RoparnaState of the Dead – Hope beyond the grave
PURPOSE: Death is an unconscious sleep until the resurrection.
FOCUS: Eternal life is a gift from Jesus that He will give at the resurrection to those who receive Him.
Introduction
Our belief about death affects how we live. IE: Pyramids, M. Applewhite. Today we will look at what the Bible says happens when you die.
In order to understand death, we must first understand life, its antitheses.
Joh 14:6
What is Jesus? He is not only our Creator, but the very source of life.
God is also our life sustainer…
Acts 17:25, 28
Life is a gift. Breath is a gift. Nothing we possess in and of ourselves. We ought to be thankful to God for every breath! He is our life sustainer. (Heb 1:3)
The heathen religions say man is immortal. But this doesn’t agree with the Bible…
1 Tim 6:15-16
Who alone is immortal? Are humans? Are angels? Not by nature. They have received immortality as a conditional gift. (Rom 2:6-7)
But what about our soul, is it immortal?
Ezek 18:4, 20
Most religions say that human beings have an immortal soul. Is this biblical? (Ps 22:29, Matt 10:28, James 5:20) IE: Luther, Tyndale.
What then is the soul? Let us turn to the first usage of the word.
Gen 2:7
What is the soul? DUST + BREATH = SOUL (Conscious, living creature). Man became a soul, he didn’t receive one. No preexistence.
When a person dies, the reverse of creation takes place…
Ecc 12:7
Death is the undoing of life. What returns? Not the soul. The spirit/breath (Job 27:3). It is not a conscious being that returns, but simply the life force, the ability to breathe (Ps 104:29, Job 33:4). IE: Wooden box. IE: Lamp.
So what happens with the dead? How conscious are they?
Ecc 9:5-6, 10
How much do the dead know? Do they feel? Is there knowledge with the dead? Is there wisdom? The dead are simply dead (Ps 146:4).
If you died and got to Heaven (as is popularly believed) would you not praise Jesus? But the Bible says
Ps 115:17
Do the dead praise God? (Ps 6:5, Isa 38:18-19)
Many times the Bible compares death to a sleep…
Job 14:10-12, 21
What happens to a man when he dies? Death = a pause of life until Jesus’ return. Does he know what happens on earth? Relief! IE: Luther quote. IE: Haunted houses (Job 7:9-10)
Jesus also compared death to a sleep…
John 11:11-14
What does Jesus compare death to? 70+ times the Bible calls death a sleep.
But death was not the end according to Jesus…
John 5:28-29
When do the righteous receive eternal life? At the resurrection! What is the point of the resurrection if man goes straight to heaven or hell?
The NT Church did not believe that the righteous soul was immortal and goes to heaven at death…
Acts 2:29, 34
What did the early church believe about death? IE: Justin Martyr quote.
Why is this truth important to know?
Deut 18:10-12
What does God say about communication with the dead? (Lev 20:27)
Why so strong statements, if they anyway don’t know anything?
2 Cor 11:14-15
Who can masquerade in the form of our dead loved ones? (cf. Deut 32:17 & Ps 106:28) Spiritualism will be huge in the last days (1 Tim 4:1, Rev 16:13-14).
This Bible truth, concerning the state of the dead is our safeguard against deception…
Isa 8:19-20
Should we seek counsel from the dead? IE: Mormonism. IE: Boy visits heaven.
Appeal
What have you thought of death previously? Has what we studied today changed your understanding? Questions? Do you see that this is important? Is it your desire to base your beliefs solely on the testimony of the Bible?
