Our fourth and final message, six messages, yes, but four messages, two of which were split into two parts. Our fourth and final message is the Compassionate Doctrine of Hell. The Compassionate Doctrine of Hell. An odd title, but one that we need to receive and Understand, I know that for some of you, perhaps all of you, since I would include myself in this number, five messages on hell become a burden on the psyche, a burden on the heart. And I pray that it would be a right burden. It would be a holy burden. It would move your heart. to the place the Lord would have it to be. But I know that in some, perhaps, there might be such an idea or a thought of, yes, there is hell, but compassion would move us not to speak oft of it. Yes, there is hell, but compassion would move us to relegate it back to the closet from which we have brought it forth. Yes, there is a hell and we have dwelt on it, we have considered it, we have brought it out in all of its hideous nature and discovered all of its horrors. Now, let's shove it down in a deep pit from which it came and never speak of it again. And that would be a great folly. Indeed, when you go back from camp out and they ask what it was about or what was the weekend, one suggested they might say it was hell. And that would be an accurate statement. Or even, yes, that the preacher delivered the doctrine of hell. And that would be an accurate statement. I would pray that it would not fall into the vernacular, but stay in the lofty form of theology, well and willingly received. But the final message, the compassionate doctrine of hell is designed to move you to hold all that you've heard and been horrified by. To retain it and then to faithfully act upon it in your own heart, your own life, and in your own ministry. The men and women around you. To the children around you. The compassionate doctrine of hell. And the compassionate ministry of the doctrine of hell. We must come to see it as such. Please turn in your Bibles to Luke 13, 1-5. And I think we'll discover there, from the Lord Jesus Christ, a ministry that we need to embrace. A ministry of the compassionate doctrine of hell. the compassion of the Lord Jesus. Some picture the Lord Jesus as this shy, dreamy, long-haired guy who's in the back of the room on the wall. That is not the Lord Jesus, even with a backlit button that you can push with light bulbs that light up. The Lord Jesus was strong and manly, for God commands such of men. He was not weak. He was not meek in the sense of weak. He was meek in the sense of his power, his strength was under control and not given over to passions of evil desire. But he was strong. And when it came to the delivery of truth, he delivered it with much strength. and with due bold passion. He did not retain the truths of God or suppress the truth in unrighteousness on any occasion. He certainly did not suppress the truth of hell. With over 70 mentions of it in his own ministry from his own lips, simply in the recorded pages of Scripture, which tells you his verbal ministry, which is much broader than what Scripture contains, would have contained likely thousands of references to hell. If you were to summarize, in the few books of the New Testament, my ministry, you would probably only have about 70 references to hell in light of the rest of what is taught. And so the Lord Jesus was faithful in His compassion to deliver the doctrine of hell. He was perfectly compassionate. And in His perfect compassion, He was faithful to deliver the warning of coming wrath, the warning of coming judgment. Luke 13.1, There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices, And Jesus answered and said to them, Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them, Do you think they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Behold the compassion of the Lord Jesus. Gaze upon it and be instructed. Anything less is not compassion. It's hard heartedness. It's willfulness. It is unfaithfulness to the message the Lord commands us to deliver. In fact, it is lovelessness. You go beyond being uncompassionate into lovelessness. when you retain from sinners the certain knowledge of the certain coming wrath that awaits them unless they repent. The Lord Jesus was God in flesh. He was perfectly loving. Perfectly compassionate. And He taught things like this to sinners. Unsaved, unbelieving, unregenerate men and women. Let's break it down. There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And so the Lord Jesus was confronted by these faithful Jews who tell Him about these faithful Jewish Galileans who went to Jerusalem to make their faithful sacrifice there at the temple, to offer up a sacrifice to the Father at the temple in Jerusalem. And they tell the Lord Jesus this terrible story. I mean, this really is a front line, you know, front page news story. This would have been something that was told and retold all through Jerusalem. These Galilean faithful Jews traveled to Jerusalem to make their sacrifice. And when they got there, the Roman governor Pilate took them and their sacrifices and mixed their blood together, murdering them and putting their blood with their sacrifice on the altar of God. This is an ugly scene. This is murder. And it's blasphemy. It's murder of faithful Jews coming to make a faithful sacrifice. And then it's blasphemy as Pilate took their blood and mingled it with the blood of the sacrificial animals upon the altar. And they lay this story in the lap of Jesus. And our response to this would likely be something like this. I am so sorry that happened. I don't know how such a terrible thing could take place. I don't know why God would allow such a thing in the lives of good people, those good Galileans. You know, God gives every man free will. And so some free willers choose to sin with their free will. And God just has to stand back and hope some would choose righteousness with their free will and hope for the best. But God had nothing to do with this. And you need to just take comfort in the fact that they're in a better place now. They're in a better place. And we would call that compassion. We would think we were at the pinnacle of compassion. We were the loving ministers of God. with our sound and sweet counsel. We were just like Jesus, weren't we? Not at all. They brought to Jesus the worst possible scenario at that hour. Faithful Jews, good Jews, faithfully going to make their sacrifice upon the altar, and the Roman governor Remember, Rome is an oppressive state. The Roman governor, Pilate, had the audacity to murder them and spread their blood, the blood of their sacrifice, upon the holy altar of God. What do you say to that, Jesus? Here's what he says. Jesus answered and said to them, Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered such things? