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Let us first read a verse. This verse is the word of Jesus Christ Himself. "Wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter through it" (Matt. 7:13). Here, this seems to show us a place called "destruction." There is a wide gate to enter this place. Beyond the gate, there is a broad way. On the way, countless people are running toward that place. They behave as though they are on an express train. Since the way is broad, it is easy to walk on it. Since the gate is wide, everything can be brought through it. But this way and gate lead to the place of destruction!
The meaning of destruction is perdition. The place of destruction is the place of perdition. The place of perdition is hell. The Lord Jesus states that the gate of hell is wide and the way to hell is broad, and many are those who go down to hell. It is possible that you are one of them! Listen! Do not think that hell has no gate. There is a gate to hell. Do not think that there is no way to hell. The way to hell is broader than any highway or street in the world. There are many ways to hell; there is not just one way. If a man wants to go to hell, there are many ways that he can take. Although there are many ways, there is only one destination. Although the starting point may be different, the destination of each way is the same. Although the ways may come from different directions, they all merge in one direction. Although the people taking a way may be different, their end, hell, is the same. Although the way you take may be different from that of another, the place you and the others are going to is the same! No matter which way you take, it is dangerous if the way leads toward hell.
Today there are at least a thousand people sitting here. [Editor's note: This message was a sermon given at a gospel meeting.] I do not know what you are thinking about. I could never guess the thoughts in your minds. But in observing your daily walk and your attitude towards the Lord Jesus Christ, I reckon that all of you want to go to hell, want to perish, and want to go into perdition. You want to go into eternal pain and darkness, with the gnashing of teeth and with Satan in the lake of fire. If this were not true, your conduct would not be so unseemly, and you would not be so cold toward the Lord Jesus and toward His grace. This is why I believe you want to go to hell! Perhaps you have already made up your mind to go to hell! Do you realize that the Bible mentions quite a number of ways to go to hell? Today I will tell you about five ways to go to hell. Those who want to go to hell can practice accordingly. I can guarantee them that they will surely end up in hell! This will serve to tell those who do not want to go to hell about the way to escape. Oh, how I wish that you would not have to go to hell. But if you really do want to go to hell, who can change you?
Suicide is a quick way to hell. There is no way to hell faster than suicide. Let us read a verse: "Judas turned aside to go to his own place" (Acts 1:25). Judas never believed in Jesus Christ. Although he pretended to be the Lord's disciple outwardly, he was in fact a son of perdition; he had never received salvation. When he died, he went to his own place. What is his own place? It is the place of perdition and destruction, hell. When Judas died, he went to hell. In what way did he go to hell? He committed suicide. He hung himself.
If you want to go to hell, suicide is a convenient way. A razor blade, a rope, or a glass of poison can send your soul to the place of eternal suffering quickly! Hell should be far away from you. You may have to spend a few years or decades before you can go to hell. Yet if you commit suicide, you will shorten your life on earth and hasten your approach to the place of eternal perdition. Once an unbelieving master asked a believing chauffeur what was the fastest way to go to hell. At that time the car was cruising along the highway. The chauffeur opened the door of the car and told his master, "If you jump out now, you will be there right away." If you have not believed in the Lord, your fall and death will bring you right to hell! Indeed, the easiest way for a man to go to hell is to kill himself. If you want to go to hell in a few hours, just buy a big dose of opium and swallow it, and you will surely arrive at your destination. If you want to go to hell in a few minutes, just take a dose of arsenic, and you will arrive at your destination also. If you think that this is too slow, and you want to go to hell in one minute, you can take a pistol and shoot yourself in the head. You will surely go to hell this way. There are other ways. You can starve yourself to death. You can jump into the ocean. You can lie on the railroad tracks and let a train cut you in half. Those who commit suicide will go to hell. Therefore, those who want to go to hell can commit suicide.
Suicide terminates any hope of salvation for a person. Consequently, such a person will surely go to hell. As long as this person is still alive on the earth, he may still be able to hear the gospel of the Lord Jesus' substitutional death; he may still believe and be saved. But if he kills himself, he will destroy, cut off, and annul all chances to hear the gospel and be saved. Listen, salvation and perdition are determined in this life. When it is time for you to die, if you do not believe in the Lord Jesus, you will not have another chance to hear the gospel and be saved. When one commits suicide, his life is terminated; when life is terminated, there is no other chance for him to be saved. Therefore, those who commit suicide will perish. The blood of the one who commits suicide is the seal on his entrance ticket to hell!
