Matthew 25:31-46

“There is nothing that keeps wicked men at any one moment out of hell, but the mere pleasure of God…Your wickedness makes you, as it were, heavy as lead, and to tend downwards with great weight and pressure towards hell; and if God should let you go, you would immediately sink, and swiftly descend and plunge into the bottomless gulf, and all of your righteousness, would have no more influence to uphold you, and keep you out of hell, than a spider’s web would have to stop a falling rock. If God should only withdraw His hand from the floodgate, it would immediately fly open, and the fiery floods of the fierceness and wrath of God, would rush forth with inconceivable fury, and would come upon you with omnipotent power; and if your strength were ten thousand times greater than it is, yea ten thousand times greater than the strength of the stoutest, sturdiest, devil in hell, it would be nothing to withstand or endure it. The bow of God’s wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice directs the bow to your heart, and strains at the bow; and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, and that of an angry God, without any promise or obligation at all, that keeps the arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood.”
Jonathan Edwards, 18th Century Christian leader

The vast majority of direct references to the place called Hell comes from Jesus Himself.

I. Righteousness/Holiness

II. Justice

III. Love/Wrath

Hell is reserved, not for those souls who seek God yet struggle, but for those who defy God and rebel. The Ultimate Choice of where we will spend eternity belongs to each one of us.

Nothing impure will ever enter heaven, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Revelation 21:27

“I willingly believe that the damned are, in one sense, successful rebels to the end; that the doors of hell are locked on the inside.”
C.S. Lewis

Revelation 21:1-8

1. It will be a lot like the new me.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
II Peter 3:9-13

2. It will be a lot like the first earth. (John 14:1-6)

3. It will be infinitely better because of new things.

a. You will have a new kind of relationship with God.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
Revelation 21:1-3

b. You will have a new kind of relationship with your past.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Revelation 21:4-5

c. You will have a new kind of satisfaction.

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars – they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
Revelation 21:6-8

d. There will be a new city and people to enjoy.

e. There will be a new earth with new nations.

The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of the lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
Revelation 21:24 – 22:5

He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40: 29-31

1. God wants to renew your strength.

Waiting on God is moving in the right direction.

2. Wait with an attitude of hope.

While you’re waiting on God, God is working on you.

3. Power comes from waiting and patience.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Galatians 5:22

But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
James 1:4

4. God is patiently waiting on you.

As you do what you can do, God will do what He can do.

He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:8-9

Matthew 20:20-28

I. Greatness is not a position.

Find something you can do and do it!

II. Greatness is not about power.

How to know you are abusing authority:
a. Keep reminding people of your position.
b. Expect or demand privilege.
c. Comfortable with personal praise.
d. Resenting or reacting to challenges to your authority.
e. Unmoved by an individual’s pain.

III. Greatness is about serving.

I can’t change the world but I can change my own destiny. I’m going to be a servant.

God is calling you to greatness and greatness comes through serving.

Whatever your hand finds you to do, do it with all your might. For it is the Lord Christ that you are serving.”
Colossians 3:23-24

John 13:34–35; 1 Corinthians 13:5

Question 1 -
The INTEGRITY Question:
Am I being honest with myself... really?

Question 2 -
The LEGACY Question: What story do I want to tell?

Question 3 -
The CONSCIENCE Question:
Is there a tension that deserves my attention?

Question 4 -
The MATURITY Question: What is the wise thing to do?

Question 5 -
The RELATIONSHIP Question: What does love require of me?

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”
John 13:34


By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.
John 13:35

Jesus followers would demonstrate their devotion to God by putting the person next to them in front of them.

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Gentleness, Faithfulness, Self-control
Galatians 5:22-23

Ephesians 5:15–16

Question 1 - The INTEGRITY Question:
Am I being honest with myself... really?


Question 2 -
The LEGACY Question:
What story do I want to tell?

Question 3 -
The CONSCIENCE Question:
Is there a tension that deserves my attention?

Question 4 -
The MATURITY Question: What is the wise thing to do?

The prudent see danger and take refuge...but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
Proverbs 27:12


Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:15-16

Verse 16 - Making the most of every opportunity...because the days are evil.

In light of my past experience, my current circumstances, and my future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing for me to do?

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
James 1:5

The prudent see danger and take refuge but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
Proverbs 27:12


Question 1 - The INTEGRITY Question: Am I being honest with myself... really?

Question 2 -
The LEGACY Question: What story do I want to tell?

Question 3 -
The CONSCIENCE Question: Is there a tension that deserves my attention?


Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7

“The prudent see danger and take refuge but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.”
Proverbs 27:12

Week 1 - The Integrity Question: “Am I being honest with myself? Really?"

Week 2 – The Legacy Question: “What story do I want to tell?”

Every decision and the outcome of that decision becomes part of your story, which means decision-by-decision you are writing the story of your life.

Whenever we’re in an emotionally charged decision-making environment we usually think in terms of our options – not our stories. This is a time to press pause, not play.

“With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”
Genesis 39:8-9

So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.”
Genesis 41:38-40

Ask God to help you write a life story that you’ll be proud to tell.

The prudent see danger and take refuge but the simple keep going
and pay the penalty.
Proverbs 27:12

The easiest person to deceive is the person in the mirror.

Question One: Am I being honest with myself…really?

“The human understanding when it has once adopted an opinion... draws all things else to support and agree with it. And though there be a greater number and weight of instances to be found on the other side, yet these it either neglects or despises, or else by some distinction sets aside and rejects.”
—Francis Bacon (Seventeenth-century English philosopher)

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet.
2 Chronicles 36:12

The heart is deceitful above all things...
Jeremiah 17:9


“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure…”
Jeremiah 17:9

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”
Jeremiah 17:9

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Matthew 6:19 (English Standard Version)

And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Luke 12:16-21 (English Standard Version)

1. Your heart follows your investment.

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:21

2. Our God has created us to pour not store!

“… I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain.”
Luke 12:18

“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
Luke 12:21 NIV

Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.”
Luke 9:12 NIV

He [Jesus] replied, “You give them something to eat.” They answered, “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish …”
Luke 9:13 NIV

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Luke 9:16-17 NIV

3. What you keep is all you have, but what you give, God multiplies.

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”
Malachi 3:10 NIV