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." The Lord Jesus, in His perfect compassion for the souls of the men that stand before Him, dead in sin and trespass and on their way to hell forever, in His perfect compassion, He ignores their sensitivities. He ignores their passions. He ignores their angst against Rome. He ignores the fact that they are in sorrow over a travesty. And he makes the most of this opportunity that this travesty has brought to effect. And that they are incensed over death coming in a tragic way. Their mind is focused on death coming in a tragic way. And the Lord Jesus sees the target, which is their heart. And He takes the arrow of the truth and He aims it faithfully for their heart with perfect compassion and love. And He asks them a perfect question. Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners? What did He just say? That Galileans are sinners? But were they worse sinners than all other Galileans? Were they the worst of all Galileans? Or were they simply average sinners because they suffered such things? I tell you, no, says the Lord Jesus. They weren't worse. They were but average. In fact, They're just like you. You are exactly the same. No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. They weren't worse sinners than you. They didn't deserve this tragic death. Notice too, the Lord Jesus doesn't try to remove the providence of God. The responsibility of God is an omnipotent God who controls all events, allows all events, if not brings all events. He rather seems to directly tie the judgment of God with their tragic deaths. And says, were these Galileans worse sinners than you? I tell you, no. And unless you repent, you will likewise perish. Speaking not just of physical perishing under the hand of Pilate, but eternal perishing under the hand of an eternal God. The Lord Jesus is not worried about defending the character of God. How could a good God let bad things happen to good people? God is not just a good God. He is a holy, holy, holy good God! There are no good people. They are sinners. Were they worse sinners is the only question. And no, they're not worse sinners. They're sinners just like you. And unless you repent, you will suffer a like fate, only not for a point in a time, but forever and ever and ever under the wrath of God. This is biblical, godly, Christ-like compassion. Don't be fooled by the sweet, sappy, syrupy, sick stuff that we use today. The compassion of the doctrine of hell. They came to the Lord Jesus with this story. The Lord Jesus brought the truth to bear upon their hearts that these Galileans were the exact same kind of sinners that they are. And that unless they repent, which says what? You're a sinner, dead in sin and trespass. And you need to repent of all that you are as a sinner. And turn unto the Lord. And follow Him in faith. Unless you repent, you will likewise perish. The Lord Jesus doesn't then stop and gather them around and love them and hold them and say soft things He's not done. Verse 4, "...or those..." Now He's going beyond. They brought the story of the Galileans who were murdered and their blood was mixed with their sacrifice upon the holy altar. The Lord Jesus goes beyond that and says, "...or those eighteen on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them." Now notice the first event was tragic indeed. But it was a tragic man-made event where a man rose up and murdered other men. That would seem to be a step removed from the providential hand of God. Although God has said that not even a sparrow falls to the ground except that He allows it. And so that day that you are murdered by Pilate when you're offering up your sacrifices was your day to stand before God the Judge and give an account in God's providence. Unescapable. But it does seem to be a step removed. There is this secondary agent in the middle. This is inescapable. Or those 18 on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them. This was what we would call, or at least what historically we would call, an act of God. On many of your insurance policies, if you've ever bothered to read them, you'll find that it says, act of God regarding such things as an earthquake or a hurricane or active volcanoes. Just a few hours less, 60 miles less from Portland or from right here for that matter, where we stand. We would call such events acts of God because we recognize that God is in control of His universe and every volcano and every storm system in it on whatever coast you might live according to the providence and will of God. And so the Lord Jesus really in some ways brings greater truth to bear upon them. He is not done dealing with their hearts because He is perfectly compassionate. And perfect compassion deals with what matters most. And what matters most is not men being comfortable emotionally. What matters most is not women being saved tears. What matters most is that men and women would be moved to tears of repentance if possible. But repentance either way. And faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it is necessary to make men uncomfortable emotionally that they would come to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And if we are unwilling to make people uncomfortable with the radical truth of hell, the radical truth of sin, and the radical truth of repentance, then we are not compassionate. We are hateful. We are wholly unloving. And we have denied the pure, compassionate design and example of the Lord Jesus. And we are in danger of saying He is incompassionate. That He is unloving. For we would never be unloving like that. And we would improve upon the loving nature of God Himself in flesh. And that's rather blasphemous. The Lord Jesus raises the stakes and says, "...or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them." Was it happenstance that they happened to be in Siloam standing near the tower that day? Is it happenstance that you have driven up in this mountain where you're going to have to drive off at the end of the day with thousands of other people? Should there be an accident, it's not