AFTER DEATH, WHAT THEN?
Don Hawley
I've learned that most people have a degree of fear concerning this thing we call death. Not only fear, but uncertainty about what happens after life is terminated. Theories abound, but mankind has been in a quandary concerning this matter since the beginning of time.
Someone has said that the only two things certain in this present world are death and taxes. Strange then, there is so much uncertainty about that which is certain. Everyone of us has personally known people who have died, and unless the Lord returns first, it is something each of us will experience for ourselves. I'm concerned that many Christians either fear death or are confused about what happens when life in this present world comes to an end. This uncertainty is rather disappointing in the light of a statement made by the Apostle Paul:
And now, dear brothers, I want you to know what happens to a Christian when he dies, so that when it happens, you will not be full of sorrow, as those are who have no hope. 1 Thessalonians 4:13.
According to Paul, the Christian is one who should not be fearful of death, or even confused about what that inevitable experience is all about. Today let's see if we can, from the word of God, determine the truth about this matter. We'll begin by pointing out that very few people have ever done an in-depth study on what God has revealed in his Word about death. Most people's understanding about this topic simply has been handed down from generation to generation as truth, and accepted as such. That's not good enough for something so important.
Another warning is in order. There is a tendency on the part of many to assume that if the vast majority of Christians hold a certain belief, then it must be right. Not necessarily so. Truth is not determined by majority vote, but by the Word itself. Note what Paul wrote to the Romans.
Let God be true though every man be false. Romans 3:4
If every person on earth disagreed with God, God would still be right. I'm going to ask today that you do your best at setting aside long-held assumptions about death that may be more a matter of tradition than Bible truth. Let's quote a familiar text in regards to the make up of man.
May the God of peace himself make you entirely pure and devoted to God; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept strong and blameless until that day when our Lord Jesus Christ comes back again. 1 Thessalonians 5:23.
So man in the Word then is described as body, soul and spirit. Most people feel they have a good grasp of what constitutes the body; but there is some confusion about the terms "soul" and "spirit." The problem is we don't understand the original meanings of those terms as the Bible's authors understood them. "Soul" is translated from the Old Testament Hebrew word "nephesh," and in the New Testament from the Greek word "psyche." This poses a dilemma, as we see in Nelson's Expository Dictionary of the Old Testament:
"The KJV alone uses over 28 different English terms for this one Hebrew word. The problem with the English term 'soul' is that no actual equivalent of the term or the idea behind it is represented in the Hebrew language. The Hebrew system of thought does not include the combination of or opposition of the terms 'body' and 'soul,' which are really Greek and Latin in origin."
In other words, in the English language we just don't have any word that really means the same thing as what the Bible writers meant by the term "soul." What happens then is that we find ourselves reading back into the Word our own understanding of what "soul" means, and that causes confusion.
The word "spirit" in our English Bible is translated from the Hebrew word "ruach." It is also sometimes translated, and I think more accurately, as "breath." Once again we have read too much into the word from our own modern perspective.
Actually it was the Greeks who, about a hundred and fifty years after Christ's earthly ministry, put an incorrect twist on the word "soul." They began to ascribe to the Bible terms "nephesh" and "psyche" the characteristics of their own mythological and philosophical beliefs about death. What is important for us to understand is that although the terms usually rendered "soul" and "spirit" in the Bible occur more than 1,600 times, never once are they associated with the words "immortal" or "immortality."
MAN'S SOUL AND SPIRIT NOT IMMORTAL
Did you catch that? More than 1,600 times there was opportunity for the writers of Scripture to refer to man's soul or spirit as "immortal," but never once did they do so! Instead they declared that just the opposite was true. Note:
Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his maker? Job 4:17.
That's certainly clear isn't it? In the Bible man is declared "mortal." There is someone, however, who is pronounced "immortal." Let's note.
Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. 1 Timothy 1:17.
God is the one who is immortal, not man. Now the word "immortality" appears only five times in Scripture, so we can easily check those references. First of all, let's see how Paul refers to God in his letter to Timothy:
The King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality. 1 Timothy 6:15,16.
Here again we have a clear, bold statement; only God is immortal. And it is something he has, and has always had; he is the source of life. Someone, however, has done something about this problem of man's mortality.
It has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 2 Timothy 1:10.
Man is by nature mortal, but by conquering death in his behalf Jesus is able to offer a new hope.
To those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. Romans 2:7.
Here it is clearly stated that immortality is something that man seeks for; if he already had it innately he wouldn't have to seek. But for the righteous immortality is a promised gift. And when can we look forward to experiencing that gift?
Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed--in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." 1 Corinthians 15:53,54.
In this text Paul begins by telling us he is going to let us in on a secret. He is going to explain that while the Christian, like other men, is mortal, a member of God's family should view death in a different manner than most. Twice he states that our natural mortality is going to give way to a God-given immortality. And when is this going to happen? "At the last trumpet," at the return of Christ at his Second Coming. That's when death will be "swallowed up in victory." Not when we die, but when we are resurrected. That's the reason for the resurrection.