Once I was conducting a meeting in Changchow. I was speaking on the same subject as I am today. That evening there were over fourteen hundred people, including quite a number of male and female high school students. When I came to this point, I thought, "It is useless for me to say this word to them, because I am afraid that none of them have ever had the thought of committing suicide." But the Spirit of the Lord was working in me, and I could not help but speak. I told them very frankly, "If you want to go to hell, you should kill yourselves, and if you kill yourselves, you will surely go to hell." After I finished my speaking that night, a teacher came to me. He had graduated from a university and was an intelligent, educated man. He told me that he thought man's life was very meaningless and that man's living was monotonous. Many times he had thought of killing himself. He was afraid to do so only because of the darkness before him! He said that he now knew that if he killed himself, he would lose all hope of being saved. So he would not dare to do it anymore. After a few days, another high school student came to see me. He told me about his pessimism toward human life. Many times he thought about killing himself but he did not have an opportunity to do so. After he heard the message that day, he dared not harbor that thought any longer.
Another time while I was conducting a meeting in Amoy, I spoke on the same subject. I said again that if a man commits suicide, he will go to hell. Later on, a woman doctor told me that she had a nurse who was always trying to kill herself. The doctor tried every time to stop her. That evening, after hearing my message, the nurse dared not to have such a thought anymore. Now these people have all believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. They have received Christ; they are saved; Christ has comforted their hearts and changed their lives, so that now they not only dare not, but need not commit suicide. I do not know how many sitting here today have this kind of motive. Christ will also satisfy your heart. Why try to kill yourself? Why perish and go to hell?
Once I was working for a few days at a certain college in Nanking. On the last evening during the after-meeting counseling, a college student who was from my native town came and talked with me. He had no difficulty with his tuition. He came from a good family. In class he was in no danger of receiving poor grades on his examinations. But he was very pessimistic toward the human life. Where did man come from? Where was man going? From the time he was in high school, he had lost interest in human life and was very disenchanted. He felt that there was nothing in the world that could satisfy his heart. He felt that there was a need, a craving, and a lack in his heart that nothing in the world could satisfy or console. He was very negative. He was negative toward everything. Life to him was a heavy burden, and it was absolutely meaningless to live on earth. The more he lived, the more he suffered. There was no other attraction to human life except monotony and pain. He was always lonely, self-contemplative, and melancholy. The more he contemplated, the more he became confused and disillusioned. While he was groping in darkness, he could not see any ray of light. To him, it was better to terminate his burdensome life as soon as possible! He did not want to bear the vexation anymore. He planned to throw his body into the ocean when he returned home to Ninpo by boat during winter vacation. In this way he would part with the world forever and free himself of this troubled life. But after hearing the gospel for a few days, he learned that Jesus Christ has died for all and is living to be our Friend. There was no need for him to die. While we were talking, he received the Lord Jesus as his Savior. After he had made up his mind to receive the Lord, I invited him to tell all these things to God. I then prayed with him. After prayer, he asked me what was the first thing he should do in the morning. I told him that he should find a chance to read the Bible by meditation and prayer, and nourish his spiritual life. I then left him. After a few days, I asked his friend how he was doing. The friend told me that he was different, that he was now a happy person. After another few days, I met his friend again, and I asked about him again. I received the same answer. This man had received the Lord Jesus. He did not want to commit suicide anymore.
Friends, why do you seek death? I know that you are not satisfied with human life. I know that you are always lonely and bored. I know that your life is monotonous. I know that you sigh all the time. You feel that human life is painful, and tears always fill your eyes. Although you may possess many things of the world, none of them can satisfy your heart. You feel that there is a need and craving in the deepest part of your heart; you want to grasp hold of something that you do not even know to fill up your lack. Indeed, our life is filled with sorrow and pain. There is no taste to anything. This is why many want to kill themselves. But is suicide necessary? Jesus Christ came to save those who are in sorrow. He has comforted the hearts of many people. He has satisfied the cravings of many. He has changed the lives of many people and has wiped away the tears of many. He will help you in the same way, changing your life of sorrow to a life of joy. He is the sun amidst our dark days. He is the song in the midst of the dark night. With Him, your heart can be comforted and cheered. Why should you die? Why do you have to commit suicide and go to hell? O sorrowful and suffering ones, hear the gospel today: the Lord Jesus can and will save you. Receive Him as your Savior and Lord, and all the problems of your human life will be solved.
