Are The Gates of Hell Locked From The Inside?

Are The Gates of Hell Locked From The Inside?  The first time I wrote about this, I said yes.  The second time, I updated it to say yes, but I thought some Christians can’t relate to the concept of not wanting to be with God.  This time, many years later, I’m not sure some (many?) Christians even know what it means to be with God.

The premise for what I’m writing is based on C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce.  It’s a really good book.  I highly recommend it if you haven’t read it yet.

If someone from Hell was allowed a trip to visit Heaven, would they stay?  If someone from earth was allowed to visit Heaven, would they want to go there when they die?  You may think the answers would both be “Obviously, yes!”

You may be shocked.  You could be wrong.  Actually, I believe you’d be wrong more often than you think.

I originally wrote this back in October 2012.  It involved a court case, filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, that was going on at the time.  I checked up on it in 2017.  It was still going! 

Here in Coronavirus time in mid-2022, it’s going to be a whole new take on the thought. 

The gates of Hell are locked from the inside

My title comes from part of the description of The Great Divorce.

What if anyone in Hell could take a bus trip to Heaven and stay there forever if they wanted to?

In The Great Divorce C. S. Lewis again employs his formidable talent for fable and allegory. The writer finds himself in Hell boarding a bus bound for Heaven. The amazing opportunity is that anyone who wants to stay in Heaven, can. This is the starting point for an extraordinary meditation upon good and evil, grace and judgment. Lewis’s revolutionary idea is the discovery that the gates of Hell are locked from the inside. In Lewis’s own words, “If we insist on keeping Hell (or even earth) we shall not see Heaven: if we accept Heaven we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell”.

The key, of course, is that line: “If we insist on keeping Hell (or even earth) we shall not see Heaven: if we accept Heaven we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell”.

It’s so true.  Unfortunately, it’s not something we think of often enough.  I sometimes put it another way.  It’s really hard to sin when our hearts and minds are focused on Jesus.  And if we take the time to remember, there won’t be any sin in Heaven.  Therefore, when we focus on Jesus we get some sense of what Heaven might be like.  Of course, it’s got to be so much greater than anything we can imagine. 

But if we notice the difference in ourselves when we focus on Jesus and the times when we don’t – we’ll also get an idea of what Heaven isn’t.  Heaven isn’t anything like the times we sin.  The times we take our focus off Jesus.  As kind of an extreme example of this, I wrote Is there popcorn on the floor in Heaven?  I don’t know that too many of us intentionally throw popcorn on the floor of a movie theatre, but a whole lot of us certainly don’t seem to mind doing it.

And if we take that extreme point of view – and bring it down to other things we don’t notice, think about, or even realize we’re sinning, we can learn something.  How many of the things we do every day aren’t Christ-like?  Won’t be done in Heaven?  And then, how many of those things do we like so much that it might be our choice to hang on to them?  Even at the expense of going to Hell?

Sure – most of us will say none.  But read the book and, as I said, you’ll be unpleasantly shocked.  Every single one of us is likely to find some of our characteristics among those who choose to return to what C.S. Lewis called the Grey Town.  What’s the big deal aboaut returning to the Grey Town?  It’s proof that the gates of Hell really are locked from the inside.  Including from the inside of our own minds and desires.

How can the gates of Hell be locked from the inside?

As I was searching the web for the entire text quoted above –
I came across a whole bunch of comments about the book.
Some were obviously positive, talking about the amazing insight into the choice that we have between Heaven and Hell, and what that would be like.

Others obviously were very negative and/or disagree with this conclusion.  One of them is –

Lewis’s belief that “the doors of hell are locked from the inside” has really been troubling me. I really don’t understand how this could be true. I know that Lewis is trying to make the point that a person’s unwillingness to submit themselves to God is what put them in hell, and I agree. But can we really assume that is what is keeping them there?

I think if these people saw Jesus face to face and he said “I never knew you” they would be struck by Christ’s glory and know for certain that they had missed it. I think they will realize that the sovereign God of the universe truly exists and that surrendering their self-will for His service would have been definitely worth the sacrifice.

But it will be too late. If hell truly is a lake of fire and a place with weeping and gnashing of teeth like the bible says it is, I don’t think people will “enjoy forever the horrible freedom they have demanded. I think it will be horrible, but I don’t think there will be enjoyment or freedom.

