Dear Family and Friends,

We spent an evening this week with our close friends at the Lauren Daigle concert. Everything was beyond awesome; the clear cool night sky, Lauren’s incredible voice and music, and hanging out with a couple who are more than friends. They are family.

As I soaked in the music of Lauren Daigle and Blessing Offor who opened the evening – I began to notice that both groups were sending a message through their songs.

They were not just performing, they were comforting us, giving us hope, and healing the damage done to our souls by the current state of our society.

It’s unfortunate that the only people who heard their ‘message’ were Christians.

Today, I want to spend our time on an act of kindness we can do for a friend, or a foe, who is not yet following Christ. It’s an act long forgotten.

But before we get to that act, let’s look at the few verses from Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus that give us a glimpse of life after death.

“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’” Luke 16:22-24 NIV

What can we learn about hell from this passage?

Hell is a place of eternal torment. It’s hot, and to make matters worse, there’s no hope of relief.

Hell is a lonely existence where one is separated from others. Imagine being isolated and alone – able to see others but not interact with them.

Jesus started His story describing the rich man as dressed in purple and fine linen and living in luxury every day (see verse 19).

But all that gave the rich man a sense of value in himself, was now gone. 

He was left as a nobody, with no one and no thing to turn to that would fill his need for an identity. A need we all have. 

And finally, the rich man had no name. Jesus did not know him. And the chasm the man had built between himself and God, was now real and uncrossable.

This was the experience of the rich man.

And this is the experience of many in our society today.

There are many who think all they need are social media friends.

After years of denial, studies are beginning to admit that relationships through a touch screen is not enough. The US Surgeon General recently declared another epidemic – not from Covid but from loneliness.

I would add that many Americans are also having an identity crisis. We don’t know who we are anymore. And it’s creating havoc.

For example, the young man who tried to kill a presidential candidate, and the young boy who killed his classmates and teachers both have one thing in common – they wanted to be known.

It appears they had given up hope that one day they could be somebody…

Today, we live in a society where many are lonely. Many are searching for a sense of self. Many are feeling empty, wondering where life is going and what life is for.

And what they do not realize is that their life is actually a preview of hell. Except hell will be never ending and a lot hotter.

The one act of kindness we could do for someone in this condition is to be honest about the consequences of their faith choice.

Tell them that one doesn’t have to die to go to hell. That their anxiety-filled life is a preview of hell.

But continue by saying, it doesn’t have to be that way. They have an opportunity to free themselves not only in the future but starting right now.

Allow me to close with this.

Hell is real. Jesus spoke more about hell than all the other authors in the Bible combined. Why?

He wasn’t issuing a threat. Jesus spoke about hell out of love.

And that’s how we should look at the challenge of sharing this part of the Gospel. It’s a hard but kind and loving way to share a lesson that needs to be shared. 

There is more to say, and that will come another day.

In love always,