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What Takes Place When the Unconverted Die.
The boy who saw a Christian die also saw what takes place when the unconverted die.
When one man who did not know the Gospel died, his soul, after being liberated from the body, wandered about unhindered from place to place on earth, until one of the devil's angels, descending from the sky with chains, bound him and forced him down to hell. The death of a professing Christian who had known the Lord, but had not truly repented, was still more terrible. When this man was dying, demons by his deathbed waited in fiendish delight for the liberation of the soul of this hypocritical, one-time professing Christian. The demons began to bind him before he was entirely out of the body and completed the binding of their captive the minute he drew his last ungodly breath. The hypocrite did not enjoy one moment of freedom to wander about the earth. An object of ridicule to his demon captors, in terror he was at once dragged and pushed into hell.
One such ungodly man was the special sport of demons who, having bound him in chains, dragged him along on the earth, again and again jerking him up on his feet only again to drag him down and haul him along like a dead dog. After furnishing amusement for his captor the man was dragged down the dark road to the infernal regions.
There was a boy dragged from Adullam to Hell because he had been so bad he was discharged as errand boy by an officer in the army. After seeing him begging on the street for several days we took him into the Adullam Rescue Home. He promised to reform, made an outward showing of decency, heard the Gospel for a considerable time, and professed repentance.
Different articles disappeared from the Home, but the thief was not found until this boy was caught on his way to sell the stolen plunder. We then put him out of the Home.
After several months of beggar life, during which time this boy repeatedly promised to reform if only we would allow him to return, we gave him another chance. The Lord also gave him another chance, for there were manifestations of the Holy Spirit and supernatural revelations sufficient to make the way of life clear to the most simple. This boy himself had anointings of the Holy Spirit, when the Lord dealt directly with him about his sins and showed him the better way. In spite of all this the boy ran away and joined a street gang of beggar-thieves. A few months later he fell and broke his arm, infection set in, and he was about to die when he was picked up by a hospital worker. In the hospital he was so hopelessly disobedient that he was thrown out and was soon in a dying condition on the street. Coming to us with promises of repentance, we pitied him and took him in once more.
Day by day he neared the end of the way. The night before he died I was awakened by unearthly shrieks that sounded like uncanny howls of some wild animal or of some fiend. The next day when the boy died I was away from home. As he lay in death throes, delighted, awful hellish demons gathered about him. When his soul was leaving his body the boy seeing his captors, wept, yelled, shrieked, and cried at the top of his voice in wildest terror; "Mr. Baker, help! help! help! O, Mr. Baker, come quickly ! Mr. Baker, Mr. Baker, Mr. Baker! Help, they are all about me with chains! They have come for me. Help, help, Mr. Baker, help! Oh, oh, oh, help! help! help! They are binding me with chains. Help! help! Oh, oh, oh, help! Oh—h—e—l—"
Visions of Hell
Over and over again children had visions of hell and the lake of fire. The first time any one was under the anointing of the Spirit he usually had a vision of hell. He was bound in chains by demons and taken through a region of darkness. Some children could hear demons all about them in this region. If taken far, they could see a dim light in the distance which proved to be reflections from the lake of fire. Some children were forced so near they could see the lake of fire ahead. All the time they were pleading the blood of Christ, asserting that they would not obey and would not be subject to the slavery of their captors. They believed Jesus would surely save. We have already told how at this climax, before the lake of fire was reached, the Lord did intervene with His blood-bought salvation.
The Bible pictures hell as a place of blackness and darkness, [2] and it teaches that part of the devil's angels are now reserved in chains of darkness awaiting judgment.
The children saw not only darkness in hell, but also the Lake of Fire that was always approached through a region of stygian darkness. [3] In vision they were led to the edge of a great lake of molten fire in a semi-dark pit from which arose clouds of smoke. When the smoke settled low the fire in the lake was less distinct. When the smoke lifted a little, the burning lake with red and greenish flames and its inmates could be distinctly seen.
When the children were peering down into this pit in hell we saw them taking a firm hold on some piece of furniture or getting down on their hands and knees, cautiously bending forward to peep into the infernal regions. They looked a moment and then drew back, afraid lest they fall in. They were horrified at what they saw. Then very cautiously they looked again and drew back. Sometimes the children lay flat on their stomachs, lest they slip and fall while looking over the brink of the lake of fire.
The lost were seen going into hell. Some fell in, some walked over the brink, and some were bound by demon chains and cast into hell by demons. One boy saw groups of the wicked bound in bundles, ready to be cast into this furnace of fire. [4]
When the fire abated and the smoke settled down the moans of the miserable could be heard. When the fire at intervals increased in intensity and the smoke lifted a little there were shrieks and wails of agony.
One person was rolled on the floor and caused to cry out as would a suffering soul in hell.
In the lake of fire were oceans of hands reaching up for help. Those below appealed to those looking in upon them to come to their rescue. We could hear the children talking to them just as you can hear someone talking over the telephone and get but one end of the conversation. We could hear one end of a conversation like this: "I can't help you." "No, I cannot do anything for you." "But when you were alive you would not obey the gospel." "No, it is too late; before you got here I preached to you, but you made fun of me and despised Jesus. Now you know I told you the truth." "No, I cannot do anything; this is the judgment of God." "If you had obeyed, you would now be enjoying heaven with us." After some such conversation the children were led away to enjoy the presence of Jesus in heaven or the glories of the golden streets of the Paradise of God.
Lazarus could see the rich man in hell tormented in flames, and the rich man could talk with Lazarus, but he could not cross the gulf. When Christ reigns as King of Kings upon the earth the redeemed nations will look upon the lost. [5]
One boy saw his grandmother in hell, whom he had tried to win to Christ. She was once a sorceress and murderer who had withstood the gospel she heard in her village and caused many to refuse the light. Other children also had visions of relatives in hell. This tribal boy who saw his grandmother in hell was the boy who saw his little sister and his believing aunt in heaven.
There was no vision of anyone in heaven or the name of anyone on the mansions by the golden streets who did not trust in Jesus. Those in hell were all unbelievers. One night when the Lord spoke through a small boy in wonderful prophecy, among the things he said was, "There will be no one in heaven except those who believe the gospel."
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