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'Hell' is a popular word in both the media and common speech; but it's rarely talked about in a serious way.

The word originates in the Bible, and the popular mental image is of a red devil sporting a tail, horns and always holding a fork. That's not the biblical image!

So what exactly is hell? The person who spoke of hell in the Bible most was the embodiment of absolute love and compassion - Jesus Christ Himself.

He warned us about it in the same way a loving father warns his children of danger, and He described it as the worst possible place in which we can find ourselves after we die.

He described it as a place of everlasting fire, a place where God will ultimately destroy evil and the devil.

So anyone who claims to be a Christian should also believe in hell, and anyone who is not a Christian should think seriously and urgently about what they believe.

Jesus told the people around Him that everyone is tainted with sin (wrong-doing) and will ultimately face God's judgement, and the only way to escape hell is to believe in Jesus and accept His offer of forgiveness which He - the sinless Son of God - made possible by suffering God's punishment and death, instead of us, by being nailed on to a wooden cross.

Jesus then defeated death by rising again!

Hell holds no fear for those who believe in Jesus. Instead they can look forward to eternity with God in Heaven. And that has to be the best news anyone could possibly read!

David C. Smith Deacon, Parr Street Church, Kendal