Chapter 4 

More Pits 

The next night Jesus and I went again into the right leg of hell. I saw as before the love Jesus had for the souls that are lost in hell. And I felt His love for me and for all those who were on earth. 

"Child," He said to me, "it is not the Father's will that anyone perish. Satan deceives many, and they follow him. But God is forgiving. He is a God of love. If these had truly come unto the Father and repented, He would have forgiven them." Great tenderness covered Jesus' face as He spoke. 

Again we walked among the flaming pits and passed by more people in the torments I described earlier. My Lord, my Lord, such horrors! I thought. On and on we walked past many, many souls burning in hell. 

All along the pathway burning hands reached out to Jesus. There were only bones where the flesh should have been-a grayish mass with burning and decayed flesh hanging in shreds. Inside each frame of their skeleton form was a dirty-gray mist-soul caught inside a dry skeleton forever. I could tell by their cries that they felt the fire, the worms, the pain, the hopelessness. And their cries filled my soul with a grief so great I cannot describe it. If only they had listened, I thought, they would not be here. 

I knew that the lost in hell had all their senses. They remembered all that was ever told them. They knew there was no way out of the flames and that they were lost forever. Yet, without hope, they still hoped as they cried out to Jesus for mercy. 

We stopped at the next pit. It was exactly like all the others. Inside it was the form of a woman, which I knew by her voice. She cried out to Jesus for deliverance from the flames. 

Jesus looked on the woman with love and said, "While you were on earth, I called you to come to ,I Me. I pleaded with you to get your heart right with I Me before it was too late. I visited you many times in the midnight hour to tell you of My love. I wooed! you, loved you and drew you to Me by My Spirit. 

"Yes Lord,' you said, 'I will follow You,' With your lips you said you loved Me, but your heart did not mean it. I knew where your heart was. I often sent my messengers to you to tell you to repent of your sins and come to Me, but you would not hear Me. I wanted to use you to minister to others, to help others to find Me. But you wanted the world and not Me. I called you, but you would not hear Me, nor would you repent of your sins." 

The woman said to Jesus, "You remember, Lord, how I went to church and was a good woman. I joined the church. I was a member of Your church. I knew Your call was on my life. I knew I had to obey that call at all costs, and I did." 

Jesus said, "Woman, you are still full of lies and sin. I called you, but you would not hear Me! True, you were a member of a church, but being a church member did not get you to heaven. Your sins were many, and you did not repent. You caused others to stumble at My Word. You would not forgive others when they hurt you. You pretended to love and serve Me when you were with Christians, but when you were away from Christians, you lied, cheated and stole. You gave heed to seducing spirits and enjoyed your double life. You knew the straight and narrow way." 

"And," Jesus said, "you also had a double tongue. You talked about your brothers and sisters in Christ. You judged them and thought you were holier than they, when there was gross sin in your heart. This I know, you would not listen to My sweet Spirit of compassion. You judged the outside of a person, without regard to the fact that many were children in the faith. You were very hard. 

"Yes, you said you loved Me with your lips, but your heart was far from Me. You knew the ways of the Lord and you understood. You played with God, and God knows all things. If you had sincerely served God, you would not be here today. You cannot serve Satan and God at the same time." 

Jesus turned to me and said, "Many in the last days will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and will serve sin. Come out from among them, and be separate. Walk not in the way with them." As we walked away, the woman began to curse and swear at Jesus. She screamed and cried with rage. We walked on. I was so weak in body. 

In the next pit was the form of another skeleton. I smelled the odor of death even before we arrived. This skeleton looked the same as the others. 

I wondered what this soul had done that it should be lost and hopeless, with no future except an eternity in this dreadful place. Hell is for eternity. As I heard the crying of the souls in torment, I cried too. 

I listened as a woman spoke to Jesus from the flames of the pit. She was quoting the Word of God. "Dear Lord, what is she doing here?" I asked. 

"Listen," said Jesus. 

The woman said, "Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by Him. Jesus is the Light of the World. Come to Jesus, and He will save you." 

When she spoke, many of the lost souls around her listened. Some swore and cursed at her. Some told her to stop. Still others said, "Is there really hope?" or "Help us, Jesus." Great cries of sorrow filled the air. 

I didn't understand what was happening. I did not know why the woman was preaching the gospel here. 

The Lord knew my thoughts. He said, "Child, I called this woman at the age of thirty to preach My Word and to be a witness of the gospel. I call different ones for different purposes in My body. But if man or woman, boy or girl doesn't want My Spirit, I will depart. 

"Yes, she did answer My call for many years, and she grew in the knowledge of the Lord. She learned My voice, and she did many good works for Me. She studied the Word of God. She prayed often, and she had many prayers answered. She taught many people the way of holiness. She was faithful in her house. 

"The years went by until one day she found out that her husband was having an affair with another woman. And even though he asked for forgiveness, she grew bitter and would not forgive him and try to save her marriage. True, her husband was wrong, and he did commit a very grave sin. 

"But this woman knew My Word. She knew to forgive, and she knew that with every temptation there is a way of escape. Her husband asked her to forgive him. She would not. Instead, anger took root. Anger grew inside her. She would not turn it over to Me. She turned more bitter each day and said in her heart, 'Here I am serving God all the way, and my husband is running around with another woman! 'Do you think that is right?' She said to Me. 

