Are You Afraid Of The Dark?

Are You Afraid Of The Dark?

Are you afraid of the dark? I admit that I was when I was a little kid. All of my kids also had night lights when they were younger because they too were afraid of the dark. People make fun of you if you are afraid of the dark when you get older. But I’m not trying to make fun of you, instead, I’m sincerely asking: are you afraid of the dark? I’m asking this question tonight because there are some people who should be afraid of the dark.

Yes, you heard me correctly, there are some people that should be afraid of the dark. Who are these people you ask? Well, that’s an excellent question. The answer is, every single person that has never repented and surrendered their life to Jesus. Yes, every single one. If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Savior, then you should be afraid of the dark. Not only should you be afraid of the dark, but knowing where you are headed, should cause you sleepless nights.

I say this because the demons know who Jesus is and they tremble in fear. Unbelievers, are you dumber than a demon? Demons are dumb because they follow Satan instead of God. They know the pain and suffering that awaits them. That’s why they have enough sense to fear Jesus. For those who are walking by tonight that don’t know the Lord Jesus, do you fear Him? Do you fear Jesus and the judgment to come?

God’s Enemy

Not only should you fear Jesus, but your unbelief in Jesus, your rebellion against God, makes you God’s enemy. This also should scare you. Think about this, you the created being, have made yourself an enemy to the great Creator. Again, if you have not repented from your sins and put your trust in Jesus, then you are God’s enemy. How dumb is that?

Unbelievers, unrepentant sinners, in addition to being dumber than a demon, even worse than making yourself God’s enemy is the darkness that you should be afraid of and chances are, you probably are not the slightest bit afraid of it. But you should be. The eternal damnation that you will face if you die in your sins, should cause you anxiety like you’ve never known before.

Wedding Feast

Oh, but if you foolishly die in your sins as a rebel against Almighty God, you will fear the darkness and not just for a short time, but for all eternity. And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.

Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.

How Did You Get In Here?

The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:1-14)

King Called The Wedding Guest Friend

The king called the wedding guest friend, but the wedding guest was not clothed in a wedding garment. In other words, the guest was not clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. Instead, he was still dead in his trespasses and sins. He had made himself an enemy to God. The wedding guest was speechless. He had no excuse for his rebellion against God, no excuse for his rejecting of Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

What happens to the wedding guest in this parable? He is cast into outer darkness where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth. Outer darkness, Hell, eternal damnation, a place of no hope. A place of everlasting pain, agony and torments. It’s a place where people are literally weeping and gnashing their teeth. Oh, this is a place where you should be afraid of. This is darkness like you’ve never experienced before.

Rebellious, unrepentant, unbelievers, I ask you again: are you afraid of the dark? If not, you should be! You should be afraid. The prospects of spending eternity in outer darkness should cause night terrors, sweat drenched, sleepless nights. This should cause you to beat upon your breast, cry out to God, have mercy upon me, a sinner. Oh folks, the prospects of eternal outer darkness should cause you to fall to your knees, cry out to God for forgiveness of your sins. Oh, you need to repent and put your faith in Jesus.

I Will Come And Heal Him

Again, Jesus talked about outer darkness: When he (Jesus) had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.

For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.

I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment (Matthew 8:5-13). Again, Jesus describes Hell as outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Outer Darkness

Jesus told yet another parable that ends with the unrighteous being cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more.

So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’

Well Done Good And Faithful Servant

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’

But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.

So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ (Matthew 25:14-30)

Are You Afraid Of The Dark That Is Outer Darkness?

Are you afraid of the dark? Again, if Jesus is not your Lord and Savior, you should be scared! You should be petrified! I have relayed three different scenarios including two parables and one actual event and in all three of them Jesus talks about outer darkness where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Oh last weekend, we had mocker after mocker stating that they were going to Hell. They laughed about it. Yes, they were proud of the fact that they are headed for Hell. Folks, they don’t understand what Hell is really like. If they understood what Jesus says, that it’s a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, they would not want to go there. If these mockers really understood that Hell is a place of torments, where people have no rest day or night, they would not want to go there. Oh, if unrepentant sinners truly knew that the smoke of their torment would rise forever and ever, they would not want to go there.

Instead of laughing and mocking God, people would be afraid of God. If they really knew what Hell is really like, they would be afraid. Scared like they’ve never been scared in this life. Oh you may not be afraid of the dark now, but you will be. You will be afraid of the dark if you die in your sins and split Hell wide open. Oh, don’t go there. Don’t continue rebelling against God. Don’t continue racing down the broad road to destruction.

Don’t Continue Loving The Darkness And Hating The Light

Folks, don’t continue loving the darkness and hating the light. Come to the Light. Jesus is the Light, the great Light that has come into the world. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” Come out of the darkness and into the light. Come to Jesus Christ the Lord and be saved. Repent from your sins and submit your life to Jesus. Do this today and be saved and you will no longer have to be afraid of the dark.

(This message was lifted up in downtown Springfield, MO on March 29, 2019)