Escaping the Flames
As January of 2025 began, people across America watched in horror as wild fires spread quickly toward the great city of Los Angeles, California. It was a combination of fire in the wrong place, fierce Santa Anna winds, horrible drought conditions, and a woeful lack of preparation.
Many were shocked as they saw people fleeing their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Some fled in their cars until a safe route out was no longer possible. Then many abandoned their cars and escaped on foot. Entire neighborhoods, city blocks, thousands of structures and whole schools were burned to the ground, causing power outages and other collateral damage! A total of four hundred eighty fires burned across fifty-seven thousand acres of California. The devastation was epic!
At least thirty-two people lost their lives trying to escape or attempting to rescue others in the process. Reporters described it as: “Apocalyptic,” “Tragic,” “Unbelievable,” “Stunning,” “Heartbreaking.” Yet these words can’t fully explain the dreadful scenes unfolding in LA during the first few weeks of 2025.
Yet the greater tragedy is that warnings were given, and little preparation was made! In December 2023, Tim Sheehy wrote “Mudslingers,” a book chronicling his work as an aerial fire fighter and warning that the current approach of preventing and fighting wildfires is antiquated and ineffective.
Six months before these fires raged, on the top podcast in the country, Joe Rogan warned that a fire of this magnitude would someday occur. “One day, it’s just going to be the right wind, and the fire is going to start in the right place, and it’s going to burn through LA all the way to the ocean.” (July 2024, Joe Rogan Podcast)
One month before the Palisades Fire ignited, a senator from Montana said, though “wildfires cost us hundreds of billions in economic impact, harming millions of Americans each year… our government response hasn’t changed in decades.” He was right. Prevention strategies were deplorably inept, and when some fire departments connected their hoses to certain fire hydrants, there was no water.
Our hearts hurt for the people of LA and our prayers have been lifted for them across America. Many people have contributed much to the recovery efforts and many more stand ready to do whatever else is needed. These events are tragic and difficult to understand, yet they stand as a stark warning of another raging fire every man must escape. This fire is mentioned in the pages of an ancient Book designed both to warn us and point us to the Way of escape. Consider these words:
“A fire is kindled in mine anger and shall burn unto the lowest hell” (Deuteronomy 32::22). “The wicked shelf be turned into hell, and oil the notions that forget God” (Psalm 9:17)- “Hell and destruction are never full” (Proverbs 27:20). “Hell hath enlarged herself and opened her mouth without measure” (Isaiah 5:14). “Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee” (Isaiah 14:9).
When Jesus walked on this earth, He warned often of the fires of Hell. Hear His Words: “Whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire” (Matthew 5:22). “Fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). “And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell” (Matthew 11:23).
The Lord described Hell as a place “where their worm diet not, and the tire is not quenched” (Mark 9:44, 46, 48). He also depicted Hell as a “furnace of hire” (Matthew 13:42, 50). When the Apostle John describes the Bottomless Pit, he refers to it as a “great furnace” (Revelation 9:2).
But why was such a place created and by whom? The answer is clear. It was prepared “for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41 ). It was made for those who led and followed in the rebellion of Heaven. That answers why, but by whom was it prepared? It was prepared by the Creator and Judge of all the earth. God is holy and, as such, He cannot allow sin in His presence. Thus, when Lucifer and one third of the angelic host rebelled, they were cast out of Heaven!
This is where the fire gets close, very close. Because we have sinned and followed Lucifer and Adam’s example, we cannot enter Heaven! God is there, and He is holy. Sin is not allowed. Lt never has been, and it never will be. So, though Hell was not prepared for us, it is where we are headed because we are guilty of sinning against God. “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). This is the raging fire we must flee!
This begs the question Jesus asked the Pharisees “How shall ye escape the damnation of hell” (Matthew 23:33)? Good question! How? The answer may surprise you. To escape an earthly fire, we use our own energy, effort, and common sense to flee in the direction opposite the flame.
Yet to escape this eternal judgment against sin, our effort will never do. There is only one place we can go to escape: the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we go there by faith in God’s Word!
God’s just demand for sin is death. “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). “Sin, when in is finished, bringeth forth death” (James 1:15). When Jesus died on the cross, He did so as God’s Son. He bled and died, satisfying and paying sin’s penalty in full. When He gave up His life, He cried, (tis finished.” This means the payment is complete! Nothing could be added to or taken away from this price! Three days later, Christ conquered sin, death and Hell, by rising bodily from the grave.
How can I escape the fires of Hell? “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. and thou shalt be saved (Acts 1631). We must come to Jesus, acknowledging our guilt as sinners and believing in our heart that He died and rose again. Then we must call upon the name of the Lord Jesus and ask Him to save us. When we do, His promise is clear. “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).
Only the One with nail-pierced hands, who died and rose again, can rescue us from this awful fire of judgment. He did this for me many years ago, and if you will believe on Jesus Christ alone to save you, He will do so for you, right now. “Him that cometh to me l will’ in no wise cost out” (John 6:37).
God’s Word is true! Though it may seem strange, at this moment wherever you are, if you’ll ask Jesus to save you, He will. Simply pray something like this, “Dear Lord Jesus, l know I am a guilty sinner and I deserve sin’s penalty. But your Word says You died and rose again to save me, and believe your Word. I want you to save me from the Fires of Hell. I accept your gift of eternal life just now, by faith! Please come into my heart, wash away my sin and save me. Thank you, Jesus. Amen!”
If you just called upon Christ by faith, He saved you! He always keeps His promises. We would love to hear from you and rejoice with you! Simply scan the QR code and let us know of your decision to believe on Jesus!
Evangelist Dwight Smith
View Sample
Ordering Information
| QTY | PRICE | ORDER |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | $25 | |
| 500 | $125 | |
| 1,000 | $250 | |
| 1,500 | $315 | |
| 2,500 | $485 | |
| 5,000 | $785 | |
| 10,000 | $1085 |
Please Note:
You can have your church’s information included on the back panel for any order of 1,000+ of the same title. There is a one-time imprint fee of $20.00.
Make checks payable to:
Evangelist Dwight Smith
532 Forest Ridge Drive
Shelby, NC 28152