Why Go to Hell

Many scientists and researchers have argued against and dismissed the existence of hell. But some of them have had to reconsider their stance after the famous “Well to Hell” story of the early 1990’s. According to the story which some call a hoax, myth or legend, a group of Russian geologists, in an unnamed place in Siberia, drilled a hold that was 9 miles (14.4km) deep before breaking through to a cavity. Intrigued by this unexpected discovery, they lowered an extremely heat tolerant microphone, along with other sensory equipment, into the well. The temperature deep within was 2,000 ^oF (1,090 ^oC)-heat from a chamber of fire from which the tormented screams of the damned could be heard. The story said a certain Dr. Azzacov, who was the project manager, gave this account: “As a communist I don’t believe in heaven or the bible, but as a scientist I now believe in hell. Needless to say we were shocked to make such a discovery. But we know what we saw and we know what we heard. And we were absolutely convinced that we drilled through the gates of hell!...

Whether the “Well to Hell” story is true or fictious, hell is not a myth; it is real. The Bible offers us a glimpse of it. It is a place of everlasting suffering and destruction, a place where undying worms feed on the inhabitants – unrepentant sinners and backsliders – and everlasting fire burns them and they feel the pain consciously, though they’re not burn into ashes (Mark 9:46).

The horror, torment, and suffering in hell is beyond human description and imagination. Hell was prepared originally for the devil and his fallen angels (Matthew 25:41), but God has decreed that those who forget Him and reject Christ will also be cast there because of their sins and neglect of His salvation (Psalm 9:17; Revelation 20:10).

God’s love for humanity is incomparable. He doesn’t want anyone to end up in hell (2 Peter 3:9), but there must be a punishments or judgment for sin and disobedience. 

So friend, why will you suffer for all eternity because of a moment of sinful pleasure? Why will you spend zillion of years in hellfire because of a lie you told for just two seconds? Why end up in hell when Jesus Christ has paid the price for your redemption? Why go to hell when you can have an excellent home in heaven with Him? Why, friend, why? Ponder on these soul-searching questions and surrender your life to Jesus, for what could you possibly lose if you give your life to Him? Is the life of sin really worth it? Jesus is the only way to eternal bliss in heaven. Why not follow Him and escape the danger ahead? Nothing, no matter the glamour and pleasure you get from it, it worth going to hell for, even if you get the whole world as a reward. Jesus says, “What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul” Mark 836).

Please, drop this stop the reading momentarily and kneel before the Lord in repentance. Confess all your sins to Him and plead for His forgiveness. Jesus Christ, the creator of heaven and earth (John 1:1-3), spoke so much about hell than any other person did in the Scriptures. Believe Him, and avoid everlasting torment in hell. God help you.

NO WORK, MORE WANTS

Work is a physical or mental effort or activity directed towards the production or accomplishment of something, and such effort or activity by which a person makes a living. It is also any meaningful and productive daily life activity – doing, making or performing something, serving someone, or providing something of worth to others – which is not an occupation or a paying job. As these definitions suggest, there are different kinds of work: physical or manual, mental or creative, occupational or organizational and chores. The opposite of work is idleness, or better put, indolence. This is an attribute that God detests. The Scriptures tell us in Genesis 2:15 that God created humans to work, “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” You’re made in God’s image and likeness, and God is a worker (Genesis 1:1-31). He is never and will never be idle; therefore, as a reflection of Him, you must work and not be idle. 

When you’re idle and don’t work, you defeat the purpose of your existence; that is, you’re not fulfilling your purpose of living. Not just that, you create room for Satan to manipulate and lure you into something evil, for an idle hand is the devil’s workshop, says an old cliché. Also, you impoverish yourself, for the Scriptures say, “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man” (Proverbs 24:30-34). If you’re a sluggard – a lazy person who avoids work or physical exertion – and you don’t have any gainful employment, you don’t give any humanitarian service or preach the Gospel, you will be physically and spiritually poor. 

Economists posit that human wants are insatiable, and they are right. We have catalogue of wants ranging from spiritual, financial, material to emotional, but God has provided one means of meeting our most pressing needs – work. As a man or woman, you cannot sit down idle without working. God wants you to work in order to support yourself and not to depend on others for sustenance. The Bible commands, “If any would not work, neither should he eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). This is a just maxim meaning you shouldn’t be supported by anyone or organization, be they close relations or the church, unless you’re willing to fend for yourself by working. Actually, the maxim, which is foundation on the words of the Lord in Genesis 3:19, was a proverb among the Jews that an able – bodied person who can work but would rather support himself by begging from door to door should not get one morsel of bread.

Idleness or laziness brings more wants. As a sluggard, you desire or crave to have but get nothing because you don’t work (Proverbs 13:4). Aside from more wants, idleness or laziness is a sin. The word of pronounces Christians who don’t work to fend for themselves and their families as backsliders, “If any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel” (1 Timothy 5:8). Now, what will you rather do: be idle and be in want or work and be satisfied? The choice is yours to make.   

Rest is Sweet after Toiling

In this world of hustling and busting, some people see rest as a waste of precious time. But God who created the human body knows what is best for it; hence, He commands everybody to rest after working: “Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings” (Leviticus 23:3). He wants you to cease from all forms of labour in order to get some rest and be refreshed bodily and spiritually. He instituted the Sabbath because rest is not only beneficial to the health and comforting to the body but also beneficial to the soul. God himself rested after the work of creation and made rest after toiling a perpetual obligation for all humans because it is good (Exodus 20:11;34:21).

