The Most Frightening Passages in Scripture

Our life has only one of two ends: eternal life with Jesus Christ or eternal damnation with the Evil One. There is no middle ground, no compromised position, no neutral or safe space. There is no supposed “better place.” There is only heaven or hell. We choose by the way of life we live and follow where we will spend eternity.

Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it(Matt. 7:13–14).

The early Christians understood and lived by this understanding of eternity, but today there are some who try to circumvent the way of the Lord. They lie and convince themselves that everyone—no matter what they do—is going to heaven. They falsely believe that the only thing someone needs to do to get to heaven is die! But this is a total denial of the teachings of the Lord Jesus and his stern and consistent call to be vigilant, alert, prepared, and ready for judgment.

We have to be aware and discard the presumption of our age. Our fallen nature has its consequences. Not everyone who thinks about God, or calls upon him, or who does some random work in his name, will merit eternal life.

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?” Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers”(Matt. 7:21–23).

Whether we like it or not, we will stand in judgment.

There will be an accounting of our lives.

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left(Matt. 25:31–33).

The Lord desires the salvation of all. Heaven is open to us in Jesus Christ.

Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me”(Matt. 25:34–40).

As much as it might unsettle us, hell is real. The Lord came to save us from its torments; and yet we are able to discard the gift of salvation and go to hell.

Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life(Matt. 25:41–46).

Hell is a place of utter horror and despair. It is a place devoid of love. It is a place of eternal displacement, of loneliness.

The Lord Jesus spoke more about hell than any other person in the entire Bible. He spoke more about hell than heaven, in fact, and his teachings on hell were graphic and evocative. He tells us that hell is a state of weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:42), a place of outer darkness (Matt. 25:30), an unquenchable fire (Mark 9:43), an eternal torment (Luke 16:23), and a place of no return (Luke 16:19–31). The Lord Jesus also refers to hell as Gehenna, which was the place outside of Jerusalem with a wretched stench where garbage and trash were burned (Matt. 10:38).

The Lord Jesus tells us,“I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning”(Luke 10:18). The Lord was present when hell was created for the fallen angels. He saw the dread and the barrenness of the place. He desires for none of God’s children to go to such a horrible place. And so, he has come to us as the Messiah, the anointed Savior, to redeem us from sin and so ransom us from the evils of hell.

The way of the Lord is the path of redemption. It is the path of love and happiness. It is the only way to our salvation.

Are you ready and willing to take that path?

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