"I said, 'No, it is not right. But he came to you and repented and said he would never do that again. 

"I told her, 'Daughter, look inside yourself, and see that you have caused this yourself” 

"'Not me, Lord,' she said, 'I am the holy one, and he is the sinful one.' She would not listen to Me. 

"Time went on, and she wouldn't pray to Me or read the Bible. She became angry not only at her husband, but also at those around her. She quoted the Scriptures, but she would not forgive him. 

"She would not listen to Me. Her heart grew bitter, and great sin entered in. Murder grew in her heart where love had once been. And one day, in her anger, she killed her husband and the other woman. Satan then took her over completely, and she killed herself. " 

I looked at that lost soul that had given up Christ and condemned her soul forever to the flames and the pain. I listened as she responded to Jesus. "I will forgive now, Lord,” she said. "Let me out. I will obey You now. See, Lord, I am preaching Your Word now. In an hour demons will come to take me to be tormented even worse. For hours they will torture me. Because I was preaching your Word, my torments are worse. Please, Lord, I beg You to let me out." 

I cried with the woman in the pit and asked the Lord to please keep me from all bitterness of heart. "Don't let me allow hatred to come into my heart, Lord Jesus,” I said. 

"Come, let us go on," Jesus said. 

In the next pit was the soul of a man wrapped in its skeleton form, crying out to Jesus. "Lord," he cried, "help me to understand why I am here." 

Jesus said, "Peace, be still. You understand why you are here." 

"Let me out, and I will be good," the man begged. 

The Lord said to him, "Even in hell you are still lying. " 

Jesus then turned to me and said, "This man was 23 years old when he came here. He would not listen to My gospel. He heard My Word many times and was often in My house. I drew him by My Spirit unto salvation, but he wanted the world and its lust. He liked to drink and would not heed My call. He was raised in the church, but he would not commit himself to Me. One day he said to Me, 'I will give my life to You one day, Jesus.' But that day never came. One night after a party, he was in a car wreck and was killed. Satan deceived him to the very end. 

"He was killed instantly. He would not listen to My call. Others were also killed in the accident. Satan's work is to kill, steal and destroy. If only this young man had listened! It is not the Father's will that any perish. Satan wanted this man's soul, and he destroyed it through carelessness, sin and strong drink. Many homes and lives are destroyed every year because of alcohol." 

If people could only see that the lusts and desires of the world are only for a season! If you come to the Lord Jesus, He will deliver you from strong drink. Call on Jesus, and He will hear you and help you. He will be your friend. Remember He loves you, and He also has the power to forgive your sins. 

Married Christians, Jesus warns that you must not commit adultery. And desiring someone of the opposite sex, even when you don't commit adultery, could be adultery in your heart. 

Young people, stay away from drugs and sex sins. If you have sinned, God will forgive you. Call on Him now while there is still time. Find strong Christian adults, and ask them if you can talk with them about your problems. You will be glad that you took the time now in this world before it is too late. 

Satan comes as an angel of light to deceive the world. No wonder the sins of the world look tempting to this young man, even though he knew God's Holy Word. One more party, he thought, Jesus will understand. But death has no mercy. He waited too late. 

I looked at the soul of the man, and I was reminded of my own children. "Oh God, may they serve You!" I know that many of you who are reading this have loved ones, maybe children, that you do not want to go to hell. Tell them about Jesus before it is too late. Tell them to repent of their sins and that God will forgive them and make them holy. 

The man's cries rang inside me for days. I will never forget his cries of regret. I remember the flesh hanging and burning in the flames. I cannot forget the decay, the smell of death, holes where eyes once were, the dirty-gray souls and the worms that crawled through the bones. The form of the young man raised his arms toward Jesus pleadingly as we walked away toward the next pit. 

"Dear Lord," I prayed, "give me the strength to go on. 

I heard a woman's voice crying out in desperation. Cries of the dead were everywhere. 

Soon we came to the pit where the woman was. She was pleading with all her soul for Jesus to take her out of there. "Lord," she said, "haven't I been here long enough? My torment is more than I can bear. Please, Lord, let me out!" Sobs shook her form, and such pain was in her voice. I knew she was suffering greatly. 

I said, "Jesus, is there nothing You can do?" 

Jesus then spoke to the woman. "While you were on earth," He said, "I called and called for you to come to Me. I pleaded with you to get your heart right with Me, to forgive others, to do right, to stay out of sin. I even visited you in the midnight hour and drew you by My Spirit time after time. With your lips you said you loved Me, but your heart was far from Me. Didn't you know that nothing can be hidden from God? You fooled others, but you could not fool Me. I sent still others to tell you to repent, but you would not listen. You would not hear, you would not see, and in anger you turned them away. I placed you where you could hear My Word. But you would not give your heart to Me. 

"You were not sorry, nor were you ashamed of what you were doing. You hardened your heart and turned Me away. Now you are lost and forever undone. You should have listened to Me." 

At this, she looked at Jesus and began to swear and to curse God. I felt the presence of evil spirits and knew that it was they who were cursing and swearing. How sad to be lost forever in hell! Resist the devil while you still may, and he will flee from you. 

Jesus said, "The world and all that is in it will pass away, but my words will not pass away." 

 

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