Christ's
Guarantee of Victory over Death
What if someone handed you the phone
and the voice at the other end was that of someone who had died and was buried
six weeks before? Would you believe it
was that person if you were positive that they had, indeed, died? What if they knew things only the dead person
would know?
When a person dies, is he really
dead? Millions of people believe that
they are in touch with the dead.
Government officials the world over seek counsel from those who
supposedly communicate with the dead. Is
this some gigantic hoax? Or is it a
great blessing?
Christ's guarantee of victory over
death is found in Revelation 1:18: "I am He that
liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the
keys of hell and death."
When Jesus says He has the Keys to the
grave and death, he means that He alone can unlock the dark prison-house of
death and set its captives free. But this also means that He alone can unlock
the dark mystery of death, and tell us what it means (Proverbs 30:4,
Ephesians 4:9). And since only He has
the answers, we must go to His Word for information. No other source is reliable.
FIRST
KEY: HOW LIFE BEGAN
Before we can understand what death is,
we must first understand what life is, and how it began.
1. How did God create man in the
beginning?
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. Genesis 2:7
2. What happens at death, according to
Scripture?
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return
unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto
dust shalt thou return. Genesis 3:19
Then
shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto
God who gave it. Ecclesiastes 12:7
Note: Two things happen at death:
a) the body returns to dust, and
b) the spirit returns to God.
Also note that the text does not say
that the spirit of good men only
returns to God at death; no distinction
is made here between good men and bad men.
According to this passage, the
spirit of all men returns to God at death.
3. What is this "spirit" which
returns to God at death?
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 146:3,4
All
the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils; Job 27:3
Note: According to the first text, death is the separation
of the breath of life, or the "divine spark of life" from the
body—the simple reversal of
the process by which God originally gave life to man.
In the second text, it is clear that
the "spirit" and "breath" are the same. "For
as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead
also." James 2:26. Therefore, the simplest definition of the "spirit", when used in this
sense, is: that which keeps life in the body, and returns to God at death.
4. What happened when God placed the breath of
life in man's nostrils at creation?
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. Genesis 2:7
Note: God formed man out of the dust and made a body. he then combined
"breath" with this body and man BECAME
a living soul. So the Bible definition for "soul"
is: a living, breathing person. The
truth is, we do not have souls, but we ARE
souls. So a simple equation might
look like this:
BODY +
BREATH = SOUL
A box has two parts: boards and
nails. When they are together, they are
a box; if you separate them, they
are
no longer a box, but boards and
nails.
5. Do souls die?
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, 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. Ezekiel 18:4,20
And they smote all the souls that were therein with the edge of the
sword, utterly destroying them: there was not any left to breathe: and he burnt
Hazor with fire. Joshua 11:11
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the
soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28
Note: In Proverbs 12:10 we read that "A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast." The
word translated "life" in this passage is the same word that is translated "soul" in every passage
that word appears in the Old Testament, except one. Shall we thus conclude that animals also have
souls? Or, more
logically, that they are living, breathing
creatures?
Besides being translated "soul," as in Leviticus 17:12 ("No soul of you shall eat blood")
and the above passages, the Hebrew word "nephesh" is also translated
"life" (Genesis 1:20, Genesis
19:17), "person" (Numbers
31:19, Numbers 35:11,15, 30), "creature"
(Genesis 1:21, Genesis 9:12,15,16). The Greek word translated "soul" (Acts
In the Bible, the terms translated
"soul" are
used to refer to life,
individuality, the inner man, etc.
But nowhere is it used to
even hint of consciousness, life after death, or a bodiless essence.
6. Is not the soul immortal, then?
I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things,
and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until
the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only
Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
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. I Timothy 6:13-16
Note: The term "Immortal soul" is nowhere in the
Bible. Paul said that "Jesus... brought forth immortality" (2 Timothy
7. At death, the body returns to dust, and the
breath (spirit) returns to God. What
happens to the soul?
Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.
Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest
the face of the earth. Psalm 104:29,30
Note: It is plain that the
"soul" ceases to exist.
8. Are not the righteous dead in Heaven,
praising God?
The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.
