Blessed is he
that readeth, and they that hear the
words of this prophecy, and keep
those things which are written therein:
for the time is at hand. Revelation 1:3
Life After Death
Lesson 9
Marking Code: LD
Marking Color: Brown
Key Text: Job 14:14
- Job 14:14. What
is death? Is it as final as
it seems? Or is there
something better beyond the
tearful goodbyes? If a man
dies, will he live again? Men
and women have been asking
this question as long as
death has existed. The Bible
has the only source of
authoritative information on
this important question.
- Genesis
2:16, 17; 3:4. The devil
told the first lie to Eve in
the Garden of Eden-“You
shall not surely die.”
God had said that death would
result if Adam and Eve
disobeyed Him and ate the
forbidden fruit. However, the
devil contradicted god. That
first lie continues today in
the common belief that when a
person dies, he or she (a
person’s soul) continues
to live in some form.
- Ezekiel
18:4,20. Souls do die!
The bible often uses the word
“soul” to mean
simply “a person,”
“a human being.”
- 1 Timothy
1:17; 6:15,16. Only God
is immortal.
- 1
Corinthians 15:51-54. Human
beings receive immortality
only at Jesus’ second
coming.
- Matthew
24:23,24. The last days
will be a time of deception.
Satan is particularly eager
to deceive us regarding what
happens after death because a
misunderstanding here opens
the way for him to introduce
a multitude of deceptions.
Leviticus 20:27. God
warns us against consulting those who
claim to be able to communicate with
the dead.
- Ecclesiastes
9: 5, 6. What happens to
a person when he or she dies?
The Bible is clear that when
a person dies, they know
nothing. They cease to exist;
their feelings and emotions
come to an end; they have no
part in what happens on
earth.
Psalm 146:3,4. Their
thoughts perish.
Psalm 115:17. The dead
no not praise God.
- Acts 2:34. Peter
specifically says that David
(who had died centuries
earlier) had not gone to
heaven.
- Ecclesiastes
12:7. When a person dies
his or her body returns to
dust, and the
“spirit” returns to
God. What is this
“spirit.” Moreover,
what does it mean that it
returns to God?
- Genesis
2:7. At Creation, God
made Adam out of the dust of
the earth (the body) and
breathed into him the breath
(spirit) of life. The result
of this combination is a
“living being”
(some translations of the
Bible say, a “living
soul.” So body +
God’s life-giving spirit
= a living human being. At
death, the process is
reversed. The body returns to
the earth; God takes back His
life-giving spirit; and the
living soul – or living
being-ceases to exist.
Nowhere in the Bible is the
word “soul” used to
mean a conscious, intelligent
entity, capable of existence
apart from the body.
- Luke
23:42,43. Didn’t
Jesus tell the repentant
thief on the cross that he
would go to heaven with Him
that very day when he and
Jesus died? Actually, Jesus
didn’t go to Paradise
that very day of the
crucifixion-Friday. He told
Mary on Sunday morning-two
days later-that He
hadn’t yet ascended to
His Father in heaven. (John
20:17). Jesus was assuring
the thief, “I tell you
this very day when all seems
to be failure that you will
be with me in heaven.”
He didn’t tell him that
they would be in heaven that
very day; Jesus told him that
very day that they would be
together someday in heaven.
- 1
Thessalonians 4:16-18.
Good News! The righteous
people who have died will
live again-when Jesus
returns. Until then, they
sleep in the
grave-unconscious, waiting
for their Lord to raise them
to immortal life.
LD-End.
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