Is There Life After Death?

Death is a Reality

We should spend our lives preparing for death!

Revelation 14:13 “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.”

The dead people who have given their life to the Lord and made Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior are asleep in Christ.

1 Thessalonians 4:16–18 “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”

The dead in Christ will go to be with the Lord when Jesus Christ returns and resurrects them from their graves. Until that time the dead are asleep in their graves.

John 14:1–3 “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

The second coming of Jesus Christ is the only hope for life after death.

What happens when a man dies? First we need to understand what happened when man was created.

Genesis 2:7 “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

Dust + Breath = A Living Soul.

Man does not HAVE a soul - man IS a “soul”! The original Hebrew word for “soul” is nephesh, which is defined as “breath” or “anything that breathes”

And so man is a SOUL. The soul then is merely an air breathing entity that is subject to death and decay. The soul includes are mind, will and emotions. It is not immortal!

The soul is composed of the “dust of the ground” - it is material and not spiritual. It is matter. When a man breathes, he is a “living soul”. When a man ceases to breathe, he becomes a nonliving or dead soul. That’s what the Bible reveals.

What is another word for this? “Breath of Life”

Job 27:3 “All the while my breath is in me, And the spirit of God is in my nostrils;”

So, Breath = Spirit, according to the Word of God.

So, death is creation in reverse.

Ecclesiastes 12:7 “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”

So, what returns to God at death? The Spirit, not the soul. What is the Spirit ? It is “The Breath”.

James 2:26 “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” The word spirit in the Greek in pneuma, the same root word fro pneumonia, which is a condition that diminishes the ability to breath.

Only God is immortal.

1 Timothy 6:16 “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.”

Job 4:17 “Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his maker?”

We seek for immortality according to Romans 2:7 “To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:”

We DO receive immortality, but NOT at death. We receive immortality when Jesus Christ comes again and raises the righteous dead.

If man were an immortal soul in a material body - and if the death of the body released the soul - then there would be no need for a resurrection to immortal life. Man would merely continue living after death. But the very fact that the Bible teaches the resurrection from the dead is further proof that man does not have an immortal soul!

1 Corinthians 15:12–18 “Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.”

1 Corinthians 15:51–57 “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

So, there is no such thing as an immortal soul.

Can a soul die?

Ezekiel 18:4 “Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.”

The soul that sinneth, shall die.

Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”

The soul that sinneth shall die.

What is a soul?

1 Peter 3:20 “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

So, eight souls were saved from the flood.

Acts 27:37 “And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.”

So, 276 souls were on the ship.

Acts 2:41 “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”

So,3,000 souls joined the church after they were Baptized.

The Bible is talking about PEOPLE. That is how the Bible uses the term “soul. The Bible used the term “soul” 1,600 times, but never once as an immortal soul or an undying soul or an everlasting soul. The idea that you never die is a smooth false teaching. So, how did this false doctrine become popular? The Roman Catholic Church teaches their people to pray to the saints, especially to pray to Mary, if you want your prayer to be heard by Jesus. So, for many centuries the Catholics have been praying to the dead saints and they have come to falsely believe that although the body dies, the soul is immortal and lives forever.

What happens when a man dies? We could illustrate it like this:

body = a light bulb

breath = electricity

When the light switch gets turned off, what happens? Well, the light bulb is still there, but the flow of electricity gets disconnected. Where does the light go? No where, it just ceases to exist.

So it is when a person dies. Where do they go. Well, they just go to the grave. They cease to exist until the second coming of Christ, when the righteous are resurrected.

The spirit of each individual does more than impart the power of intellect to the physical brain. It becomes a spiritual ‘recording” and “mold” of the entire person - even to preserving their memories, their knowledge, their character, and their outward appearance. And so when a person dies, the spirit “recording” returns to God and is “filed away” until the time God will “replay” it, to bring about resurrection of the very persons identical personality to life and consciousness of its own.

