Bulletins - Faith Baptist Church (Oconomowoc, WI)

As you can see from the slide, this morning’s Bible study deals with an important and difficult question. It's difficult—not because the Scriptures are unclear about it, as we’ll see—but because of the difficult implications of God’s justice with our sinfulness. Unsaved people, liberal theologians, and even many evangelicals have derided the biblical doctrine of hell as portraying God as a spiteful, unloving, vengeful despot. Rising in popularity are theological theories that do away with a literal place of eternal torment in favor of some other more palatable explanation for the Bible’s descriptions of what happens to unbelievers when they die. They lose God’s love AND justice in so doing.
So our purpose this morning is not to explain the Scriptures in terms that make us feel comfortable, necessarily; God doesn’t owe us justification for how he rules his universe. Rather, our goal is to understand better what the Bible actually says about the eternal destiny of the lost, how this is different from some popular views today, and how to discuss hell with people of other denominations, especially with spiritually-needy people in our lives. If we get this question right, it will help us fear God rightly and love others truthfully.
Who are lost people, exactly?
Before we can answer this question, we have to define its key term. As I’m sure you know, people understand differently from one another what makes a person spiritually “lost.” We’ll take a brief overview of some viewpoints on this in a moment, but first, I’d like you to consider this: what would my unsaved co-worker, friend, or family member say makes a person spiritually lost? Maybe you’ve had this conversation with someone and they’ve indirectly given you an answer to this question? How do people today usually define a what a “lost” person is? TAKE ANSWERS
Most people in the U.S. today haven’t given their own spiritual life very much thought. Part of the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20 is to help them understand that their eternal destiny is their responsibility and that God has something to say about it in his Word. The old proverb holds true: “You have to get them lost before you can get them found.” Another way of putting it: “Nobody asks for directions if they don’t think they’re lost.” For those who have considered this question and attempted to answer it from the Bible, there are basically three major views (and one modification). Let’s look at them from worst to best.
A. Pluralism
Pluralism says we can’t know for sure who is spiritually lost. The reason for this is that pluralism defines who is spiritually saved differently. “A pluralist is a person who thinks humans may be saved through a number of different religious traditions and saviors.”
Ronald H. Nash, Is Jesus the Only Savior? (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 22.
This is actually what most people you meet on the street today believe. It’s common for us to hear “There are many ways to God” or “Everyone finds God in their own way.” The implication, of course, is that there aren’t really that many lost people—mankind is basically good and God is basically loving and in the end everything will be hunky-dory for almost everyone. Only serial killers, rapists, and dictators like Adolf Hitler will end up in a bad place, if there even is an afterlife at all. Guess it depends on your religion, since they’re all equally true. Most people who believe in pluralism don’t think much deeper than “God is love.” So it’s really impossible to determine whether someone’s spiritually lost.
What’s the problem with this? TAKE AN ANSWER OR TWO
None of it is in the Bible, and if you believe it, you’ve lost one of the basic truths of the Gospel. Jesus claimed to be God’s Son, the only one with the truth. In fact, he said in John 14:6,
John 14:6 ESV
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
More on this later. For now, we must reject the idea of pluralism as antithetical to the one true Gospel. How can we help unsaved people in our lives see the error of pluralism?
Pluralism rejects objective truth. So how can we know pluralism is true? (Logical fallacy) Put another way, how can we tell whether accepting all world religions is the right way to believe?
Pluralism rejects biblical truth. If all the world’s religions are equally true, what are we supposed to do when they disagree? Accepting all of them is the same as rejecting all of them, because they all make truth claims—the Bible most of all. Jesus claimed to be the only way to the Father—so we must either accept his claim to the exclusion of other religions or reject it in favor of one of the others. (Biblical fallacy)
B. Inclusivism
Moving a step closer to basic biblical truth, we have inclusivism. Inclusivism at least tries to exclude other world religions, saying that Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection are what determines a person’s destiny. But inclusivists argue that one doesn’t have to know the facts of the Gospel in order to be saved. In other words, as long as a person responds favorably to whatever little or much they know about God, Jesus, and the Bible, he will accept their belief and apply the blood of Jesus to their account. In essence, inclusivism says that anyone who responds favorably to general revelation (stars, trees, or anything that points to truth about God) will be saved in the long run in Christ. So to them, a lost person is just someone who rejects any and all truth about God. You might not run into this as often, but it’s common among United Methodists and other denominations known for being “accepting” or “open” to other faiths. You’re most likely to hear hints of inclusivism in the thinking of “good” religious people who attend church regularly.
As you may already be able to see, inclusivism has basically the same problem as pluralism: if there is more than one acceptable body of truth one can believe to be saved, then we have more than one Gospel. And Paul gave us no uncertain words about that: Galatians 1:8-9
Galatians 1:8–9 ESV
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
This is very serious—if we modify the essentials of the Gospel in any way in order to be “nice” or “accepting” of people who don’t believe its essential truths but have some level of belief in God, we do them a damning disservice. It’s not loving to tell our unsaved family member that they’re okay if they just believe God is real and merciful. They have to do business with Jesus regarding their sin, which requires they know certain facts. Romans 10:9:
Romans 10:9 ESV
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
C. Post-mortem Evangelism
Here’s a modification of the inclusivism view that’s gaining traction today. Some broadly evangelical and many more liberal theologians believe that it’s unjust for God to punish a person for not believing the Gospel if they’ve never heard it. In their understanding, God owes every person a Gospel presentation if he’s going to punish them for rejecting him. So they conclude logically that God must give every unsaved person who hasn’t heard the Gospel their own special 1:1 Gospel opportunity after they’ve died but before they’re judged. This is called “post-mortem evangelism” or “post-mortem opportunity.” The basic assumption is that God has to give everyone a chance to believe in order to be both loving and just. So to them a lost person is someone who rejects the Gospel, even after they’ve heard it from God himself in the next life.
The problem with this view, as with all the others, is that it’s based on a false assumption about God’s love, justice, and sovereignty without any basis in the Bible. As Romans 1 says, everyone rejects even the general revelation we receive about God, and it’s only his grace doing heart surgery on us that creates new life. In other words, according to the Bible, it’s not unjust for God to condemn a sinner who hasn’t heard the Gospel; no, all of us have rejected God without even hearing the whole story yet. Romans 1:19-21
Romans 1:19–21 ESV
For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Rather, it’s a miracle of grace that he saves anyone who has heard the Gospel. Romans 9:15 says,
Romans 9:15 ESV
For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”
God doesn’t owe anyone a pre-trial plea deal or second chance; we’ve all blown it, and it’s only his grace that saves us from judgment.
Any thoughts or questions about these three views so far?
D. Exclusivism
The only biblical answer to the question, “What is a lost person?” is in exclusivism. Exclusivism states that only those who believe and receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ as described in the Scriptures are saved, and anyone who does not receive Christ in this life is lost. As John 3:36 says,
John 3:36 ESV
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
Acts 4:12 ESV
“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
1 Timothy 2:5 ESV
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.
John 3:16 ESV
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
When we’re talking with our unsaved friends and family, they may not understand that the Bible takes an exclusive stance on Jesus. It’s all or nothing. There are only two kinds of people in the world: those who believe and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior and those who are waiting to die twice.
Make sense so far? What questions do you have at this point? How would you talk with your unsaved friend about what a lost person is? Have you tried asking them what they believe makes a person truly lost?
What happens to lost people in eternity?
That brings us back to our original question, which we’ll seek to answer now. What is the final destiny of the lost? Again we’ll look at some popular answers today and discuss what the Bible says.
A. Universalism
The most popular answer to this question today is found in universalism. Universalism teaches that everyone will eventually be saved, whether through God’s universal love overlooking our sins, Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross being liberally applied to every person regardless of their belief, or through some form of purgatory in which God eventually burns off our finite sinfulness and eventually welcomes us into his presence once he’s finished cleaning us up. Universalism is one of the most deceptive, dangerous, and pervasive teachings of the popular American church. It’s taught by Unitarians, some Catholics, many United Methodists, some theologically-left-leaning Lutherans, many cults, and countless other denominations and “religious groups.” Universalism goes hand in hand with pluralism or inclusivism and denies that anyone is ever truly lost. In the end, Jesus will save everybody, they say. They even claim Bible passages, like Romans 5:18, which says,