happenstance. Should the Tower of Siloam fall, it's not happenstance. God has ordained that you, His sparrow, would fall that day. And He has allowed it. He has appointed that that is your day of death and your day to stand before the Judge. And He has brought it to pass. The hand of Pilate is removed and now the bare and holy, providential hand of God is revealed in the Tower of Siloam. And one day, each of you will face the bare and holy hand of God's providence. Your Tower of Siloam will come. For those eighteen of whom the Tower in Siloam fell and killed them, Do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? And I've got to stop again and remind you of what we would say. We would say, I don't know why that happened. God certainly didn't will it to happen. But you know, every tower has free will. And they fall when they might. And the universe has an element of chance in it, even though God is omnipotent. Does that make any theological sense? God is omnipotent and in control of all things. And towers just fall here and there and crush people now and again. You have to be careful. God is in heaven wringing His hands. Oh no, another tower fell. I've told you how many times. Stay away from the towers! That's foolishness. No, God is in control. And the Lord allowed or even moved, you might say, that tower that day. Those 18 were destined that day to stand before God in judgment. For the thousands in the Twin Towers on September 11th, which is coming up here in just about a week, for the thousands that died that day, God had ordained and appointed and there was no escaping that that was their day to stand before Him in judgment. It is appointed unto man once to die, and after this the judgment. God was not in heaven wringing His hands, oh no, the terrorists are doing something terrible! What am I going to do? I can't do anything! Because I so respect men's free will, I just have to have hands off and fret and worry and say, oh no, there it is! Oh, it happened! Now God is sovereign! over everything. He is omnipotent. There is not a tower in Siloam or a tower in New York that falls without God allowing and ordaining it. And every man or woman that might be standing in its vicinity or be in it as it falls, they were appointed that day to stand before God in judgment. we will not miss our appointment. The eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? You know, it was so sad to see the response of our nation's pastors when the towers in New York fell. For they, nearly as a whole, responded exactly as I said previously. We don't know how this happened. We don't know why a good God would allow this to happen. But we do know that God has given every man free will. Joel Olsteen answered this question and said, we don't know why these things happen. But we do know that God gave man free will. And you know, some choose to do terrible things. And so God is not in control of His universe. Because terrorists have free will. And so God meant for you to live a long and prosperous life, but it got cut short by a terrorist's free will. What are you doing here in heaven? How did you get here? God woke up that morning and thousands of souls went into eternity. That's what Joel would have us to think. No, it's appointed unto man once to die, and after this, the judgment. And here is the response to the Tower of Siloam. Here is the response to the Twin Towers. Here is the response to every great tragedy. Thousands died. Hundreds died. Eighteen died. They were alive. They were happy. They went to work. Or worse, they were alive and they were miserable. And they went to the market that day and they died tragically and suddenly. But the real issue is, were they in Christ Jesus? Because if they weren't, now they're in hell. They have perished and perished eternally. And were they worse sinners than you? No. Not at all. Sinners like us. Therefore, we must, you must repent. or you will likewise perish. That is the biblical, compassionate response of the Lord Jesus. If the Lord Jesus was walking the earth when the Twin Towers fell, that's what He would have said. He would have said that thousands die every day. Every day. Far more than died in the Twin Towers. Die every single day. Death is not really the issue. It's coming for all of you. The question is, as you look upon this tragic event, this sudden death of a great number all at once, all in one time, the question is, were they in Christ or out of Christ? Are they now in hell? Are they now in heaven? And where will you be as we look at this tragic event? Consider that life is fleeting. Consider that life is fragile. Consider that it is only the providence of God, the goodness of God, the mercies of God that hold you out of eternity at this very moment, either an eternity in hell or an eternity in heaven. But it is only the providence of God, the hand of God that holds you up out of it. Do you think that they were worse sinners? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you will all likewise Perish. He pulled no punch. He held back no truth. You will all likewise perish. You sweet little lady, you're going to perish and go to hell. You kind, soft-spoken man, you're going to perish and go to hell. You young child, unless you repent, you will perish and go to hell. You will all perish. You must repent. The compassionate doctrine of hell Receive compassion lessons from the Lord Jesus. You need a compassion lesson from the Bible, because we like to play at compassion. It's a game. And we like to play it. We like to be nice and comfort people on the surface level. We need to get well beneath the surface, down where hell exists. We need to get well above the surface. Up where heaven exists. We're not being compassionate at all. Compassion that comforts people in the weight of hell is hatred. It's hatred. As someone lies there, dying of cancer, And we just come with a smile and a pat and a, boy, good to see you. You're looking good today. As they're lying there, dying. You're looking really good today. You've got a little color in your cheeks. As they're lying there, dying. What did you have for breakfast this morning? As they're lying there, dying. Boy, it's a beautiful view out the window of the hospital in the room in which you lie here, dying. We call that compassion? If that's your visit to the hospital, just stay home. Save yourself the judgment. Just stay home. To go to the nursing home, to visit the sweet old folks