What Happens When We Die? - Little Sandy Church 02/09/2025

The transcription discusses different beliefs and concepts of death from various religions and cultures. It also explores the belief of modern Christians that when a believer dies, their body goes to the grave while their soul goes to paradise or the presence of Christ in heaven. Scripture is referenced to support the idea that the body returns to dust and the spirit returns to God. So starting out, an old business man near death called for his brother to come to his side. Please see that I am cremated, he told his brother. What should I do with your ashes, his brother asked. I would like for you to put them in an envelope and send them to the IRS with a note that says here, now you have everything. A young entrepreneur was alarmed at the card he received at the opening of his new store. Along with some beautiful flowers, there was a card that read, in deep sympathy. Just then, the telephone rang. It was the florist wanting to apologize for sending the wrong card. No problem at all, said the entrepreneur. These things happen. I accidentally sent your card to a funeral, the florist explained. Well, what did it say, asked the entrepreneur. Congratulations on your new location, came the florist's reply. And it's humorous, but there is a little bit of truth to that, because when we die, we will inevitably have a new location. But the question is, what is that new location? What happens when we die? And more importantly, what does scripture say about it? That should be our foundation for everything we believe. So let's start with the human question. What are humans? Let's go back to the beginning. If you would like to follow me, we'll be starting in Genesis chapter 2. But Genesis chapter 2, in verse 7. And the Lord God formed man out of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. So in this one verse, I'd like to point out a couple of things real quick, just to illustrate what we are as human beings, both man and woman. The Lord God formed man out of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and as such, this coming together of dust and breath of life, man became a living soul. We read in Genesis chapter 6, verse 17. For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. So there's the breath of life, we're getting kind of a hint here, when the breath of life, the spirit, as it were, as some people call it, when that departs, that is the end of life. All shall die once the breath of life is taken from us. But what is this spirit? What is this breath of life? If you would like to, you can turn to Job chapter 32. I'll keep you on your toes today, because we're going to be going all over Scripture. In Job chapter 32, in verse 8, but it is the spirit in man, the breath of the Almighty, that makes him understand. So what is this breath of life? What is this spirit in man? It's what is referred to in Hebrew as the Ruach, that's the Hebrew word Ruach. And here in Job chapter 32, in verse 8, we see that this Ruach is the breath of the Almighty, the breath of God. Ruach can be translated in a number of different ways. It can be translated as spirit, which it often is. It can be translated as other things as well, such as wind, or various other things such as that. But this breath, or wind, or spirit, gives rise and gives you an image in your mind, an illustration of something unseen, invisible, some kind of thing that you can't really put a grasp on with your hands, but you know it's there. It's like the wind, and sometimes it's even referred to as wind, or translated as wind. We look in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, if anyone would like to turn there, but we saw that we are made up of dust and the breath of life, or spirit, and that makes us a living soul. So we've got the dust with the body, we've got the spirit, and then we've got the soul. And some people conflate these, but Scripture makes a distinguish, or distinguishes between all three of these in various places. But one of the most illustrative parts is in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, in verse 23. Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, and soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. So who are you? You are spirit, and soul, and body. All three of these things must be coming together in order to be alive. Take away any one of these, and you're dead. You're not a human anymore. And here in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse 23, Scripture makes a, distinguishes between spirit, soul, and body, that all three may be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. And then in Hebrews chapter 4, we see another distinguishing verse. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 12. