" HELL IS A REAL PLACE "

Yes, Hell is an honest to goodness place. Please open your mind to what I'm about to share. Jesus tells about the Rich Man and the Beggar. Now I have to wonder if you truly recognize why Jesus told this story. In this accounting two men lived two life styles one man obviously was very rich. The Pharisees considered wealth to be proof of a person's righteousness. Jesus startled them with this story where a second man who was a diseased beggar is rewarded and the rich man is punished. Now the rich man did not go to hell because of his wealth but because he was selfish refusing to feed Lazarus, to take him in, or even care for him. This rich man was hardhearted in spite of his great blessings. The amount of money we have is not as important as the way we use it. What is your attitude toward your money and possessions? Do you hoard them selfishly, or do you use them to help others? Now the other man Lazarus which who should not be mistaken for Jesus' good friend in which Jesus raised from the dead in John 11. The Bible says " The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom, and the rich man also died and was buried. Now while in Hades this rich man lifted up his eyes, being in agony, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in anguish in the flame. Now the rich man thought that his five brothers would surely believe a message who had been raised from the dead. But Jesus said that if they did not believe Moses and the Prophets, who spoke constantly of the duty to care for the poor, not even a resurrection would convince them. Notice the irony in Jesus' statement; on his way to Jerusalem to die, he was fully aware that even when he had risen from the dead, most of the religious leaders would not accept him. They were set in their ways, and neither scripture nor God's son himself would shake them loose. Until Next Time... Jim,