Romans 5, 12, Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Isaiah 64.6, what we are all is an unclean thing. All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags, and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Often as I share the gospel with people, and you'll hear this, I'm sure, as well, their number one reason for going to heaven is what? I'm a good person. It would be very easy just to say to them, look, if I called God's law to testify of that, and I said to God's law, have you ever taken God's name and been, what would God's law say? What will God's law say about lust, about covetousness, about lying, about deceit, about dishonoring parents? And the fact is, all God's going to have to do is have the law come, and the law is going to condemn them. Why? Because of their works, which are kept in a book. God has a record of every transgression that men have ever committed. And the Bible says this, James 2.10, For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, He is guilty of all. If perhaps today you think, well I haven't really broken God's law in one place. God said we've broken the law. It's just like a chain. I mean if you break a chain, you break a chain. It doesn't matter what link you break. Obviously we've broken God's law in multiple places. So there's no man called to this judgment that's not gonna be condemned for his works. To go to hell you have to be accused and condemned for your works. To go to hell, you have to be resurrected to damnation. Verse 13. says, and the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them, and they were judged every man according to their works. Again, you often hear people say, and I had it said to me this past week by somebody I love, somebody I care about, somebody I looked in the face and said, look, I just want you to know, that is not true. There is a heaven, there is a hell, all right? But they laugh at this idea. They say, no, when you go in the grave, that is it. That's not what God says. God says, when you're dead, you're gonna rise again to stand at this judgment that God speaks about here in this passage. You know, have you noticed that a dead body is not the same as a live body? A grandfather of one of my teens passed away. I witnessed this man before his death in the months preceding up to his death. God gave me a very good divine appointment with him, an opportunity to really clearly share the gospel with him. I hope this man got saved. But his lifeless body sitting on the kitchen floor was different from his alive body. His soul had departed. It was just a shell that was there. He was not there. There was a woman this past week that got a face transplant. I don't know if you saw that. She tried, sadly, to commit suicide, a young gal. The doctor saved her, and they were able to actually give her a, she's the youngest face transplant there is. But you know, she's the same person. As different as she looks, she's the same person because who you are is not your body. Who you are is your soul. God gave your body a soul and God will give your body, I'm sorry, gave your soul a body and will give your soul a body again, okay, at the resurrection that the Bible speaks about in John 5.9. It says, and they shall come forth. They that have done good unto the resurrection of life. They that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation. They can't escape it. You know, mankind thinks, I'll escape it by my religious belief that there is no God, that hell doesn't exist. If I just think that hard enough, believe that firmly enough, then that makes God, poof, disappear. But just like the Pharisees that had a false belief that Jesus Christ wasn't the Messiah and rejected the Son of God, It didn't change the reality of hell for them. Matthew 20 through 33, Jesus said to them, you serpents, you generation of vipers, how can you escape the judgment of hell? He's saying to them, you've rejected the way of life. The hell is coming. And so for anybody that would think this morning, oh, you know, I'm gonna escape hell. How? To your death. I'm just gonna go in the grave. That's it. Listen, that's not it. There's a resurrection, the Bible says, to damnation. And so those in hell were brought back from the dead to be cast into the lake of fire. And so to go to hell, you have to die twice. Verse 14. says in death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. Literally, death in the grave, okay, is what the Word of God's saying. Death is done and the grave is done. They're cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. So somebody that dies, resurrects, and is cast in that fire, the Bible says that's the second death. That's what the Bible's speaking about when it says the wages of sin is death. We're all gonna die physically, unless Christ comes back and some of us are raptured. And so, what it is this morning, is if you go to hell, you have to live once and die twice. Be born once, die twice. For you to go to heaven, the Bible teaches that you have to be born twice and die once. It's a very simple truth that Jesus taught, John chapter 3. And a very knowledgeable religious person came to him, Nicodemus. And he came to Jesus by night and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Truly, truly, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said unto him, how can a man be born when he's old? Have you kids ever thought about this story? Can he be born twice? It's not possible. And so Nicodemus is questioning that. And how can a man be born when he's old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say unto thee, When you were born, did you know that in your mother's womb you were inside of water? You're in that amniotic fluid, okay, that was there, and that's water birth. They talk about when a woman's water breaks, you know, that that is the amniotic fluid being released, and that's water birth. But you know, you have to be born of water, the Bible says, and born of the Spirit. Is there a time in your life that you look at and you say, that's when I was born again? That's when I put my faith in Jesus Christ, because Jesus goes on to say, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, go to hell, but have everlasting life. Listen, if you've not been born again, when you die, you will be cast into the lake of fire. Those that go to hell are born