Take some time this week to read Isaiah 65. Two main themes flow from the passage: Judgment and Salvation, along with when the Lord will bring about a New Heaven and a New Earth. I can’t escape the fact that hell is a real place that many do not believe is real. How many times have you heard the question: “How could a loving God send anyone to hell or, as Revelation calls it, the lake of fire, for all eternity?” 

In this chapter of Isaiah, he expresses a heartfelt plea for salvation, highlighting that our best efforts are viewed as filthy rags by God. The good news is that God answers Isaiah’s prayer, assuring the prophet that He is always willing to save. After reading this chapter, I can't help but realize that the only way someone can end up condemned to hell is by rejecting God’s revelation of His love and ability to save.

So, my friend, if you know someone who is anxious or, even better, distressed about what occurs after death, tell them the Good News. As long as I draw breath, I will persist in my belief that Hell is real, and that anyone who does not come to Jesus by faith will end up there for all eternity. Ultimately, the only person who finds themselves condemned to Hell does so by their own choice.

Let me conclude with a true story I encountered. Amos Gbaa, hailing from Liberia, was tasked with translating each section of Scripture and pinpointing areas for enhancement. Stan Nussbaum writes: 

“When he came to a sentence where I had used the word ’offer,’ Amos had used the word ’gift.’“I explained the importance of the distinction. The Gospel is not ’given’ but ’offered.’ The person hearing must make a choice.“Amos said I was missing his point. ’In Liberia, we do not make offers,’ he said. We only give gifts. If I come to your house and say, Here is a pineapple from my field, that is not an offer. You had better accept it. If you don’t, you would be giving me a terrible insult. “I thought about it more. With an offer, the buyer is completely free to decide for or against the product or to simply ignore it. The hearer of the Gospel, on the other hand, can accept it or reject it, but not ignore it, because it is a gift. Amos was right. God is giving you the gift of life through the Gospel.”

So let’s continue to “offer” the free gift through the Gospel,

Gene