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and of discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. So it doesn't actually say body right here, but it does say joints and marrow, so we can kind of get the image of the body. But again, it distinguishes between soul, spirit, joints and marrow, or body. But at the Bible, the word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword, and able to cut even between these three different parts of the human. So now that we've got a general idea of what a human is, how we were made, and we all pretty much know this, this is just reiterating things we already know. But now, let's get into death. And think to yourself, okay, what is death? Think about your concept of death. And various people in various points in history, in various points around the world, have had different ideas or concepts of death. According to the Hindus, they believe that each being is predestined to innumerable rebirths, and one's aggregate moral balance sheet determines both the length of each life and the specific form of each rebirth. In other words, reincarnation. You've probably heard something like that before. That's the Hindu concept. The Greeks, way back when, the mysteries of Demeter and Eleusis, among other esoteric cults, claimed that adherents would enjoy a heavenly immortality while those outside the cult would sink into the gloom of Hades. The Greeks believed that at the moment of death, the psyche or spirit of the dead left the body as a little breath or puff of wind. Seems a little bit more familiar. This is just a general overview of what the Greeks believed. There's a whole lot more nuances, but this is just to give you a general idea. The Romans believed in the immortality of the soul and had a complicated belief system about life after death. The ancient Romans believed that when one died, one was met by Mercury, the messenger god, and son of Jupiter, and taken to the river Styx that flowed around the underworld. So, very similar to the Greeks, the Romans believed that as soon as you died, you went to wherever your final destination was. Now, I'm not saying this to say we should not believe these things, but I'm not saying this so we should believe these things. There's a saying I've heard all my life, that even a blind squirrel will find a few nuts. So, just because they're pagan or they're cults, they might get one or two things right. We shouldn't condemn everything. We should condemn them overall because overall, they're wrong. As far as Judaism goes, we get direct reference to what Judaism kind of believes in the Bible itself. In verses like Acts chapter 23, verse 8, Matthew chapter 22, verse 23, Mark chapter 12, verse 18, and Luke chapter 20, verse 27. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel nor spirit, but the Pharisees confess both. Now, those within Judaism were diverse, just like those within Christianity. Diverse denominations have various ideas about various things, and so did those within Judaism. And the concept of death and what happened after death was just one of those things they had varying opinions on from time to time. The atheists, well, they're pretty straightforward and pretty bleak, in my opinion. But according to the atheists, once you die, that's it. You cease to exist. No body, no soul, no spirit, no conscience, nothing. There's nothing after your death. You go back into the earth. The earthworms eat you, grows into plants, and the whole circle of life, as they say. But modern Christians, like I said, there are various viewpoints. But according to David Jeremiah of Turning Point Radio, maybe some of you have heard him, he says that when a believer dies, his body goes in the grave and falls asleep. But his soul does not sleep. His soul goes to paradise. According to Matt Perman of Desiring Gods, believers will be taken into the presence of Christ in heaven. Christ is in heaven now, and believers will go to be with him. When in heaven, we will continue looking forward to the resurrection of our bodies from the dead. Believers are taken to heaven immediately at death. And this is, I mean, pretty much both these two quotes from these two preachers pretty much align with each other. And this is a common belief amongst a lot of Christians. And that's fine. We can have varying beliefs. Like I said, we can disagree on various things. We'll still come together and break bread and have all things in common. But what does Scripture say about what happens when we die? Let's get into the meat of it. If you would like to, if you'd like to follow along, I'll be going to Genesis chapter 3. Genesis chapter 3 in verse 19. By the sweat of your face, you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken, for you are dust, and to dust you shall return. So we've already seen that a human is composed of body, soul, and spirit. The body and spirit come together, and together you are a living soul. So here we can see in Genesis chapter 3 verse 19 a little about what's going to happen to one part of that equation, and that's our body. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return. Going on to Ecclesiastes chapter 12, and in Ecclesiastes chapter 12 in verse 7, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. So once again we get an illustration of what happens to our body. Dust goes to the earth from where it was, but the spirit, another part of the equation, where does the spirit go? The spirit goes to God who gave it. So we've examined a little bit about the body, we've examined a little bit about the spirit, but man is body, spirit, and soul. We've distinguished those three parts already, and we've already looked at a few verses. There are many more in your notes, there are many more in Scripture, but for the sake of time I've kind of cut it down. You can look at more about what happens to your spirit, you can look at more about what happens to your body, but this pretty much illustrates what happens. But what about the soul? What happens to that third part that we haven't looked at yet? For those of you who would like to, turn to Deuteronomy chapter 31, and this is going to be starting the pivotal point of our understanding here. Deuteronomy chapter 31, starting in verse 14, going through verse 16. And the