“Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; some to everlasting life” (Dan 12:2).
Hope springs eternal from the Bible.
There was a group of students talking together when one of them asked the others, “Where do you think you go when you die?” The Buddhist friend stated that he believed in reincarnation and that he hoped to become a flying eagle with his rebirth. The Muslim friend acknowledged that he would likely go to hell for a short period, but he hoped to go to Paradise and be with Allah. The Orthodox Jewish friend believed that he would remain unconscious in death until Messiah comes and then he would be made immortal. The Pentecostal friend believed that he would instantly go to heaven and receive his reward along with many others. Finally, the Catholic friend said that due to his not-so-righteous life, he figured he’d go to Purgatory when he dies and wait to be prayed up to heaven by one of his relatives! Yes, that was really his plan.
The Bible has a lot to say about immortality. Since Adam and Eve first sinned, mankind has been seeking for ways to escape the reality and shortness of our lives. Fortunately, our Creator has set eternity in our hearts (Eccl 3:11), allowing you to think about what happens to you after you die. This hope of immortality is reflected throughout the Bible:
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 6:23).
“Truly, truly I say to you, he who believes has eternal life” (John 6:47).
“And this is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life” (1John 2:25).
“And as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:25-26).
“For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality” (1Cor 15:53).
Doesn’t everyone have an immortal soul?
Actually, no. If fact, only one man is currently immortal and that is Jesus (1Tim 6:16). Every other person — past and present — is mortal and looks forward to being made immortal. The Bible gives great emphasis to the nature of man and how we are merely composed of dust. From the beginning (Gen 2:7, 3:19), God tells his creation that man is dust and he shall return to dust. We are the clay (Isa 64:8). We are of the earth, earthly (1Cor 15:47). We will return to dust when the Almighty takes back His spirit (Job 34:13-14). We are but dust and ashes (Gen 18:27). The wise king Solomon tells us what happens when we die: “the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath (spirit) returns to God who gave it” (Eccl 12:7).
Perhaps surprisingly, the words ‘immortal’ and ‘soul’ do not occur together anywhere in the Bible. This is in contrast to most other religions, and even Christian interpretations of the Bible. For whatever reason, it seems that many people continue to believe the serpent’s lie: “You shall surely not die.” One reason is that most Christians misunderstand how the Bible defines the word ‘soul’. The common belief is expressed like this: Soul = Spirit. But the Biblical definition differs by declaring: Soul = Body + Spirit. Understand the difference? The soul is not a spiritual or invisible part of a person, but the entire person including the body and spirit. Consider the following evidence regarding ‘Soul’ in Scripture:
Many modern translations use the word ‘you’ or ‘person’ or ‘lives’ in place of the Hebrew/Greek word for ‘Soul’. A good example is from Ezek 18:4 which says “the soul that sins shall die” in KJV, but “the person who sins shall die” in NIV.
Of the hundreds of times the Hebrew word nephesh (soul) is used in the Bible, the vast majority are used regarding the soul dying. Souls are destroyed (Ezek 22:27; Lev 23:30; Psa 22:29; Josh 11:11). God can destroy the soul (Matt 10:28).
Nephesh (soul) is also translated as “corpse” or “dead body” in Num 9:6.
The first passage in the Bible with “soul” is in Gen 2:7 where “the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being (soul/nephesh).” This sets the precedent throughout Scripture for using the word “soul” better as ‘a person’. Soul = Body + Spirit (or breath of life from God). ‘Soul’ and ‘spirit’ can be divided (Heb 4:12). Our soul is not the same as our heart/spirit (Matt 22:37).
The Bible uses a phrase “asleep in Christ” to describe how Godly believers will remain unconscious after death, waiting for their resurrection (1Cor 15:6, 18; 1Thess 4:13-15; 2Pet 3:4; Psa 103:14-16).
The Epic of Gilgamesh was one of the earliest known writings in ancient Mesopotamia. That story is about the quest to become immortal and how all mankind is bound to die as mortal. Ultimately the poignant words addressed to Gilgamesh in the midst of his quest foreshadow the end result: “The life that you are seeking you will never find. When the gods created man they allotted to him death, but life they retained in their own keeping.” Surprisingly, this conclusion parallels the same summary given throughout the Bible.
What good is immortality?
In Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a king who was eternally punished by being compelled to roll a huge rock up a steep hill. Unfortunately, before he could reach the top of the hill, the rock would always roll back down, forcing him to begin again and again and again. Sisyphus was fortunate to gain immortality and live forever, but his quality of life wasn’t exactly what he had in mind. Happily, those who inherit eternal life don’t need to worry about such problems, but what is it we will do with infinite time on our hands?
