‘Folie Á Deux’ Portrays The Joker As Not Just A Villain But A Sinner

Musical choices throughout the film set the stage for an ultimate judgment, not just in the eyes of the ardent fans, but in the eyes of God.

Will people in hell repent and be saved by God? The Bible's answer is clear



According to the Bible, what will hell be like?

The descriptions are awful, and the occupants are unsettling. Jesus said "the devil and his angels" would be there (Matthew 25:41). He taught that the unrighteous would be there (Matthew 25:41-46). John the apostle described it as "the second death" (Revelation 21:8) and the "lake of fire" (Revelation 20:15). It is a place of unceasing punishment (Revelation 20:10; Matthew 25:46), and thus it is a place from which there is no escape.

Growing up, I used to imagine that those who go to hell would, at some point (and probably sooner than later), come to their senses and repent. If the prodigal in the parable (Luke 15:11-32) came to his senses when he was eating pig slop, surely the horrors of hell would provoke deep sorrow and repentance.

Have you ever wondered whether there will be repentance in hell? Should we imagine that those in hell will eventually cry out to God for salvation, only to have their cries rejected? Will they plead for his redemption, pledge themselves to him, and renounce their wickedness, only to have their desperate cries met with divine contempt?

We should not imagine those things because we have no biblical reason to suppose that the wicked will ever be repentant in hell.

Hell is full of hardened hearts. And repentance doesn't flow from a hardened heart. Repentance is a gift of God. It is a work of the Holy Spirit. And in the New Testament, repentance is unto salvation.

Will they wish they weren't in hell? Yes. Will they wish the punishment would cease? Of course. Consider the language of the rich man in Luke 16, when he says, "I am in anguish in this flame" (Luke 16:24) and describes his abode as "this place of torment" (Luke 16:28).

Jesus described the emotions of hell's occupants when he said, "The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 13:41-42; see also Matthew 24:51).

Should we imagine this "weeping" as being tears of repentance? No repentance is specified. Weeping is not the only thing mentioned. We read about weeping and gnashing of teeth. Together, that pair of descriptions — tears and teeth — is an image of distress and rage. The "gnashing of teeth" denotes rage and hostility. The inhabitants of hell are hostile, angry, rageful.

Hell is full of hardened hearts. And repentance doesn't flow from a hardened heart. Repentance is a gift of God. It is a work of the Holy Spirit. And in the New Testament, repentance is unto salvation. There is never true repentance without salvation. Peter said, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins" (Acts 2:38). When addressing those who might be opposed to the gospel, Paul said, "God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will" (2 Timothy 2:25-26). And, of course, Paul is talking about people alive on earth, not about people in hell.

Faith and repentance are the result of the gracious work of the Spirit, as the Lord opens our eyes to see the ugliness of our sin and the beauty of redemption. He convicts us, and we experience genuine contrition, a godly sorrow. According to Paul, "Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death" (2 Corinthians 7:10).

Those in hell will never desire to worship God. They will never love the Lord. They will never repent. Instead, their hardness of heart will bear the fruit of all the horrors of sin.

If there is any grief in hell, it is a worldly grief and not a godly grief. Godly grief produces repentance, the repentant are saved, and God is glorified because his Spirit's merciful work illuminates the sinner's heart and reveals the glory of Christ to him.

It is unthinkable that repentant people would not be saved. And because those in hell will not be delivered from their judgment, there can be no genuine repentance in them. The Spirit will not produce repentance in the hearts of the wicked who cannot be redeemed from the second death.

There will not be any saving grace or common grace in hell. There will only be the unrestrained rage of the godless, who, in their unending unrepentance, will indulge their blasphemies and hatred to the uttermost. If heaven is a place of love and hope, hell is a place of hate and despair.

Those in hell will never desire to worship God. They will never love the Lord. They will never repent. Instead, their hardness of heart will bear the fruit of all the horrors of sin. The wicked in hell will be embodiments of iniquity, living manifestations of spiritual darkness. They will never want to flee to Christ, for they will despise him and blaspheme him forever.

When we reflect on the abode of the wicked, let us rejoice that there is good news of a Savior who welcomes sinners to him even now. When people flee to Christ, he will never refuse them. In fact, he saves them and keeps them — forever.

This article was originally published by Dr. Mitchell Chase at his Substack, Biblical Theology.

Street preacher says Subway worker refused to serve him over his T-shirt condemning homosexuality with biblical reference



A street preacher said a Subway worker in Wisconsin recently refused to serve him over his T-shirt displaying a phrase condemning homosexuality as a sin.

Rich Penkoski told the Christian Post he was wearing a T-shirt displaying the phrase "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1" when an interaction took place — which was recorded on video — in the Waunakee restaurant. Penkoski was traveling with other pastors after preaching outside the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, the Post added. Waunakee is about an hour and 20 minutes west of Milwaukee.

'If the shoe were on the other foot, if somebody walked in and said, 'Oh, I'm gay' or whatever, and I said, 'Nope, I'm not serving you,' this would be all over the place, and I'd be fired, or I'd be getting sued.'

