“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
My lovely wife and I are praying for the wife of a man of God we know whose wife does not know the Lord Jesus Christ as her Savior. I want to ask you to contemplate the following words, to ponder them deeply for a while, when I finally get the opportunity to meet this man in heaven and I ask him, “Where is your wife?” If his reply is “Not here, but in hell,” do you believe there will be joy in his heart, do you believe that Psalm 16:11 will be as valuable to him then as it is today?
“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”
It is an impossible question to answer while we still breath the air of this planet, for in a sense what I am asking, both of you and myself, of all those who have been born-again, is can you find the fulness of joy and pleasures forevermore while those you hold close to your heart are suffering eternally?
Is Christ enough?
One may as well ask another question that cannot be answered, are there moments of solace for those in torment in hell in the knowledge that some they loved here will live forever in the Kingdom of the Almighty God?
Perhaps Isaiah 65:17 just entered into your mind, “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” And although I could be wrong here, I do not believe that means everyone’s memory will be wiped clean of this life, for the last verse of Isaiah stands as a truth. “And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.” (Isaiah 66:24)
We will forever see the scars in the hands and feet of our Savior and will always remember the price He paid for us.
I offer conjecture here only, for no one alive today can answer these questions, but I suggest that the love we now have for the Lord Jesus Christ will finally be realized in all its fullness, and that He will be enough. That His judgment in these matters will be known to us as righteous and true.
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Rev. 21:4)
It is impossible to understand, but will you no longer love deeply the ones you loved here when the knowledge is imparted to you that they are going to suffer eternal torment is finally realized? Can a deeply devoted love be so easily cast away? Can your love for the Lamb of God overshadow all other loves that you have for everyone you have ever known?
Can you say, “Thy will be done,” and mean it today?
We are going to rejoice on that day when our adversary, hell and death are cast into the eternal burning Lake of Fire, along with those you loved here. It is a subject few will broach, but it must be contemplated, because for each of us it will happen, each of us that will live forever in the presence of the fullness of joy are going to have the knowledge that someone we loved is going to suffer beyond all comprehension of the human mind for all eternity.
Do you love the Lord enough to accept His will in this matter? Can you find pleasures forevermore with this truth? Is the Lord Jesus Christ truly your Shepherd, can you follow Him knowing that some you love deeply never will?
“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16)
Do not stop praying for them, but prepare your heart to accept His will.