once, they die twice. Those that go to heaven are born twice, and they die once. Is that you this morning? To go to hell, lastly, you have to have no record in the Book of Life. And I want to point this out. The ungodly are judged by their what? Words. But they're not cast into hell because of their words. They're judged in hell because of their words. But they're cast into hell because they're not found in the Book of Life. Verse 15. says, and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. Young people, if you die without Christ, and you're not in that book of life, you'll be cast into the lake of fire. Romans 6.23 says the wage of sin is death, but then it says the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. God has a book in heaven, it's called the Book of Life, the Lamb's Book of Life, and it has a complete list of everybody that's ever accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. If your name's there, you're okay, you'll not be cast into the lake of fire. If your name is not there, then you'll have to pay for your sin in hell. I went with my family to Germany, the ballads. Three weeks ago? It seems longer, but I think it's just about that long ago. And when we got to Manchester Airport, I found out that there were problems with our check-in. And one of the problems was the fact that, although I paid for bags, I'd only paid for them on the return, is what it turned out to be. I thought I paid for them both ways. I didn't intend to travel without bags, come back with bags. And you know what I had to do? When they showed me, look, as much as I searched for it, it wasn't there. I had to pay £150 for the three bags. I had to pay a great fee because it wasn't there like I thought it was. You know what you don't want to do today? You don't want to die thinking that it's there. There's a great price to pay. The price is how, for all eternity, it would be foolhardy to get to that point of eternity kind of hoping that your name's on that list and not knowing for sure that your name's on the list. You need to know for sure. It would be like this. Imagine somebody planning a trip. They're all excited about, oh, it's going to be a great trip. They're telling everybody about it. And they're saying about how great it's going to be, how glorious it's going to be. And they show up at the airport without tickets, and they expect to get in. And they say, where are my tickets? And the people say, well, look, didn't you plan the trip? I mean, you know you have to have tickets to fly. It's kind of like that. People have this idea that, you know, I'm so excited about heaven. I'm so excited about going there. I'm so confident, you know, about that. But they don't know if their name is written in the land's book of life. That's foolish, isn't it? And so if in your heart today you think, you know what? If I had to answer the question, am I 100% sure that if I died I'd go to heaven, I'd have to be honest and say, you know what? No, I am not. What do I need to do? I need to make sure my name's in that book. Why? Because the people in hell are people whose names are not written in the book of life. So let me just ask you a few questions as we conclude this morning. Are you prepared to die? See, nobody wants to die, nobody thinks they're going to die, although we all know at some point death happens, it will take place, but are you ready if you're not saved or not? Because if you enter into eternity through death, without being saved, you'll be cast into the lake of fire. Are you prepared to face the judge? What about that list of sins against God? Has it been taken care of? Is it under the blood? Or is that going to be what you stand in that judgment? You're condemned for all those things in the way that you've broken God's law. Do you think you're a good person? Your works will condemn you. I mean, God's not going to have a hard time coming up with ways that you've violated God's law. Do you think this morning you'll just go in the grave? You will. To be raised again for that judgment. It's not finished at the grave. Have you only been born once? You'll die twice. Is your name in the Lamb's book of life? You think, well, that's a sobering message, Pastor Ben, and it's a Sunday morning. That's tough. Well, listen. If it wasn't for hell, why did Jesus die? You ever think about that? I say it a hundred years again. There's no point in guarding Gethsemane as he wept and he prayed and begged the Father to say, please, it would be possible, let this cup pass from me. There's no hell. What's the point? But there is a home, and there is a point. Jesus Christ died to save us from that. And so this morning, if you're not saved, you need to get saved. If we are saved, God help us to get burdened about our neighbors that are unsaved, our family that are unsaved, our community that's unsaved. There's a very serious place that we need to keep in our minds, not ignore it and act like, oh, hell doesn't exist, hell does exist. And it's a just place where the righteous judge is going to cast people who reject him and really it's over his dead body that anybody goes there. Let's pray and ask God's word to our hearts this morning. Father, I praise you that the Spirit of God is able to touch hearts and touch lives, and I pray for that. Lord, the truth is what sets us free. We've looked at some sobering truth this morning, and Savior, If it's uncomfortable for us, it wasn't really very comfortable for you to face the judgment of God physically as you died, as you suffered, as you allowed your body to be excruciatingly and filthily used under crucifixion. But Savior, thank you that you did that for us. It's the least we could do to think about the seriousness of the truth of the Word of God this morning. And Father, to ask you, please, to rekindle our burden for evangelism. And certainly, Father, those that are unsafe here in this place, I pray, despite anything, I pray they get it. I pray the Spirit of God would encourage them to get saved today. And Father, I pray also that believers will get assurance of salvation. I pray they know for sure in their heart that they have been born again unto life, that they'll never face the awfulness of that place by the grace of God. And so may the Spirit of God apply these truths to our hearts. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen.