Charles Manson died yesterday! He must be in hell, right? Everybody thinks so. He is responsible for the seven Helter Skelter murders, he influenced young impressionable girls to run away from home and join his pot-smoking commune in the ’70s, and he had a swastika tattooed right smack on the middle of his forehead. He surely will be first in line for the lake of fire?
Listen to some of the comments from the general public responding to the news of his death:
“Hell just got a little more crowded.”
“Some people should just not exist.”
“Well, I guess we know where he went?”
See, everyone agrees, you can hear the angry mob carrying torches and pitchforks, “Death to the rotten! Long live the righteous!” But wait, wait, wait, before we get carried away with confirmed condemnation I need to ask, is that how heaven and hell are decided? By consensus? Is entrance into the pearly gates a popularity contest?
If it is, then does that mean everyone who deserves to be on death row should go to hell, and those who kept their nose clean deserve heaven? Is that where we should start determining eternal lots? And if that is the case Jesus Christ himself wouldn’t make it in…he was found guilty by a large jeering mob. Remember? “Crucify, crucify, crucify!”
And what about all of those who are wrongly placed on death row? What about those who are clinically insane, it isn’t their fault for the murderous rampages they go on? Is it? And if we let them off, Charles Manson was surely insane, wasn’t he? I guess what I am saying, if hell is determined by consensus, then many will be eternally condemned that shouldn’t be and many will make it into heaven that don’t even want to be there. Some of you reading this will answer, “Well, why don’t we just eliminate the whole idea of hell in the first place?” Well, that isn’t the answer either because that means Charles Manson wouldn’t get what he deserved. It would be the height of injustice to let this evil criminal go. Listen to more comments from the angry public:
“There’s gotta be a special place in hell just for him.”
“Have fun burning in hell.”
“Pathetic that this monster lived till 83, enjoy hell, Charlie!”
See, everyone agrees, hell is the only justice for people like Manson, Hilter and Stalin. Back to consensus again, huh? What we need is some objective standard, some way to clearly delineate eternal destinations. For me, I choose to refer to the Bible to find the objective standards because I believe it gives us the only window into eternity. I think it is very clear and if you read it as you would a normal book, anyone can figure out the answer. So let’s make it simple by asking simple questions looking for simple answers. I do this so we don’t need to rely on fancy arguments by slippery people like Rob Bell, Pope Francis or even Joel Osteen. I think by mere reading you can figure it out for yourself.
Question One: Who is hell meant for? “Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:41) This is Jesus talking and he confirms that there will be human beings that will follow Satan to hell. It was made for him and his rebellious angels. And those who follow him in his rebellion will join him.
Question Two: Specifically, who are considered the rebels, who goes to hell? “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Rev. 20:15) In other words at the end of days, everyone will be judged (Hebrews 9:27). If your name is not in the book of life, you go to hell.
Question Three: How do you get your name in the book of life? “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:11-13) So, life is found in Jesus Christ.
Question Four: How do I get the life of Jesus? “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1) “Then they said to him, ‘What must we do to be doing the works of God?’ Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’” (John 6:28-29) Pretty simple, life is given by faith in Jesus. Believing he actually lived, and died, and rose again.
Final Question: What if I don’t believe in Jesus? “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:18) Not too difficult to understand, is it?
So to make it very simple, condemnation has nothing to do with consensus, but everything to do with not believing. Charles Manson didn’t believe, in fact for a while he thought he was God. Ironically that was Satan’s first lie in the Garden of Eden, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5)
But here is where it gets scary: If you think you get in because you are not as bad as Charles Manson you are using the wrong standard. You are falling back on the consensus argument. The actual Biblical standard is simple: Do you really believe in Jesus Christ? Is he really your Savior? If not, you have more in common with Charles Manson than you think. And don’t buy The Grateful Dead’s lie either, “I may be going to hell in a bucket, but at least I am enjoying the ride.” The ride may be fun, but the destination is not.
Think seriously on these things.
