Four Hallmarks of a Hardened Heart

Jesus laid out clearly how people die in their sins. Today we'll examine four characteristics that mark those who are headed for eternal separation from God.

John 8:21, 24 "Then He said again to them, 'I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.' Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."

Can I tell you something? Hell is no laughing matter - it is devastating, it is tragic. At the beginning of John's gospel, the gospel writer had said, "He came unto His own, but His own did not receive Him (John 1:11)." That's the truth folks. The ones that should have been most ripe to receive Jesus, rejected him. Why? Because their hearts were hard. In John 8, Jesus lays it out for us clearly—four hallmarks of those who die in their sins.

First, mock the truth. When Jesus says, "Where I am going, you cannot come," the Jews respond with sarcasm: "Surely He will not kill Himself, will He (John 8:22)?" This wasn't a serious question—this was mocking, derision. They also said, "Is He going to go teach the Greeks?" A little ironic, because yes, the gospel would be preached to the Gentiles, and no, Jesus didn't commit suicide, but He did give up His life voluntarily as a ransom for many.

Hardened hearts are presented with the remedy their soul desperately needs, and they mock it. Some people spend their entire life scoffing at the truth. Then they die in their sins and pay for their sins for all eternity.

Second, love this present world. Jesus says in verse 23, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world." He doesn't mean it's wrong to love the beach or coffee or the people in your life. When Jesus speaks of "this world," He's speaking of the worldly system—the worldview of the world. You can't mix oil and water, light and darkness. You can't mix the world with Jesus Christ.

If you're a Christian, you're saved out of this world. Yes, you live here, but Philippians 3:20 says "our citizenship is in heaven." You're passing through. This is not your home. The world is materialistic, consumeristic, amoral, sexually perverse, covetous, greedy, malicious, violent, slanderous, gossiping, narcissistic, and selfish. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world."

Why is worldliness a hallmark of being hellbound? Because James 4 says "friendship with this world is enmity with God." You cannot love Jesus Christ and love this world. Want to know how worldly you are? How often do you think about the hope of heaven? If you rarely think about where you're going, your mind is more fixed on this present world than your future inheritance.

Third, refuse to believe. Verse 24: "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." This is the ultimate sin that mushrooms into all other iniquity—disbelief in Jesus Christ. Calvin called unbelief "the fountain of every other sin."

In spite of mounting evidence—Jesus banishing disease, casting out demons, cleansing lepers, giving sight to the blind, feeding multitudes—they remained hardened in unbelief. Why? Not because of lack of evidence. John 5:40 tells us: "You are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life." They're unwilling to believe. They don't want to believe.

At the end of the day, there is one ultimate reason why man does not go to heaven and instead goes to hell: they do not believe in Jesus Christ. You go to hell for something you don't do—you don't believe in Jesus. And sometimes unbelief isn't staunch opposition—sometimes it's indifference. The person who looked at Jesus and said "I don't believe you" is in the same place as the guy who said "I don't really know, nor do I care."

Fourth, be blinded by pride. In verse 25, they ask Jesus, "Who are you?" The spirit and tone of that is "Who do you think you are?" The God who is served by angel armies, there with a freshman Pharisee sticking his finger in Jesus's face. This is willful ignorance, patronization, and condescension.

Their problem wasn't lack of exposure to the truth—it was lack of humility to submit to truth incarnate standing right in front of them. Salvation is predicated upon a heart that has been humbled. You don't understand anything about being a follower of Christ if you still think you're something. Romans 3:20 says "every mouth will be shut before a holy God."

These Pharisees truly believed they were good enough for heaven. But if you trust in your morality, you will die in your sins. Isaiah 64:6 says even our righteous deeds are like filthy rags compared to the righteousness of God. And the Pharisees looked at their deeds and said, "These ain't no rags. We're pretty good."

Pride is so damning because God is opposed to the proud. Pride is contending with God for preeminence, and God doesn't share His glory with anyone or anything.

Stay dialed in.