Now let us read a few verses. "And if your hand stumbles you, cut it off; it is better for you to enter into life maimed than to have two hands and go away into Gehenna, into unquenchable fire. And if your foot stumbles you, cut it off; it is better for you to enter into life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye stumbles you, cast it out; it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched" (Mark 9:43-48).
The Lord Jesus clearly tells us another way for us to go to hell. For the hand to stumble us means for the hand to sin. Cutting off the hand does not mean that we physically cut off the hand, it means to remove the sins and lusts of our hand which is in a way like removing our hands. It is painful to cut off one's hand; it is surely something that we do not want to do and are unwilling to do. In the same way, it is also very painful to remove the lusts and sins of the hands; to do so requires us to act contrary to our natural inclination. In spite of this, we will face great woes if we have pity on our hand, that is, pity on the lusts and the sins represented by our hand. Not only do our hands sin, but our feet also sin. Even our eyes and our whole body sin. The hands, the feet, and the eyes are but a few parts representing our whole body.
How often our hands sin! We have done many things that we ought not to have done. We have neglected many things that we ought to have done. Everyone please raise up your right hand now. Now put your right hand before you. Look at your hand! Please look! Fix your eyes upon it! While you are looking at your hand, ask yourself and consider quietly what your hand has done. How many sins has this hand of yours committed? How many things has it done that were contrary to God? How many damaging things has your hand done to others? How many things has it done to offend yourself? Please look at your hand! Please consider all the things that your hand has done. At this time I hope you will lament and weep for your own sins. You should not be jubilant or careless. You should lament and weep for all the sins that your hand has committed, so that you will be willing to remove them and be saved by believing in the Lord Jesus.
At this time please also consider the way that your feet have walked! How many times have your feet led you to places that you should not have gone? How many sins have your feet committed? Are your feet standing on the way to destruction and toward the gate of destruction? Are you going downhill all the time? Are you going to wait until there is no more hope for you to turn back? Sinners, turn back! Why perish? Why take the way of sin? This is not the way of peace. It is very painful for you to walk on this way. Why not remove your sins today and come to Jesus? I implore you to turn back and to take the other way, the way of life.
What about our eyes? The eyes are our inner world. They are the most important organ in contacting the outside world. Through the eyes we transmit everything that is outside into our heart. What things are our eyes sending into us? Our eyes have sinned. Our eyes cause us to sin. With the eyes we have seen many magazines and pictures that we should not have seen. What we call a love for literature is in fact a craving for novels. What we call an appreciation of art is in fact a love for obscene drawings. How our eyes love to see many lust-arousing scenes! Alas, the sins of the eyes are beyond our imagination! Eve saw the loveliness of the forbidden fruit and committed the sin of disobedience. David saw Bathsheba bathing and committed the sin of adultery. Have your eyes sinned? You know and God knows!
It is a difficult thing to remove the sins of the hand. But the difficulty does not lie in our inability to remove them, because the Lord Jesus has prepared a salvation. The difficulty lies in our unwillingness to remove them. It hurts our heart to have them removed. How we love our feet of sin! How natural it is for our feet to walk on the way of sin! How comfortable it is! How depressing it would be if we were not able to walk according to the old way! There would be nothing to entertain us anymore! The heart is unwilling to turn its eyes from filthy things! One look or one glance satisfies the lust and makes the heart feel good! You say that it is hard to remove the sins of the hands, the feet, and the eyes. Actually, you are unwilling to do it. All right, no one will force you and no one can coerce you to remove your sins. But God's verdict is set. He says that those who are not born again cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Those who are not regenerated cannot enter into God's kingdom. You can treasure the sins of your hands, your feet, and your eyes; you can treasure all your sins. You can choose not to remove them. You can embrace your sins in your bosom. But one thing is certain: a sinner cannot enter the kingdom of God! A sinner cannot inherit eternal life!