I’m guessing this statement was made by a Christian.  Someone who already has accepted Jesus. Someone who already realizes the significance of the choices already made.

But C. S. Lewis is saying that the gates are locked, not by God, but by the residents of Hell themselves.  So I tend to think that many Christians can’t really relate to the concept of not wanting to be with God.  For some, maybe they forgot how they used to be before making the decision to follow Jesus.  I still remember.  I think it’s important to remember, because then we can better relate to, and hopefully help, those who haven’t yet decided.

Undoubtedly, that’s one of the reasons Peter wrote:

Suffering for Doing Good

1Pe 3:8 Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For,
“Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep his tongue from evil
and his lips from deceitful speech.

1Pe 3:11 He must turn from evil and do good;
he must seek peace and pursue it.

1Pe 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

1Pe 3:13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened.” 15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, 19 through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison 20 who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

Those words tell of some of the things that turn people away. They’re hard. They say, quite plainly, that being Christian in this world isn’t easy. We shouldn’t do many of the things that most people do. And we’ll suffer in the process.

But one sentence in there can be especially hard.

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

It’s hard enough when we have to “only” deal with ourselves. But when it comes time to speak with others, things get ever so much harder. We must actually believe and feel the Christian hope we claim to have. For more on that, please see, Do Christians really know what “Christian Hope” is?

And then, we have to be able to actually talk about it. It gets even worse when we need to listen to questions from the person we’re speaking with. Harder still when we need to answer those questions. Assuming we even heard them correctly.

So what if we don’t do it quite right? Or if we don’t do it at all? Is it really that big of a deal?

Well, do you remember the passage below?

The Great Commission

Mt 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

As I often say, for better or for worse, Jesus left us as His representatives here on earth. And if we don’t do it, who will? Further, when we don’t do it, how is anyone supposed to even want to do anything other than the same stuff everyone else is doing? And then end up going to the same place as everyone else? So yes, it is a big deal.

We have to remember, if we’re always going to be ready to tell someone else.  And while the reasons for our hope will certainly grow over time, the best way to relate our reasons for that hope to a non-Christian is by starting with the stime when we were in the same position they are now.  No faith to begin with.  Then there was something, a trigger, that sparked our faith.

How do people end up behind the locked gates of Hell?

Yes, we really need to do the stuff above to try to keep people from getting locked behind the gates of Hell. But how do they even want to be there?

I’ve known people with three different reactions to God’s Word – The Bible:

• Some believe it is really from God – and try to live by it.
• Some think it’s a nice story – but that’s it – just some old stories and tales.
• Others totally reject it – lies, lies, and more lies.

Some people are too “into themselves” to have any interest in God.

Others think they are strong enough to take care of themselves and don’t need anything else.

Others seem to be perfectly happy thinking that life is just a random/short experience and then there’s nothing after that.

Some think they would have to live a boring life if they did what God wanted.

Still others are having what they think is too much fun to even want to really think about God.

The one thing all of these people have in common is that they don’t want to have anything to do with God.

There’s one other thing they have in common.
God isn’t going to force them to have anything to do with Him.
Salvation is a gift. It’s not going to be shoved down our throats if we don’t want it.

What some of us may have a hard time realizing is that people with attitudes like this can actually reach a point where they’re quite “happy and content” with life as they know it. Notice, I put quotes around “happy and content” because it’s happiness and contentment as they know it. Never having allowed themselves to experience anything else, they assume that whatever they now have in life is as good as it’s going to get.

In Chapter 3 of The Great Divorce, Lewis has the following exchange between a person who has been taken on a “bus ride” from Hell to Heaven. This person has a choice to stay in Heaven or return to Hell on “the bus”.

‘This is simply ridiculous,’ said a voice in my ear. One of the quieter and more respectable ghosts had sidled up to me. ‘There must be some mismanagement,’ he continued. ‘What’s the sense of allowing all that riff-raff to float about here all day? Look at them. They’re not enjoying it. They’d be far happier at home. They don’t even know what to do.’ 

‘I don’t know very well myself,’ said I. ‘What does one do?’

This visitor from Hell is looking right at Heaven.
sitting at the entrance.
with a view of the “entrance” to Heaven.
and a view of “the bus” that would take him back to Hell.
He’s concerned that he won’t know what to do in Heaven.

Is this really any different from what happens here on earth?  

