THE SCARIEST VERSE IN THE BIBLE

THE SCARIEST VERSE IN THE BIBLE REVELATION 21.8 But for the cowardly, unbelieving, sinners, corrupted, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their part is in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur which is the second death.” Here, Revelation throws in one last warning for unbelievers. It’s a stark, severe warning that is meant to make an impression. All through this book and the revelations in it, God is trying to save people from eternal judgment. He’s never been eager to send anyone to hell: rather, God is intent on saving you from the lake of fire! That list of sins is something that all of us should be familiar with, because some of the entries are surprising. And we certainly don’t want to do any of them! It’s also a good verse for witnessing. We hear so many lies all around us: so we can ask people, “Did you know the Bible says all Liars will go to hell?” Most of the world doesn’t seem to believe there are any consequences for lying! But what should really make us pause are the first two: cowards and unbelievers. Those two are sins of omission, rather than sins of commission. Sins of omission are the things we fail to do, rather than the things we’ve done. Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do, yet fails to do it, is guilty of sin. James 4:17 The cowardly: have you ever failed to help someone who needed it? Did you fail to step in when someone was being bullied? Did you walk away when someone needed assistance? Jesus does not give us a pass for such failures. Jesus the Good Shepherd does whatever He needs to do for the sheep. He is our example in courage, selflessness and humility. And unbelievers! If we die before accepting Jesus as our Savior, then it’s too late. To procrastinate on this decision is an insult to God. And every time we choose to put it off, we harden our hearts a little bit more. Eventually, a hardened conscience cannot hear God at all. Unbelief is a struggle for some Christians as well. The Apostle James addresses the back-and-forth wavering of someone who finds it difficult to walk in Faith. Doubts and unbelief are something we need to resist in order to please the LORD.  But he must ask in faith, without doubting, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:6-8 In our modern age, people are able to shrug off shame. They do everything that’s on that list above, and have no regrets. The verse in Revelation 21:8 is a very ominous warning. In these last days we should do our part to make sure people know about it. We’re almost finished with this study of Revelation! Continued next Thursday! IMAGE CREDIT: The image of the Lake of Fire, generated by SeaArt.ai and edited by C.A. Stevens.