What Hell is Like - One Minute After You Die, Part 2 with Pastor Craig Groeschel (Life After Death)

One Minute After You Die: Confronting the Reality of Hell

Scripture References

Primary text

• Luke 16

Other references

• Matthew 17:13
• 2 Thessalonians 1:8
• Revelation 20:10
• Revelation 14:10-11

Overview

“What you believe about eternity determines how you live today.”
Craig Groeschel presses us to face the righteousness of a holy God and the indescribable horrors of hell. Drawing on Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus, he shows why hell exists, what it is like, and how an eternal perspective fuels urgent, sacrificial living and gospel witness.

Context

This is week two of the series “One Minute After You Die.” Last week covered judgment and rewards; next week will focus on heaven. Today’s message asks why a loving God allows hell and why grasping its reality magnifies the glory of the gospel.

Main Points

Why talk about hell at all?

• If we ignore hell, we never treasure the gospel or the goodness of Jesus.
• Common statistics: 74 % of Americans believe in heaven, only 40 % believe unbelievers go to hell, and only 0.5 % think they personally might go there.
• Jesus warns that the road to destruction is broad (Matthew 17:13) and “many enter through it.”
• Illustration: Craig imagines Satan’s strategy: convince people hell is not real or not serious; then both unbelievers and Christians will live for themselves without urgency.

Why does hell exist?

1. To deal righteously with Satan (Revelation 20:10).
2. To deal righteously with unbelievers (2 Thessalonians 1:8).

• God’s holiness requires justice; love does not cancel righteousness.

A glimpse of hell (Luke 16)

• Contrast: a lavishly rich man and the beggar Lazarus.
• After death the beggar is carried to “Abraham’s side”; the rich man is in Hades, “in torment.”
• Hades: a temporary holding place before final judgment, marked by suffering, separation, and regret.
• The rich man begs for a drop of water and for someone to warn his five brothers.
• Biblical descriptions of hell: fiery furnace, burning sulfur, outer darkness, weeping and gnashing of teeth, eternal separation (Revelation 14:10-11).
• Gehenna: Jesus’ term drawn from the Valley of Hinnom—unceasing fire, maggots, stench, discarded corpses.

Four lessons from the other side

• The rich man is fully conscious, remembers earth, and feels real pain.
• His destiny is irrevocably fixed.
• He never claims God is unfair—only that the pain is terrible.
• He pleads for someone to reach his family, revealing evangelistic urgency.

The beauty of the gospel

• We are not “good people” who occasionally slip; by nature we are sinners in need of grace.
• God is perfectly just and perfectly loving; Jesus’ sinless life, death, and resurrection satisfy justice and extend mercy.
• Classic gospel verses quoted: John 3:16; “the wages of sin is death… the gift of God is eternal life”; “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
• Jesus seeks the one lost sheep; He came “that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Living in light of eternity

• Followers of Christ must reject self-centered comfort, embrace sacrifice, and share faith urgently.
• Knowing loved ones without Christ should drive prayer, compassion, and bold witness.

Key Truths

• Hell is real, eternal, and unspeakably painful; ignoring it dulls our sense of mission.
• God’s holiness demands justice; His love provides a Savior.
• No one is “good enough”; salvation is a gift received through faith in Jesus.
• Eternal realities reshape present priorities—comfort, sacrifice, generosity, and evangelism.
• Love for people springs from understanding what eternity without Christ means.

Response

• Examine your own standing with God and receive the grace offered in Christ.
• Pray daily for specific friends and family who do not yet know Jesus.
• Share the gospel winsomely and urgently, trusting the Holy Spirit to work.
• Trade self-centered comfort for sacrificial living that points others to Christ.
• Keep eternity in view when making decisions about time, money, and relationships.

Closing

Craig closed by calling believers to intercede for those far from God and by inviting seekers to surrender to Christ. The congregation prayed together, many responding to the offer of salvation.

“Jesus, save me. I give my life to You.”

Prayer

“Heavenly Father, I surrender to You. I give You my whole life. Save me, forgive me, change me, and fill me with Your Spirit so I can follow You every day of my life. Give me urgency to show Your love and to live in light of eternity. My life is not mine; I give it all to You. Thank You for new life—now You have mine. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”