Is your great hope to sit on your own cloud, playing a harp and doing nothing for eternity? Is it to rest aimlessly with no purpose and no meaning? What are Disciples of Christ promised besides the quantity (longevity) of eternal life? What is the quality of eternal life that makes every personal sacrifice absolutely worthwhile? The Bible has answers that may surprise you. Later in this series (part 10) we will learn that the Kingdom of God will be on earth and will give Biblical evidence of a 1,000-year time period called the Millennium. Here’s what we have to look forward to as our reward on earth:
- We shall be “kings and priests serving our God, and they will reign on earth” (Rev 5:10). We will have secondary authority to reign over, and teach, the remaining mortals. This parallels Christ’s parable where the faithful servants were rewarded with five or ten cities to rule over (Luke 19:12-19).
- There will be universal peace throughout the earth. The sign in front of the United Nations about never learning war anymore will be fulfilled (Isa 2:2 4). All modern weapons will be destroyed (Hos 2:18; Ezek 39:9). Jerusalem, the city of peace, will finally command peace as the capital of the world and center to all nations (Zech 9:10; Mic 4:1-4).
- There will be plenty of food for all peoples and no famine or hunger (Ezek 36:29-30; Isa 49:10; Rev 7:16). Our reward involves a return to an agricultural society with the ground yielding its full fruit and no more thorns and thistles (Mic 4:4; Amos 9:13-15).
- Animals will be peaceful, just as we imagine they were in the Garden in Eden (Isa 11:6-9; Isa 35:9; Isa 65:25). All animals will be vegetarians.
- Sickness and physical handicaps will be obsolete. “The eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer; and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy” (Isa 35:5; Isa 33:24).
- Those who are counted worthy of eternal life will not sit idly, but will work building houses and cities (Isa 60:10; Isa 65:21-22; Amos 9:14).
- Unlike the reward for martyrs in the Koran, the Bible says those saved will not have sex or be married in the Kingdom (Luke 20:36). We will recognize people we know today, just as Jesus’ disciples recognized him after he was resurrected (Luke 24:38-43; John 21:7).
- We will be given a spiritual body with Holy Spirit powers. We will prophesy, see visions and travel instantly so that today’s physical limitations will no longer exist (Joel 2:28-32; 1Cor 15:49-50; Acts 8:39-40).
- We will become like angels (Luke 20:36; Rom 8:23). We will also rule over angels (1Cor 6:3).
- There will be no tears or sadness anymore (Isa 35:10; Isa 65:19; Rev 21:4).
- The entire earth will be filled with the glory of God, and peace and righteousness will rule (Numb 14:21; Gal 3:8). “The earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab 2:14).
The best present ever!
Do you remember the last time you had a birthday and thought you knew when someone was buying you a great gift? You were excited with anticipation as you thought about it a lot and hoped that it would come true. You might have restrained yourself a bit just in case it wasn’t true and you ended up with a less-thanexpected gift. Did you ever receive a gift that was wildly beyond your imagination? Something that was so incredible that it seemed impossible realistically. (Think Cinderella!)
You might recall that Jesus gave such incredible gifts to people that they couldn’t have imagined possible. There was the man born blind to whom Jesus gave sight. And the disciples who caught so much fish that they knew it was a great miracle. Remember the man named Legion to whom Jesus gave back his right mind? Or the 5,000 people who received an unexpected meal? What about the daughter of Jairus, whom Jesus raised from the dead? Or the deaf man near the Sea of Galilee who Jesus cured with his saliva? Can you imagine being severely handicapped physically or mentally, and then receiving healing beyond your expectation?
The most wonderful thing about hope in the Bible is that God has promised to give his faithful children eternal gifts beyond our wildest imagination. We’re told that present sufferings and problems are not worth comparing to the amazing glory and reward to be revealed in the future (Rom 8:18-25). The Bible compares the entire earth as if in waiting with birth pangs for the delivery of a heavenly earth. This is the New Jerusalem, which will come down out of heaven and fill the whole earth with righteousness and God’s glory (Rev 21:2). The most amazing thing is not only that God has promised great gifts to his servants. It’s that we are not even capable of understanding how wonderful our future can be!
“I don’t want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying!” Woody Allen
“We do not know what to do with this short life, yet we want another, which will be eternal.” Anatole France
“Strive to enter through the narrow gate…for the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matt 7:13-14).
The Bible says:
- Mankind is presently mortal. Only Jesus is immortal today. Gen 2:17; Job 34:14-15; Eccl 9:5-10; 2Tim 1:10; 1Tim 6:16.
- Immortality is a gift of God. Rom 6:23; John 10:28; 1 Cor 15:53.
- Additional, unbelievable gifts add to immortality. Rom 8:18; 2 Cor 3:7-8.
- “And the scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘and Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,’ and Abraham was called the friend of God” (James 2:23).
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One