Where are the dead?

1. Introduction.

How would you answer this true or false statement.

No one at this present moment is neither in the lake of fire nor the eternal heaven. True or False.

We say that a person dies and goes to eternal heaven or to hell, but no one is in either place as I speak.

Most of the misconception comes from translation issues as the English translators used hell, but the Bible uses words like sheol, Gehenna, Hades, place of torments, with hell, the lake of fire, being the eternal destination of all the damned.

Let me prove it to you by using the Bible.

No one will be in the Lake of Fire, “hell”, until the Antichrist and the False Prophet are first cast there.

Revelation 19:20 “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

The third being cast into the eternal lake of fire will be Satan.

Revelation 20:10 “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”

If you want to be absolutely technical about it, no one can go to hell until Satan is first cast there just as no one could go to “Paradise” until Jesus ascended.

By the end of the Millennium, Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet will all be cast into the lake of fire preparing the way for those who rejected Christ just as Jesus prepared the way for all the believers of all the ages with His death, burial, and resurrection.

The lake of fire was never intended for human beings.

Matthew 25:41 “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:”

Mrs. Sylvia and Mrs. Anita asked me a question about where are the dead now, especially the Old Testament dead.

To answer their question or to understand the answer, you have to be able to distinguish between eternal and temporary.

In the Old Testament, sheol is the word used to describe the realm of the dead. In the New Testament, Hades is used. Within the realm of the dead, you have the place of torments and Abraham’s bosom or Paradise.

There are two passages in Luke that I believe will clear up any misunderstanding.

Luke 16:22–24 “And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.”

Luke 16:25–26 “But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.”

Luke 23:43 “And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”

Every person who has ever died has gone to Sheol/Hades, and the realm of the dead is divided into two parts. Let’s see what we can discover.

2. Where are the lost today?

All lost people from Cain to this very moment are in Hades in the place of torments.

Their bodies are in the grave, but their spirits are being tormented. They will be in the place of torments until the end of Millennium at which time they will be judged.

Reading the 16th chapter of Luke, we can make one obvious conclusion.

The place of torments has all the characteristics of the eternal lake of fire with the exception the place of torments is temporary and the lake of fire is eternal. The place of torments is like the county lock-up while the lake of fire is federal prison.

The lost are in the place of torments for only one reason. They will have rejected Jesus Christ. They are not in the place of torments because of sin. They are in the place of torments because of their rejection. When they appear before Christ as Judge at the end of the Millennium, they will be judged for their deeds and they will be cast into the lake of fire to receive their just punishment.

The place of torments is the first death. The lake of fire is the second death or eternal death.

Revelation 20:11–12 “And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”

Revelation 20:13–14 “And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.”

Revelation 20:15 “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

The lost will be resurrected with their bodies to appear before Jesus at the Great White Throne Judgment at the end of the Millennium. Their guilt was determined at death. There punishment will be determined as they appear before Jesus. They will want to run and hide, but there will be no place for them to hide.

The lost will be judged according to what they did on earth. Every single word, deed, and thought will be recorded and judged. Justice will be doled out appropriately as each will be judged against the perfection of Jesus Christ.

Some people say that God sends no one to hell. Well, that is not exactly true. God does not predestine a person to hell. It would probably be more accurate to say that God made it possible for no one to go to hell. It is God, however, at the GWT who definitely casts the lost into the eternal lake of fire.

Revelation 20:15 “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

The lost do not voluntarily jump into the lake of fire. The Bible says they are cast, and at whose discretion are they cast? It is Jesus, the Son of God, who gives the order to His angels to cast them into hell.

A lost person cannot cast himself or herself. It is Jesus, the Son of God who is God, who does the casting.

3. Where are the saved today?

In our passage in Luke, Jesus says that angels escorted Lazarus to Abraham’s bosom. How does that make you feel?

On the Cross, Jesus told the malefactor who asked Christ to remember him that the malefactor would be with Christ that very day in Paradise.

Are Abraham’s bosom and Paradise two different places? NO!!!!!

Paradise/Abraham’s bosom was the place in Sheol where the saints went after death, saints from Abel to the Ascension of Jesus Christ.

Like the place of torments has all the characteristics of the eternal lake of fire, so does Paradise have the same characteristics of the eternal heaven.

Now, this is where this gets a little tricky.

NO ONE could get to “HEAVEN” until Jesus Christ ascended to heaven.

Do you remember reading this passage?

Ephesians 4:8–10 “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)”

What an absolutely incredible passage.

When Jesus died, He descended into the realm of the dead. 40 days after His resurrection, He ascended into heaven leading the captives out of captivity.

TO those captives, Jesus demonstrated His authority over death and His authority to give gifts, the gift of the promised life with God.

The captives were those who had died before Jesus who were waiting on Jesus’s sacrifice for the forgiveness of their sins.

When Jesus ascended to be at the right hand of the Father, He carried the souls of everyone from Abel to John the Baptist with Him including those 500 dead seen walking the streets of Jerusalem at His crucifixion.

Today, Paradise is not in Sheol. Paradise is where Jesus is.

Joey Binkley is in Paradise where Jesus is. Jerrell Dawson is in Paradise where Jesus is. Billy Binkley is going to be in Paradise where Jesus is. Sylvia Palmer is going to be in Paradise where Jesus is, and so am I and hopefully you too. When a Christian dies today, that Christian goes to where Jesus is, but that brings up another question.

4. Is Paradise our eternal destiny?

No, Paradise is our temporary destination.

Our eternal destination is being prepared by Jesus.

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.”

Jesus is building us a place free from the curse of Satan.

Revelation 21:1–2 “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”

Revelation 21:3–4 “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”

Our eternal home will be free from the curse of Satan. Just think about it. Satan has stained heaven today. His access to heaven makes it unfit for eternity, but after he is cast into the lake of fire forever, the new heaven and the new earth will appear, a heaven and an earth free from Satan and the curse of sin and death.

There are some more questions that we will ask and attempt to answer next week, but here is the most important thing.

When you die, you are either going to be where Jesus is, or you are going to the place of torments awaiting transport to the lake of fire. From what the Bible says about the differences between Paradise and the lake of fire, I would not want my worst enemy to go to the lake of fire.

There is only one way to avoid the awful reality.

The only way to avoid eternal damnation is to put your faith in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

God wants to give you the gift of salvation, but that gift is dependent upon your faith in Christ. God has made it possible for you to be where Jesus is, but He is not going to make you go there, and He has made it clear that there is only one way for you to get to heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

Romans 10:9 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

You just have to confess your faith and belief that Jesus Christ as the Son of God in the flesh died for you sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day.

He is the one that He talked about in Luke.

Luke 16:31 “And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”

Jesus Christ is the One who rose from the dead that makes it possible for you to avoid the place of torments and the lake of fire.