The Journey to the Cross, Part 4

So Mark chapter 9 at verse 42.

Mark 9 · chapter mention

And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,

it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea

with a large millstone tied around his neck.

If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.

It is better for you to enter life maimed

than with two hands to go into hell where the fire never goes out.

And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.

It is better for you to enter life crippled

than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.

And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.

It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye

than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell

where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.

Everyone will be salted with fire.

Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness,

how can you make it salty again?

Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with each other.

Hard words from Jesus.

The words that he wants us to hear.

Let's begin by thinking about listening to warning signs.

Imagine a teacher sitting down with a pupil

saying you need to have focus in class and doing your studies

or you will fail.

Or imagine visiting the doctor and he sits you down and says,

well, you need to cut down on these fatty foods and high sugar

for the sake of your heart.

Or a parent, an anxious parent saying to their child,

they don't take drugs because they can kill.

Now these are all different in one sense,

but very similar in another.

These are all warnings that come from reliable guides

and they're all spoken out of concern for a person's future.

And especially when we think in family terms,

they're words spoken out of deep love.

Now as we begin, it's important that we hear Jesus teaching on hell

in these same terms.

We need to hear what Jesus says about hell

because in society, hell is regarded by many as comical,

as a fun place.

You've maybe seen the buses going around the city center

saying that your mortgage experience can be hell or heaven.

You're really diminishing both.

Or cynically, you'll find people who imagine

that hell is an invention of the church

so that the church could control society

and try and curb bad behavior.

And so we struggle as a society to know what to do with hell.

And in church, sometimes it's the same thing.

It feels to us as one of those jagged edges

that we like to smooth over.

Sometimes we're anxious about the offense of the gospel,

and so it's something that we'd rather push to one side.

It's not for polite conversation.

But we need to hear Jesus

as a reliable and a loving guide

who wants to warn about reality,

who wants to teach us why

recovering the doctrine of hell is important for us as a church,

and to see why it matters so much.

So let's begin with this.

Why do we need the truth about hell?

We need it because Jesus teaches about it.

To be faithful to the Bible

and to be faithful to Jesus as teacher,

this isn't a topic we can take off the table.

Because when you look at the teaching of Jesus

and you look at the whole Bible,

we realize that Jesus talks about hell

more than anybody else in the whole Bible.

In fact, more than he speaks about heaven,

he speaks words of warning about hell.

And so that leaves us a question.

Is Jesus angry?

Is he controlling?

Is he vindictive?

Is he mean?

Is he unfit to listen to?

And it's where we need to recognize who Jesus is.

We need to go to the gospel.

The same Jesus who warns about hell,

it is Jesus who says,

I am the good shepherd,

and I will lay down my life for my sheep.

Who says,

greater love has no one than this,

that a man lay down his life for his friends,

and he does exactly that.

He is the one who gives teaching

about the good Samaritan,

encouraging us to love whoever is in front of us

who needs mercy and help,

and he demonstrates that in his life.

He gives us the golden rule

that societies all around the world

have appreciated due to others

as you would have them do to you.

When you read the gospels,

you encounter the compassion,

the love and the mercy of Jesus

on page after page after page,

you find him weeping,

weeping at the tomb of Lazarus.

You find him weeping over the city of Jerusalem,

which refuses to repent and trust in Jesus.

Jesus is not an angry man.

Jesus is the most loving man

who has ever met,

who has ever lived.

The context here,

where we find ourselves in Mark chapter nine,

Jesus is beginning to teach

and prepare his disciples

for his journey to the cross.

And what's the cross all about?

Jesus is going to suffer and die in love

and so that rebel sinners like us

might be forgiven.

That he will endure hell on the cross

to save us from hell,

to give us the invitation to trust in him

and enjoy the glory of heaven instead.

So we need to recognize

that this is the loving Lord Jesus

who's speaking about hell.

So why does he speak so graphically?

Let's just remind ourselves of verse 47 and 48

to see the graphic language that Jesus uses.

If your eye causes you to sin,

pluck it out.

It's better for you to enter the kingdom of God

with one eye

than to have two eyes

and be thrown into hell

where their worm does not die

and the fire is not quenched.

I'm not a smoker,

but I've seen the pictures

that the health boards now put on cigarette packets.

Why are they doing that?

They're issuing a warning

to somebody.