HOW WE GOT OFF COURSE
Actually the matter of what happens when a man dies is quite plain in Scripture. So when did so many of us get off course about this matter? Interestingly enough, it all started with the very first lie ever told on planet Earth. For the record we have to go clear back to the Garden of Eden.
The serpent was the craftiest of all the creatures the Lord God had made. So the serpent came to the woman. "Really?" he asked. "None of the fruit in the garden? God says you mustn't eat any of it?"
"Of course we may eat it," the woman told him "It's only the fruit from the tree at the center of the garden that we are not to eat. God says we mustn't eat it or even touch it, or we will die"
"That's a lie!" the serpent hissed. "You'll not die! God knows very well that the instant you eat it you will become like him, for your eyes will be opened . . ." Genesis 3:1-5.
There it is; the lie that started all the confusion. God made his warning clear; he told Adam and Eve in simple terms that if they even touched the fruit from that particular tree, they would die. The serpent said that God wasn't playing fair with them. Actually they could go ahead and eat of that tree, and they had his word for it that they would not die.
The devil suggested that God was holding out on them for a reason; he was jealous and selfish. If they ate of the fruit, then they would suddenly be elevated to a higher plane. They would understand wonderful secrets now unknown to them. They would be gods in their own right.
Unfortunately for mankind Eve was not able to resist the temptation. God was telling the truth, and with a few notable exceptions, all men and women--beginning with Adam and Eve themselves--have made their exit from this life by way of death. Mortality has been our lot from the Garden on.
DEATH IS SIMPLY A REVERSAL
Actually death is just a reversal of what happened when Adam was given life. Let's read the account:
The time came when the Lord God formed a man's body from the dust of the ground and breathed into it the breath of life. And man became a living person. Genesis 2:7.
It's a simple narrative. God took mere dust and out of it fashioned a handsome figure that was to be man. But no matter how attractive that figure was, it had no life; it was like a store window mannequin. But then God breathed into Adam's nostrils the spark of life, and it says "man became a living person." So you see we have a formula:
Body + breath of life = living person.
We know what happened when man was created, now let's see what happens when a man dies.
There the ships go to and fro, and the leviathan, which you formed to frolic there. These all look to you to give them their food at the proper time. When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. Psalm 104:26-30.
Do you see how death is simply the reversal of life? When the breath of life that God breathed into Adam's nostrils leaves the body, all that is left is the lifeless form. Now we have a simple formula for death: Just as body + breath of life = living person, so body - breath of life = dead person.
And notice how completely many have bought into the devil's original lie. Even today many believe that not only does man not really die, but he ascends into some exalted state. Once he closes his eyes in death, he then knows much more than he ever did in life. Does that tally with the Word of God? Let's see.
While I live will I praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Psalm 146:2-4.
Most of us have been taught that if a man takes a blow to the head hard enough to knock him out, then he knows nothing. However, if he is hit hard enough to kill him, then he knows everything! Strange. Does a dead man really know more than a living one? Not according to David. "In that very day his thoughts perish."
Allow me to present a simple comparison. Let's say we have a light bulb. It's perfect in every way, but it isn't giving off any light. When we throw the wall switch, electricity surges into the filament and we have light. When we remove the electricity from the bulb, where does the light go? No place; it just isn't. Light requires the union of bulb and electricity.
So it is with man. A thinking, knowing person is dependent upon the union of the breath of life with the body. When that life principle leaves, then as the Psalmist says "in that very day his thoughts perish."
David's son Solomon also tried to make this point clear.
The living at least know that they will die! But the dead know nothing; they don't even have their memories. Whatever they did in their lifetimes--loving, hating, envying--is long gone, and they have no part in anything here on earth any more. . . . . Whatever you do, do well, for in death, where you are going, there is no working or planning, or knowing, or understanding. Ecclesiastes 9:5,6, and 10.
Why not just take God at his word? He says through his servant Solomon, "the dead know nothing; they don't even have their memories." If the dead go into some higher realm, then surely they would be filled with love. But Scripture says the dead do no loving, in fact they have no emotions at all. They have nothing whatsoever to do with anything happening here on earth; in fact they know nothing about it.
Now let me point out something interesting. The text I just read from Ecclesiastes is taken from the Living Bible. I just love this Bible, because of the clear and expressive way things are stated. It's the Bible I usually quote on this program. However, we have to be a bit cautious, because the Living Bible is a paraphrase rather than a translation. In other words, it is the work of one man rather than a group of scholars working together.
The paraphraser is at liberty to state things in a way he believes most correctly reflects the intent of the original author. Obviously, he is going to end up injecting some of his own thinking into his phraseology. For that reason it is best, when studying Scripture, to compare a paraphrase with other recognized translations.
