"Where is the promise of his coming?"

In light of Rob Bell's recent denial of the existence of hell, I have been spending time in 2 Peter. Consider these two quotes:

"...scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, 'Where is the promise of his coming?'" 2 Peter 3:3-4.

"...the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment." 2 Peter 2:9.

Men will deny the reality of Christ's return. This equates to their denying the reality of God's impending judgment on sin. As a result, such men will scoff at the idea of a place of eternal torment, scoff at the notion of God's furious and unending wrath for sin coming to bear on those who reject His redemption offered in Jesus. Two results come from such heresy: (1) they will give themselves over to their sin, as they fear no consequence from it and (2) they will entice others with a "gospel" that is false and leads to destruction rather than life.

When men alter the gospel so as to remove any mention of the penalty and judgment on sin, it nevertheless remains true. This leaves the unrepentant, lawless man in the most perilous place, as hell is real and awaits them. But for those who have heard the old powerful gospel and believed, they revel not in their sins but in the fact that they have escaped God's wrath for those sins. For those who have heard the good news of Jesus taking the wrath in their stead, they set their hope on the sure promise that "there will be richly provided for [them] an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" 2 Peter 1:11.

Rob the gospel of the reality of hell, and men will never see their need for such rich provision as they will never see their grave danger. With Love Wins, Rob Bell does the greatest damage to every soul that believes the lie that no judgment, no penalty, no wrath, no eternal hell awaits those without a Substitute Wrath-Bearer.

In God's providence, the first plenary session of Fellowship in the Gospel, will feature Rico Tice's message on "Recovering the Offense of the Gospel" focusing on the reality of hell. Such a timely message...I hope to see you in May.

Early Registration Pricing Ends March 31st...so hurry and register you and a friend at www.FG11.org/registration.html.