If you smoke these cigarettes,

this picture of your lungs

may be your reality.

A dramatic way to try and encourage someone

towards a different habit.

Jesus uses this graphic language

so that we will take hell seriously.

That as he teaches about hell in the gospels,

we discover a place of conscious,

eternal torment.

A place where God's active punishment

is failed

for all eternity.

It's a place of absolute horror.

And so Jesus uses this graphic imagery

in order to wake us up

and in order to change our priorities.

Sometimes we can become so fixed on the now

that we forget about what comes next.

What happens when we die?

And Jesus is reminding us

of these two eternal realities.

He's exposing the danger

to show us the need of rescue.

And of course,

Jesus comes to be the rescuer.

He is the real savior

to the greatest problem

that all of us face.

And so Jesus teaches about hell

for that reason.

J.I. Packer,

the biblical scholar,

says this,

which I find really helpful.

The purpose of the Bible teaching

about hell

is to make us appreciate,

thankfully embrace,

and rationally prefer

the grace of Christ

that saves us from hell.

It is really a mercy to mankind

that God in Scripture

is as explicit

about hell.

We cannot say

we have not been warned.

And indeed,

here we've been warned

by the loving Lord Jesus.

So we need the teaching of hell

because Jesus teaches about hell.

We also need it

because the reality of hell

teaches us

that sin is serious.

Now we're in the middle

of Jesus teaching

his disciples

from verse 33 onwards.

And really what he's been saying

to them is that

there are three disasters

for church mission

that can happen

within a Christian community.

One is when you start

fighting over rank

and greatness.

One is where there is rivalry

and them and us attitudes.

And we thought about

those last week.

But the third disaster

is when even within the church

there's a lack of holiness

and people get casual

about sin.

And so Jesus issues

this start warning

to his own people

in the first instance.

Let's look at what he says

to them.

In verse 42

he says,

If anyone causes

one of these little ones

who believe in me

to sin

it would be better

for him to be thrown

into the sea

with a large millstone

tied around his neck.

So here's what he's saying.

Here's the warning.

Your sin

might make someone else

turn from Jesus.

And he's saying

that's a dreadful offense

to be avoided

at all costs.

How can that happen?

Well perhaps

there's a younger Christian

watching

an older Christian

fall into sin

or be guilty

of hypocrisy.

Perhaps it's lack of care

for someone's

weaker conscience.

And somebody is led astray

and somebody is led

to walk away from Jesus.

And so he issues

a warning

about our sin

having consequences

for others.

Does a similar thing

in verse 50.

He talks about salt.

Salt

intended to preserve

and to add flavor.

Salt is good

but if it loses its saltiness

how can you make it salty again?

Have salt in yourselves

and be at peace

with each other.

So he's saying

to the church

that our sin

if we start fighting

amongst ourselves

if we start comparing

and competing

if we get casual

about sin

if we don't have peace

our sin as a church

as a community

might stop others

from ever wanting

anything to do

with the Lord Jesus.

We can be guilty

of being

unsalty.

We don't preserve

we don't add flavor

we can be judgmental

and hypocritical

and mean-spirited

and harsh

not living like Jesus

in such a way

that somebody

might look at the church

and say

well why in the world

would we bother

listening to what

they have to say

because they seem

miserable and unpleasant

and I want nothing

to do with them.

So there's a warning

two ways

our sin individually

can cause others

to fall away

our sin as a community

can cause others

to never look at Jesus

in the first place.

And then in that

middle section

from verse 43 to 48

he talks about

the personal effect

of sin

and he calls us

to radical obedience.

Let's read verse 43.

If your hand causes you

to sin

cut it off

it's better for you

to enter life maimed

than with two hands

to go into hell

where the fire

never goes out.

So again

Jesus is saying

there are two

eternal destinies

that there's no

middle ground

that is

in verse 43

life

further on

talked about

the kingdom of God

that is the reality

of heaven

with God

that is

perfection

to look forward to

an eternity

marked by love

and joy

and fellowship

and community

or there is

hell

that is

unending

punishment

for our

willful sin

and rebellion

and what Jesus

is saying

that we should

do anything

that it takes

to ensure

that we find

a way to life.

If our hand

causes us to sin

cut it off.

Maybe we know

the story.