The Bible never says that the soul returns to God at Death. That is nothing more than Greek mythology.

So, according to Jesus, where are the dead? Jesus said in

John 5:28–29 “Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”

This is what happens when Jesus returns.

Acts 2:29 “Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.”

Acts 2:34 “For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,”

So, the Bible makes it very clear that David is dead, asleep in his grave and not ascended into heaven. So it is with all righteous & Baptized Believers that have died and gone to their graves.

What does the Bible call death?

Death is called “asleep” 66 times in the Bible.

Psalm 13:3 “Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;”

How did Jesus view death?

He said, “Lazarus sleeps and then he said Lazarus is dead.”

So, death is sleep.

John 11:11–14 “These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.”

John 11:21–26 “Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”

So, Lazarus was dead in the tomb for four days before he rose again and he did NOT have a testimony of any kind.

Ecclesiastes 9:5 “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.”

Psalm 146:4 “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; In that very day his thoughts perish.”

Psalm 115:17 “The dead praise not the Lord, Neither any that go down into silence.”

What did those who were resurrected from death have to say about what they experienced after they died?

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING

The widows son was resurrected.

The Shunamite woman’s son ...

Jarius’ daughter...

Lazarus and others..

They all had nothing to say because the dead know not anything.

Death is the best good nights rest ever.

When are we going to be present with the Lord?

2 Corinthians 5:6–8 “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

So, we are going to be absent from the body not when we die, but when Jesus comes again and gives us a brand new body.

It does not happen at death, it happens at the second coming of Christ.

In what condition will we be present with the Lord?

Philippians 3:21 “Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto HIS glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.”

When Jesus Christ returns to earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, those that are still alive will be raptured or taken up to meet Christ in the air and will be transformed from their current bodies to Spirit bodies, like Christ’s. Many others that are asleep in their graves will be resurrected in their Spirit bodies, to meet Christ in the air. All others will be resurrected in mortal flesh and blood bodies during a second resurrection in which they will be given the chance to live on Earth for another 100 years , so they can actually accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, repent, and live lives pleasing to God, so that when they die the second death, they may be judged worthy to receive eternal life.

Let’s make a commitment, right now, to Jesus, as a church family, that whether we are alive here on earth or asleep in our graves that we will be ready when He returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords to meet Him up in the sky.

Our loving Father in heaven wants that no man should perish. God is going to save, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Catholics, Protestants, and Jews - all Religious people. But God is going to do it His way and according to His time frame.

God always warns the world before a great catastrophe. And we are now facing the worst time of suffering ever on this earth because of our wrong way of life. The need for changing human nature should be obvious to everybody. But it isn’t yet. We must suffer until that lesson is learned. Much of our wrong way of living is religiously motivated.

God gives mankind a choice. People can heed God’s message now and be protected from the soon coming holocaust. Or, if they - collectively or individually - reject that warning, then they will suffer as never before.

God uses suffering to bring men to repentance - even if they die and then must repent AFTER they are resurrected from the dead. These are the ones to be resurrected in mortal flesh and blood bodies and given the chance to live again for 100 years.

God has an inspiring plan to save most of humanity - even if people rebel now. Of course, that means they are going to suffer a great deal more. God is going to save nonbelievers when they repent, and most of them will. The Bible teaches that there will always be a certain percentage of people who will reject God’s way of life.

Let us pray. Lord, we pray that you would crown this year with your goodness, and cause Your paths to drip with abundance. May you, LORD, bless us and keep us on the paths that you have prepared for us. LORD please make your face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us. We ask that you would give us peace. Father, may we walk worthy of your calling of being Your own dear children. May we work at it - in the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Please cause us to keep Your commandment - that we would love You and one another. And LORD that we would be 100% committed to exalting the Name of Jesus, we bow our knee, and that with our tongues we worship, we will pray and we will confess that Jesus is LORD, to the glory of God the Father - and all of God’s people said, “AMEN”.