Monday; July 9

          Much of the nation experienced summer last week.  I am not sure if the summers are getting hotter or if we just forget how hot it can get from year to year, but about this time each summer we begin to discuss the weather.  Often, when we describe the summer heat, someone will make a parallel to hell.  The concept of the hotness of hell can be traced back to New Testament teaching, including the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus where Jesus describes the state of the rich man by observing, ”In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’” (Luke 16:23-24)  From this passage (as well as others) we get the impression that there is going to be an intense heat in hell; yet, there is something even more disturbing about hell.  How often have you heard someone lament environment uncomfortableness by saying, “It isn’t the heat, it is the humidity.”?  Interestingly, this reminds us that the worst part of hell isn’t the heat, it is the hopelessness.  Once someone experiences hell, their future is settled.  Not only will they anguish in eternal heat, they will also be confined with the worst of the worst with no reprieve from our good God.  Hell was created for satan and his minions, he will be the ruler in the dismal abyss.  Hope, love, kindness and other blessings of God will be abundantly available in heaven, but hell will just be torment!
          Let’s not leave any doubt as to where we are destined to spend our eternity.  The heat on earth will eventually be abated by the coming of autumn, but the agony of hell will last an eternity.
          Think About It

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more