Lord said to Moses, Behold the day's approach when you must die. Call Joshua and present yourselves in the tent of meeting that I may commission him. And Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tent of meeting. And the Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of clouds. And the pillar of clouds stood over the entrance of the tent. And the Lord said to Moses, Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise in horror after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will forsake me and break my covenant that I have made with them. Now in my study and research, this is actually the first point in Scripture where I can find that it starts talking about what happens to your soul, what happens to you when you die. So let's put forth the concept that we do not have a soul, that we are a soul. That when the dust and the spirit come together, that creates us, the soul. We still need that dust, and we still need that body, and we still need that spirit. But here in Deuteronomy chapter 31, we start talking about the soul. And here the Lord said to Moses, Behold, the day's approach when you must die. That's an important phrase. It tells us what this whole context is about. It's about the death of Moses. So what's going to happen to Moses? What does God say is going to happen? He says, Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Going on to chapter, I'm sorry, 1 Kings chapter 2. In 1 Kings chapter 2 verse 10, we read, Going on to chapter 11 in 1 Kings. 1 Kings chapter 11 verse 43. Now this imagery that we get here about sleeping when we die is all throughout Scripture. I'm not done yet. I've still got another handful to go through up here. But if you look, for those of you who have notes, there is a massive list in your notes regarding this phraseology. Going on to the book of Daniel chapter 12. Daniel chapter 12 verses 1 and 2. Some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Now here, in this teaching today, this is the first glimpse we get of a resurrection. But notice here, number one, we get another reference to many of those who sleep in the dust. We get that phraseology again. But at the end of verse 2, it says, That's talking about not the resurrection, but the two resurrections. We'll get to that in just a moment, but keep that in your mind. Then going on into the New Testament in Matthew chapter 27. Matthew chapter 27 verses 51 through 53. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. And coming out of the tombs after his resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. So here, let's break this down just a little bit. This is pretty self-explanatory if you just look at it piece by piece, it will tell you exactly what it's trying to tell you. Okay, the earth shook, the rocks were split, but then it says the tombs were opened. Stop right there. What is a tomb? Think about that. A tomb is pretty much a place to put what? Meat, fruits, vegetables? No, it's to put dead ones, corpses, people who have died and passed on. So these tombs, these places where dead people were interred or resting, says many of the bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and came out of the tombs. Again, look at that imagery. And then going on to John chapter 11. And in John chapter 11, verses 11 through 14, After saying these things, he said to them, Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him. The disciples said to him, Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover, he'll just wake up. Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought he meant taking rest and sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, Lazarus has died. So the context here, the disciples missed it at first, and a lot of people tend to miss this kind of thing too, but the context here is death. And how does Jesus speak of Lazarus' death? He says that he has fallen asleep. So it's not just an Old Testament thing, but it goes on into the New Testament, all the way through the ends of the Bible, in fact. And here we have the words of our Christ telling us the exact same thing that we've already looked at before. Acts chapter 7. Moving on to even after the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. Acts chapter 7, verses 59 and 60. And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And falling to his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. So here we get another allusion to what happens. It doesn't really say what happens to his body, but it's pretty self-explanatory. We know what happens to his body. His body eventually turns to dust. And then the second part is spirit. What does he say about his spirit? He says, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Going back to what we've already examined, the spirit going back to God who gave it. But then, what about his soul? It goes on to say that when he had said this, he fell asleep. Then going on to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verses 13 through 16. But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. So here we get some more of that imagery, and we also get the entire context of what's being spoken about here. We start out in this passage, verses 13 through 16, and he's talking about those who are asleep, those who have fallen asleep, those who are alive, those who have fallen asleep, and then down here in verse 16 it tells us that the dead will rise. So before it gets to the part about where it says the dead, it keeps using these two terms, sleep and alive, contrasting the two. But