Because of how the writer of the Living Bible has stated certain other Bible texts dealing with man in death, I know he personally has gone along with the popular thinking in regards to this subject. When he came to the above text in Ecclesiastes it must have presented a tremendous challenge. It must have been a great temptation to reword the clear statements to accord with popular thinking. Instead of doing so, however, he merely inserted the following footnote at the bottom of the page:
"These statements are Solomon's discouraged opinion, and do not reflect a knowledge of God's truth on these points!"
Personally I think he was a bit out of line making this bold proclamation, but he apparently felt he had to do something. The important point is that this portion of God's Word dealing with the state of man in death is so startlingly clear that he didn't dare tamper with it! He had to let it go through unaltered, and then tried to influence the reader with a footnote.
As for me, I'm going to go with the Word; that is always the safest course. If God says that "the dead know nothing," then that's the way it must be.
IMMEDIATELY TO HEAVEN OR HELL?
Now the popular teaching is that when a person dies he or she goes immediately to heaven or to hell. Or perhaps I should say to heaven, because in all the funeral services I've ever attended, I noted that in every case the deceased went to heaven. I can only assume that hell is totally uninhabited.
The truth of the matter is that no one goes to heaven or hell at death. In a future study I plan to prove this from the Word of God, but for now I'm just going to make the bold statement. No one goes to heaven or hell at death. Even if they did, it would be meaningless as "the dead know nothing." They have no emotions or understanding, so heaven would be no joy and hell would be no pain.
Peter helps clarify this matter.
The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished. 2 Peter 2:9.
According to Peter, the lost do not receive their punishment immediately upon death, but are reserved "unto the day of judgment to be punished." And when is the day of judgment?
He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings has a judge; the word that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day. John 12:48.
Judgment then is at the end of time, and the unrepentent will be reserved until that time. That makes sense, of course. We don't punish a man unless he has had a judgment and been found guilty.
When we decide to follow tradition instead of the Word, we get into all kinds of strange situations. According to popular belief a bad person dies and goes to hell. Then, after he has been suffering there for perhaps a few hundred years, the Lord resurrects him, judges him to be sure no mistake was made, and then tosses him back into hell once again. Not a very rational picture.
Or, let's look at the other side of the coin. According to popular belief a good person dies and goes immediately to heaven. Then after enjoying that state of bliss for a few centuries, that person is called back to earth and put into an old rotted and diseased carcass, just so that he or she can be resurrected, given a new body, and returned to the courts of heaven. Again, not very rational.
By the way, since there is no understanding in death, that sleep is dreamless. Even if a saint has been dead a thousand years, it will seem but a moment has passed before he opens his eyes to see his Lord returning. In that sense, it is like "going immediately to heaven upon dying."
WHERE WAS LAZARUS?
Perhaps the greatest of Christ's miracles was the raising of his good friend Lazarus. Let's recall that event. You remember the story.
They rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me . . ." Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And Lazarus came--bound up in the grave cloth, his face muffled in a head swath. Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him go!" John 11:41-44.
Since Lazarus had been dead four days then, if popular understanding is correct, he had been experiencing the glorious and rapturous joy of heaven for that length of time. The meanest thing Jesus could possibly done for his good friend would be to rip him away from the throne of God, and bring him back into this wretched old world!
And perhaps more importantly, if Lazarus had really spent four wonderful days in heaven he wouldn't have been able to keep quiet! He would have been preaching about the glory of that place from every street corner. Instead, Lazarus had not one word to say about his experience during the four days. Why? Because he had been dead, and the dead know nothing.
Really, friend, is there any problem with accepting the fact that our loved ones who have died are simply at rest until the resurrection morning? Do we really want to insist that they are either suffering the pain of hell, or if in heaven, disturbed as they watch the anguish of family members still afflicted with the disease and trials of this present world. As is always the case, God's way is best.
It is only fitting that we close this study with the thrilling words of Paul to the Thessalonians.
Now we don't want you, my brothers, to be in any doubt about those who "fall asleep" in death, or to grieve over them like men who have no hope. After all, if we believe that Jesus died and rose again from death, then we can believe that God will just as surely bring with Jesus all who are "asleep" in him. Here we have a definite message from the Lord. It is that those who are still living when he comes will not in any way precede those who have previously fallen asleep. One word of command, one shout from the archangel, one blast from the trumpet of God and the Lord himself will come down from Heaven! Those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise, and then we who are still living on the earth will be swept up with them into the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And after that we shall be with him for ever. So by all means use this message to encourage one another. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.
Doesn't the Christian have a glorious hope! In fact, I don't look at it as a mere hope at all, but a surety. He who has promised never fails. Even death has no fear for the one who is hid in Christ.
I want to leave you with one phrase still ringing in your ears, and that is "the dead know nothing. The reason for my emphasis is that unless you have this focus clearly in mind, you will be vulnerable to many delusions the devil is presenting in these last days.
Be sure to tune in next week for the topic "Dabbling with the Occult." Until then this is Pastor Don Hawley with "Perspectives in the Word."