Either you suffer the temporary pain of cutting off your sins to receive eternal life and enter God's kingdom, or you will keep your sins, being at ease and happy in this world, but headed toward hell to be eaten by the worms and burned by the fire in the future. Either remove your sins and be saved or go to perdition with your sins. You have to remove your sins to go on in the way of life. You do not have to plan to go to hell. You can continue to sin, enjoying the pleasure of sins and continuing in the comfort of sins. There is no sin in heaven. Those who want to go in cannot bring sin along with them. Sins are either left on the mount of Golgotha, or taken to hell. Heaven only allows saved sinners to enter in. Sinners, never think that you can go in and bring your sins along as well. Either you leave the sins outside and go in by yourself, or both you and your sins will be barred from entering in! The gate of hell is wide, and its security is loose. If you want to go to hell, you can bring any kind of sins along! Pride, jealousy, rivalry, adultery, filth, and thousands of untold sins can easily go in with you. Hell is not afraid of having too many sins; it only complains about not having enough sins! If you want to go to hell, you can sin. Hell will not drive you away because you have sinned too much. Hell is specialized in receiving great and evil sinners. It has never closed its gate to those who want to go in! It welcomes anyone who wants to go in. If you want to go there to suffer an eternal suffering and receive the punishment of God's wrath, I can tell you that you can sin at will; you can do whatever pleases your heart. Otherwise, you must remove your sins and trust in the Lord Jesus. You should remove the sins of your hands, the sins of your feet, and the sins of your eyes. O evil ones, are you willing to stop your sin today? Perhaps some of you who are sitting here this hour are preparing yourselves for the sin you plan to commit when you leave the meeting hall in the next hour. Let me warn you. Be careful! Be careful! If you are not careful, you will go to hell! If a sinner departs from the way of sins to return to Jehovah, Jehovah will receive him.
Once a house was on fire. The house was well-built, and the columns were made from long, large pieces of stone. When the house caught on fire, one person inside found out too late. He did not try to run downstairs to escape until after the fire had become very large. Then he ran downstairs. While he was running across the hall, a stone column fell as a result of the fire. The stone column knocked the man to the floor and trapped one of his hands. The man tried to get up, but the stone was too heavy. One of his hands was trapped beneath; he could not turn and could not pull himself out! He tried to call for help, but no one came to help him. Eventually the fire came! What should he do? If he did not escape, he would be burned to death, and there would never be another chance to escape. He tried very hard to remove the stone, but the weighty stone was too heavy for him to move. He tried to pull his hand out by force, but the heavy stone made it impossible for him to do this. Then the fire came! If he did not run, there would be no chance! What should he do? He saw some scattered splinters of rock that had fallen off from the column next to him. With his free hand he picked out a particularly sharp piece of rock and first cut off the sleeve around the hand that was trapped. Then he began to cut his flesh. He was bleeding, and he felt much pain! But he had to save his life. He had to do this! Life was more important. What is a hand compared with life? If he did not suffer pain for a moment, he would lose the whole body because of one limb. In the end he even cut the bone of his hand with the stone. With his unhurt hand, he embraced the cut limb and ran out. Once he was outside, he fainted and fell on the ground. Then others sent him to the hospital. After a few months, his limb healed. One trapped hand took away his freedom. When he cut off the trapped hand, he was able to run for his life. He lost one hand, but he saved his life.
The fire of hell is approaching! You are now in a desperate situation. Your hands are trapped by sins. Even though only one member has sinned and your whole body has not sinned, the sins that this member committed are enough to take away the freedom of your whole body; it is enough to take away your whole life and burn you to death in the fire. The fire of hell is approaching! We are at the last five minutes. This is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity. In the blink of an eye, the opportunity will be gone. You should immediately run for life. Otherwise, you will perish. Why do you let your whole body go to hell just because of your sins, the sins of one member? For the sake of your whole body, you should suffer a temporary pain to remove your sins and trust in the Lord Jesus. You will then enter into life. Otherwise, I will have to speak an honest word to you: you can keep your two hands, but your whole body will be burned to death. O men destined for hell, you can spare yourselves the pain of cutting your hand. But your whole body will have to enter into hell!