I’ve known people who insist on doing what they want, even knowing that it’s wrong, but hoping that God has a “sense of humor”.  How God having a sense of humor will help them, I can’t imagine.  I fully expect that He does have a sense of humor.  But not in the way they’re hoping.

What are we Christians supposed to do?

Obviously, we should do the Great Commission that we looked at earlier. We’re not all that good at it. I invite you to check out The Great Omission from The Great Commission to see more about that.

We’re also called to be light unto the world.

Salt and Light

Mt 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

Mt 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Does that mean everyone is going to see the light and become Christians because of that?  No.  Some won’t even see the light, let alone want to be part of it.

For various reasons, some choose to not be with God.

Not surprisingly, Jesus said this would happen.
The verses below come from when Jesus was teaching Nicodemus, who was one of the Jewish Pharisees.

John 3:16

Jn 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”

And here we see yet another reason people stay away from God. Fear.

They think that whatever they’ve done is so bad they can’t possibly be forgiven.

Considering who we already know Jesus has forgiven, that really shouldn’t be a problem.

The Crucifixion – Luke

23:33-43 pp — Mt 27:33-44; Mk 15:22-32; Jn 19:17-24

Lk 23:26 As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. 27 A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. 28 Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ 30 Then
“ ‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!”
and to the hills, “Cover us!” ’ 31 For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

Lk 23:32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

Lk 23:35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”

Lk 23:36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”

Lk 23:38 There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Lk 23:39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”

Lk 23:40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

Lk 23:42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’”

Lk 23:43 Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Did you notice verse 34?

34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

Those were Jesus’ words as He was dying on the cross.
He even forgave the very people who were either killing Him or enjoying the sight.

But some will still feel that what they’ve done is too bad to be forgiven. And will reject the offer of salvation.

What brings up this third version of Are the gates of Hell locked from the inside?

What brings us here? Mass shootings in the U.S. so far in 2022, we’re averaging more than one mass shooting event per day. That’s ridiculous. Awful. Shameful.

What’s even more shameful is that too many of us don’t seem to be ashamed of it at all. Sure, we say the right words. But, we don’t have actions to match the words. And so, mass shootings continue. Deaths continue. For Christians, this type of behavior can be fatal to our souls, as well as to the people who physically die. And emotionally die. And still, we’re not ashamed.

What’s that got to do with The Great Divorce?,

Check out the excerpt below. One of the things that C. S. Lewis points out is that being in Hell has the capability of driving people deeper and deeper into it. Not giving them a desire to get out of it. One of the memorable examples of this is Napoleon.

Would they get to the bus stop in time, if they ever set out?’

‘Well—theoretically. But it’d be a distance of light-years. And they wouldn’t want to by now: not those old chaps like Tamberlaine and Genghis Khan, or Julius Caesar, or Henry the Fifth.’

‘Wouldn’t want to?’

‘That’s right. The nearest of those old ones is Napoleon. We know that because two chaps made the journey to see him. They’d started long before I came, of course, but I was there when they came back. About fifteen thousand years of our time it took them. We’ve picked out the house by now. Just a little pin prick of light and nothing else near it for millions of miles.’

‘But they got there?’

‘That’s right. He’d built himself a huge house all in the Empire style—rows of windows flaming with light, though it only shows as a pin prick from where I live.’

‘Did they see Napoleon?’

‘That’s right. They went up and looked through one of the windows. Napoleon was there all right.’

‘What was he doing?’

‘Walking up and down—up and down all the time—left-right, left-right—never stopping for a moment. The two chaps watched him for about a year and he never rested. And muttering to himself all the time. “It was Soult’s fault. It was Ney’s fault. It was Josephine’s fault. It was the fault of the Russians. It was the fault of the English.” Like that all the time. Never stopped for a moment. A little, fat man and he looked kind of tired. But he didn’t seem able to stop it.’

And therein lies the problem for people who,
in this short life on earth,
choose to:

• Not have time for God
• Ignore God
• Reject God
• Deny God

or any of the other things that cause us to not accept Him.

Too long doing this will bring us to the point where we won’t even allow ourselves to consider the possibility of accepting Him. Not even when He’s right before our eyes.

What does that have to do with mass shootings?

The headline from businessinsider.com starts with:

Texas Gov. Abbott gave 2 different speeches about gun control

Notice, I said starts with. Two different speeches. What’s the big deal? Politicians give lots of speeches. The big deal shows up when we read the full headline.

