And these will go away. . .

We have begun to look at the teachings of Jesus in an attempt to answer the question: What did Jesus believe and teach about eternal punishment?

Let’s start by looking at Matthew 25:31–46. There Jesus says:

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Receive your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you took care of me. I was in prison and you visited me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go visit you?’

The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in. I needed clothes and you did not clothe me. I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Then these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

First, notice Jesus’ choice of words

Jesus and the reality of hell

Having looked at the things that Jesus said that give us an indication of what he believed about sin, it seems logical at this point to turn our attention to the things that Jesus said about eternal punishment. The question before us then is this: What did Jesus believe and teach about hell?

As we look at the teachings of Jesus on various topics, this matter of eternal punishment is of particular interest. It seems that there are a number of Christ followers – so-called Red Letter Christians – who deny the validity of the idea of eternal punishment. Such people typically say that belief in eternal punishment is incompatible with belief in a loving God, that such a belief is utterly reprehensible. The tendency is to view the doctrine of eternal punishment as an invention of the medieval church, an idea that was used to create fear and thus to control people.

However, when we take a look at the New Testament, we find that it is here in the pages of scripture that the doctrine of eternal punishment has its origins. In fact, we find that it is Jesus himself who teaches more about eternal punishment – who talks more about hell – than anyone else. Most of the statements on which the doctrine of eternal punishment is based are in fact the words of Jesus himself.

So how is it that so many “Red Letter Christians” – so many people who sincerely consider themselves followers of Christ – can deny the validity of eternal punishment? The answer, as I’ve said before, is a selective reading of the teachings of Jesus – a selective and prejudiced reading of the stuff that’s in the red letters. No one who takes all of the words of Jesus seriously could possibly deny the fact that Jesus himself believed and taught that at least some people will suffer conscious, everlasting torment as the penalty for their sins, that is, that Jesus believed and taught that some people – in fact, many people – will go to hell.

In this upcoming series of posts, we will look at the specific things that Jesus said that make this undeniably clear.

In Summary: Jesus’ view of sin

We have been looking at some of the things that Jesus said in an attempt to answer the question: What did Jesus believe and teach about sin?

From the words of Jesus that we have looked at, it is clear that Jesus believed that human beings are sinful. In fact, we could say that Jesus believed in original sin and that he believed in total depravity. These terms may be associated with people like Augustine and the Protestant reformers, but the beliefs expressed by these terms are straight out of the Bible, and in fact they are the beliefs of Jesus himself.

Jesus believed that by nature people are evil. And that is not too strong a statement. In fact, Jesus himself used the word ‘evil’. Jesus himself said that people are evil.

So how can some people say that Jesus didn’t believe in original sin, that he believed in “original goodness”? There is only one way. By ignoring the actual words of Jesus himself. And that very kind of thing – talking about what Jesus said without paying attention to the actual words of Jesus – is not nearly as unusual as you might think.

“Red letter Christians” who are evidently not paying attention to the stuff in the red letters. “Christ followers” who don’t really follow Christ, but who follow an imaginary Jesus based more on their own assumptions and presuppositions than on the actual teachings of Jesus. These kinds of things are becoming all too common.

Basically, we are lost. We have wandered far, far from the trail. And if we are ever going to make any progress in finding our my back to the main road, this one thing is indispensable:

Which is easier. . . ?

Taking another look today at Jesus’ view of sin.

In Matthew 9:2–7 we read:

Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son. Your sins are forgiven.”

At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming.”

Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. . . ” Then he said to the paralytic, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” And the man got up and went home.

I think it is clear that the main point of this story is not about sin or about Jesus’ view of sin. The main point of this story is about Jesus himself – who he is and the implications of the fact that he has the authority to forgive sins.

However, although the main point of this story is not about sin, it does tell us something important about sin and about what Jesus thinks about sin.

It seems clear that one of the points in this story, although it is not the main point, is that this man’s more significant problem was the problem of sin. That problem was a greater problem than his physical infirmity. What relationship his physical infirmity may have had to his sin problem is not clear. There may in fact have been some connection between the two. But regardless of whatever connection there may have been between his sin and his sickness, it is clear that

It would be better. . .

Again, we’re looking at the question of what Jesus believed and taught about sin. And today I want to look at something Jesus said that indicates how serious he considered the matter of  sin to be.

In Matthew 18:5–9 we read where Jesus said:

And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

It is evident from this that Jesus took the matter of sin very seriously. In fact, he speaks of sin as if it were the very worst thing that could possibly be. Anything – ANYTHING! – would be better than sin. Anything would be better than suffering the consequences of sin. Anything would be better than causing someone else to sin.

