Death is the cessation of life. For thousands of years the world has been divided into two camps relative to the subject. People in the East embrace it while those in the West dread it and will do whatever is necessary to postpone it. The multiplied millions comprising professing Christendom are able to accept it due to the belief that at death they (their souls-the real person) will go directly to heaven where God awaits with open arms with the key to their mansion in hand. In the previous posting (The Man-Soul Deception) I proved Scripturally that what the Counterfeit Church believes–that man has a soul that lives eternally in either heaven or hell–is a belief borrowed from the world of heathenism. Using God’s Word I brought out the fact that the real/actual man is his nephesh/soul/flesh, and that man is dead until God gives him the “breath of life” (Gen. 2:7) which provides him with a spirit (1 Cor.6:21/Job 32:8/Prov.20:27) that remains in him until removed by God, at which time he dies.

Scripture tells us that at death man’s flesh/soul/nephesh returns to dirt as it was originally, and his spirit returns to God Who gave it (Eccl. 12:7). From earth man came; to earth man returns (Eccl. 3:20). Ecclesiastes 18:10 tells us why the soul (flesh) dies: “The soul that sins, that soul dies.” We have all sinned, therefore we will all die. The question then involves w

hat happens to man following death? Is death the end of everything as atheists believe? New Age people believe that the spirits of the dead are in contact with them while they are evolving into ever higher states of being. Hindus teach reincarnation which results in the same evolutionary changes. Buddhists believe in the god within them who leads them to ever higher states. The church teaches that the dead are not really dead, that they are in heaven or hell, or in an intermediary location awaiting deliverance. Who is right? According to God, none of them. In His Word He tells us clearly about death, resurrection and what the future holds for His saints.  At this point we will look only at those Scriptures dealing with the physical death of man.

Following physical death the body begins to decompose, including the brain, which is flesh. As a result it cannot know, comprehend or remember: “No one remembers You (the Lord) when he is dead. Who praises You from the grave?” (Ps. 6.5).

At death all human emotions cease to exist: “Their (the dead’s) love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun” (Eccl. 9.6).

The dead lose all contact with the living, having no knowledge of anything that takes place on earth: “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten ….  In the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom” (Eccl. 9:5,9,10).

Death is like sleep, as God says 54 times in His Word. The Psalmist (13:3) said, “I will sleep in death.” Jesus brought this out in John 11:11-14 when He told the disciples that Lazarus was asleep. He then explained that Lazarus was dead.

Death for God’s true saint is not the end, but rather the beginning. Jesus said at Lazarus’ tomb, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies” (Jn. 11:25). Job knew that he would one day rise from the grave to meet His maker: “If a man dies, will he live again? … I will wait for my renewal to come; You (God) will call and I will answer (from the grave); You will long for the creature Your hands have made” (Job 14:13-15). “Listen, I tell you a mystery: WE WILL NOT ALL SLEEP, BUT WE ALL WILL BE CHANGED–in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, AT THE LAST TRUMP.  For the trumpet will sound, THE DEAD WILL BE RAISED imperishable (immortal), and WE WILL ALL BE CHANGED. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and THE MORTAL WITH IMMORTALITY …. then the saying that is written will come true: ‘DEATH HAS BEEN SWALLOWED UP IN VICTORY'” (1 Cor. 15:51-54). Upon the return of Jesus the dead IN HIM will rise from the grave and join Him in the air: “When Christ, Who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in (His) glory” (Col. 3:4). “We do not want you to be ignorant concerning those who have fallen asleep (have died), or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope …. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and THE DEAD IN CHRIST WILL RISE FIRST. After that, we who are alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever (1 Thes. 4:13,16-18). Jesus, accompanied by His saints, will then descend to earth to the Mount of Olives (Zech. 14:4). From there He and they will enter Jerusalem where He will establish the Kingdom of God. For the next 1000 years He and they will rule and reign on earth Later, God the Father will descend to His earthly kingdom accompanied by New Jerusalem. Read The Kingdom of God.  Key word–Kingdom.

The teaching that the soul of man never dies (is immortal) lies behind the belief that church people go to heaven where they live in blissfulness for eternity while the unchurched are writhing in flames. This error has given rise to a very powerful and widespread profession populated by those who claim to consult with the dead. Those whom I have seen doing this operate call themselves Christians who ply their trade in spite of God’s Words of warning: “When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter (messages from the dead to the living), should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? Consult the message and the counsel of God” (Isaiah 8:19,20).

Many spiritists hear “words from beyond the grave” which thrill their audiences. Many ministers hear the “voice of God” which they relay to their congregations. Many (probably most) of the time that “voice” comes from the god of the earth–Satan. But due to ignorance of or unbelief in the Word of God, the masses believe that what they are seeing and hearing is from the Lord.

How many times we have heard that “Mother is looking down on us from heaven” or something to that effect. Many have visited heaven or hell, returned to earth and written books about their experiences. Others know things they could not know normally. Movies have been made depicting their spiritual visitations, words of knowledge, etc. “If it’s spiritual, it must be of God” is the religious mantra. This shows a total disregard for the Word of God. Let us not forget that Pharaoh’s magicians, using Satan’s power, did several of the same miracles that God performed through Moses. Today, men and women– “ministers of the Lord”–speak great sermons, heal the sick and perform miracles, all the while telling their congregations that the God of the Bible, the One who supposedly “saved” them, has lied to them (see the website introduction). For this reason God tells us that we will know His people by their FRUIT–obedience to His Word–not by the charisma of their personalities, their soul-stirring sermons or their miracles, signs and wonders. Remember, Satan can perform the same feats through his false prophets. AND HE DOES.  L.J.