Bill Wiese Author of "23 Minutes In Hell" | The Conversation Ep. 58

In this episode, we sit down with a New York Times bestselling author who is on a mission to share the raw truth about hell. In this powerful episode, you will hear about an incredible miracle following a devastating shark attack, the disturbing reality of hell, and how to find hope. Stick around until the very end, where Bill leads a special prayer to accept and know Jesus. 

Hosted by Roxanne Grace, The Conversation is an interview show discussing music, faith and issues of the day with influencers, artists, entertainers and more. 
 
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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey, what's up? I'm Roxanne Grace, the host of the conversation. Today I get to sit down with the author of a book titled 23 Minutes in Hell, and he's gonna share his story. You don't want to miss it, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the conversation. Some of the details we discuss in this episode get pretty heavy and might be disturbing for some listeners. Today I'm chatting with Bill Wees, a real estate agent from Southern California, who says he spent 23 minutes in hell, and now he's on a mission to share the truth. He's also a New York Times best-selling author. And today we're gonna hear about a miracle after a shark attack. We're gonna hear the disturbing truth about hell. And at the end, he's gonna lead listeners in a prayer to know Jesus. You do not want to miss a moment of this life-changing episode. Let's jump in. What's up, Mr. Bill Weiss? How are you today?

SPEAKER_01 0:58

I'm great. Thank you for having me. It's an honor to be with you.

SPEAKER_00 1:01

It's an absolute honor to have you on the program today. I've been anticipating this interview. I have so many questions I want to ask you. I guess we'll do our best to get through it as many as possible in our short time together. Let's jump right into it. We're gonna hear your powerful testimony of how you spent time in hell in just a bit. But first, let's talk about a miracle that took place during a shark attack.

SPEAKER_01 1:23

Yeah, when I was a teenager, 17 years old, I used to surf a lot. And we were off Cocoa Beach, Florida, and a lot of guys out that day. And anyway, a shark tore the lot guy next to me, his leg off. And then these sharks were all around. There was a whole frenzy of sharks and banging into all of us. And the shark came by, bit my board in half, grabbed my leg, and pulled me down under the water.

SPEAKER_02 1:46

Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

And it was longer than my board. It was my board was a nine-foot board, so it was at least ten foot, and it was a tiger shark. If you know anything about sharks, they're vicious, they eat anything, they don't let you go. But he pulled me down on the water, and then for only God did this, he opened his mouth, let me go, and I didn't have a mark in my leg. So that's a miracle of God. He was looking out for me then, and I was not even a Christian. I got saved right after that.

SPEAKER_00 2:11

I bet you did. I feel like a lot of people would praise God. That is certainly a miracle.

SPEAKER_01 2:18

Yeah, and the reason I even share that story is because the fear that I felt, you can kind of imagine what I felt in you know, being in that position. And that fear paled in comparison to what you feel in hell. It wouldn't even register in hell.

SPEAKER_00 2:34

Wow. Let's talk then about what happened November 23rd in 1998. You weren't sick, you weren't having a near-death experience. What happened?