we're still using that same phraseology that we've been looking at all throughout Scripture. And it's speaking of the dead. It tells us so down in verse 16. But once again, anyone who doesn't have notes, let me know. I'll get you some more printed out this coming week and get them to you. But as far as this whole imagery of the dead being asleep or falling asleep or lying with their fathers, things like that, there is a massive list. The weight there takes up a good portion of those 36 pages of notes. And in your head, some of you may be saying, well, what about this verse? What about that verse? We'll get to that. We'll look at that in just a moment. But let's look at the state of the dead. What does it mean to be dead? What happens when you are dead, and what does Scripture state about it? For those of you who would like, let's go to the book of Psalms in chapter 115. Psalms chapter 115 in verse 17. So what are the dead doing according to Psalms 115 verse 17? Nothing. They go down into silence. They're not praising the Lord. They're not making money. They're not getting married. They're in silence. We move on to Psalms chapter 146. And in Psalms chapter 146 verses 3 and 4. So when his breath, when his spirit departs, what happens? He returns to the earth. He makes no more plans. He cannot plan because he is dead. Moving on to Ecclesiastes chapter 9. Ecclesiastes chapter 9 verses 2 through 5. To the clean and the unclean. To him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As the good one is, so is the sinner. And he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun. That the same event happens to all. Also the hearts of the children of man are full of evil. And madness is in their hearts while they live. And after that they go to the dead. But he who is joined with all the living has hope. For a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die. But the dead know nothing. And they have no more reward. For the memory of them is forgotten. So here in this passage, Ecclesiastes chapter 9 verses 2 through 5. We start out by seeing that there is an event that happens. And this event is the same for all. And what happens to everyone? The good and the wicked, the righteous and the unrighteous. We all die. Death is what's referred to as the human condition. But what happens when we're dead? We go to the dead but what happens when we're dead? Here in verse 5 it says the dead know nothing. Now before we looked at verses where the imagery was used of falling asleep, lying with their father, stuff like that. Think about it. When you're asleep, what do you know? Nothing. You're unconscious. And if you're like me, you fall asleep and it seems just like that that you're awake in the morning. Even though hours have passed. But you don't know anything while you're asleep, while you're unconscious. And the same imagery is used to illustrate what happens when we die. Then going on back into the New Testament in Acts chapter 2. And in Acts chapter 2 we'll be looking at verses 29 and 34. And his tomb is with us to this day. For David did not ascend into the heavens. But he himself says, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand. David was the second king of Israel. After the time of the judges, he was actually the first king to unite the entire land of Israel. But David in context is back in the Old Testament. All the same, here in Acts, it's talking about the time after Jesus. After the life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. And even at that point, here Luke in Acts chapter 2 is stating that David is not in heaven. He did not go to heaven. So that gives us a little bit more clues about what happens when we die, our broad subject of the day. But going on, we look at who we are, what makes us up, what happens when we die about our body, our soul, and our spirit. But let's hypothesize real quick. We die today, right now, we're dead. So then what happens? Well, it's the time of the resurrection. And why are we resurrected? To be judged. And there is a day, singular day, of judgment. If you'll look with me in Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10 verses 14 through 15. The words of Jesus. Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment. Singular day. And then going back to Acts chapter 17. Acts chapter 17 verse 31. There's been several people throughout Scripture who have been raised from the dead. But who's it talking about here who's been raised from the dead, who's been appointed a judge? Well, that's Jesus. Context, obviously. But going back to the beginning of verse 31. It says because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness. God and Jesus. Righteous judge or unrighteous judge? I'll put forth it's righteous judge. Anybody else have this agreement, let me know. But if you're going to be rewarded for something or punished for something, especially this life, what you have done in this life, whether you have accepted Jesus or not, are you going to be rewarded or punished before you're judged on that? That's not what I get from Scripture. So if that day of judgment is yet to come and has not yet come, how can anyone have been judged righteous or unrighteous and be rewarded or punished before then? Kind of keep that in mind. Then going on to Acts chapter 24. Acts chapter 24 verses 14 through 15. Which these men themselves accept that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust. Moving back to the Gospel of John chapter 5. In John chapter 5 verses 28 and 29. And those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. So again, we've got a resurrection and the righteous are going to be resurrected. The unrighteous will also be resurrected. But the righteous will be resurrected to life and the unrighteous will be resurrected to death. Going on to 1 Corinthians chapter 15. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verses 12 through 19. Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God because we testify about God that He raised Christ whom He did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. So here we get more about the resurrection and also that imagery again about those who have fallen asleep in Christ. And this imagery is used throughout the writings of Paul. But there are some, as we can insinuate from the writings here in 1 Corinthians, there are some who did not believe in the resurrection. And we talked about the resurrection today in our Sunday school class, if you all remember that, about how important that was. And here Paul in 1 Corinthians is saying the same thing. But even after the times of the apostles, there were people who still did not say there was a resurrection of the dead. Justin Martyr, if anyone has ever heard of him, he's referred to as a church father. I don't really like that term, church father. Early writer, I'll put it that way. But Justin Martyr wrote this in his dialogue with Trifold. For I choose to follow not men or men's doctrines, but God and the doctrines delivered by him. For if you have fallen in with some who are called Christians, but who do not admit this truth, and venture to blaspheme the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, who say there is no resurrection of the dead, and that their souls, when they die, are taken to heaven, do not imagine that they are Christians. But I and others who are right-minded Christians on all points are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead. Now there's an issue here I take with Justin that should not be calling them Christians or imagine that they are Christians. But I don't think Justin or I have a right to judge their salvation. I think we can still agree with people who disagree with us on this subject of what happens when we die. And I would not call them un-Christian or non-Christians. So that's the issue I would take there. But here I would agree with him that there will be a resurrection of the dead. And you can even see that there are people way back then in the 2nd century, this is early 2nd century too, who are believing that when their souls die, they are taken to heaven. So that's not a new concept that people have been believing. It's been around for well over 2,000 years I would put forth. But here Justin and a lot of him, like him, during that time, and I would even put forth from Scripture itself, they're putting forth that no, when you die, you do not immediately go to your final destination, whether it's a reward or a punishment. Then looking at Revelation chapter 20, and that quote from Justin Martyr is in the notes as well, for those of you who have it, along with some other quotes. Then Revelation chapter 20, verses 4 and 5. So here in the beginning of this passage in verse 4, we see who it is that gets resurrected. Those who have not worshiped the beast, have not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. These are the righteous, and this is the first resurrection. These righteous in the first resurrection will be reigning with Christ, it says here, for 1,000 years. After that 1,000 years, then you get the second resurrection. So if the righteous were raised in the first resurrection, who does that tell you gets raised in the second resurrection? That would be the unrighteous. So now you're thinking, you've probably heard all this, and some of you have probably been challenged as to what you've long held to about what happens when we die. You may be thinking, well, I've heard sermons on this before, I've heard teachings on this before, I remember this verse, this verse, this point. So let's look at that real quick. One of the things that you may be thinking about is the story that Jesus tells about the rich man and Lazarus. For anyone who would like to, if you would turn with me to Matthew chapter 13, and we're going to be setting up the foundation for understanding what Jesus says about the rich man and Lazarus. But Matthew chapter 13, verses 10 through 13. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Then going on to Matthew chapter 13, verses 34 and 35. I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world. So here we can see that when Jesus is out and about and he's teaching, especially to the crowds, which would include just the regular everyday people and also the Pharisees and Sadducees that we see from time to time as well. Did he tell them plainly, speak to them directly like he did to the disciples? He spoke to them in parables. And is a parable a literal story, a literal telling? No, it's symbolic, it's metaphorical, it's used to teach a principle. But what's said did not actually literally happen. Then we go on to look in Luke chapter 15. And we can see here, now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to him. And this is getting into the context of what's actually going to happen in Luke chapter 16 here in just a moment. But leading up to Luke chapter 16, we look in Luke 15.1, the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to him. You can see even before that, that there's a crowd coming to him. And what did Jesus say that he did when he was speaking to the crowds? He spoke to them in parables. So this is the setup when we get to Luke chapter 16. And then in Luke chapter 16, starting in verse 19. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue. For I am in anguish in this flame. But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things and Lazarus in like manner bad things. But now he is comforted here and you are in anguish. Besides all this, between us and you, a great chasm has been fixed in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able and none may cross from there to us. And he said, Then I beg you, Father, to send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment. But Abraham said, They have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. And he said, No, Father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent. He said to them, If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead. Now I'm not trying to insult your intelligence. You've probably went over this story before. You probably know about it. Here he's speaking to the crowds. And when he tells the story about Lazarus and the rich man, is he telling something that actually happened or is he telling a parable? Someone put forth that it's a literal story of something that literally happened. But there's problems with that. Number one, as we've already seen, Jesus only spoke to the crowds and parables. And of all the parables that he told, if this was literal, this would be the only one that he ever told that was literal. And that presents a problem because he only speaks to the crowds and parables, and all parables, dreams, and visions are metaphorical in nature or symbolic in nature to teach a principle. Number two, another problem with the taking it literally, is that it uses language that literally does not correspond to anything else in Scripture. As some translations put it, it says the beggar, Lazarus, was taken to Abraham's bosom. I would invite anyone to show me anywhere else, even just one time in Scripture, where it ever uses that phrase or even the concept of Abraham's bosom. It doesn't happen. It's in Jewish writings, and there's some in your notes where it outlines that from the Talmud, Mishnah, whatnot. But that's what Jesus is doing here. He's speaking to the Jews. He's speaking to the Pharisees. He's speaking to the Sadducees. He's using language to teach a principle that they would understand. And when you look at the imagery here, a lot of the imagery, especially when it talks about the rich man, when he was clothed in purple. Well, think about that time, and if anyone knows about how people dressed back then, especially the high priest, what was the high priest dressed in? He was dressed in purple, like high-class attire, we would probably call it today. But when you look at it and you study it, you'll be seeing that Jesus is actually referencing the excesses of the leadership of the Sadducees and Pharisees of that day. Ananias was the high priest of that day, and Ananias had five brothers, all going back to what Jesus is saying here. But, again, I'll stress, it's not literally corresponding to anything else in Scripture, if we take it literally. Because there is no chasm that's spoken of throughout the rest of Scripture. There is no Abraham's bosom, but we do see it in Jewish writings. Another problem is that the words used here, if you study this out, you see it mentions Hades. It talks about the rich man going to Hades. This is equivalent to the Hebrew Sheol. Sheol in Hades literally means the grave, the tomb, under the earth, something like that. That's the intermediate state of the dead. When it talks about hell, think about, has anyone ever heard what the word for hell is in Greek? It's Gehenna. It talks about Sheol or Hades, and then Gehenna, the lake of fire. Remember when Jesus talks about, do not fear him who can kill the body, but fear him who can kill both body and soul in Gehenna? That is the lake of fire, Gehenna. But here, in the story of Lazarus and the rich man, it's talking about Hades or Sheol, talking about the intermediate state of the dead. So the intermediate state of the dead, we've already seen. What happens when you die? Scripture alludes to the fact that you fall asleep. A lot of your fathers, you are not praising the Lord, you know nothing, you are, for lack of a better word, unconscious. So that's the intermediate state of the dead, and that would be a problem with taking this literally, is that it would contradict the entirety of the rest of Scripture. But if it's a parable, if it's actually teaching a principle, there's no problem here. Another problem with taking this literally is that being rich is what sends you to hell, and being poor or sickly is what gets you to heaven. Now both of these men in the story, I would say, have sins, right? But it doesn't talk about the sins of the rich man, it just says he was rich. It doesn't talk about the righteous acts of the poor man, it just says he was poor and sickly. But being rich is not what sends you to hell, you can be rich and still get into heaven. Being poor and sickly is not what gets you to heaven, because even the poor and sickly, a lot of them are going to go to hell too. So that's another problem with taking it literally. A big problem with taking this literally, if we think this is true and literal and actually what is going to happen, is that the saved, think about Lazarus in the story, the saved will be in heaven and be able to forever see the torment of those