Psalm 115:17
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who
shall give thee thanks? Psalm 6:5
Note: Surely if the departed were in Heaven living on a
higher plane than they did on earth, they would remember God and praise Him for
the blessings of eternal life in a sinless world.
9. Then where are the dead?
If I wait, the grave is mine house: I have made my bed in the
darkness.
I have said to corruption, Thou art my father: to the worm, Thou
art my mother, and my sister.
And where is now my hope? as for my hope,
who shall see it?
They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together
is in the dust. Job 17:13-16
Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb.
Job
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. John 5:28,29
Note: They are neither in Heaven, Hell, nor Purgatory; but
rather in their graves.
On the day of Pentecost, Peter said
that David was in His grave and had not gone to Heaven, even though David had
died more than 1,000 years before (Acts 2:29-34)! The Scriptures clearly teach that David will
be saved in God's Kingdom (Hebrews
If, as some teach, the dead are already
in Heaven with Jesus, why are they resurrected at His second coming? Why did Jesus tell the disciples they would
be with him again when he returned,
instead of when they died (John 14:3)?
10.
Don't the righteous and the wicked go to
different places when they die?
For now should I have lain still and been quiet, I should have
slept: then had I been at rest,
With kings and counsellors of the earth, which
built desolate places for themselves;
Or with princes that had gold, who filled
their houses with silver:
Or as an hidden untimely birth I had not
been; as infants which never saw light.
There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at
rest.
There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the
oppressor.
The small and great are there; and the servant is free from his
master. Job 3:13-19
All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.
Ecclesiastes 3:20
Note: Even the demon impersonating the dead Samuel told
Saul, "tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me." (1
Samuel 28:19). Samuel was a righteous
prophet of God. Saul, because of his
rebelliousness, was lost. If the dead go
to any other place than the grave, would they be together after death? Surely Saul would not go to Heaven, and
certainly Samuel would not be in hell.
So how could they be together in either of those places?
11.
How long will they remain in the
grave?
So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their
sleep. Job
And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which
seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will
raise him up at the last day. John 6:40
12.
Can dead people think?
His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day
his thoughts perish. Psalm 146:4
13.
Do dead people know what their loved
ones on earth are doing?
So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their
sleep.
His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are
brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them. Job 14:12,21
Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou
shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the
evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again. 2 Kings 22:20
Note: The following Scripture passages are also very
specific:
The
dead can't be summoned at
seances or go back and haunt their houses ("ghosts"):
As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down
to the grave shall come up no more.
He shall return no more to his house,
neither shall his place know him any more. Job 7:9,10
When a few years are come, then I shall go the way whence I shall
not return. Job
The
dead do not remember or give thanks:
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who
shall give thee thanks? Psalm 6:5
The
dead can't learn truth:
For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee:
they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.
The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the
father to the children shall make known thy truth. Isaiah 38:18,19
14.
In death, doesn't some part of man know
something?
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.
Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished;
neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under
the sun.
Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there
is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou
goest. Ecclesiastes 9:5,6,10
15. How
did Jesus speak of death?
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 11:11-14
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them
which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. I Thessalonians 4:13
Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
If in this life only we have hope in
Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and
become the firstfruits of them that slept. I
Corinthians 15:18-20
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Daniel 12:2
Note: Sleep is a
beautiful illustration of death. It is
like going to bed at night, when we are tired, with the assurance of waking up
in the morning. This takes the fear out of death for the Christian. They lie down to sleep, with the quiet
assurance that Jesus will awaken them at His second coming.
Death is called a "sleep" at least sixty times in the Bible.
We are to regard it as a sound, dreamless sleep. A person may have been in the tomb for 1000
years, but when raised at the resurrection it will seem to him that he merely
dozed off for the moment. He will awake
from the most peaceful sleep he ever had, and the next thing he will see is
Jesus!
We will wake up as if by the alarm
clock, except it will be the coming of Jesus!
That will be one morning we won't
mind getting up!
16.
When did the thief on the cross look
forward to being with Jesus? Did Jesus
assure him of salvation that very day?
And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me
when thou comest into thy kingdom.
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To
day shalt thou be with me in paradise. Luke
23:42,43
Note: The punctuation in the translations of the Bible is
not inspired..