SPEAKER_01 2:44

Well, we went to a prayer meeting that night, uh, my wife and I, like any other normal night. Uh, I had never studied the topic of hell at that point. I have never gone to dark movies, I've never taken drugs, I've never drank, and I never had a vision before. And we came home, I went to bed, my wife and I went to bed. I got up at three o'clock in the morning just to get a glass of water. And suddenly I was pulled out of my body, like being drawn up out of your body. I saw my body fall to the floor, and I found myself falling down this long tunnel, and it was getting hotter and hotter. And I landed on a stone floor in an actual prison cell in hell, rough hewn stone walls, bars, filthy, stinking, dirty pit, but like a dungeon. I wondered, how am I here? How did I get here? Why am I here? And but the first thing I noticed was the intense heat. It was so hot, and uh, and I just screamed out, why am I here? What I didn't have, I had my full uh knowledge, I understood that I was awake and cognizant. And uh I looked up and I saw these walls and bars, and there's there's scripture for everything I'm telling people. That's what's important for people to believe, not my experience. They don't have to believe me, but just on the signpost to point them to the scriptures. Isaiah 24, 22, Proverbs 7, 27, uh, and many other Jobs 17, 16, and I'll talk about prison cells and bars and so forth. But I found myself on the floor and I wanted to get up and run, but I had no physical strength in my body. You're completely void of physical strength in hell. But that's in Isaiah 14, 9 and 10 and Psalms 88, 4, and some others. And uh, but I looked up and I saw these two demons in the cell. They were reptilish in appearance, bumps and scales all over the one's body, uh, huge jaws, sunken in eyes, claws actually about a foot long. And these particular two were actually 12 or 13 feet tall. That's not an exaggeration. There's scripture for that I could give you, but I got to keep moving. Uh, they were pacing in the cell like a vicious caged animal, and they were blaspheming and cursing God. You know, blasphemy comes from the demonic realm, Revelation 13, 6 and James 2, 7 and some others. But then uh they had this hatred for God and then they directed it towards me. I wonder why I would have it done to them. But this one demon picked me up, threw me into the wall of the prison cell. I collapsed on the floor. I felt as if every bone in my body had broken. Even though a spirit doesn't have bones, it felt that way. And uh then this other demon grabbed me and dug its claws into my chest and just tore the flesh open. Now I have to explain one thing. I felt some of the pain, but I understood most of it was being blocked. I didn't understand then, but on the way back, the Lord explained to me that He blocked most of it, but He wanted me to feel a small amount so I could relate to people that it's not metaphorical, it's not a state of the mind. Real literal pain you're gonna feel in hell. The mount I thought was enough.

SPEAKER_00 5:33

Did you know that you were in hell? Did you wonder why Jesus wasn't intervening and saving you? I mean, could you even think like that?

SPEAKER_01 5:40

God blocked it from my mind that I was a Christian. He hid that fact from me. You say, where's that in the Bible, Bill? Luke 24, 16, when Jesus appeared to the disciples on the road to Emmaus, it says, their eyes were holden that they should not know him. Uh John MacArthur's commentary, Matthew Henry's commentary point out that uh, quote, they were kept by God from recognizing him. So God hid it from their mind, and he hid it from my mind for this reason. You see, if I was there as a Christian, which I was, but I didn't know, I would have known, praise God, he's getting me out of here. Because as Christians, we know our destiny is heaven. As an unsaved person, they understand they will never escape this place. And that's what he wanted me to experience, the hopelessness. See, Isaiah 38, 18 says, Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for thy truth. And we know Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. They have no hope for him because it's too late. And that's what he wanted me to feel. And that is the worst part of hell. Understanding you'll never escape it, you'll never get out. And so that's why I didn't call out on Jesus. I didn't know him in a sense. He blocked it from my mind. So I was just in terror the whole time, and uh, you know, experiencing all this wickedness and evil. There's I can go on with what else I saw if you'd like.

SPEAKER_00 6:56

Yes, absolutely. Please paint a picture that is as clear as possible for us. Did you see fire? Did you see people in fire? Tell us.

SPEAKER_01 7:05

First in a prison cell with these demons, and then I was taken out of this cell, placed over next to this large raging pit of fire.

SPEAKER_03 7:12

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_01 7:12

And this pit was about a mile across. I just seemed to understand that. And uh like a huge hole in the ground with flames raging high up into this open cavern. And this is where I could first see people. There were outlines of people, thousands of people in this pit burning and screaming. Now, you could not distinguish a man from a woman, they just look like skeletons. Yeah, uh, they were kept at a distance from each other, so you have no conversation, you're kept apart, but they were screaming, and the screams were so loud and deafening, you can't imagine how loud it is. You want to escape that. But you know, Isaiah 57, 21 says, There is no peace, saith my God to the wicked. There's no peace of mind. But see, Isaiah 32, 18 says, My people dwell in a quiet resting place. You're not his people, so you don't even enjoy quiet. And um, so there were demons shoving people back into this pit. Uh, I noticed I was, I could only see by the light of the flames a little bit along the edges. The light doesn't travel in hell. It is so pitch dark, but along the edges I could see uh demons that were aligned along this cavern wall that I was beneath, like a tunnel ascending upward, and I was standing next to this big pit. And there were demons, some two and three feet tall, some 12 and 13 feet tall. Everything was deformed and twisted and grotesque, the most hideous, ugly creatures you can't even imagine. And they all had this hatred for God and man. There were snakes and maggots. I noticed I was standing on a solid bed of maggots crawling all over everything and everybody. But you know, Isaiah 14, 11 says, where the maggot will be spread under thee and the worm will cover thee. And you know, Jesus said, Where their worm dies not and the fire is not quenched. And so there's actual literal maggots there eating on people. I know this is disgusting, but I'm just trying to tell you what hell entails. It's all outlined in the scripture. And uh you I wanted to talk to a person, but you're kept apart from people, so you have no conversation ever again. You're isolated, alone. I wanted to talk to my wife. I want to just tell her where I was at and tell her how much I love her, but I understood I'll never have that opportunity. You know, Job 7, 9 says, He that goes down to Sheol shall come up no more. Sheol is the Hebrew word for the current hell, which is down deep in the earth. And I so desperately wanted to talk to her, but I I knew I would never get that opportunity. I understood I was down deep in the earth. I descended to get there and I ascended when I left.