That was then

turned into a movie

in about 127 hours

a climber

called Aaron Ralston

who was

canyoning

or bouldering

in Utah

and his arm

got trapped

and he couldn't

get it out

and he spent

five days

there in the

blazing heat

until he realized

the only way

he was going to get

out of this alive

was by cutting off

his own arm

and he had to make

that choice

literally sawing

off his arm

in order to stay

alive.

Jesus is saying

cut off

in our lives

whatever would

cause us

to dishonor God

whatever would

cause us

to walk

from God

whatever would

cause us

to look at

things that are

impure

and unworthy

of God

like a surgeon

amputating

an arm or a leg

in order to

save a life.

Hell is serious

and sin

is serious.

I think

sometimes we

struggle

with the reality

of hell

because we fail

in the first place

to take the holiness

of God seriously

and we think

about sin

the way perhaps

we think about

a parking ticket

or a speeding

thing.

Everybody does it

it's no big deal.

We fail to take

the seriousness

of sin

seriously

and Jesus

is looking

to correct

our thinking

by giving us

these stark images

and stark warnings.

one of the things

that he wants

to encourage

in us

is a healthy

fear of sin

it should sometimes

to have a healthy

fear

and sin

is something

we are to be

afraid of.

perhaps you saw

the story

in the news

this week

of the man

in the Czech

Republic

who kept

a couple

of lions

as household

pets.

He used to

walk them

down the street

and he fed

them

they were in the

house and

garden with him

it only became

public knowledge

because one of

those lions

mauled him

to death.

there are some

things that we

don't mess

around with

and we need

to have a

healthy fear

of.

One of the

images that

God gives

to Cain

actually

in Genesis

Genesis 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

is of sin

as being

like a lion.

He tells

Cain to

watch out

as sin

is like a

lion

crouching

at your

door

it seeks

to destroy

you

and Cain

is invited

to seek

to master

sin

as the old

Puritan

John Owen

said

be killing

sin

or it

will be

killing

you.

Jesus

shows us

sin

is serious.

The cross

of Jesus

shows

that sin

is serious.

What's

happening

on the

cross

as Jesus

dies?

Jesus

is facing

the curse

he goes

under the

curse of

God

for

disobedience

not because

Jesus has

done anything

wrong

he is

sinless

and perfect

but he

does that

in the

place

of his

people.

We find

Jesus

crying out

my God

my God

why have

you forsaken

me?

Jesus

is cut

off

and abandoned

at the

cross

because God

the holy

God

can have

nothing

to do

with sin

and Jesus

has become

the sin

bearer of

the world

there on

the cross.

that's

not all

we see

at the

cross

the cross

also

shows us

the love

of God

because

Jesus

is willing

to go

there.

The

father

is willing

to send

Jesus

to stand

in our

place

to take

our

punishment

in order

to give

us forgiveness

in order

to save

us from

our sin

and to

save us

from hell.

Jesus

goes

to the

place of

hell

and punishment

for us.

We need

hell to

remind us

that sin

is serious.

We also

need hell

because it

reminds us

that sharing

the gospel

is urgent.

