How do you respond to a warning? Maybe it depends on where the warning comes from. What if the warning comes from God?
God sent warnings in the Old Testament, “And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place” (2 Chronicles 36:15). It was God’s compassion that was the impetus for the warnings. But how were they received? Look at Jeremiah. He is known as the weeping prophet. He was God’s messenger. His heart was full of compassion, and his heart broke as he watched those who heard his message refuse to change their ways. Instead they became objectives of God’s wrath.
Jesus also gave us warnings. He had taken a child in his arms when He told His disciples that whoever received a child in His name received Him. But that wasn’t all He said. I believe that Jesus was still embracing the child when He gave this warning, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea” (Mark 9:42). Jesus warns of a severe punishment to anyone who would cause a child to sin.
“And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:42-48).
STOP! STOP! Let’s talk about hyperbole! Surely Jesus was using an intentional overstatement and didn’t mean what He said! Yes, I do believe it was hyperbole, it was an intentional overstatement to express the severity of the warning. How would you sin with your hand? Would it be theft, or murder? How would you sin with your feet? Could that mean going somewhere to undertake a sinful activity? Is Jesus really saying that the sins we do with our eyes--such as coveting, lusting or adultery--are so odious in His sight that it would be better to be blind? An even more important question is this, how do we respond to the warnings Jesus has given us?
There is another question raised by these words of Jesus. He talks about being thrown into hell. This too is a warning, but is it hyperbole as well? I believe that the best way to interpret Scripture is to use other Scripture. So come with me to the end of time and look at what is shown to us in Revelation 20:11-15. “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
And so we have been warned, But how do we respond to this warning?
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