Washed and Set Free

July 28

“When it was full they drew to shore and they sat down and gathered the good fish into vessels but the bad fish, they threw away. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth and separate the wicked from among the just and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth,” Matthew 13:48-50.

“When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of his glory. And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, ‘Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, for I was an hungry, and you gave Me meat: I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink. I was a stranger, and you took Me in. I was naked, and you clothed Me. When I was sick, you visited Me. When I was in prison, you came to Me.’

“’Then shall the righteous answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You or thirsty, and gave You water to drink? When did we see you a stranger, and take You in? When did we see You naked, and clothed You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and came to You?’

”And the King shall answer and say to them, ‘Verily I say to you that inasmuch as you have done it to one of the least of these My brothers, you have done it to Me.’ Then shall He say also to them on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels,’” Matthew 25: 31-46.

A lot of people dispute the veracity of the doctrine of hell. The rationale to their thinking is that a loving God would not relegate anyone, no matter how bad he had been during his lifetime to such an abysmal and eternal punishment. But in the two passages quoted here, Jesus seems to believe otherwise.

Perhaps it is because they misunderstand the reason for eternal separation from God that those who deny the existence of hell assume the position that they do. The first thing we must understand is that hell was not designed for men but for Lucifer and his fallen angels.

It was instituted because they had engaged in open revolt against the Holy God they had known and served intimately. They had abode in Heaven and their insurrection separated them from the God against whom they had rebelled.

The second point we must make is that man is not relegated to hell because of crimes he’s committed or sins he’s indulged. He goes to hell for one reason only—he has rejected the salvation that Jesus provides that sets him free from the penalty of his sin.

The Word tells us, “The wage of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord,” Romans 6:23.

The one who rejects Jesus rejects eternal life…he relegates himself to eternal damnation! Because God has given every man a free will, each of us decides for himself whether he will accept Christ’s “unspeakable gift,” II Corinthians 9:15, or reject it.

The fact of the matter is that Jesus has paid a great price to give the gift of eternal life to man. It is God’s will that all men be saved (see I Timothy 2:4) that none be lost but all men come to a knowledge of the truth in Christ (see II Peter 3:9.)

May each of us do the one thing that assures our inclusion among those who inherit life eternal—may each of us receive the free gift of Jesus Christ’s propitiatory life, death and resurrection in our behalf. May we be washed in His shed blood and set free from sin so we may abide with Him forever.