Let us now read a few verses of the Scripture. In Luke 18:14, the Lord Jesus tells us about the end of a Pharisee and a tax collector. The Pharisee was a very moral man; he was very zealous for religion. The tax collector was a very immoral person and had no desire for the things of God. In this chapter of the Scripture, the Lord Jesus says that both went up to the temple to pray. The good Pharisee was not willing to humble himself and confess that he was a sinner; he was not willing to ask for God's grace. The evil tax collector knew that he had no righteousness to merit God's favor. He, therefore, confessed his sins, humbled himself before God, and prayed for God to propitiate his sins. In this verse the Lord Jesus tells us the different endings of the two men. "I tell you, This man [the tax collector] went down to his house justified rather than that one [the Pharisee]; for everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, but he who humbles himself shall be exalted." The Lord Jesus tells us that the very moral Pharisee was not justified, while the very unlawful tax collector was justified. The meaning of justification is not only forgiveness. Forgiveness implies having sins but that such sins are forgiven. Justification, however, means that one is declared sinless. Therefore, we see a man who thought that he had no sins but who was, nevertheless, condemned by God; and we also see a man who thought that he did have sins who was declared sinless by God. Why was such a moral Pharisee condemned? And why was such an immoral tax collector justified? There is no other reason than that "everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, but he who humbles himself shall be exalted." If we make it more plain, the meaning of justification is to go to heaven and the meaning of not being justified is to go to hell. Therefore, we see a proud person going to hell. Those who are proud will go to hell! They will certainly go to hell! Therefore, O proud ones, be careful. We have three more verses that we have to read. "The Lord will destroy the house of the proud" (Prov. 15:25). "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord /...he shall not be unpunished" (Prov. 16:5). "Jehovah of hosts will have a day / Over everything proud and lofty, / And over everything lifted up that it may be abased" (Isa. 2:12). These few verses tell us clearly that the proud will be judged; they will be judged on the day God judges men, and they will go to hell and suffer an eternal suffering. The Bible mentions repeatedly that the proud will go to hell. Therefore, if you want to go to hell, please be proud. By being proud, you will have a way to reach your desired destination: hell!
What is pride? The meaning of pride is to uplift yourself and put yourself in a position that you have not attained. Pride is to claim that you are more than you really are. The Lord Jesus pointed this out clearly in Luke 18. The Lord Jesus said that the Pharisee was self-exalting and proud. How was he self-exalting and proud? His morals were indeed exemplary. But he would not admit that he was a sinner before God and in His light. He was reporting his merits to God. He did not mention his weaknesses, failures, falls, and sins. He would not admit that he was a sinner. He tried to vindicate his righteousness before God. This then was his pride. He was proud because he was not willing to confess that he was a sinner, even though before God he was a sinner and not righteous. On the contrary, he hastily claimed that he was a righteous man before God. God did not interfere with his pride! He allowed the Pharisee to justify himself! God allowed him to become satisfied with himself; He did not argue with him! But God did not justify him. Rather, He let him perish and suffer in hell!
Therefore, the real meaning of pride is to be unwilling to humble yourself before God, to confess that you are a sinner, and to receive the merit of the substitutional death and the shedding of the blood of the Lord Jesus for salvation. Proud people perish, not because they are proud, but because their pride hinders them from being saved. Pride is but one sin. The Lord Jesus has died for all the sins of men. He has borne all the punishment for our sins. Pride is but one of our sins. This sin has been judged on the cross. However, if we do not remove pride, we will not believe in the Lord Jesus' death for us, and we will not receive eternal life. Proud people perish because their pride hinders them from being saved.
Unless a man confesses that he has sinned and stands on the position of a sinner, he will not receive the Lord Jesus as his Savior. I am a preacher of the gospel. Until today, I have not seen a man who will not confess his own sins but who will believe in the substitutional death of the Lord, and who is saved. In order to be saved, one has to be humble and confess that he is a sinner. I remember one time I was preaching at a place. I was preaching privately to a high school teacher one night. He asked me many questions concerning Christianity and other religions. We had a discussion for a long time. But his questions kept coming. I then told him that none of his questions were the basic question. It is not necessary to solve many problems before a man can believe in the Lord Jesus as his Savior. I told him that one thing is the most crucial of all. It is the first qualification for believing in Christ. It is confessing that one is a sinner. If you do not confess that you are a sinner, no matter how many answers you have received to difficult questions, you will not be helped to believe in Christ. If you confess that you are a sinner and feel that you are in sin, bound by sin, and fear the punishment of sin, you will surely seek a Savior. But this man was very unclear about sin; sometimes he confessed that he had sinned, and sometimes he did not feel that he had sinned. Later I told him, "If you do not know for sure that you are a sinner, you will not be able to understand the crucial doctrine of redemption in the Bible." We talked until almost midnight and there was still no result. In the end I told him one word, "Please consider your own sins some more! If you do, many of your questions will be answered." After a few days, the man indeed realized his sins and believed in the unique sin-substituting Savior, Jesus Christ. Please think more about your own sins now! If you will humble yourself to confess that you are a sinner, you will be saved. If you remain proud and do not confess, your pride will send you to hell. Therefore, if you want to go to hell, you should willfully deceive yourselves; you can be willfully proud and can willfully refuse to admit that you are sinners. You will go down to hell. In hell there is no need of humility!
