Yes, Sarah, There is A Hell
I wish it were not true but it is. R.C. Spoul says “Hell may be the hardest doctrine of the Bible to accept for obvious reasons. It is difficult for any human being to think about the idea of everlasting punishment on anybody.”
Comedian Sarah Silverman recently sparked a controversy on Twitter (Jan 8, 2021) when she stated (from her podcast), “If you’re in the range of my voice right now and you’re someone who believes and fears Hell, let me release you of that fear right now.”
Ultimately Silverman isn’t fighting against this one doctrine, she’s fighting against God. Humorously she remarked “If there’s Hell, may God strike me dead right now.” She then paused and looked up. After several seconds she said happily back at the camera “See? No God.”
Apparently if God would have struck her dead then presumably she would have believed?
So, is the Bible true? Is God really God, or do we just have it all wrong and Silverman knows the real truth. Let’s take a quick look at what the Bible has to say about the doctrine of Hell.
Theologian R.C. Sproul calls questioning the doctrine of Hell “The most emotionally laden question that Christians can ever (ask).” Sproul says “on the surface, when we ask a question like that, what’s lurking there is, ‘How could God ever possibly send some person to hell?…It doesn’t seem right’.”
Sproul says there are two striking phenomena found in the New Testament. He says “One, that Jesus speaks more of hell than he does of heaven. Two, almost everything that we know about hell in the New Testament comes from the lips of Jesus.” Sproul goes on to say that he believes people wouldn’t bear a doctrine like Hell from any other teacher. In other words, it had to come directly from Jesus!
Jesus’ good news is that He has made a way of escape. He is that way of escape.
Note: I am speaking to Christians in these blogs as I often do. IF you believe that Jesus is real, THEN it only follows that His words are true and accurate as well.
So let’s take a look at some passages to explore. And as with any Bible verse go to the source and read the verse in its original context. That’s important always. But having said that, here are the isolated verses:
2 Peter 2:4 “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;”
Matthew 25:46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Matthew 13:50 “and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Mark 9:34 “If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.”
Jude 1:7 “In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.”
The book of Romans is a great book of Theology. Chapter 1 verse 18 & 19 says: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.”
I believe that God is known to the Christian believer AND EVERYONE ELSE. That’s why we all wonder. That’s why we all explore. That’s why we are amazed and awed by so much around us. Silverman may wish it to be different. Especially when it comes to a doctrine as harsh as Hell, but it doesn’t mean she’s right. It is easier to bury our heads in the sand and not ask these very tough questions. Questions like: Why are we here? What is life all about? What happens when we die? Is there a God?
The point is that we know there is more to this life. Romans 1:18 & 19 tells us as much. It states that everything around us screams out that THERE IS A CREATOR GOD! It screams that we exist with purpose. Not random chance. Not evolving or striving to live on forever. These things (like trying to live forever) are vanity and a striving after the wind. You would have an easier time holding oil in the palm of your hand.
So, why is there death anyway? Consider Romans 5:12: “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned.”
Sin, hate, lies, evil (all of it — -good and evil) entered into this world through Adam (and Eve). What Adam was unable to do, i.e. resist sin, Jesus (who is called the second “Adam”) was able to do. Jesus not only made a way for us to reconcile with Him by living a sinless life but He also made a way for us to defeat death by dying in our place. In other words, death needed to be defeated. He did that by doing what the first Adam could not do. Namely by living a sinless life THEN by dying for us thereby taking the punishment that would befall us. That if anyone calls upon the name of the Lord, He will be saved. (Romans 10:13)
Like Silverman we can say whatever we want concerning Heaven or Hell. But where is our proof?
The truth is that we know there is more. We know in our hearts that there is a God. We may not understand it all but we DO know that much. So, who is God? Where is God? Why did He make me? Is there more to this life? Do we live after life here on earth?
Do Christians have all the answers. No, Christians are struggling with these questions themselves. That doesn’t mean to dismiss it all. As R.C. Sproul says the doctrine of hell is difficult to comprehend.
Do I believe the doctrine of Hell? Yes. Not because I understand it. I believe it because the Bible teaches it. The Lord taught it, so I believe it. And I do understand that my God is Just. I know enough to realize that if Jesus died in my place on that cross then there must have been a very good reason for that death (namely to keep us from Hell).
The very best proof of hell is Jesus' death on the cross. Consider that Jesus allowed himself to die on the cross in such a gruesome way. Why? Why want he able to die gently? I believe it was because the harshness of the cross exemplified the punishment he had to endure on our behalf. The best proof of Hell may be in the very act of Jesus death on the cross.
I suggest that you struggle with this question on your own. Ask God for wisdom and discernment. He knows. He cares. And He will help you understand. Want to contact me? Go ahead. My cell number is 775–385–3945.
May God bless you!
(Patrick Herman is an author, radio announcer for the Pilgrim Radio Network and blogger. He lives with his wife and four kids in Carson City, Nevada).
