Why I'm Mourning the Death of Hugh Hefner

Why I'm mourning the death of Hugh Hefner

This morning I saw the news announcement that Hugh Hefner had died. I fact-checked, because these internet hoaxes of celebrity deaths are all too common. When I found it to be true I was suddenly overwhelmed with grief. I mean staggering, weak-in-the-knees grief. Scripture upon Scripture played through my mind on a reel and I had to kneel and catch my breath. The realization of where this man's soul is and what he is facing and already enduring was too much to bear.

The punch in the gut effect came next: A vision of him kneeling before Jesus and facing all of his sin, hands covered in innocent blood, wailing before the Lord as he realized how he had spent his life. 

When I came face to face with Christ in spirit, I knew I never wanted to live without Him again. I can't imagine coming face to face with Him in full glory, only to discover I will now live eternity separated from Him. There is no second chance in death. It's final. Hugh's sentence is final. 

I skimmed the brief article about his passing before my attention was grabbed by the comments others had left. How disheartening it was to see how disillusioned and lost people truly are. 

"At least he's in a better place now...Nah! Who am I kidding? He lived heaven on earth!" 

"He lived one hell of a life! Heaven is probably going to be mediocre to him." 

"When you knock on heaven's door and pass through the gate, save me a seat at the bar. So when I get there we can sit and talk a while." 

"One of the few people that it's been said that when he dies and goes to heaven it will be a step down." 

Seriously? I mean, seriously? Is this for real? 

This man spent his life using and objectifying women. He spent his life making millions of dollars on the blood of the innocent. He spent his life making money by luring people into lives of addiction, sin, oppression, and abuse. 

I know, I know. We are all going to list his resume of good deeds now, right? He fought for racial and marriage equality. Donated to charities. Yada, Yada, Yada. 

Scripture is very clear when it says that none of us are good in ourselves or our own deeds. The only path to salvation is through Jesus Christ. The fruit of Hugh Hefner's life does not declare a faith in Christ. This man stood for everything that Christ came to save us from. 

My heart aches knowing this soul was lost, along with so many he influenced along the way. Blinded by lust and greed, he was led astray, and he took millions with him down the path of destruction. 

My soul aches for his as he must now suffer the punishment for his choices. He must now face the God he denied and disobeyed, mocked and ignored. The God who created him, and the God he sinned against at every turn. 

I ache for him, because I know my God aches for him. I grieve as I feel the intense grief of the Holy Spirit over this loss. Not the earthly loss of an icon to man, but the eternal loss of a soul that was loved and cherished by God. A Father grieves as the Lord in Him must be just. 

Some may read this and declare they refuse to believe in a God who would punish His children or sentence them to eternal damnation. It is your right to choose. He will not force anyone to love Him. What kind of love is that really? But your unbelief doesn't make Him any less real. Your denial doesn't change who God is—every facet of Him. He is a loving Father. And he is the just Judge of good and evil. We all make choices and we do eventually have to face the consequences of our actions. The people of this world glorified this man in life and mock heaven as they compare it to how he lived. He isn't living in some Playboy Mansion in the sky. He isn't surrounded by bunnies or angels or sexy women. He isn't living it up in a glorified body. He isn't standing around in his smoking jacket with a drink in his hand. 

He is probably screaming in agony. Tortured by the glimpse of what heaven truly is, knowing he will never be a part of it. Blinded—not to the truth anymore—but by the truth. The truth of Jesus Christ. The Savior he shunned for his riches and life of sexual immorality and partying. There is no celebrating this man's life or death. There is nothing to celebrate here. 

I have no doubt that God gave this man many opportunities to hear His Word and to repent throughout his 91years of life. 

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:9 

But once we make our choice and harden our hearts to God, He will honor that decision. 

"When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, orgies, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God." Galatians 5:19-21

"But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting." Matthew 18:6-7

"One day Jesus said to His disciples, 'There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting! It would be better to be thrown into the seas with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to fall into sin. So watch yourselves!'" Luke 17:1-3

"Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever." 1 John 2:15-17

"Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death." James 1:15-16

"And don't forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with sexual immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God's judgment." Jude 7

"He will come with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don't know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from His glorious power." 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9

Other passages to read for understanding are Romans Chapter 3 and Mark 10:17-31

I mourn for Hugh on the basis of things I cannot even comprehend in their entirety. 

He spent a lifetime tempting people from the youth who stumbled across an old magazine tucked away somewhere to the adults who paid hard-earned dollars to purchase his magazines, movies, etc. 

He set a standard of what women are supposed to look like and act like that rebelled against the call of purity and modesty God has placed on us. He exploited our uniqueness and captivating beauty. 

He grew rich on the blood of innocent girls and by tempting innocent boys. 

He was the back alley dealer, feeding the addiction to pornography to fearful husbands or even ashamed wives. He glorified sexual sin, pornography, orgies, wild parties, promiscuity, drunkenness, lustful desires, and lewdness. 

People will talk and joke. People will make a mockery of heaven as they idolize Hugh Hefner and the sinful lifestyle he not only lived, but encouraged. I pray these people will be consumed by the Spirit of God. I pray they will have a Road to Damascus experience in which their wanton eyes are blinded to the world and the eyes of their spiritual understanding are opened to see the fullness of Christ and His sacrifice of love for them. The Kingdom of Jesus has offered them far more than Hugh Hefner's empire ever has: freedom, eternal life, peace, joy, love, kindness, mercy, patience, long-suffering, forgiveness. 

I mourn for Hugh, because it's too late for his soul. I pray for his family who mourns the loss of a father. I pray for those entrapped by the enemy and his lies and the oppression of addiction to porn. I pray for freedom and that these chains be broken by the power of the blood of Jesus. I pray for those who are lost and disillusioned about what heaven really is and what this world truly offers in comparison. They are blind, but I pray they come to see before it's too late for them too.