SPEAKER_00 9:40

Is that where you would say hell is currently in the center of the earth?

SPEAKER_01 9:44

Right. There's 49 scriptures that uh let us know where hell is. I'll just give you two addresses: Ezekiel 26, 20, number 16, 32, and 33. Very clear it's down deep either. But there's 49. And after judgment day, then death and hell are delivered up and cast into the lake of fire. That's Revelation 20, 12 through 15. But right now it's down deep in the earth. I understood that, and I understood there were different levels of torment and degrees of punishment. Remember, Jesus said Matthew 23, 14, you shall receive the greater damnation. That infers a lesser. Or Matthew 10, 15, it shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city. That infers a less tolerable. Hebrews 10, 28, of how much worse of a punishment. But my point is there is no tolerable, comfortable level in hell. Any level is far worse than you can imagine. There's um a stench in hell, you the most foul, putrid, disgusting odors. You know, Jesus rebuked the foul spirits, Mark 9, 25. They have a disgusting odor to them, but also there was a smell of like rotting flesh, dead things, and also the smell of sulfur. If you ever smelled sulfur, it's a disgusting smell. And, you know, uh, if you go to Hawaii to the volcano, they have signs posted where you cannot go past a certain point because the toxicity of the sulfur coming up, it's called sulfur dioxide. Kill you if you breathe it. Well, sulfur is just another word for brimstone, and the word brimstone is all through the Bible. So you're breathing in this foul, putre, disgusting air that you don't want to breathe. And there's not even enough air to breathe. You have to fight and gasp for even the tiniest bit of oxygen. But Isaiah 42, 5 says the Lord gives breath to the people upon the earth. You're not upon the earth, you're down deep beneath the earth. So God is very specific with his word. Uh, you need to sleep in hell, you never get to go to sleep. You know, here we need sleep. If you're up for just two nights without sleep, you're pretty much non-functional. Well, in hell, you need to sleep also, but it gets progressively worse because you never get to sleep. But see, Revelation 14, 10, and 11 says, and they shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the lamb and the presence of the holy angels, and the smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night. And but see, rest is a blessing from God. Psalms 127, 2 says the Lord gives his beloved sleep. You're not his beloved, so you don't ever get to go to sleep in hell either.

SPEAKER_00 12:03

It's so wild, Bill. I watched one of your videos and it reminded me that we don't even realize that we are surrounded by the attributes of God. We take so much for granted. The sunrise, the sunset, breath, people we love, family, friends, dancing, laughter, music, strength, as you mentioned, everything that we love about our life, everything we love about this world, whether we love God, like God, believe in God or not, there's so much about God that we're already in love with. And to try to imagine being separated from him, I couldn't even imagine. I couldn't even imagine.