Let us first read a verse: "How Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, who in like manner with these gave themselves over to fornication and went after different flesh, are set forth as an example, undergoing the penalty of eternal fire" (Jude 7). Here we see a group of people suffering the penalty of eternal fire. They suffered this penalty because of fornication. Those who fornicate will go to hell. This means that the penalty of eternal fire is the penalty of hell because the fire in hell burns eternally. If a man wants to go to hell, he can commit adultery. Hell does not reject adulterers for being too lewd and shameful. Hell welcomes adulterers. If you do not want to go to hell, you have to remove adultery.
How common is the sin of adultery? Today the worldly trend slides ever downward. "Moral obligations," values of honor and shame, and chastity found in bygone moral standards have gradually been broken down. One can turn to the newspaper and write down with a pen the incidents of adultery that occur within a day. Look at the public notice board in the courthouse and count how many cases of adultery there are in a month. Pornographic pictures and magazines, once banished and publicly forbidden, are now published and sold in broad daylight without interference. I do not know how many here have committed adultery. I do not know how many unmarried men and women here are still virgins. You can answer this yourselves. You know the sins that you have committed. God knows them also! Do not think that adultery is a pleasant thing. There is only one end for adulterers: hell. Do not think that this is an inconsequential thing. Let me tell you, adulterers will go to hell. Let me repeat, those who commit adultery will surely go down to hell.
The men and women who stand in the way between husbands and wives are the most detestable people on earth! Why do you have to rob another's husband and make the wife weep, mourn, and go without comfort at home? Why do you have to rob another's wife and cause her to have a different heart and be unfaithful to her own husband? Adultery has destroyed the peace in too many homes. Too many mothers, husbands, wives, and children have separated, being left with no comfort and with their hearts broken because of adultery! You who are sitting here, have you done any such thing? You should turn back today. If not, you will go to hell.
If we go on further and judge according to the Lord Jesus' definition of adultery, I am afraid that there will be few in the world who have not committed this sin. "But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman in order to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matt. 5:28). Numerous people have committed adultery in their mind! Numerous people have committed adultery in their imagination and pictures in their mind! Why do you harbor a thought to sin against a chaste woman? She has nothing to do with you, so why do you have to have such filthy thoughts concerning her? You have indeed sinned against her. If she consents to your sin, nothing can be said. But if she is not an accomplice to your sin, why do you impose such filth on her? Women should not think that only men commit this sin. Why would men have adulterous thoughts when they see you? If they are punished because they have adulterous thoughts when they see you, should you not be punished for giving rise to their adulterous thoughts? If your dress, attire, attitude, and smile stir men up to have adulterous thoughts, and they are punished for their adulterous thoughts, will you, who have initiated their adulterous thoughts, be exempt from punishment?
The world is full of adultery! But do not think that this place is worse than others. No place on earth can match hell in the number of adulterous men and women! If you go to hell, you will find it full of adulterous men and women. Hell is the collective detention center for all adulterers throughout the centuries! I am a preacher, and I am not afraid of criticism. Let me speak an honest word to you. If you are an adulterous person, your end is hell. But the Lord Jesus has prepared a salvation! He has died for all our sins. All those who are willing to receive Him as the Savior will not perish, but will have eternal life. Adultery will bring you to hell. But you do not go to hell because of adultery itself. Many adulterers are saved and cannot go to hell anymore. Adultery can send you to hell, but you do not go to hell because of adultery itself. What does this mean? The Lord Jesus' death was for sins. He died for all sins, including the sin of adultery. The punishment for adultery has been borne by Him. For this reason, we cannot go to hell for the sin of adultery. In order to be saved, one has to believe in the Lord Jesus. Although He died for us, we will still perish unless we receive Him as our Savior. Although we cannot go to hell for adultery, adultery has the power to stop us from receiving the Lord Jesus as our Savior. Many people are perishing today because their love for sin and their own soul is stronger than their love for heaven, not because of the severity of their sins or the inability of the Lord to save them! They are hindered from coming to the Lord for life. Many women and men love their adulterous lovers. They are not willing to part from each other and are not willing to cut off their lewd passions. As a result they are unwilling to believe in the Lord Jesus and are bound for perdition. Let me speak an honest word. Either you declare a break with your adulterous lover to believe in the Lord and be saved, or you will go down with him or her to hell and live affectionately in hell eternally! Today two things are presented before you to choose: God's salvation or adulterous men and women. Will you choose heaven or will you choose those with whom you commit adultery? Either you cut off your lover or you will be barred from heaven. Those who want heaven must forsake their sin of adultery today. Otherwise, your sin of adultery will stop you from gaining heaven.
