Beware of Hell

 Three times in Mark 9 Jesus repeats his warning about the results of sin and the damnation of hell.  Three times he repeats the words of Isaiah 66:24,

“And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men

Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die,

And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”

Mark 9:43 -48 (NKJV) Jesus speaks to the disciples,

43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 

44 where ‘Their worm does not die And the fire is not quenched.’

45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 

46 where ‘Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.’

47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire— 

48 where ‘Their worm does not die And the fire is not quenched.’

Why would He repeat this three times in a row?  Because he is serious about saving the sinner? Because He wants no one to endure an eternity of worms and fire?  Jesus loves the people and wants to save all who come to Him and honor Him as their savior and redeemer from their sin.  But….people are hard hearted until He takes their heart of stone and makes it a heart of flesh.  To have a heart of flesh is to have compassion.  To have love for others.  To forgive people who hurt you.  To live in the world peacefully and joyfully even with all of its darkness and sin.

I have lived long enough to have heard the naysayer and unbeliever say 'there is no heaven and there is no hell because there is no god'.  To them and their hearts of stone it is sadly their truth.  My truth tells me there is a God.  My faith tells me there is a God who cares and shows me in the days of living life that those with a heart of flesh are far better off than those who turn their back on faith, on God.  It breaks my heart that those who choose not to believe have not only a heart of stone but also a brain of stone.  They seem to have put themselves in the position of a god in their lives.  They believe in themselves and deny a Creator.  According to Jesus (three times right here)they will be cast into the lake of unquenchable fire with the worms.

Being the seeker of knowledge that I am I looked up the Hebrew word "worm" used in Isaiah 66:24.  In English we have a 4 letter word but in Hebrew it is a really long word, "tola tole ah tola ath tola ath".  The definition is quite extraordinary.  Voracious maggot.  Crimson grub. Scarlet, crimson, worm.  Deeper dive takes you to the Hebrew word, "yala", definition "devour".  Jesus is warning of the voracious worm (aka maggot) that devours for all eternity because once in hell the worm never dies.  Literally put, how can that mind picture not scare hell out of everyone?  Yet Jesus repeats the warning 3 times!

People do not like to talk about hell but they will always talk about heaven.  People like the good stuff but they do not like the bad stuff.  People want to believe that God is only love and forgiveness but then they respond to those closest to them with hatred, anger, and unforgiveness.  They blame God for the bad things that happen in the world and then pile their own immorality into the world year after year.  Sin is a human condition that leads to death and God did not send them there.  They did it all on their own and God was not even in their picture.  Each one of us makes a choice.

A couple of verses before Jesus gave His warning about hell he told the disciples,

Mark 9:40  (NKJV) "For he who is not against us is on our side." 

Choose your side wisely my friends.

Elijah in the Wilderness

 I Kings 17 begins the history of evil King Ahab and his evil queen Jezebel and also tells the story of Elijah the prophet of God for the time.  Right after Jerry died in 2022 I attended a Bible Study on Elijah and felt the Lord touch my heart and tell me I was in the same wilderness that Elijah was in.  A wilderness of learning to trust in God for my every moment and every day to come as I learn the ways of widowhood.

Elijah spent roughly 3 1/2 years in the Kerith Ravine wilderness before God called him out to be the servant and prophet he was destined to be.  He ran away.  He had doubts.  He had fears.  He did not want to do the task at hand.  I am not called to be a prophet but called to learn to be a better servant to the Lord and to learn to trust him in every single day as I now trudge through life without a spouse, without a helpmate, without my closest friend.  Like Elijah, I cannot see what and why the Lord has me where I am. Not yet.

For over 3 full years Elijah learned to trust in God for food and water.  The essentials of life.  According to Hebrew customs the food delivering ravens were unclean and contact with them was against the law yet Lord God used them to feed Elijah. For over 3 full years Elijah was alone in the wilderness.  I am sure he cried many tears. I am sure he expressed his anger at being stuck in the wilderness as the rest of the land experienced a drought of water but also a a drought of separation from Lord God at the hands of the evil king and queen.  

When God first called Elijah out of the ravine after some years he goes to a widow who is ready to give up and die.  She and her son have no food.  Elijah comes along, prays, and food miraculously comes from the Great Provider.  Later the son dies but Elijah pleads with God to restore the son to life and it is done.  Without Elijah leaving the ravine the widow and her son both would have died in the drought and famine.  God had other plans.  Elijah trusted God and then the widow and her son trusted Elijah's God.  I wonder how many more were led to trust God as each one of them lived on and told of their miraculous touch of Lord God in their lives.

Today I am 3 years and 6 months into my widowhood journey.  There are days I want to stay in the ravine where I am safe from the outside world.  Where I can cry and shout.  Where I can seek and find.  Where I can grow in the Lord for whatever plans He has for my future.  I have told others I feel like a three and a half year old child.  I am still learning to walk on my own.  I am learning how to be a fairly self-sufficient human being.  I still fall down and cry.  I still hide away under my bed in fear of the outside.  Not really under the actual bed but I am safe in my home without having to pretend I am okay.

When you read the rest of the story of Elijah he fights against the evil king and queen who are eventually defeated by the hand of Almighty God and His faithful servants. It was never an easy time and Elijah had some rough down times but in the end Elijah never experienced death and is taken out of this world into heaven on a Chariot of Fire in a whirlwind while Elisha the next prophet of God watches.  

Elijah's story of endurance through the terrible times of drought, sadness, persecution, doubts, and fears, only to experience an intimate relationship with Almighty God who rescues him from death is one of those Bible stories that get us through this life.  Jesus rescues us.  Jesus does this for me and for you.  We all experience times of wilderness in so many different ways.  Do I lose faith sometimes?  I do.  Do I come back to the arms of Jesus looking for comfort and the courage to continue?  I do.  Do I want to serve and help in this world filled with so much darkness and wilderness?  I do.  Am I able to do this on my own without my husband?  No.  But with the Lord Jesus Christ my eternal bridegroom at my side I can do all things.  

Jesus came out of his wilderness experience and saved each one of us who call Him Lord, God, Savior.  The wilderness is never a fun place to be but it is essential if we are to learn how to trust in an Unseen God who has loved us since we drew out first breath of life.  

John 10:9-10 (NET) I am the door. If anyone enters through me, he will be saved, and will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.