SPEAKER_01 12:39

Right. See, Psalms 33, 5 says the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. And then James 1.17 says, every good and perfect gift comes down from above from the Father of lights. So all the good we enjoy, the fresh air, sunshine, fellowship, drinking, eating, sleeping, all the good comes from God. It's not automatic. So hell is a place that God withdrew his goodness or his attributes. See, it says hell was prepared for the devil and his angels. Never intended for man to go there. Use the word prepared. Same word he used in John 14.2, where he goes to prepare a place for us in heaven. So he prepared heaven for us, he prepared hell for the devil. But what he did in the preparation was he simply withdrew his goodness or his attributes. See, hell is dark because 1 John 1.5 said God is light. There's only death in hell because John 1.4 said God is life. There's only hatred in hell because 1 John 4.16 said God is love. There's no mercy in hell because Psalms 36.5 says the mercy of the Lord is in the heavens. There's no strength in hell because Psalms 18.32 said it's the Lord that gives us strength. There's no water in hell because Deuteronomy 11.11 says water is the reign of heaven. And there's no peace in hell because Isaiah 9.6 says he is the Prince of Peace. So see if God removes himself from the situation, all the good goes with him. You can't have the good without God. You can't separate the two. So you can see why hell is so horrible. Now, one additional thing: the fire in hell does represent God's wrath. All through the scripture says he will pour out his wrath on sin in the form of fire. So the fire is from God. But God poured out his wrath on Jesus on the cross, so we wouldn't have to take that wrath. So we have a choice. You can either let Jesus take it or you can take it.

SPEAKER_00 14:18

I just keep shaking my head because it's unbelievable what you're describing. We don't study about hell, we don't think about hell very often, and it's just so sobering and eye-opening. Everything inside of me wants to scream to the world, you don't want to go there. You don't want to go there. And I want to ask you, I know a lot of people wonder why would God, why would a loving God send people to such a horrible place? Like you said, God didn't create hell for us, he created it for the devil. Could you elaborate on that?

SPEAKER_01 14:50

Well, first of all, God doesn't send anybody to hell. Right. That's not his decision. He left that decision up to man. Man chooses and God makes a way. He tells us, like in Revelation 21:8, he said, All unbelievers shall have their part in the lake of fire. So there's the warning. He just told you where you would go if you reject Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Don't repent of your sins. You end up there. But and so Jesus said in Matthew 12, 37, your own words will condemn you. Because people say, I don't believe Jesus is the only way. I don't believe that. So their own words send them to hell. God's not sending him, he gives them a free will to choose because he loves that's that's proof he loves you because he's given you the free choice. He doesn't force you into anything, but he tells you the consequences of your decision if you reject Jesus Christ.

SPEAKER_00 15:39

He is amazing. My Lord is amazing because he truly gave us the way to avoid hell.

SPEAKER_01 15:44

Yeah, and he died a horrible death on the cross to keep people out. That's the most loving act you could ever do. So people think God's mean sending people, he doesn't send them, and he proved his love by dying in our place so we wouldn't have to go there. And so it that's why it's important for us as Christians to preach the gospel so that people don't have to go to this horrible place.

SPEAKER_00 16:06

It's horrible. It's absolutely horrible. I'm I'm so sorry that you went through this, but at the same time, I praise God you had this experience so you can tell the world how horrible it is. I can't even think of another word. It's just horrible. I feel devastated just hearing about it. I think of all the people through the years that we've all known who have said, one day I'm gonna party in hell. Well, needless to say, nobody is partying in hell, as you mentioned earlier. People are alone in hell, in torments. It's absolutely awful. We're taking a break from the conversation for an oceanhouse music.com distribution 30 seconds spotlights. This week's spotlight is on a song titled In the Room by Hillside Recording. Here's a little taste.