Once I met a very rich man. He was a renowned person in his own place and was very powerful. He was good in many things, but he was a very adulterous person. He had corrupted the chastity of at least a few dozen upper-class women. He was even a deacon in a church! After he heard the gospel and realized the reality of the coming age, he had to make a choice between eternal life and the many adulterous women. Thank God that he made the right choice that day. He cut off all ties with the adulterous women and received eternal life and the eternal blessing of heaven. My friends, I do not know your past history. I do not know what you have done privately in the past or what kind of sins you have committed. But I believe that inevitably some who have committed adultery are here. I would like you to make a choice now: is eternal life better or is adultery better? I beg you not to commit this sin anymore.
The Bible also tells us of another way to hell. This way to hell is very clean; it is not as filthy as the previous ways. This way is to refuse the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Let us read two verses. "Rendering vengeance to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His strength" (2 Thes. 1:8-9). "Eternal destruction" means the suffering of being eternally in hell. This verse tells us the reason that some go to hell. Those who do not obey the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will go to hell!
What is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ? The Bible is very explicit about this. It is not the Lord Jesus coming to serve humanity. It is not His coming to teach or preach lofty ideas such as freedom, equality, and love. Neither is it His coming to be a good pattern and a great example. God tells us through the apostle that "the gospel...I delivered to you, first of all, that which also I received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He has been raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:3-4). From this we see that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is His death and resurrection. Why did He die? It was not to serve as an example. Nor was it a martyr's act or a sacrifice for His service. Rather, it was "for our sins." This is substitution. This means that even though Christ was without sin, the sinless One became sin on our behalf and stood in the place of the sinner, suffering the punishment of the sinner. All sins are committed by us; Christ has committed no sin. We are the sinners; He is not a sinner. But He, not we, suffered the punishment of the sinner and bore the sins. What is this? This is substitution. The sinless Christ died for the sinful sinner. This is substitution. This is the gospel. The gospel says that a Savior came to save sinners and suffered all the punishment for sinners; therefore, sinners do not have to suffer punishment anymore. The gospel does not exhort men to improve, reform, repent, or change for the better before they can be saved. The gospel tells men that Jesus Christ has accomplished salvation, and that sinners do not have to do anything anymore. There is no need to add any work to His perfect salvation. All that a sinner has to do is to accept the salvation God has prepared. This is all that is needed.
Jesus Christ did not just die for sinners to forgive man's sins. He also resurrected for sinners to justify sinners. This is why Romans 4:25 says, "Who was delivered for our offenses and was raised for our justification." His death is a negative work, removing the punishment for our sins so that we would no longer be condemned. His resurrection is a positive work, giving us a new position before God, justifying us, and causing God to acknowledge us as a just person. Forgiveness means that sin, although present, is forgiven. Justification means that there is no more sin. This is not just forgiveness; this is to stand on the ground where there is no need for forgiveness. We are completely justified; there is no more sin. This is what Jesus' resurrection has accomplished for us. Everyone in the world is dead; no one is resurrected, for the wages of sin is death. The Lord Jesus has also died, but He has resurrected. This shows that God has accepted His death for us and has acknowledged that He is sinless. Hence, on the one hand, we are forgiven through the death of the Lord Jesus. On the other hand, we are proven to be justified through His resurrection. Justification is based on forgiveness. First there is forgiveness, then justification. Through the death of the Lord Jesus, we are forgiven. Through the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, we receive the proof of our justification. Now everything is accomplished. Every sinner can be immediately forgiven and justified in a second by believing in the Lord Jesus as his Savior.
This is the gospel. Have you heard this? Jesus Christ has died for your sins and resurrected for you to be the surety of your justification. Have you heard this? God has now charged the whole world to obey His gospel, the gospel of grace, so that every sinner can have the opportunity to be saved. Are you willing to obey this gospel? If you want to go to hell, it is very easy! You do not have to sin, commit adultery, or be proud anymore. I can tell you that you do not have to sin anymore. While you are sitting and listening to my preaching, there is a way for you to go to hell! As long as you do not obey the gospel, you are going to hell already! Why sin anymore? It is enough, fully enough, for you to go to hell if you reject the Lord Jesus' death for you and refuse to accept Him as your Savior. Do not think that you have to commit any more sin before you are qualified to go to hell. You are qualified enough! You need do nothing more. It is enough as long as you do not listen to the gospel.