Texas Gov. Abbott gave 2 different speeches about gun control at the same time with 2 different messages.
One was in Uvalde, the other was at the NRA convention in Houston.

Oops. Does anyone think maybe these two speeches said two very different things?

In Uvalde, Abbott said:

“With regard to a special (legislative) session, let me just say this: all options are on the table,” Abbott said, speaking to Uvalde community members about addressing gun violence and calling the status quo “unacceptable.”

“Do we expect laws to come out of this devastating crime? The answer is absolutely yes. And there will be laws in multiple different subject areas,” Abbott added during the Uvalde press conference. “There will be committees formed, there will be meetings held, there will be proposals that will be derived, many of which will lead to laws that will be passed in the state of Texas.”

At the same time, the following was shown, via recording, to the NRA convention.

“There are thousands of laws on the books across the country that limit the owning and using of firearms, laws that have not stopped madmen from carrying out evil acts on innocent people in peaceful communities,” Abbott said in the recorded message. 

“In Uvalde, the gunman committed a felony under Texas law before he even pulled the trigger,” Abbott added. “It’s a felony to possess a firearm on school premises. But that did not stop him.”

In other words, Abbott told the people in Uvalde, something’s going to change.

However, Abbott told the gun people at the NRA convention, nothing meaningful is going to change.

The gates of Hell and money, money, money

What’s the bottom line? Weapons of mass murder will continue to be sold. No changes will be forced to make them less lethal. Nothing will be changed related to all of you being able to keep your weapons. The murders will continue. The suffering will continue.

The money will continue to flow into the coffers of the gun companies. And the money will continue to flow into the pockets of legislators and other government leaders who support the gun community. The money will continue to flow into the pockets of people who invest in gun companies.

And for those of us who claim to be Christians, we must either begin or continue to ask ourselves some very tough questions. Questions along the lines of the conversation between Jesus and the rich young man/young ruler.

The Rich Young Man – Mark

10:17-31 pp — Mt 19:16-30; Lk 18:18-30

Mk 10:17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Mk 10:18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’’”

Mk 10:20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

Mk 10:21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Mk 10:22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Mk 10:23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

Mk 10:24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Mk 10:26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

Mk 10:27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

Mk 10:28 Peter said to him, “We have left everything to follow you!”

Mk 10:29 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Let’s consider a couple things about this young person.

Was he a ruler or just a person who happened to be rich?

To some extent, it doesn’t matter. Either way, it’s a person who’s more into money than anything else. He’s so into money that Jesus knows he’ll be unable to do what’s needed for the Kingdom of God. And so, Jesus tells this man to sell everything and give it to the poor. Then, and only then, will he be able to follow Jesus.

However, the situation does change if this person is a ruler. Or today, if he’s a social media influencer, a sports star. movie star, Etc. Why? Because people look up to them. They, intentionally or not, lead by example. People do emulate them. And so, if these folks do things that interfere with the ability of “regular” people to follow Jesus, that’s a problem for us.

Does it matter if we are rich?

Our situation today is very much like the rich young ruler/young man. Maybe we’re rich ourselves. Maybe not. Maybe we’re influencers of other people, in whatever fashion we use. Maybe not. Maybe we get some of the money from the gun companies. Maybe not.

Or maybe we’re just caught up in something bigger than us. For instance, do we realize that politics isn’t just a matter of conservative versus liberal? Republican versus Democrat? “God-fearing Republicans” versus “godless Democrats”?

As Paul wrote:

The Armor of God

Eph 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Eph 6:19 Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Do we do that? Do we realize and live like, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against

the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. In other words, do we take the time to see that “God-fearing Republicans” and “godless Democrats” are labels of fear, and not based in fact? Neither side claims to be what they’re labeled. Rather, each side accuses the other of being something that we’ll be afraid of.

Do we realize and live like, we have the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Do we try to discern the truth? Or do we take what we’re fed by those who influence us?

Do we take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one? This case with Abbott’s speeches is a prime example. Two sets of people hear two different messages. How many heard both? The two groups probably don’t associate with each other. They probably watch different news broadcasts. They probably follow different people on social media.

If we don’t compare what we see and hear to what God said in the Bible, how are we to know truth when we see or hear it? One, or both, of those messages needs to be partly extinguished. And we can only do that by following our faith. Faith that comes from God’s word, not from an influencer’s mouth.