SPEAKER_01 17:33

I knew instantly who it was. It was no doubt in my mind, and I didn't see his face, I just saw the outline of a man standing in this bright, pure, holy light, like no light I ever seen. I just called out his name. I said, Jesus. And he said, I am. And when he said I am, I went out. I don't know if I died or passed out. I could only explain that through Revelation 1.16. When John saw him, he said his countenance was bright as the sun, and I fell at his feet as one dead. Well, he touched me when I came to it hit me so strongly that if he wouldn't have gone to the cross, I would be in that place for all eternity. I was so grateful for the cross that he gave his life for me. He placed it back in my mind that I was a Christian. And you see, one second ago I was, I thought I was in hell forever, but then he let me know I was already Christian and to be from one second ago in hell forever to now with God forever. It was overwhelming the joy. And I just I didn't even want to ask him any questions. I just wanted to thank him and praise his name uh for saving me. But thoughts started coming to my mind, and I had eight different thoughts. He answered all eight of them. Well, I first thought, Lord, why did you send me to this horrible place? He said, because many people do not believe hell is real, and even some of my own people do not believe hell exists. Well, that statement surprised me. I thought, wait a minute, all Christians believe in hell, but we have found out since many Christians believe in universalism or annihilationism, soul sleep, many false teachings out there. So the body of Christ isn't being taught in in some parts uh the full truth here, that there really is a hell. I thought, Lord, why did those demons hate me so much? He said, Because you're made in my image and they hate me. See, Jesus said in John 15, 18, they hated me before they hated you. And we're made in God's image. They hate God, but they can't hurt him, but they can hurt his creation. So they have an extreme hatred for mankind. But thank God, John 10, 10, Jesus said, The thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy, but I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly. We serve a good God that came to give us life more abundantly. And I thought, Lord, why did you pick me? But he never gave me an answer. So I have no idea, I was not a Billy Graham, I just was a realtor going to work every day like the rest of us. You know, and so it doesn't matter. He's given us all something to do, and every one of us are equally important to God. There are no big shots with God. And I thought, Lord, uh, why didn't I know you? Why didn't I know you? And he explained, because I wanted you to experience what they feel, the hopelessness. And and I thought, Lord, uh those demons were so powerful. And he said, All you have to do is cast them out in my name. And it hit me so strongly how powerful the name of Jesus is that we have authority over the demonic realm. Luke 10, 19 and so forth. So we don't have to fear demons, but but it because we have the power of the name of Jesus.

SPEAKER_00 20:26

There are ones listening right now that don't know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. What would you say to them? And could you please lead them in a prayer to know him?

SPEAKER_01 20:37

You know, Revelation 2015 says, Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. So my question for you is, do you know if your name is written in his book? This is the most important question you could ever answer. And you have that opportunity right now. So if you don't know, you can have that assurance. Your name can be written in his book. That means you will enter heaven when you die. And if you don't know that, you can say this prayer right now. And so, and it doesn't matter what you've been through, I don't care what sin you've committed, there is no sin that's too big for God to forgive. He will forgive all of your sins, wipe it away like your past never existed. If you just trust in him, if you're willing to do that and commit your life over to him, then I want you to just say this prayer after me. Okay, this is going to change your whole life and whole eternity. Say, dear God in heaven, I know that I've sinned and I cannot save myself. I believe you sent your son Jesus to die on the cross for me, that he was crucified, died, and was buried, but rose again and lives forevermore. I ask you to forgive me of my sins. Come into my heart. I receive you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Jesus, for forgiving me. Thank you for coming into my heart. I now can Your name is being written in his book right now. You don't have to figure out your ways to the Lord. Spend time reading his word every day. Get to know him. He's phenomenal to get to know what Jesus is like. And uh he'll bless you, he'll help you, and he'll take you to heaven in the end. So I encourage you to do that. And uh tell somebody what you've done. Jesus said, if you confess me before men, I'll confess you before my father in heaven. So go tell somebody what you've done today.

SPEAKER_00 22:41

That's all the time that we have with Bill Weiss for today's episode. You can find Bill Weiss on Instagram, Bill Weis underscore 23 Minutes in Hell. That's B-I-L-L W-I-E-S-E underscore 23 Minutes in Hell. Or you can check out his website, soulchoice ministries.org. What a life-changing conversation. If you prayed with Bill today, we'd love to hear from you. Email us at dreamtheconversation at gmail.com. And thank you again for tuning in today. Maybe you're listening over radio on K Wave1110, or maybe you're listening over podcast. Oh, and don't forget to subscribe to our podcast. You can find The Conversation with Roxanne Grace pretty much anywhere you stream podcasts, including iHeartRadio, Pandora, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and again anywhere you stream your podcast. I'm gonna leave you with a song titled In the Room by Hillside Recording. Until next week, stay blessed in him.

SPEAKER_03 23:44

Yes, Jesus. You're in the room with me. Draw close. You're in the room with me. In the small events, you are offering peace beyond understanding. You are with me, you're surrounding it spirit in me, standard.