Romans 5:18 ESV
Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.
But is this a promise by God to save everyone through Jesus regardless of whether they believe?
Of course not. Just two chapters earlier in his argument, Paul says, Romans 3:23-26
Romans 3:23–26 ESV
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
It’s not difficult to see in Scripture that salvation is only received through faith—belief in known truth about Jesus. If we toss out faith, we toss out the whole Gospel. Which means we can’t just say “no one is lost” and walk away from the question. But that’s what most unsaved people do today in everyday conversation.
How might your spiritually-needy coworker articulate a belief in universalism? What might this sound like in everyday conversation? How would you turn that conversation into an opportunity to study the Bible with that person?
B. Annihilationism
Growing in popularity among biblical scholars across the theological spectrum is the idea of annihilationism. Annihilationists describe spiritual death as whole-person destruction, not separation from God. They claim that unsaved people cease to exist after they die. So they reject the concept that all human beings are immortal. They believe man’s existence as an everlasting soul (Gen. 2:7) is contingent upon a right relationship with God and claim that our understanding of death as separation is an idea early church fathers got from the Greek philosopher Plato, not the Old or New Testament. Further, they actually appeal to the Bible as their authority, citing passages like these: Psalm 1:6
Psalm 1:6 ESV
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
Matthew 10:28 ESV
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Galatians 6:8 ESV
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
Philippians 3:19 ESV
Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.
2 Thessalonians 1:9 ESV
They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,
Hebrews 10:39 ESV
But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.
James 4:12 ESV
There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
As you can see, we would have a lot of Bible to cover in order to do justice to a discussion with an annihilationist. Essentially, we have to understand what the Bible means when it talks about eternity and destruction, perdition, and corruption. Do the annihilationists have a point about the “destruction” of a lost person? Does the Bible say that a lost person simply ceases to exist after they die because God judges them with total annihilation of the whole person?
I think not, and there are plenty of Bible reasons why. Let’s look at a couple as we unpack the biblical view.
C. Literal, Conscious Torment
In case it wasn’t obvious by now, as Bible believers and as those who take the Bible at its plain sense meaning, we believe in a literal lake of fire where all unbelievers will eventually go for conscious torment for all of eternity. We do not believe this because we hate unbelievers or because we think God is vengeful and sadistic. We believe this because the Bible demands it, no matter how we feel about it. It motivates us to share the Gospel with unbelievers in our lives and presents an accurate view of the character of God. It takes the whole testimony of Scripture into account and lends the appropriate level of sobriety to this difficult and serious topic. Again, let’s look at a couple reasons why we believe in a literal, eternal hell for unbelievers, not total annihilation.
The Definition of Eternity
Matthew 25:46 ESV
And these [unbelievers] will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Matthew 25:46 is perhaps the most important verse in this discussion, and as such it’s hotly debated. Essentially, annihilationists claim that the word “eternal” here has to do with the quality of the punishment—that the punishment will be final and thus have eternal consequences. They understand the word punishment as referring to soul destruction, as we saw earlier, though some of them say that God punishes unbelievers for a period of time commensurate with the sins they’ve committed until they’ve run out their sentence so to speak, at which point he destroys their soul eternally.
But the word “eternal” here isn’t referring to the consequences of the punishment; it’s referring to the punishment itself. It’s parallel to the idea of eternal life at the end of the verse—and no one questions whether believers will enjoy God’s presence forever! Jesus is talking about never-ending punishment and never-ending life. That’s what the word “eternal” means.
Now, about that word “punishment...” Here’s another reason we reject annihilationism:
2. The Details of Eternity
Annihilationists emphasize the destruction associated with hell, as we saw above. But they are less vocal about the other two aspects of the “second death.” Let’s briefly look at all three as described in the Bible.
a. Judgment
Revelation 20:13–15 ESV
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Fundamentally, God’s response to sin is retributive. It’s judgment. God is the King of his universe, and those who break his laws receive the just punishment for so doing. And since God has revealed his wrath (Romans 1:18) against that ungodliness in mankind, it follows that the punishment would fit the crime.