who are all sinners, and to speak not of the eternity that they stand at the very door of, their bodies failing them daily. There's a back door at every nursing home and the hearse comes often. And to say nothing of eternity. To say nothing of heaven. To say nothing of hell. To say, my, what a nice day it is. What's on the menu today? Going to play a little shuffleboard? It's not compassion. That's not love. We are hating them. We are despising them. We are helping usher them into hell. Put on the compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ. All those who do not repent and confess Jesus Christ as Lord will be in hell. To fail to deliver that message is absolutely compassionless. It is so horribly unkind. It is so absolutely hateful. Hear me. Children will be in hell. Children will be in hell. There will be those that are 12 and under in hell. The Bible says nothing about some magic age of 12, or 15, or 17, or 22, or 85. An age of accountability. Now, I do hope, I hope on the fact that if they have not the cognitive ability, that they'll yet fall under grace. If they're so young that they lack the cognitive ability, or if they are handicapped and lack the cognitive ability, that they'll fall under grace. But this I know, they are of the brood of Adam. And they have sin nature in them. And given the opportunity, they will act upon it. And I have four precious ones that have. And you, if you're honest, know your own children, as soon as they were able cognitively to act, they began to cognitively act out their sins. Oh, it hurts to hear that children go to hell. Why would I say such a compassionless thing? Because I want to be compassionate to you and your children. Because we think they're sweet and lovely and cute, and God will think they're sweet and lovely and cute, but they're full of iniquity. And they must repent or they will go to hell. There are ten year olds that commit heinous, evil crimes. that murder, that rape. There are 11-year-olds and 12-year-olds that are in jail for such crimes. And if they can act it out on occasion, the extremes, there are plenty more who have it in their hearts. And oh yes, they are accountable. And should they die in such a state, it will be the wrath of God. There are 12-year-olds far more intelligent than I. Don't say amen. They don't lack the cognitive ability. I've taught 12-year-old, 11-year-old, 10-year-old Sunday school. Those kids are bright. They are engaged. They understand. And they're sinful. And they think of conniving ways to sin. Secretive ways to sin and get away with it. At times, heinous sins. Shocking sins. Shocking. Sins of a sexual nature. Sins of cruel, sick nature. They are sinners. And to say less is to care not for their souls. To say less is to usher them on to destruction. And if they're not brought to check when they're young, they'll grow into older sinners. But they may die when they're young. And my hope for the very young once again, for those that lack the cognitive ability, my hope is that they'll fall into the grace of God. I offer that hope to those that lose very small, even unborn children as a real hope. Let us be faithful to deliver the message of God to young children that they would find repentance, that they would find salvation, that they would find the grace of God just like we need it. Secondly, teenagers will be in hell. Lots of teenagers will be in hell. We all well know, it's well documented through social scientists, it's well documented through documentaries, it's well documented through the evening news, that by the time you're a teenager, if your sin has not been brought into check, you are capable of vile activities that are the stuff of nightmares. There is no teenager who is unaccountable. You are in the very real danger of the full wrath of God. And you must repent or you will likewise perish. Cool, hip teenagers go to hell. Quiet, reserved teenagers go to hell. Promising young men and women doing well in school die in a multitude of ways, in sporting accidents, in foolish accidents, in car accidents, and they go to hell. You must repent, teenagers, and turn unto the Lord Jesus, or you will go to hell. Twenty-somethings go to hell. Fresh out of college, fresh out of trade school, fresh out of cash, dead by broken blood vessel, dead by drunken car accident, dead by foolish activity, dead because he was too brave and too proud and too drunk to stop and think, hmm, how deep is that water anyway? Well, I'm not going to be so uncool is to go down and check. I'll show how brave and strong and manly I am." And Corporal Cal Tunis proved indeed how brave and strong and manly and foolish he was as he flung himself off the cliff head first on the coast of California to smash his head and spill his brains on a rock below. young Kyle Tunis, a Marine in my unit, with a new wife and a new baby, died instantly. And his wife was $200,000 richer and husbandless, a widow at 20 years old, with a child that'll never know its father. But he was just having a good time! He was just being cool. He was just living the good life. The Miller high life ended really low that day. It ended low in the depth of hell. 20-somethings will be in hell. You must repent. You must be saved or you'll perish. 30-somethings will be in hell with their new house, with their young growing family, and with their breast cancer, dead and in hell. Beautiful brick house. Marriage that made it through some significant struggles. Two precious children. Looking like things were going to pull through and they were going to have the dream everyone hoped for. Beautiful plot of land. Many, many in the town, jealous of their life, looked upon the beauty of the wife and the handsomeness of the husband and the cuteness of the kids. The perfect life. They've got it all. It looks glorious. And she's dead. Dead. My brother-in-law took the Gospel to her multiple times. Took the Gospel to her husband multiple times. And she denied Christ and died in her sin. And she's in hell. 30-somethings die and go to hell. New house and all. Little children and all. 40-somethings will be in hell. Enjoying the prime of life. They're well invested. They're moving up the career ladder. Their children are entering college. And the whole family is killed by a drunk driver. And the father was so busy with his career and his moving up and his hobbies. He never did have an opportunity to really get right with Christ. He never did have an