Danger signs are often seen when driving down our nation’s highways. It seems like every time I drive on an interstate highway, there are workers doing repairs.
Signs are posted well in advance of the area or areas where these repairs are being made. They even warn of doubled fines if caught speeding when workers are present.
There are also warning signs along the roadway of life. The medical profession warns the public about the dangers of overeating, of smoking, of alcohol and a host of other items that can damage the human body.
Law enforcement persons warn people about speeding when driving automobiles. Motorists are warned about incoming traffic, about railroad crossings, about potential deer crossings, about school buses unloading or loading school children, along with other dangerous areas of concern.
We could go on to mention a number of other good and beneficial warning signs that are placed before the public’s eyes. We generally pay attention to these warnings because they can keep us out of trouble with the law and because they can eliminate some painful moments caused by disobedience.
But there is a warning sign that is debated often, which is also disobeyed often, and which is disbelieved by many thousands and thousands and millions of individuals the world over. It’s the warning about a place called Hell. That warning is found in the Bible.
Matter of fact, the Bible references only two places beyond the grave. One is the place just mentioned, which is reserved for Satan and his followers. The other is Heaven, the domicile of God the Father.
Sometimes individuals will want to know where Hell is located. The only answer I know of that fits quite well is the one I heard long years ago. Hell is at the end of a Christ-less life.
There is a story that describes the lifestyle of a rich man and of a poor man. Both died.
The rich man’s lifestyle demonstrates a self-centered, selfish life, which evidently was lived without God. The poor man died and was carried into God’s presence, into to Abraham’s bosom, by angels, evidently confirming his relationship with God.
The rich man is said to be “in torments in Hades” (Lk. 16:23). Hades is a word for the world beyond the grave.
Whatever one might say about this place, one thing is sure, it is a place of suffering. And according to this text, it is a place where fire dominates. The rich man in verse 24 is quoted by Jesus as saying, “for I am tormented in this flame.”
Just as roadside warning signs are posted for good reasons, so are the warning signs given in the Bible. Biblical warning signs are given to warn mankind of the danger which comes at the end of a Christ-less life.
Some article responders have suggested that preachers are out of place, as are other Christians, when they try to tell them how to live their lives.
I don’t recall doing that, and most of the believers who are willing to share Jesus Christ with lost people aren’t trying to tell people how to live their lives. They and I are simply pointing out the danger signs that warn of future jeopardy unless something is done about their direction in life.
One who puts a hand in the fire, firmly believing fire won’t harm it, will discover the error of that kind of thinking. The fact is, it is hot and will injure the hand.
Or someone thinking that taking a bath in acid will do nothing more than purify their skin will discover the end result to most likely be death.
So, just ignoring the messenger or rejecting the warning because of disbelief or simply because one desires to live his or her own lifestyle, doesn’t negate the warning. Beyond death, truth is as found in God’s Word alone.
David, the song writer, wrote, “The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God” (9:17). The writer of the Proverbs wrote, “Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied.”
John, the revelator, penned in the last book in the Bible, “Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death” (20:14).
Why do believers witness to lost individuals? They are reminding people about the warning signs the Bible has given so that friends, family members and fellow human beings can be aware of potential problems beyond the grave.
They do so knowing full well that the choice of how an individual responds to the warning signs is strictly up to the decision of the individuals themselves. And that is why I’ve written this article on “Warning! Danger Ahead!”