If we don’t do these things, how can we take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God? In other words, are we willing to pass up the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit in order to follow our political, social, or other beliefs over what Jesus taught?

How do we avoid giving up our salvation to follow people? We must pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

How can I say these things are true?

Here’s a passage to back up what was presented above. It fits whether it’s two messages from one person, a ruler with divided loyalties, or us with divided loyalties.

Treasures in Heaven

6:22, 23 pp — Lk 11:34-36

Mt 6:19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Mt 6:22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Mt 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

We cannot serve Jesus and money. We also cannot serve Jesus and guns. Nor can we serve Jesus and weapons that kill children. And if we’re following politicians, social media, cable news, or any source other than one built on a foundation of Jesus, then we cannot also claim to follow Jesus.

Does any group care if Christians hang around them?

Does any group care if Christians hang around them? The answer to that is yes. And no. No, they don’t care, at least not as an example of someone to emulate. However, if Christians can be a means to an end, then, of course they want us.

The same is true when it comes to the question of the gates of Hell. Satan has no love for us. What Satan does have is hatred for God. And by taking us away from God and leading us to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels, Satan is feeling pretty good about himself.

Do you remember that phrase about the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels? If you’re Christian, it should sound very familiar. Jesus said it, in the passage below.

The Sheep and the Goats

Mt 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

Mt 25:34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Mt 25:37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

Mt 25:40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Mt 25:41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

Mt 25:44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

Mt 25:45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Mt 25:46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Yes. Jesus said to those who claim to follow Him, but really didn’t: “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels”.

Conclusion – Are The Gates of Hell Locked From The Inside?

Yes, the gates of Hell are locked from the inside. Worse yet, they’re locked by the residents. In The Great Divorce, they don’t want to leave. Here’s a brief segment from the book.

‘There must be some mismanagement,’ he continued. ‘What’s the sense of allowing all that riff-raff to float about here all day? Look at them. They’re not enjoying it. They’d be far happier at home. They don’t even know what to do.’

‘I don’t know very well myself,’ said I. ‘What does one do?’

It sounds incomprehensible. How can anyone see Heaven, and not want to go there? That’s what we, as Christians, think. It must be true.

And yet, we must ask, is it really true? One of the things that’s so obvious from reading C.S. Lewis is that he was a great student of people. There are things he wrote in The Screwtape Letters that I have literally experienced and actually seen on other people.

So, if C.S. Lewis attributes behaviors to people in one of his books, we ignore the possibility of its truth at our own peril. Or maybe at the peril of a friend?

Look again at the excerpt just above. We know things aren’t right. We know some people really don’t belong in a certain scenario. We know things are off. And yet, we also know, nothing’s going to change. The scenario won’t change to fit the people who don’t belong. And so often, the people who don’t really belong also don’t leave.

Make that scenario to be someone who claims/wants to be Christian. But, they keep hanging out with people who aren’t Christians. Ultimately, they become “a goat” from what Jesus said. They get sent off to Hell. But all they think about in Hell is, how did I get here? Who’s fault is it? It’s got to be someone’s fault. That is, someone else’s fault. And the next thing they know, if they ever even know, is that they’re so entrenched in blaming someone, anyone, that they can’t leave.

So, can you see, in a sense, the gates of Hell really are locked from the inside?

Finally, I have some questions for everyone.

First – which side of the gates are you on?  Are you sure?  Have you really taken a look at yourself?  Where is your heart?  What do you spend your time on?  What’s important to you?  What are you thinking about when you’re mind isn’t actively thinking about something specific?

Second – especially for those of us who think we’re on the inside, and Heaven bound – when we think we have the appropriate answers to the previous questions – would someone looking at us reach the same conclusion?  Would someone look at us and say that they’d like to be “like us”?  Would they want to go to the Heaven that we are projecting to them by way of the life we lead?  Or are we turning people off, because we say one thing – and do something very different?

Yes, it’s important to realize the gates of Hell are locked from the inside.  And the people in Hell are the ones that locked them and threw away the key.

It’s also important to really know which side of the gate we’re on.  What if we think we’re locking ourselves out of Hell?  But we’re actually locking ourselves in?  Because the goal isn’t to stay out of Hell.  The goal is to follow Jesus into Heaven.

I fear it’s far t0o easy to be like Napoleon.  And never realize it.  Ever.

The Narrow and Wide Gates

Mt 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Which gate are you at?
And which side of the gate are you on?

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Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay

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