Do not think that everyone who goes to hell is laden with sins. Actually there are many religionists, moralists, philanthropists, and social reformers in hell! A man can be very moral, good, kind, and upright and still be in hell. What awaits him is death and judgment. He is there for one reason alone; he has not obeyed the gospel. No morality or religion in this world can save men. Only God's gospel of grace can save men. Rejecting this gospel is rejecting the unique way to salvation. Those who do this will surely go to hell. A man may be good, but he cannot be perfect. It is impossible for him to be without sin for a second in his lifetime. If he has sinned once, or for one second, he has to have a Savior because he will be punished for his sin. If he rejects the Savior preached to him through the gospel, he causes himself to deserve to be judged and go to hell. Do not think that you can escape hell by doing good. The only way would be for you to never sin in acts, words, and thoughts even for a second from the time you were born until you die. No matter how well you do, as long as you sin for just a second and do not obey the gospel, that very fact will qualify you for hell. Even if you have never heard the gospel before, you have at least heard it today. I advise you to accept the Lord Jesus as your Savior this very moment!
The Lord Jesus' death and resurrection has accomplished salvation. What we are preaching now is this gospel. Why is it the gospel? It is the gospel because it is possible for every sinner in the world to be saved. The Lord Jesus has died for all sinners and all the sins of the sinners have been crucified in Him. Everyone who is willing to accept Him as Savior will be spared the punishment and oppression of sin. Man's way is to work things out gradually, to do the best to improve himself, and to accumulate merit, hoping that he will be saved in the future. But this is not the glad tidings. This is actually a tiding of woe. How many people in the world can improve themselves and save merits for the future? If we are saved through our own good works, our goodness must be perfect, flawless, and spotless before we can be saved. Otherwise, our goodness becomes a sin in itself. Furthermore, if we want to be saved through our own righteousness, our righteousness must be so high that it reaches heaven before God will be satisfied. Even our own conscience would condemn us at night in a self-examination, for it would reveal that the good works were done for the self, our name, and many other improper motives within. Will not God be more displeased with them? If this is the case, how many can be saved by their own righteousness? I am afraid not even one! Can you be so righteous that God will be satisfied, not just yourself or your neighbor? If you cannot do this, it would be a tiding of woe if you are told to be saved through works of righteousness. Thank and praise God. He never asks us to do what is difficult (actually impossible). He knows us. This is why He caused His Son to die for us and to bear the punishment of all our sins. We do not have to try to be good gradually, hoping to be saved. Once we believe in Him and accept Him as our personal Savior, we receive eternal life right away. This does not mean that a person who has believed in the Lord Jesus does not need to do good. It means that we cannot be saved through doing good. Salvation is fully by God's grace (Eph. 2:8). However, after we are saved, the Lord will give us a new life, which will spontaneously do good. First we are saved and then we do good, rather than first doing good and then being saved.
Is there anyone who is oppressed by sin here? Is there anyone who trembles and fears when he considers his state after death? Does your conscience tell you that you are a sinner? Are you afraid of death and judgment? Heartbroken sinners, salvation is here today! The Lord Jesus is here to save sinners. Come to Him just as you are. He will save you. He said He would not reject any who come to Him. I only fear that you will not come. Do not fear that He will not receive you.
Now you no longer have the excuse that you have not heard the gospel. You have heard it. The only question is, will you obey it now? The gospel has presented the Savior to you and has told you the way to salvation. All you have to do is receive Him. The question now is whether or not you will. If you perish, it will not be due to the many sins you have committed. Rather, it will be due to your disobedience to the gospel. You are sick and dying. Someone has given you a bottle of medicine. The medicine will guarantee your healing. But you will not take the medicine. If you die, it will not be due to your sickness. It will be due to your refusal to take the healing medicine. It is true that you have sinned. But here is a Savior who specializes in saving sinners. If you perish now, it will be due to your refusal to accept the Savior of sinners. It will not be due to your sins! Today many are perishing and going to hell, not because they sin, but because they reject the Savior of the sinners. Therefore, do not let the Savior say to you, "You are not willing to come to Me that you may have life" (John 5:40).