opportunity to really lead His children in Christ. And now they all went to hell! Or perhaps it was a little different. Perhaps it was like the night my cousin was coming home from work. The night he came over the hill in Houston on the highway, and there was a tanker truck overturned, and there was an SUV on its hood, the back of which was crushed down flat. He was the first one on the scene. Came up to the window, crawling on his knees to find the children, life crushed out of them in the back seat. No hope there. Turned his attention to the front seat where the husband was pinned, stuck under the steering wheel. Unable. Not going to get out. Period. The SUV was on fire. The wife was free. She had unbuckled. She was trying to get her husband out. And she was pleading with him. Pleading with him. You must repent! You've got to turn to Jesus! You must repent! This is not a fabrication. This is a real day, a real event, and a real family's life. And my cousin really hated to be there and see it. And the man was not repenting. As best as my cousin could tell, the husband was not repenting. Even there, with flames coming ever closer, the husband did not seem to be repentant. Beware of hardening your hearts, men, women, children. Sin will find you out. It will hold you to the last. It will take you into the fires of hell. My cousin had to bodily pull her from the car. She wasn't going to leave. And as he did, the fire engulfed and took her husband's life. And very likely, he went from the fire of that car to the fire of eternal torment in hell. He would not heed the cries, the pleas of his wife. And I'm quite certain that that wasn't the first time he had heard them. He wouldn't heed them. He wouldn't hear them. And now this woman walked away from the SUV, her children dead. And I trust, I hope, I don't know that part of the story. I hope they were in Christ. I don't think they were little children. and her husband dead with a fair certainty that he was not going to be in heaven. But in hell, 40-somethings die and they go to hell with all their career and all their investments and all their prime of life. And sometimes their children die with them. 50-somethings would be in hell looking forward to retirement, Three grandchildren. Never make it. Heart attack. Dead and in hell. Never made it. Never got the golden ring. Never reached the goal. It was the wrong goal. It was empty. It was wanting. On the day He stood before the Lord in judgment, He would throw it all away! Every bit of it! But he does not have the opportunity. He simply hears go from me, I never knew you. And he was cast into outer darkness, where there's weeping and gnashing of teeth, where the worm does not die and the flame is not quenched forever and ever and ever. Sixty-somethings will be in hell. Freshly retired. New RV. Living large. Freedom they have never known. A stroke, but they survive only to suffer a slip, a fall in the hospital and to suddenly have the hope of a survival of the stroke dashed with their skull on the hard floor. To die right there in the hospital before the doctors can do anything about it. to die and to go to hell. Sixty years of sin. Sixty years of storing up wrath for the day of wrath, as Romans 2 speaks of. Sixty years that they'll regret every moment of, because their knee was not bent before the Lord Jesus Christ. And they were not storing up the cry, the call, The commendation of the Lord Jesus, well done, good and faithful servant. But they were storing up for themselves wrath for the day of wrath. And they go to hell. Seventy, eighty, and all the other rare somethings beyond will be in hell. Old. Too tired for much sin these days. Death approaches. Their friends are dying or dead. They know that they're dying too. And yet they push the thoughts off. Don't want to admit it. But death, being so near, takes some of the flavor out of the food and some of the color out of life and some of the joy out of the days that they have left. And they fear it. But they suppress the fear. And they press on. Death comes. And when it comes, even at 70, even at 80, even at 90, it always seems to be a shock. It comes suddenly. It's a shock. They're shocked. Everyone is shocked. And then there's hell. Wrath of God forever. 70, 80, 90 years of storing up wrath and the damn wrath. Oh, the regret. Oh, the gnashing of teeth. How very terribly sad. A life wasted. And worse than wasted. A life spent as if cutting, chopping, and stacking cordwood for the fires of hell. You might as well have spent the entirety of your life toiling in the forest as if you're Paul Bunyan For all of your eternity will be to that effect. Wrath stored up for the day of wrath. People go to hell who are not in Christ Jesus. And when there is tragic death, that is not the time to suppress the reality of judgment. That is not the time to say God was off on the other side of the cosmos doing something else. We're not sure why this happened. That is not the time to put on the compassion of the world that denies the reality of heaven and the narrow path of Christ to get there. That denies the horror of hell and the judgment of Christ, the judge that will be poured out on all the people there. The compassionate doctrine of hell. I say this. with the utmost sensitivity, but it must be said, or I'll not be sufficiently compassionate to you. Your dead relatives, my own dead relatives, did not all go to heaven when they died. You cannot afford to act like they did. Your living relatives cannot afford for you to act like your loss unsaved, never repentant, never clearly confessed Christ as Lord and followed Him, relatives went to heaven. You cannot afford to fabricate a heaven in which your sinful relatives who clearly never bent their knee, never repented, never turned from sin, never turned to Christ, you can't fabricate a heaven for them. and relegate them to it. And talk about it. And think sweet thoughts about it. And share them with others. Because you're diminishing the conviction that judgment is coming for those who aren't repentant and in Christ Jesus for the living. You're not being compassionate. You're choosing to comfort yourself very selfishly. with an idea that is not supported by the truth of Holy Scripture. And your comforts that you offer to yourself and perhaps the rest of your family members, your comforts will well serve the devil's ends to take them most effectively to hell. And again, I say, yes, God is