I think

one of the

most convicting

things that

I've read

and a number

of occasions

I read it

again a couple

of weeks

ago

a quote

from

the magician

Penn Jillette

there's the

magician

jewel

Penn and

teller

Penn Jillette

he's not

a Christian

he said

this in

an interview

once

how much

do you

have to

hate

somebody

to believe

that there

is a

heaven

and hell

but not

to tell

them

because of

social

awkwardness

sometimes

we forget

just how

urgent the

gospel is

and I

find that

quote really

convicting

I wonder

if you're

a Christian

here today

do you

identify

with this

missionary

who was

speaking

this week

saying

why is

it that

I am

willing

to share

my life

with another

person

but I

often hesitate

to share

my God

with that

person

being honest

there are many

things that can

get in the way

of sharing the

gospel

whether it's

fear

whether it's

questions of

is this the

right time

whether it's

a sense of

politeness

or social

awkwardness

that cause

us to

say

nothing

and when

we do

that

what's

happening

we are

lessening

that sense

that this

is a life

and death

situation

that our

gospel message

has a life

and death

urgency

attached

to it

we know

as Christians

that we're

called to be

marked by

love and

care

but if

our care

only extends

to the

physical

and never

extends to the

spiritual

and the

eternal

then our

love

is out of

balance

that it's

not enough

just to care

for people's

bodily needs

we also need

to care for

their souls

to care

for their

salvation

and again

Jesus is

teaching his

disciples

and he's

teaching his

church about

hell

in order

to soften

and melt

our hearts

and to

get us

to that

place

where we

would love

others

more than

our

maybe our

reputation

or our

sense of

dis-ease

about having

those

conversations

that he's

reminding us

about hell

to give us

a sense of

urgency

to replace

a sense

of apathy

sometimes we

can be so

concerned

will I

have the

right

answers

what if

the conversation

goes in

this direction

we get

really nervous

so we

don't even

begin

rather than

trusting Jesus

to send the

spirit to

help us

and trusting

that even

in the mess

even if we

don't get

things right

God can still

work and God

can still be

on it

Jesus teaches

us about

hell to

shape our

priorities

and to

shape our

prayers

for ourselves

that we

would beg

for a sense

of urgency

and to have

soft hearts

but also

that we

would be

looking for

opportunity

to love

our friends

and our

city more

by talking

about the

gospel

that we

would be

willing not

just to share

our lives

with others

not just to

meet physical

needs but

we would also

be willing to

share our

God with

our family

and our

friends and

to seek to

meet people's

spiritual needs

I find this

a profoundly

convicting

and challenging

section but I

don't want us

to go away

from here

feeling motivated

by a sense

of guilt

I've done

really badly

and I know

I should do

better

because that's

where maybe

our hearts

instinctively go

and I'm

certainly not

speaking as

somebody who

who's got

this sorted

and somebody

who finds it

easy to have

those kind

of conversations

but Jesus

is saying

here's our

goal

our goal

is first of

all to

care for

people

to see the

urgency of

sharing the

gospel

but ultimately

as Christians

we want to

delight in

Jesus so

much

that it would

be our

instinct

it would be

our greatest

joy to

share Jesus

with others

where sharing

Jesus would

complete our

own joy

of our

salvation

the one

last thing

to say

about the

importance of

hell

is that

hell

perhaps

surprisingly

helps us

appreciate

God's

love

one of the

things about

Christianity

is that it

is a

rescue

religion

we don't

say do

better and

try harder

our message

is that as

people we

are spiritually

dead and we

need a

resurrection

we need help

from outside

of us

and Jesus

teaching on

sin and

hell reveals

the danger

clearly to

us

and that

left to

ourselves

our default

destination

for eternity

would be

hell

that we

need a

rescuer

or universally

we stand

condemned

we have

failed to

love God

with our

heart and

soul and

mind and

strength and

we failed

to love our

neighbor as

ourselves all

of the time

but hell

also explains

to us

Jesus journey

to the

cross

Jesus goes

to the

cross in

order to

defeat

the powers

of evil

and darkness

by absorbing

them into

himself and

by facing

the punishment

for our

sin

Jesus on

the cross

tastes

hell in

concentrated

form in

those three

hours of

darkness as

he carries

the sin

of the

world as

our loving

substitute

and when we

realize why

Jesus goes

to the cross

it helps us

to understand

more of the

love of God

I listened to

a lecture this

week from

Tim Keller

addressing

seminary

students and

he said the

doctrine of

hell is a

doorway into

the love of

God precisely

for that reason

it shows that

depth it shows

the extent of

God's redeeming

love and

also it

stops our

hearts from

growing cold

to God when

we realize what

he has lovingly

saved us

from

Charles Dickens

novel a tale

of two cities

climaxes with

Charles Darnay

one of the

main characters

in a prison

cell during the

French Revolution

awaiting his

execution the

following morning

well into the

prison comes his

friend Sidney

Carton and he

drugs Darnay

he takes his

clothes he has

another friend

drag Darnay out of

the prison and

off to freedom

and Sidney

Carton stands in

the place of his

friend and goes

to the executioner's

block the following

morning in a

wonderful moment of

self-giving love

and it's a small

picture of Jesus

love for us in the

gospel and Jesus

sacrifice that is

intended to melt

and to warm our

hearts as we see

Jesus becoming our

substitute going to

the place of death

to rescue us from

eternal condemnation

from a living death

we see Jesus become

cursed so we might

be blessed

so let's hear this

loving warning from

Jesus this loving

and reliable guide

to look on the

cross as God's

loving response

to our death

sentence and to

trust him as

Lord and Savior

you