Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: emery@tc.fluke.COM (John Emery) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Not Straight to Heaven - Re: Believers Life after Death Message-ID: Date: 2 May 91 09:14:43 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc., Everett, WA Lines: 153 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu The blessing of the Lord be upon you all! In my first article on the topic of what happens to those who die, I touched on what I saw in the Bible as good news to us all. Because of David Buxton's response to this article, I would like to add some more comments on what I have found in my own personal study on this topic. David's main point of his discussion is that he believes that people, believers and unbelievers, lie in an unconscious state of death (sleep) in the grave until the resurrection. I believe this is the SDA belief as a denomination. My comments are not necessarily part of my church doctrine, but what I have found personally as I have studied the Bible. The more I have searched in the Scripture on this topic, the more I have seen the good news and hope of being with Jesus when I die. As I consider this topic, I have found what the Bible defines as physical death: "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 2:26) From this, it is clear that physical death is marked by the absence of the spirit in the body. Therefore in order for our body to die, our spirit must leave it. This is just like spiritual death. It marks the separation of our spirit from God. Death is a separation. Physical: body separated from spirit; Spiritual: spirit separated from God. Then I ask myself, if the spirit leaves the body when it dies, where does the spirit go? I have found the answer in the Bible when considering what happened when our Lord died on the cross. Did His spirit remain in His body when He died on the cross? Once again, it must be "no" because the body is dead when the spirit is away from it according to the above Scripture. And this is what the Scripture confirms: "He was put to death in body but made alive by the Spirit, through whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built." (1 Peter 3:18-20) It becomes so clear to me, that there *is* spirit consciousness after death. These disobedient spirits of people from the days of Noah are not in their bodies in the tomb, but in prison and conscious. They would have to be conscious in order for Jesus to preach to them. Peter goes on to say: "For this is the reason that the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they may be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in the spirit." (1 Peter 4:6) At the time of Jesus' death, He promised the repentant thief on the cross that "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." (Luke 23:43). Therefore Jesus also went to a place called "paradise" after His death, even more evidence of a place of consciousness where the spirit may go after leaving the body according to James 2:26. Jesus explained these two places of consciousness in Luke 16 when He describes this paradise at Abraham's side where the beggar Lazarus went and this spiritual "prison" where the rich man went. This paradise must have been where king David went: "Then David rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David." (1 Kings 2:10) When Jesus was resurrected, it was His body, not His spirit. The Bible explains this when addressing the question of "what is the resurrection from the dead": "But someone may ask, 'How are the dead raised'?" (1 Corinthians 15:35) Paul goes on to explain what the resurrection from the dead is: "So it will be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body." (1 Cor. 15:42-44) The "body" is the key of the resurrection. For when the redeemed spirit left the body, it became dead (James 2:26). Notice the above verse says nothing about the unconscious spirit waking up. It is the body that is dead and it is the body that is raised to life at the resurrection. An example of this is seen at the death of Jesus: "The tombs broke open and the *bodies* of many holy people who had died were *raised to life*. They came out of their tombs, and after Jesus' resurrec- tion, they went into the holy city and appeared to many people." (Matthew 27:52-53) In this resurrection, it was their bodies that came to life. Once again, it stresses that it is the body that is raised. If this be the case, where are the spirits of the righteous now, who are in Christ? Listen to the Biblical description of the Great City in heaven: "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the *heavenly* Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands and thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven, to the SPIRITS OF THE RIGHTEOUS MEN MADE PERFECT.." (Hebrews 12:22-23) In the heavenly Jerusalem there are not only thousands and thousands of joyful angels, but also the spirits of righteous saints whose bodies have fallen asleep in Christ. Perhaps that is why Paul was torn between staying in the body or **departing** from the body to be with Jesus. If Paul were to remain apart from Jesus after death, then there would only be one desire, to stay alive bear fruitful labor. But this is what Paul said: "For me to live is Christ, to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;" (Philippians 1:21-23) "Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord." (2 Corinthians 5:6-8) If our spirit remained in an unconscious state in the tomb, it would not be away from the body. But of it says in the above verse that we can be *away from our body*, and for the redeemed: home with the Lord. Therefore, as stated earlier, in the heavenly Jerusalem are the "spirits of righteous men made perfect". That is why the Scripture says: "God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him." (1 Thessalonians 4:14). When Jesus comes, He will bring back with Him the spirits of these saints. It goes on to say that "the dead in Christ will rise first" (1 Thes 4:16). As in Matthew 27:52 quoted earlier, their *bodies* will comes to life, be reunited with their spirit, and transformed into an imperishable, glorious, resurrection body like that of Jesus'. This is how the dead in Christ come to life! This is the joy and hope that stand before us in Christ! Hallelujah! We can rejoice in the redemption of our spirit, knowing it will be with Christ when our bodies die. And we can look forward the redemption of our sinful body in the resurrection of the dead: "Not only so, but we ourselves who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:23) ^^^^^^ I pray that none lose heart, but are encouraged to know that your home is with Jesus and know that He will *never* leave you nor forsake you nor abandon you to the grave! God bless you all, John Emery emery@tc.fluke.COM