Hell Fire and Brimstone

You don’t hear those words much anymore. You sure don’t hear sermons on this subject like people heard in years gone by. We live in an age of luxury and ease, and the thought of eternal damnation doesn’t mix with that mindset.

Hell is not a comfortable subject. It is not designed to give comfort. It is in the Bible as a warning—a severe warning written in the strongest language possible. It is a place of punishment for the wicked after this life where “their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched” (Mk. 9:44). It is “everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Mt. 25:41). It is a place where there will be “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Mt. 25:30). This doctrine is in the Bible to strike fear into the hearts of men in order to bring them to repentance. Jesus said, “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!” (Lk. 12:4-5). This fear is not mere reverence or respect. That is not the point Jesus is making. He said not to fear men but to fear God who can cast into hell. The word fear means the same thing in both cases. He was not talking about simple respect for men or for God. Hebrews 10:31 says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Fear of hell is not the only motive that drives a sinner to repent. The love of God leads a person to repentance as well (Rom. 2:4-5). But it is unbiblical to deny the role of either of these truths in the conversion of a sinner or in the faithfulness of a Christian. We need the fear of hell.

An old-fashioned sermon on hell does not please the flesh. Many today want the same kind of preaching the worldly Jews in the Old Testament demanded. They want to hear “smooth things,” not the double-edged sword of the Word that pierces the soul (Isa. 30:10; Heb. 4:12). They are like some in the New Testament who loved “flattering speech,” not the corrective teaching of the gospel (Rom. 16:18). There is pressure on preachers today to be positive, encouraging and uplifting. They should be. But they should also do what Paul told Timothy: “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (II Tim. 4:2-4). Instead of smiling through the whole sermon and trying to be funny, preachers need to shoulder their duty in this evil age and preach the truth without fear or favor.

Kerry

West End church of Christ • June 7, 2026