It was supplied by the translators, because there was no punctuation in
the original Greek. The comma should go
after the word "today" ("Assuredly
I say unto you today, you will be with Me
in Paradise."), for Jesus Himself did not go to Heaven that day.
Notice what he told Mary Magdalene on Rusurrection Sunday:
Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my
Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my
Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. John 20:17
17.
Jesus often illustrated truth with
parables which, like prophecies, use symbols.
Yet some have rejected the very truth
Jesus so plainly taught about death by taking literally some of the symbols
in the parable of "the Rich Man and Lazarus" (Luke 16). What did Jesus say would happen to those who
try to understand parables without "having" (or knowing) what the
rest of the Bible says on a subject?
And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto
them in parables?
He answered and said unto them, Because it
is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them
it is not given.
For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more
abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he
hath.
Therefore speak I to them in parables:
because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they
understand. Matthew 13:10-13
Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit
which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of
God.
Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom
teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with
spiritual.
But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God:
for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are
spiritually discerned. I Corinthians
2:12-14
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not
to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15
Note: God has written the Bible in such a way that we must
take it as a whole to understand it, versus just taking collections of
verses. If this parable provided the
only information the Bible gives on death, we would have to conclude that the
dead go directly to heaven or hell, but it is not. This story comes in the middle of a group of
parables and is itself a parable, for it uses figurative language
throughout—i.e., Lazarus went to "Abraham's bosom"; those in Hades
and Heaven can see and talk to each other; and a drop of water suffices to cool
one's tongue in hell.
In this parable Jesus used common
Jewish and Greek ideas (as evidenced in Josephus' works) to teach that:
1) the
rich have no advantage for salvation;
2) this
life provides our only chance for salvation, and
3) the
Scriptures are all-sufficient for salvation.
Jesus was not teaching a new doctrine
on death, or He would be contradicting what He Himself repeatedly taught in
other places. [click here for a study on the message Jesus was giving in
this parable]
SATAN'S
HOAX ABOUT DEATH
18. What lie about death did Satan tell
mankind in the Garden of Eden?
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye
shall not surely die. Genesis 3:4
Note: This was the first lie told to man, and it is
prevalent in the teachings of the world's false religions today. In love, God had warned man that the natural consequences for sin was death. Contrary to this, it is either taught
that you
will go to hell and burn forever, go to purgatory, be reincarnated, ascend to
another level of existence, etc. Who do you think
told the truth—Satan or God?
19.
Why does Satan want people to believe
that the dead are alive and can be contacted?
For they are the spirits of devils, working
miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to
gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Revelation
16:14
Even him, whose coming is after the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. 2 Thessalonians 2:9
And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from
heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth
by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the
beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image
to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. Revelation
13:13,14
Note: Satan wants people to believe that the dead can be
contacted so he can send his angels to pose as the spirits of the dead and
deceive people (Read I Samuel 28).
AN
IMPORTANT TEST
20.
The Bible tells us that God's friends
will enter His new Kingdom. Who will be
among those who will not be
there?
For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and
whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a
lie. Revelation 22:15
Note: Those who consult the dead (sorcerers) are among
those who are not in God's Kingdom. We
are to stay as far away as possible from anything that in any way resembles
witchcraft, which claims the power to contact the dead. Presumed contact with the dead is always
contact with satanic forces.
21.
From what sources, only, should I
receive my information on the subject of death?
And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar
spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek
unto their God? for the living to the dead?
To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to
this word, it is because there is no light in them. Isaiah 8:19,20
22.
What is the last enemy to be destroyed?
The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. I Corinthians 15:26
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the
second death. Revelation 20:14
CONCLUSION
Isn't God's way really the best? Instead of floating around somewhere after
death, a person sleeps until he is bodily resurrected as Jesus was. And, since he is unconscious, the
resurrection is the next instant to
him! Instead of a dying baby going to a
strange place alone or floating lost in limbo, the next thing he will know is a
smiling kiss! Parents will take up the
raising of their departed child right where it left off!
What a joy to be reunited with friends
and loved ones who died believing in Jesus Christ! Truly, the second coming of Jesus will be a
grand and glorious
event. How can we become a
member of His kingdom? It is ours for
the asking! Will you prepare and help
others to prepare for that glad day when we will all go to heaven
together?
My
response to Christ is:______________________________