The Sinner in Hell

The Unbelievers Eternal Posture

In this story, told by our Savior, the rich man goes to hell. Verse 23 says, "In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment..." I can promise you that this man was not standing up with his head bowed. That was not the position he was in when it says this. He had absolutely no strength whatsoever to stand and all comfort had fled from him. His legs gave out long ago. He was on his knees, arms laid out on the ground in front of him, and face to the floor where he will remain for the rest of his eternal dwelling.

That is the position in which every sinner will be in for all of eternity, for they shall rightly bow before the Alpha and the Omega forever, never having the ability to stand in defiance again (Isaiah 45:23; Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:10).

All of creation, whether in God's presence or not, saved or unsaved, angel or demon, will all rightly bless the name of the Lord for all of eternity. Every single human will either bless His name now in a willing spirit or they will bless His name later in a painful outcry (Revelation 5:13).

We must understand that everything God is involved in is good. Not only good, but it is for the best. And not only is it good and for the best, but He receives praise, blessing, honor and glory even from among the sinner in hellish torment. From a scriptural standpoint, God has a purpose for everything that He does, and everything He purposes will result in His glory being shown and shouted among all of creation.

An Eternal Thirst

Again, there was barely any strength left in this man. Notice that even in his weakest state of being, it wasn't God that he was calling after to quench his thirst, but instead he was calling forth a man. He will take anybody except the Creator and he exerts all that he had in order to lift up his eyes and receive but a glimpse of what paradise looked like. He shouted forth a cry for mercy with all of his might that Abraham, a man, would show him grace by sending Lazarus, a man, over to cool off his tongue. He doesn't want God. The only thing this rich man wants is a new place to live.

This man was feeling the pain of the hottest fires of hell and he was desperately seeking even just the simple satisfaction of a droplet of water upon his tongue because his mouth was dry. Yet, the issue goes deeper than this. He is spiritually thirsty because he is spiritually depraved. He was seeking the wrong thing. Notice he still doesn't want God to satisfy him, he wants other things. The reason the believer is joyful in eternity is because Christ is the overflowing abundance of water they so crave for and He alone can quench their thirst. The unbeliever finds no satisfaction.

The rich man in this parable was seen to still be consumed in himself and defined as sin. He only wanted what is temporary. All that he desires is exactly what sin always offers and that is a momentary pleasure. It is a shame that he still fails to realize the destructiveness of his sinful condition and refuses to pursue what is truly valuable, Christ the eternal!

However, this is what we miss so often when we read and interpret scripture. For some reason, we come to the conclusion that sin stops in hell and that the unbeliever is only paying for the sin(s) of his life that took place here on this earth. In the story, the rich man hates his environment. He would rather be anywhere else than there. Notice he still hates God. Sin does not stop in hell.

The Nature of a Sinner

The only reason in which one sins is because that one is already a sinner. You are not merely a sinner because you have committed sins, but you sin because you are a sinner. Sin is the defining nature for the unbeliever. It is what they do, but even more than this it is who they are.

The sin nature is ultimately not based upon ones behavior, but upon ones birth. If you are born of Adam, then you are a sinner whether you commit sins or not. However, all sinners will commit sins in order to further evidence their defining nature and thus all sinners will be thrown into the only place in which God's gracious presence does not dwell.

It is in this place that sin will not stop. There may be certain aspects or types of sins that will never again be committed, nonetheless, sin will never cease being the defining character of a sinful individual. They will for all of eternity grow in their hatred for God, thus the very wrath of God will be continually poured out upon them. They will never grow used to the hurt nor will the pain eventually numb. However, this is what awaits the sinner.

More often than not, I find that we (myself included) have a very man-centered perspective on sin. For some reason we think that the punishment is to cruel and that sin stops in hell and that a sinner will for all of eternity regret refusing the grace of God. Biblically speaking, none of those things are true. For in his sin he will hate God for all of eternity and God will forever have victory over His crushed enemy!