Many in the world and in the church insist that we should not talk about today’s subject. But if we do not talk to the wicked about judgment after death, by our omission we do them no service, simultaneously indicating our total lack of care for them and denial of our stated belief in God and His revealed truth.
The world does not merely omit acceptance of hell and judgment. It scoffs, denies, and rails at anyone who dares to bring it up. And far too many in and around the church declare that is unloving, “my god wouldn’t do that”, and that’s outdated, fire and brimstone preaching. The problem with these denials is simply that the Word of God, both Old and New Testament, speak incessantly of what will happen to the wicked at death and at the final judgment.
Part of the problem is a misunderstanding/refusal concerning what death is. Death in the Scripture is not annihilation. Death is separation. At physical death, the body is laid to rest in the grave (cemetery, sea, blast zone, etc). The spirit of the believer goes to heaven, while the unbeliever’s spirit proceeds to hell. In the second death, the final judgment, the spirit of the unbeliever is eternally separated from God and all that He has provided that is good.
On six separate occasions in the book of Matthew (1), Jesus declares that the “sons of the kingdom” (2), the lawless, the wicked, and the hypocrites will be cast into the judgment where “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (3) shall take place. It is a gracious kindness that He warns sinners of their just judgment. Why?
It does not have to be so. Turn away from your sin (repent) and believe in the saving sacrifice of Christ on the cross for your sins (4). For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:13)
Question 43: What shall be done to the wicked at death?
Answer: The souls of the wicked shall at death, be cast into the torments of hell, and their bodies lie in their graves till the resurrection and judgment of the great day.
Luke 16:22-24; Daniel 12:2; John 5:29; Revelation 20:11- 15.
Question 44: What shall be done to the wicked at the Day of Judgment?
Answer: At the Day of Judgment, the bodies of the wicked, being raised out of their graves shall be sentenced, together with their souls, to unspeakable torments with the devil and his angels forever.
Daniel 12:2; John 5:28, 29; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:14-15.
- Matthew 8, 13, 22, 24, and 25
- Sons of the Kingdom- In the immediate context, it must mean people of Israel who don’t believe, but considering that the “kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2), many will be hangers onto the church but lacking saving faith (Matthew 7:22-23).
- Matthew 8:12, 13:42 & 50, 22:13, 24:51, 25:30
- Acts 2:38, 16:31-32, Luke 24:46-47
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