in hell, including their loved ones not in heaven. I mean think about this, it's hard to say, but you know people in your family, you know people in society, at work, your friends, who you love very dearly, they're very close to your heart. But they weren't saved. Think about it, if you're in heaven and you're able to look down into hell, these people that you love, you can see them in English. How much of a paradise would that be for you in heaven? So that's a problem, that's a big problem, at least in my opinion, that's a big problem with taking the story as literal. Another problem is that to think that even one drop of water would relieve the pains of hell, no. And that's something that's in this story, the rich man just wants one drop of water to quench his thirst. And lastly, we can see here, we've examined the context here, and the context is that Jesus only spoke to the crowds in parables, leading up to the story of Lazarus and the rich man, we see that he is teaching in the midst of a crowd, and we can see that the story of rich man and Lazarus really is a parable, it's not literal. Again, feel free to disagree, but all the evidence I can see, and think about logically, it's just another parable that's meant to teach a principle, and Jesus was using language that the Jews of the time would have understood. Now let's move on to the thief on the cross, some of you may have thought about this already. But looking in Luke chapter 23, that's where we're going to go to, if anybody wants to join me, Luke chapter 23. And in Luke chapter 23, verses 39 through 43, One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us. But the other rebuked him, saying, Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds, that this man has done nothing wrong. And he said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. And he, Jesus, said to him, Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise. Now those of modern Christian persuasion, like we read with David Jeremiah and a lot of others, this is one of the verses they'll point to to say that when you die, if you're good and you're righteous, you immediately go to heaven. Because here it says, Jesus told the thief, truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise. But think about it, all the other scriptures we've examined, would that not at least bring up suspicion of contradiction here? But let's think about this. When Jesus died on the cross, did he go to paradise? Did he go to heaven? Or was he in the tomb for three days before he ascended into heaven? Return with me to John chapter 20, and I'll show you directly from scripture. This is one example, there's many more. But in John chapter 20, verses 15-17. Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus said to her, Mary. She turned and said to him in Aramaic, Rabboni, which means teacher. Jesus said to her, Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father, and your Father, to my God, and your God. So even Jesus himself said he had not yet gone to the Father. He had not yet gone to heaven. Other parts of scripture tell us that when Jesus died, he went and preached to the saints in prison. Remember that part? So when Jesus told the thief on the cross, I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise. Let's examine that a little bit more. Most of you, who here has King James? You're using the King James translation. Anybody else using something different? I'm reading the English Standard Version or the ESV up here. But there's many different translations. All of what we've been reading is in English, but what did they write the Gospel of John and Luke in? It was Greek. For those of you who don't know, Greek does not have any punctuation. It does not have any capital letters or lowercase letters. It just has one-size letters, and there's no punctuation, such as common. Now if you look here in Luke 23, verse 43, The placement of that punctuation, the placement of that common, is up to the translator to decide where to place that. And they probably placed it based on, well, I can benefit without the best guess, but that best guess is probably based on what they already believed, what they grew up believing, tradition, things like that. But just for a moment, think about this. If you move that comma one more word, and instead of it said this, So just moving that comma one word would instead change the meaning from, you'll be with me today in heaven, to, I tell you today, that at some point you will be with me in paradise. See how that placement of the comma changes everything there? Again, Greek, and Hebrew for that matter too, does not have that punctuation. So when we read it in English, understand that the punctuation is all based upon the translator's decision, whichever translation you're reading. But it does make a big difference sometimes, and especially here in Luke. So with this being, we'll call it ambiguous. We'll say that we're not right determining where the comma should be. We're saying the translator isn't right. We'll make it ambiguous, and it takes the rest of Scripture. Which way do you think it really should be translated? Where do you think that comma really should be? Now another concept you've probably been thinking of is the concept of being absent from the body. A lot of you may be thinking about that passage. Let's look in 2 Corinthians chapter 5. And I promise I'm getting to the end here. You know, I heard a preacher say one time that there's a fine line between a long sermon and a hostage situation. So we'll try to keep this as a long sermon. 