sovereign. But He has sovereignly ordained that the elect will be saved through your testimony of the truth. The Lord Jesus was more committed to the sovereignty of God than anyone, and yet He did not spare true compassion to speak about the true reality of heaven and hell with men and women who are sinners who must repent if they will avoid the one and win the other. Do not deny the Gospel when those near to your heart die. Now, don't jump up and down on their grave at the day of their funeral and say, they're in hell! That would be a good day to be silent and to mourn their loss. But it is not a good day to say that Aunt so-and-so, Grandma so-and-so, Grandpa so-and-so, Cousin so-and-so, Nephew so-and-so, Friend so-and-so are in a better place. At least they're not suffering anymore. That is a denial of the Gospel. If you have some vestige of hope that maybe, maybe they repented. Maybe they were saved. It's not really clear. I still would caution you against giving absolute certain hope. They are in heaven. It would be far better to say, I hope. My hope is that they're in heaven. If a life is a life basically depicted by sin or basically depicted by indifference to God, which would be a great heinous sin, That's not a good Christian life to say, well, we think they're in heaven. And so they're in a better place, and that's a good thing. Far better to say, our hope is that they did truly repent before death and did truly come to Christ Jesus as Lord and are in heaven. Our hope is, even though their life doesn't really look like a good Christian life that the Scriptures would depict as the life of someone that was saved, that perhaps yet they repented of that life, even as a thief on the cross. It is possible for someone to repent at death's door and yet be saved, but it is unlikely. It is rare. It is unusual. Don't offer false hope. If you want to offer hope for someone that died, offer it in the context of Scripture that you hope that indeed they repented and came to Christ as Lord, but there wasn't a lot of evidence of that, but you hope for it. And if you can't offer that hope, don't offer false hope. Rather, choose silence on that day. For this is a comfort, if it's wrongly offered, that would send the living to hell. If they were not clearly repentant and following Jesus Christ as Lord, do not, I can't stress this enough, do not say that they are in heaven now. Do not say. When they cease to struggle with the pain of an auto accident, the pain of cancer, the pain of severe arthritis, do not say at least they're not suffering anymore. That will blaspheme the doctrine of hell. That will blaspheme the exclusivity of Christ, the necessity of repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Have the compassion of Jesus and bring them the gospel when it's appropriate. Bring it strong and bring it true. That is compassion. Don't be quick to unnecessarily offend by saying, Uncle so-and-so, Aunt so-and-so, Grandpa so-and-so, Grandma so-and-so is certainly in hell! Especially not in those times of mourning immediately following their loss. But don't compromise the Gospel either. Beware of these circumstances. They will come in each of your lives. And they tend to be circumstances of great compromise. Again, even blasphemy. Denial of the Gospel. The compassionate doctrine of hell. Luke 16, 19. 16, 19. There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried, and he being in torments and Hades, he lifted up his eyes and he saw Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom. So we've got two men, two men living two very different lives. One is a rich man, clothed in purple. He has the clothing of nobility, the clothing of royalty, and fine linen. He has the very best cloth available. He looks good. He's a sharp-dressed man. and fared sumptuously every day. He ate the dainties of the world, the finest fruits, the finest meats, the good stuff. He was living the good life. He was successful. He was respectable. He was a good man in the eyes of the world. No doubt with plenty of friends, plenty of family, as wealth so often brings. Living the high life. That's the rich man. And then we find, verse 20, But there was a beggar, a certain beggar, named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate. Now with both of these men, they are called a certain rich man and a certain beggar. It is my belief that these men were likely real men, even as most of those stories I told you earlier were real people that I really know of. It is most likely this story is a story of real people. There is no reason to believe otherwise. That is compelling to me. But either way, the Lord Jesus is using either real people to represent all real people or is using a story about typical people to represent all people. So either way, it has full application. A certain beggar named Lazarus, the beggar is named. His name is Lazarus. A certain beggar named Lazarus full of sores who was laid at his gate. He doesn't have the clothing of nobility. He has the clothing of rags. He doesn't have the prosperity of nobility. He has the sign of a life probably of malnourishment, open, oozing, sores. He doesn't have the friends that wealth bring. He is there alone at the gate. And this was the social system of their day. This was the welfare system of their day. You would lay men like this at gates, gates of cities, gates at wealthy men's homes, and they would receive whatever the visitors, whatever the people who lived there passed by wanted to offer to them. Alms for the poor. Verse 21, Desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. So he hoped only for scraps. the scraps of what the rich man sumptuously enjoyed. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. Perhaps I misspoke. He does have friends. Dogs who come and lick his sores. I'm not sure how welcome they were. We think of dogs, we think of little Fifi. Clean, sweet, flea collar, perfumed, little outfits. A disgusting picture, but not so disgusting as the dogs of the biblical day. They tend to run wild. They tend to be like pack wolves more than little pets you bring into your home. Friends you would not want to have. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. Two very different lives. One at the pinnacle of success, the high life, the popular, the noble. The other at the bottom. No one would have anything to do with him. He was full of sores and oozing. He was a beggar laid at the gate. The only thing that would have anything to do with him was a dog. They came to lick his sores. Verse 22. So it was when the beggar died. Notice the story reverses order. We start with the rich man and then the beggar. In death, the beggar goes first. So it was, when the beggar died, he was carried by angels to Abraham's bosom. The beggar died. We're not told much about his death. We're simply told that the holy angels of God carried him to Abraham's bosom. Carried him to paradise. They called it Abraham's bosom because Abraham was their chief patriarch of Israel. Abraham would have been the chief righteous man in paradise. Abraham's bosom. Paradise, the heavenly realm in Sheol. And the angels carried him there, even as Hebrews 1.14 says, Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? And again, I have no reason but to receive it for what the Lord Jesus said, believing that for those who are in Christ Jesus, for those who are in faith, for those that are righteous by grace through faith with repentance, they will be received to heaven as angels are ushering them in. That's how the beggar died. In life, he was at the lowest of low. In death, holy angels of God ushered him into the heavenly realm. The verse continues, the rich man also died and was buried. Fewer words. You know, it took more words to describe the rich man's life in life, or at least more pleasing words, but his death is very short. The rich man also died and was buried. And no doubt the rich man with his purple noble clothes and his linen claws and his sumptuous living had a big funeral. He was buried. That's about all the positive you can say. He was buried. He had this great big funeral and all the people were there and they stood up and they said nice things. He was a good upstanding citizen. Helped us rebuild the Tower of Siloam. And on and on it goes. Said nice stuff. But you don't want to know what happened after he was buried. You can say all the nice things you like. You can make it as pretty as you like. You can get the best juice in your veins and they can prop you up and put a little makeup on you and put you in your really nice suit. But your soul is in hell. If you have not repented, you have perished. And the rich man had not repented. Verse 23, And being in torment in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. being torments in Hades. He went from sumptuous living, went from the finest of cloth on his skin. Oh, that's nice stuff. He went from that 400 thread count sheets. Whoa, that was nice. Maybe 600, 800, 1200. I don't know how I can get, but he was there. To the very flames of hell searing his flesh forever. Being in torments in Hades, he went from having everything to having the fullness of God's wrath. Everything is worth nothing in light of the fullness of God's wrath. He lifted up his eyes. He saw Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom. He saw across the great gulf fixed there. He saw paradise. And you can imagine what that would do to one's mind. Then he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in the water and cool my tongue for I am tormented in this flame. And we see the presumption of the rich man. Abraham is not his father. He has no spiritual connection to Abraham. Abraham is not his spiritual father. The rich man presumed upon his religious position, or even upon the blood in his veins, that he was a good Jew. He was a good religious Jew. He was a good Jew by birth, by blood. He had religion. He had blood, the right blood, the blood of Israel. And Abraham, of course, is my father then. But in death he found out that without repentance and faith in the one true God, that religion and the right blood take you to hell. But he's still in hell presuming upon good religion and good blood. And he says, Father Abraham, therefore I beg you, Father. Abraham was not his spiritual father. If he had been his spiritual father, if he had followed in the faith of Abraham, he would have been in paradise with Abraham. A mistake in his speech. Then he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, verse 24, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. Foremost, Father Abraham isn't his father. Secondly, Lazarus ain't a beggar no more. And you're not a nobleman anymore in hell. You make too much to do of yourself, my dear rich friend in Hades. Abraham, hook me up. You know who I am. Send Lazarus there to fetch some water. Can't you see here I'm tormented in Hades? Your position, your status, the honor of men, all ends at the gate of hell. There'll be no one to serve you. There'll be no one to give you special privilege. There'll be no one to bump you into first class. No one to seat you in the best seat of the house. No one to give you the good cut. No one to make sure you get a refreshing drink. And those who are beneath you in life, who you may well have liked to have tread upon, or maybe give a scrap from your table and feel good about yourself. What a good religious person you are. Gave out your scrap to that beggar there. He is not beneath you anymore. And notice, though, that in the horrors of hell, in the fires of hell, in the torment and the flame, even just a drop, a drop of water would have been so refreshing that I beg you, Father Abraham, I beg you, send Lazarus to bring me a drop of water. There is no mercy in hell. Not the slightest drop of mercy in hell. Not the slightest drop of relief from torment and flame. Beg though you might. Verse 25, But Abraham said, Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things. But now he is comforted and you are tormented. Remember? That's a scary word in hell. Remember. You'll spend forever remembering. Remembering your sin that brought you to where you are now. And perhaps your greatest hatred in hell would be of yourself and your own foolishness. Remember that in your lifetime you received your good things. Beware, dear friends, of seeking all the good things you can get. Seek the good will of God. Seek the good mercy of God. Seek the good glory of God. And you get heaven. Seek all you can get in life. And get it! Go ahead and get it! Get to the pinnacle! Get all the honor and all the riches and all the good times. And you get the torment of flame. To which you would give every dollar, every nickel, every penny you ever earned for just a drop of water. Just a drop. And then Lazarus, he received evil things in life. Hardship. Difficulty. And yet apparently Lazarus was one who was repentant