Romans 1:18 ESV
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
(BACK ONE SLIDE) In God’s eyes, the everlasting lake of fire is the only fitting punishment for someone who breaks his eternal code of laws. If you rebel against an eternal King, you face eternal consequences!
b. Destruction
The Bible does indeed talk about spiritual death in terms of destruction. What it does not do, however, is identify destruction with annihilation, or ceasing to exist. In fact, that’s not even how we understand the word in English. (DEMOLITION EXAMPLE)
The Bible describes eternal destruction not as the end of a person’s existence but as their eternal loss, ruin, or corruption. Look at how Jesus quotes Isaiah 66:24 in discussing what hell is like.
Mark 9:48 ESV
‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
The picture in Isaiah 66:24 is one of a field littered with dead bodies. In his chapter in the book Hell under Fire (which is a great book on this topic), commentator Doug Moo asks, “How can the picture of maggots never dying in their act of consuming a dead body indicate the extinction of that body? And how can the image of fire never being extinguished when it burns a dead body signify that body’s consumption?”
Further, the Bible logically cannot describe the fate of unbelievers as both total erasure AND eternal punishment. If unbelievers “are tormented day and night forever and ever,” as Revelation 20:10 says in connection with verse 15, then their destruction can’t mean that they cease to exist entirely. They have a sentence to serve—and that sentence lasts forever, so they have to exist in order to suffer. That’s the third component of spiritual death:
c. Torment
Annihilationists and Universalists claim it is unfair for God to punish a sinner eternally when his sins are finite; what they don’t accept from the Bible is that every one of us is born an everlasting soul bound for resurrection to an everlasting body, either to eternal life or eternal death (Romans 9:22 describes unbelievers as “vessels prepared beforehand for destruction”). It doesn’t matter how many times you steal from the cookie jar—it only takes one theft to make you a thief. James 2:10
James 2:10 ESV
For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.
1 Corinthians 6:9–10 ESV
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
When one rejects an almighty, eternal God and abuses the everlasting soul God has entrusted to him, God holds him fully accountable for his behavior. Revelation 20:13 again:
Revelation 20:13 ESV
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
And the testimony of Scripture we’ve seen so far is incredibly clear: the sentence for falling short of God’s glory is eternal damnation in hell, which is God’s judgment of eternal ruin and suffering for those who reject the truth about his Son Jesus Christ. It is the place where maggots feast on a body that can undergo constant entropy and pain, where the fire is pitch black and never fully consumes its fuel, where the darkness is so totally oppressive you can’t see your hand in front of your face, where loneliness and separation from God are constant and unending. Even the demons begged Jesus not to send them to the abyss, which will one day be emptied into the lake of fire, because they were so afraid of it. Nothing awaits the unsaved of our world in the next life except eternal judgment, destruction, and torment. Without all three of these aspects, we don’t have the full picture.
I trust this helps you in your discussions of this difficult doctrine with the people in your life. The doctrine of hell is under assault by many well-meaning and also many skeptical people. It’s our job to be hearers and wise doers of the Word by bearing witness to the truth of Scripture so that we can be instruments in the Master’s hands to bring to salvation those who are bound for the wrong eternity. Let me finish with a quote from Charles Spurgeon, one you’re likely familiar with but bears repeating anyway:
“If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.”
What thoughts, comments, or questions do you have?
- - John 14:6ESV
- - Galatians 1:8–9ESV
- - Romans 10:9ESV
- - Romans 1:19–21ESV
- - Romans 9:15ESV
- - John 3:36ESV
- - Acts 4:12ESV
- - 1 Timothy 2:5ESV
- - John 3:16ESV
- - Romans 5:18ESV
- - Romans 3:23–26ESV
- - Psalm 1:6ESV
- - Matthew 10:28ESV
- - Galatians 6:8ESV
- - Philippians 3:19ESV
- - 2 Thessalonians 1:9ESV
- - Hebrews 10:39ESV
- - James 4:12ESV
- - Matthew 25:46ESV
- - Revelation 20:13–15ESV
- - Romans 1:18ESV
- - Mark 9:48ESV
- - James 2:10ESV
- - 1 Corinthians 6:9–10ESV
- - Revelation 20:13ESV

Who are lost people, exactly?

A. Pluralism

B. Inclusivism

C. Post-mortem Evangelism

D. Exclusivism

What happens to lost people in eternity?

A. Universalism

B. Annihilationism

C. Literal, Conscious Torment

John 14:6ESV

Galatians 1:8–9ESV

Romans 10:9ESV

Romans 1:19–21ESV

Romans 9:15ESV

John 3:36ESV

Acts 4:12ESV

1 Timothy 2:5ESV

John 3:16ESV

Romans 5:18ESV

Romans 3:23–26ESV

Psalm 1:6ESV

Matthew 10:28ESV

Galatians 6:8ESV

Philippians 3:19ESV

2 Thessalonians 1:9ESV

Hebrews 10:39ESV

James 4:12ESV

Matthew 25:46ESV

Revelation 20:13–15ESV

Romans 1:18ESV

Mark 9:48ESV

James 2:10ESV

1 Corinthians 6:9–10ESV

Revelation 20:13ESV