David Grisham, apparently also one of the street preachers, posted a Facebook message Tuesday with multiple photos saying, "This person working at Subway in Waunakee Village Mall refused to serve us because of our Christian T-shirts. Christophobic bigotry should not be tolerated. Please give Subway corporate a call." It isn't clear on what date the interaction occurred.

One of the photos Grisham posted shows four men outside a Subway wearing T-shirts displaying phrases such as, "Abortion is murder," "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1," and "Planned Parenthood murders children and rapes their mothers."

Grisham posted video of the interaction in the Subway, writing in the caption, "Subway Karen refuses to serve street preachers because of Christian T-shirts in Waukanee [sic] Wisconsin." The following is how the exchange went down:

"Are you refusing to service customers? She's refusing to serve us," one man says in the clip. "She just said she's refusing to serve us."

"What are you talking about?" another man asks.

"This girl right here said she's refusing to serve us," the first man replies.

"So we have to go somewhere else?" a third man wonders.

"I want her to say it again," the first man says.

"I am refusing you service," the Subway worker behind the counter replies.

As for her reasons for the refusal, she soon says it's a "personal matter."

The first man asks if it's "because of my T-shirt?"

She replies, "Yes."

"OK, [I'm] sure Subway Corporate will love to hear that," the first man replies.

The Christian Post reported that the Subway employee speaking in the video was referring to Penkoski's "Homo sex is sin: Romans 1" T-shirt.

"If the shoe were on the other foot, if somebody walked in and said, 'Oh, I'm gay' or whatever, and I said, 'Nope, I'm not serving you,' this would be all over the place, and I'd be fired, or I'd be getting sued," Penkoski told the Post.

Penkoski added to the Post, "But these LGBT people are so emboldened that they think just because they're either gay or gay allies, they can say and do whatever they want. So if they really want equality, then they should be OK with me suing them the same way they sue us."

Penkoski said he has spoken with his attorney about possible legal action against Subway for a civil rights violation, the Post added.

Grisham noted in a Facebook comment that his group "did NOT purposely try to antagonize anyone. We just went in for a sandwich. A local pastor was buying us dinner, and we had only been inside for less than a minute and hadn’t said a word to anyone. She just saw our shirts and blurted out profanity and said she wouldn’t serve us. REASONABLE people are reasonable when it comes to differences of opinion and are professional enough to just serve someone without letting their emotions go into elementary schoolyard mode and whine publicly."

Grisham noted in another comment that "if we had been homosexuals with rainbow shirts, and they refused us service, there would be riots in the streets."

But plenty of commenters on Grisham's Facebook posts about the incident pushed back hard. To wit:

  • "Learn the difference between Christianity and Christian nationalism," one commenter shot back. "[You] all are simply bigots, and that’s why she refused you service."
  • "I wouldn’t serve you, either," another commenter said. "You wear disgusting shirts like that to get a reaction out of people. Good job. You got your reaction."
  • "Subway will not take your side, nor will any reasonably minded person," another commenter declared before adding, "You are not a Christian in any way shape or form."
  • "Having these kinds of shirts on and calling them 'religious T-shirts' is a CRAZZYYY reach," another commenter wrote. "Speaks volumes to the values of your religious priorities, I guess. You're always welcome to have freedom of speech, not freedom of consequence. To everyone saying you should sue based on 'religious discrimination' has (1) never seen the shirts you guys were actually wearing or (2) is grossly misinformed as to how the legal system actually works. The prosecutors would laugh it out the courthouse in an hour."

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 sided with Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips after he refused to make a cake celebrating a same-sex wedding. But last October, the Colorado Supreme Court said it would take up a lawsuit from transgender plaintiff Autumn Scardina against Phillips after he refused to make a cake to celebrate Scardina's gender transition.

The Christian Post said Subway's corporate office did not respond to its request for comment by time of publication.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

This ‘He Saves Us’ Ad Redeems Everything Wrong With The ‘He Gets Us’ Super Bowl Spot

Jesus preached a gospel of radical repentance, not tolerance or acceptance of sin.

The Six Christians Martyred In Nashville Are A Call To Repentance To All Who Will Hear It

It should be no surprise that worshippers of demons identify Christians as their worst enemy.

Simple Observances For Lent, A Season That Can Help Christians Prepare For Persecution

Amid our culture's deepening darkness, there's no better response than to repent, fast, and pray. That's what Lent is all about.

The Most Famous New Year’s Day Hymn, ‘Amazing Grace,’ Celebrates 250 Years

Anglican priest and former slave ship captain John Newton's hymn, 'Amazing Grace,' has been sung more than 10 million times over 250 years.

David Berkowitz, The ‘Son Of Sam’ Killer, Serves Six Life Sentences By Serving Others

'This platform has allowed me to show both people of faith and anyone else who might be interested in what God is doing behind prison walls,' Berkowitz said.

Post Op-Ed: If Trump Voters Get On Their Knees And Beg, The Left Might Forgive Them

Most striking of Harvard professor Nancy Gibbs’s advice to former Trump voters is its heavy use of religious language and calls for penitential acts in reparations for past sins.