and believing truly. Not just religious. Not just proper. Not just moral. Not just trusting the blood in his veins, but repentant and believing. Not successful, no. We don't know the story of his life. We don't know what brought him to be a beggar. We just know that he was repentant or he wouldn't be in paradise. We just know that he had faith or he wouldn't be in paradise. Forget the riches of the world. If you have to exchange the riches of the world the honor of men for repentance and faith, then exchange it now and exchange it gladly. You've lost nothing. If you keep it all, and as the Lord Jesus elsewhere says, it is difficult, it is hard for a rich man to enter into heaven. For the love of the things of this world He pushes out the love of God. Beware. For Lazarus had nothing, but now he is comforted, and you, rich man, are tormented. Verse 26, And besides all this, Between us and you there's a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us. It's an impossibility. Once you're in hell, you're in hell. And no one, even if they wanted to, no one can do anything about it. There's nothing to be done. The only opportunity you have is now in life. For God has so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should have everlasting life. They should not perish, but have everlasting life. They should not go to hell like the rich man, but have everlasting life like Lazarus. And today is the day of salvation. Now hear me, before we go further. It's not innately righteous to be a beggar. Nor is it innately sinful to be wealthy. However, these are depictions of extremes. Perhaps the one is spiritual poverty. He sees that he is impoverished. But you must, if you're going to repent and believe, you must become poor and contrite in spirit. And the other is proud. And again, riches, wealth, success tends to make you proud, self-sufficient. It tends to distract you from God. Lord Jesus did warn that it's hard for a rich man to be saved. But it's not sinful to be rich, necessarily. You certainly can serve God and use the wealth He gives for His glory. So let's not condemn those who might have a few more dollars than we. Verse 27, then he said, I beg you therefore, Father, that you would send him to my father's house. I beg you. OK, if you're not going to give me a drop, I'll lower myself down. I beg you. Send him, Lazarus, to my father's house. For I have five brothers that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment. The rich man had compassion on his living brothers. If you were in hell now, you would have enough compassion to wish that everyone around you was warned about the terror of hell. If you were in hell now, like the rich man, you would wish, perhaps even beg, that someone would go back and tell them. Everyone you loved. Everyone you knew. And perhaps even you could broaden your heart out a little bit and just say, everybody, that hell is real. That you must repent. Even the rich man learned some compassion in hell. If we'll not have the compassion of the Lord Jesus, perhaps we can at least have the compassion of the rich man in hell. Send Lazarus back. I have five brothers. Lest they come to this place of torment. Abraham said to him, they have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. They have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. They have the Law and the Prophets. They have that which is able to make them wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus and the Word of God. The Word. The Scriptures. Faith come by hearing and hearing the Word of God. The Law is able to make you wise. The Law is able to convert your soul. It is perfect to that end. They have the Law and the Prophets. The Prophets all point to Christ. The Prophets all point to the coming Messiah. The Prophets all point to the culmination of events first. In the first incarnation, the enfleshment of God in Christ and the crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection that we might be saved as He came as a Savior. And then the prophets point beyond that to the second incarnation when Christ comes as Judge. They have the law in the prophets. They have that which shows them their sin and their need to repent. And they have that which shows them the Savior, their need to trust in Him. And they have that which shows them should they not repent and trust in the Savior, they will be judged by the same One. The man, Christ Jesus. And if they'll not hear Him, they'll not be saved. If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, they'll not be saved. But the argument continues. Verse 29. Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. And he said, No, Father Abraham. But if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. But he said to him, If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rise from the dead. Hear me today. Hear me before you leave this mountain. If your friends, if your family members, if your neighbors do not hear Moses and the prophets, they will go to hell. If they don't hear from your lips the words of life, if your feet are not shoved in the preparation of the gospel of peace, and you'll not deliver the Word of God to them, then you can be certain they're not elect. You can be certain they'll suffer the wrath of God. For not even one coming back from hell to tell them of it will save them more than the Word of God. For God has sovereignly ordained that His Word is the power of God unto salvation. Listen to the scriptures. No, Father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. And Abraham says to him, they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rise from the dead. Our only hope for our children, for our friends, For our neighbors, for our mothers, our fathers, our grandparents, our only hope is that they would hear Moses and the prophets. That they would hear the Word of God and be brought low to repent and to be saved. Even if someone could come back from hell, they wouldn't believe Him. For the power of God is in the Word of God. And there alone, our faith must abide there. Our hope must abide there. And our ministry of compassion must abide there. Or we do not know compassion. We do not know love. We are not kind. We are gently ushering them into hell. And one day they'll be like the rich man and they'll wonder why we didn't say anything to them. And they'll wish that somebody could go back and tell the rest of the family that you're not saying anything to.