Think of all the things that Christians (and nonChristians and pseudoChristians) lament about – injustice and poverty and whatever else you can name. None of these things is as bad as sin.

Injustice is not as bad as sin. Granted, injustice often involves sin or results from sin. But the sin

One sinner who repents

How central was the matter of sin and repentance to Jesus’ overall message? Well, let’s look at a couple of things he said that would shed some light on that.

In Luke 15:7, we read where Jesus said:

I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

And in verse 10, we read where he said:

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

I think the first thing we need to understand here is that this is not about what makes angels happy. It’s about what pleases God. When Jesus says that there will be rejoicing in heaven and that there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels, this is his way of saying that this is what pleases God. I think that this is self-evident and goes without saying, but I said it anyway just in case.

But notice what it is that pleases God. It is one sinner who repents. It is not when a good person has something bad happen to them but forgives and carries on. It’s not when a child of the king experiences total victory in every area of their life. No. It is when a sinner repents.

So what does this tell us about what Jesus believes? First, it tells us that Jesus believed that people are sinners. We are not simply people who have failed to fulfill the good that is potential within us. We are not simply good people to whom bad things have happened. We are sinners. Jesus believed in the sinfulness of human beings.

Second, it tells us what he believed we need.

Unless you repent. . .

In the previous post, we looked at the fact that Jesus said that calling sinners to repentance was central to the reason for his coming.

In Luke 13, we find where Jesus again talks about sin and repentance.

In verses 1 to 5 we read:

Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them – do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

There are at least a couple of things in these words of Jesus that are noteworthy.

One is his statement that “Unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

This is a matter that I intend to deal with more fully at a later time, but I think it warrants at least a passing comment now. Notice that Jesus says that unless one repents sin has serious consequences. And what are those consequences? That you won’t experience total victory in every area of your life? That you won’t fully realize the great potential that God has placed within you? No. Unless one repents, Jesus said, the consequences are that one will perish.

As I said, I plan to deal with this more fully at a later date, so I won’t attempt to fully argue this point at this time, but Jesus believed and taught that the consequences of sin and unrepentance are that one will experience eternal punishment.

The other noteworthy thing in these words of Jesus that I wanted to address, in fact the main thing that I wanted to address today, is expressed in the words,

Not the righteous

We have been looking at some of the teachings of Jesus in an attempt to answer the question: What was Jesus’ view of sin?

In Mark 2:17 we read:

On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (see also Matthew 9:12–13 and Luke 5:32)

What was Jesus’ mission? Why did he come? To call sinners. The fact that people are sinners was central to the very reason that God the Son became the son of man. He came to deal with the sin problem.

Clearly, Jesus believed that people are sinners. But more than that, he saw sin as the basic human problem and as the reason for his coming.

FROM the heart. . .

Where does evil come from? Is evil something that happens to us? Or something that comes from us?

Specifically, what does Jesus have to say about this?

In Matthew 15:10–20, we read:

Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into a person’s mouth does not make him unclean, but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him unclean.”

Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”

He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind person leads a blind person, both will fall into a pit.”

Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”

Jesus asked them, “Are you still so dull? Do you not see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a person unclean. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a person unclean. But eating with unwashed hands does not make him unclean.”

Jesus says that it is what comes out of a person that makes that person unclean. In other words, he says that people themselves are the source of the very things that make them unclean – things such as evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false testimony, and slander. These things come from the human heart.

Now, if evil is something that happens to a person, rather than something that comes from a person, what should we have expected Jesus to say? Maybe something like:

Sin in the Sermon on the Mount

So today we begin a series of posts looking at what Jesus believed and taught about sin.

In what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapters 5 to 7, Jesus sets out some of the basics of his message and his mission. So let’s ask the question: What does Jesus say about sin here in this portion of scripture?

In Matthew 5:29–30, Jesus says:

If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

So here, in the very first chapter of the very first body of Jesus’ teaching that we encounter in the New Testament, he begins to deal with sin. Here he specifically deals with the seriousness of sin and its potential consequences. He teaches that the consequence of sin is so serious that, if it were possible, one ought to choose to lose a body part rather than to suffer the consequence of sin. And what is that consequence? Jesus calls it ‘hell’. What does he mean by that? I plan to deal with the question of Jesus’ view of hell more fully in the future. For now, suffice it to say that when Jesus said ‘hell’, he meant hell.

What else does Jesus say about sin here in this section of Matthew?