Work and rest are like two sides of a coin. Resting is as important as working because it’s an integral part of the total process required to build strength, muscle, and endurance. You work before resting and rest after working you don’t need to overwork yourself to show that you’re working and at the same time, you can’t claim to be resting when you have not done any work. God frowns at laziness and idleness (Proverbs 18:9; Ezekiel 16:49) but cherishes the proper balance of work and rest, because it’s only when this is done that you can enjoy the fruit of your labour. It is vanity to work without resting (Ecclesiates 2:22-23).

Some people are workaholics. They literally work every day of the year without taking time to rest or go on vacation. They give an inordinate amount of time and energy to their career because they are obsessed with achieving a feat. They feel the urge of being busy all the time, to the point that they often perform tasks that are not required or necessary. As someone describes them, they are cursed with an unconquerable craving for work. Workaholic is a negative behavioral pattern that injures your health, social life and soul. Workaholics often suffer sleep deprivation, which results in impaired brain and cognitive function as well as other stress-related illnesses because of overworking themselves. They also neglect family, other social relations and their spiritual life due to spending an excessive amount of time in working.

As a Christian, God intends that you work very hard but not at the detriment

of your health or soul. He doesn’t want you to overwork you body or neglect your social and spiritual life; rather, He desires that you be in total health by resting properly. Rest helps your body to recover or heal faster from the damage caused by stress. It improves your relationship with others and puts you in a good frame of mind. It facilitates better and healthier eating habits; rejuvenates your body and mind; regulates your mood; helps you to enjoy life more; reduces the risk of you having heart and kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke; as well as makes you more effective and efficient at work, since your focus is on being productive and not on being busy. 

So make out time to rest because it is sweet and satisfying. But remember that rest can be sweet only after you have toiled, for there’s great gain in legitimate honest, and God-honoring industry (Ephesians 4:28). It’s a good remedy against poverty; it gives meaning and satisfaction to life, and it ultimately prepares you for eternal bliss. May your rest be sweet after toiling in Jesus’ Name.

HOW LONG WILT THOU SLEEP?

We all need sleep. This is one thing all human beings cannot do without. According to researchers from the United States’ National Institute of Health (NIH), Sleep enables the healing and repair of the heart and blood vessels. It helps the brain to function effectively, keeps the immune system in good condition and promotes growth and development in children. Lack of sleep brings with it a barrage of problems, ranging from chronic heart problems obesity (because you eat more and increase the glucose in your blood when you don’t sleep), less productivity, to difficulty in making decisions, controlling of emotions and getting a job done on time no doubt a good night sleep is very important for your physical and mental health. Even God “giveth his beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:2). So sleep is a good thing. But if you oversleep; that is, you're fond of sleeping longer than necessary, then there is a problem! And the way out of this is to either visit the doctor for a medical checkup or to consider taking a course from the ants (6:6-11).

Oversleeping could be a result of many factors. It could be a symptom of a medical condition like hypersomnia (a sleeping disorder that causes people to stop breathing momentarily during sleep, which increases the need for sleep), and several others. Also depression, tiredness and the consumption of some medications can be explanation for why some people oversleep. But not everyone that oversleeps is suffering from a sleeping disorder or affected by some medications. Some people just love to sleep. A television presenter once asked a young man what his hobbies were, and he comfortably name sleeping as a hobby. It is rather sad that a young man who should be up and about, striving to fulfill his potentials and to achieve the goals he has set for himself would indulge himself in too much sleeping. 

According to wikibrains.com, we spend 25 years of our lives sleeping. Constant oversleeping will definitely add a few more years to the figure. Now, add this to the number of years we spend on other frivolous activities. How much time do we have left to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives? How much time do we have to realize our God-given dreams? If sleeping is your hobby, then you’re wasting your life through oversleeping. Many things you could achieve will only remain in your daydreams; they will never become a reality. Aside from the forgoing oversleeping is a symptom of inactivity and laziness, and the imminent result of this kind of oversleeping according to the Holy Scriptures is poverty: “a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man” (Proverb 6:10-11). Quite a number of health risks, which include diabetes, stroke, heart problems, lower back pain and a host of others, are also associated with oversleeping as a “hobby” or as a result of indolence. 

Many Christian today oversleep because they are sluggards. Instead of working to fend for themselves, their families and others, they make the bed their workplace, while depending on family members, relatives and the church for support. Some don’t just sleep naturally, they also sleep spiritually. They struggle seriously with their prayer life, the study of the Bible and the work of God, and are oblivious of their backslid state. If you have fallen into deep spiritual slumber, the Lord’s warning to you is, “Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is” (Mark 13:33).

And if you’re oversleeping both naturally and spiritually due to laziness and your avoidance of work, the Lord is asking: “How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?” (Proverbs 6:10-11). When will you get out of bed, or you want to sleep away your life? Sooner or later, everyone, including those supporting you now, will desert you, and you will wallow in hunger, poverty and misery. Get off that bed right now as you’re reading this publication, and find something to do, because you must work with your hands this New Year and earn a living. God bless you as you obey His Word in Jesus’ name.