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verses 1 through 9. For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling. If indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we were still in this tent we groan, being burdened, not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed. So that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please Him. A lot of people understand this last passage right here, this last verse, to say that when we are absent from the body, we are present with the Lord. But again, it gets very nuanced. It's like that comma we just discussed. Paul is stating that he would rather be away from the body and present with the Lord. Not that we are present with the Lord when we are out of the body. Looking in Philippians chapter 1. Philippians chapter 1, verses 22 and 23. Sorry, let me back up. Let's go with 21 through 23. Philippians chapter 1, verses 21 through 23. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose, I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. Again, he's not saying that when he departs he will be with Christ. He's saying he would desire to be with Christ. But again, we've got that intermediate state between when we die and when we are with Christ. We all want to be with Christ. Paul is saying the same thing. But just because we die, that does not mean we automatically go to Christ. It's still the judgment. And there would not be a righteous judge if we did not be judged before we were rewarded or before we were punished. Now some common Christian concepts. And these are Christian concepts. Number one, that the body and soul perish at death. This is a minority and an outlier in the Christian community. But there are some, like Sadducees, even still hold to that today. A second concept. The body perishes but the soul exists unconsciously. And number three, and I would say this is the one I run across most commonly within Christianity. But number three, the body perishes but the soul lives on unconsciously. Sort of like an instant destination. When you die you immediately go to heaven or you immediately go to hell. And people like the late, great Billy Graham said this. Do we immediately enter heaven when we die? My own study of the Bible has convinced me that we do. That was a quote of Billy Graham. A lot of people, a lot of preachers, a lot of prominent preachers do teach this. Maybe he's telling the truth. Maybe he does tell it, his opinion, out of his own study. It doesn't make it right. It doesn't make it right. Billy Graham is just a man. It's like you and me. David Jeremiah is just a man. It's like you and me. John McArthur is just a man. Like you and I. Does it make us right? Scripture is what makes us right. Billy Graham says he comes to this conclusion out of his own study. I would invite you to do your own study. That's why I provided you with 36 pages of notes. Massive amounts of Scripture. In addition to that, there's also other things to help you in your study as well. Go beyond that. Do your own study. Make your own decision. Regardless of which of these three concepts you come to, whether it's the body and soul perish at death, which I would gladly disagree with, but hey, this break bread will still get along, or whether you choose the body perishes but the soul exists unconsciously, or whether you choose the Billy Graham method that the body perishes but the soul immediately goes to heaven or hell. Again, come to your own conclusion. I tried to put forth a lot today to help you with making that decision to educate you better so that you can make a decision based on Scripture and not just some popular teaching that you hear on the radio. So make your own decision, but make it from Scripture. Not on popularity, not on what people will think of you. This is one of those teachings that usually doesn't make you friends. You can go against the grain. And hey, if I'm asked never to come back, that's fine too. I put forth what I have found from Scripture and I've tried to back it up with the evidence. But you come to your own conclusion. Don't just accept what I'm telling you. Hear from God, follow the Spirit, follow Scripture. So I'll go ahead and wrap up with a summary. So in summary, what we've looked at today is that there will be a resurrection of the just and of the unjust. Resurrection of the just, that's the first resurrection. Resurrection to life and then the resurrection of the just. Resurrection to condemnation. There will be a final day, singular, of judgment for all. And that man is comprised of body, soul, and spirit. We saw the verses there. And that the dead know nothing. We also saw that no one has ascended into heaven yet with the sole exception of Jesus. And there were many people who saw him ascend into heaven. And that also, when we die, our flesh, our body, it returns to dust. Our spirit, according to what we see from Scripture, our spirit returns to God who gave it. And that our soul, it rests or it sleeps or goes unconscious, whatever term you want to use. It goes back to the earth and that's where we are until we are resurrected anew into our new and glorious body. And hopefully that will be with all of you in heaven. So thank you very much. If you disagree, fine, let's have a discussion. I love discussing these kinds of things. And if you need some more notes, if you didn't happen to get one, let me know and I'll print out some more this week and have some more available for everyone. Thank you.