Abandon All Hope

They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might

2 Thessalonians 1:9

As long as the unbeliever is alive, they have hope. What is this hope? Most people understand hope as wishful thinking, as in "I hope something will happen." This is not what the Bible means by hope. The biblical definition of hope is "confident expectation." That confident expectation for a believer is the hope of eternal life with God. Without this hope, life would have no meaning.

The ungodly have no hope. The prophet Isaiah writes, "For Sheol does not thank you; death does not praise you; those who go down to the pit do not hope for your faithfulness" (Isaiah 38:18). "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here" is a line from Dante Alighieri's Inferno that appears above the gates of hell. All who enter hell will have no hope of ever escaping hell. Those who enter some have not accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. So, in reality, those cast into the lake of fire get what they wanted: eternity apart from Christ. The sad truth is the moment they enter hell, they will regret that choice for all eternity.

But the good news is that as long as one is alive, there is hope they will come to saving faith. If you are not a follower of Christ, if He is not the Lord and Savior of your life, you still have hope. It is not too late to admit before God that you are a sinner in need of salvation. Acknowledge with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins, was raised from the dead three days later, and now sits at the Father's right hand. That is the hope that saves; that is the hope that brings every repentant sinner joy.

Christian, my prayer for you and me is that we never become complacent about the gospel of Jesus Christ. May we never look at the lost in our lives and stop caring about their eternal destination. May our hope in Christ Jesus become such a passion that we never stop sharing and living for Christ.

Your shepherd,

Pastor Mark