Post by Tom Green on Feb 21, 2007 11:59:40 GMT -5
A Study of Life after Death
John Quincy Adams was the sixth president of the United States. At age 80, he was asked, “How is John Adams doing today?” John replied:
Thank you for asking that question. John Quincy Adams is doing quite well, but the house in which he is living has become quite dilapidated. In fact, he will move out any day now. But John Quincy Adams is doing quite well, thank you!
As was many of our founders, this wise president was a strong believer in the Bible. He learned what we shall learn in this message. Our outward man may perish and decay, but we have an inward “man” who is eternal and who never ages!
So Whose Fault Is It?
The sharp arrows of sorrow pierce every heart along life’s way, as John’s pale horse and rider called death hakes his midnight ride through home and hospitals across the world. Death is not a friend!
The Bible teaches that “through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin” (Romans 5:12). Adam, the first man, would have lived eternally IF he had obeyed the commandment of God. As a result of sin, death followed. God said to him, “For dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19). It is interesting to note that a decayed human body contains 16 common minerals that are also found in common dirt!
Man didn’t die immediately. In fact, Adam lived to be 930 years old. Before Noah’s flood, men lived to be between 600 and 900 years of age. After the flood, man’s days were reduced to 120 (Genesis 6:3). Hundreds of years later, in David’s time, the Bible decreed that man’s days shall be 70, and by reason of strength, 80 (Psalm 90:10).
Death is an ANGEL (Revelation 6:8) who is an ENEMY of God (1 Corinthians 15:54). Adam’s sin brought death to him and his descendants!
What Causes Death?
Most people believe that death occurs when the heart stops beating. This NOT always so. We do know that the human body can only survive (without permanent damage) for about four-and-a-half minutes without blood pumping oxygen to the organs, especially the brain.
Death is actually a SEPARATION process. We will see that a man is a BODY, a SOUL and a SPIRIT. Death is the process that separates or severs the soul and spirit from the physical body. Once the spirit is removed from this “house of clay,” physical death begins.
A strange scripture in Ecclesiastes 12:3-7 gives un an unusual of what occurs a death. Finis Dake, in his Bible, describes the above scriptures as an “eighteen-fold description of man’s body at death.” Verses 4 and 5 say that:
Man will go to his eternal home, and the mourners will go about the streets [mourning his death].
The silver cord of life will be loosed.
The golden bowl of life will be broken.
The fragile pitcher of life will be shattered at the fountain.
The wheel of human existence will be broken at the well of life.
“Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7).
In this picturesque description of separation through death, Solomon knew that the SILVER CORD of life must be cut before the SPIRIT of a man could return to God.
Solomon became involved in many strange religions, including the eastern mystical religions of his day. Mystics had experienced strange, supernatural occurrences involving death. Even mystics today quote this verse about death. They have “out-of-body” experiences and have seen the SILVER CORD. These mystics are spiritually ignorant of the truth, and don’t know what the “cord” is!
Yet, the Bible gives us the insight into what occurs at physical death and the importance of this SILVER CORD.
Before a child is born, his little body (the fetus) is attached to his mother’s womb through a special cord, called the umbilical cord. Through this cord, the child receives all nourishment and strength to grow and develop. Once the child is born (separated from its mother), the cord must be CUT in order for the child to develop a life of its own, separate from its mother.
The human spirit is centered in the area of the BELLY! The Bible says, “The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly (Proverbs 20:27).
AS THE HEART is the center of the physical body, so the area of the BELLY is the center of the human SPIRIT. When the Holy Spirit fills you, He enters into your spirit. Jesus said, “Out of [your] BELLY shall flow rivers of living water (John 7:38, KJV).
Apparently there is a thin silver cord that connects your spirit to your physical body. At death, which is a separation of your spirit from your body, this silver cord is cut so your spirit can be released from your house of clay. It is then taken to either Paradise (if you are righteous) or into a lower compartment in the earth called hell. There you will be confined until the resurrection and the day of judgment.
The Bible calls this separation DEATH!
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also (James 2:26).
For we know that if our earthly house . . . is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. So we are always confident . . . that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. We are confident, yes, and willing to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:1, 6, 8).
Death does not necessarily come when the heart stops beating, because people who have been revived from heart attacks are still living. Death comes when the silver cord is broken and the pitcher (house of clay) is broken so the spirit of a man can be released.
According to Luke 16, angels are responsible for releasing the spirit from the body of a righteous person, and carrying him or her to Paradise.
Will We Know our Loved Ones in Heaven?
This has been a common question for hundreds of years. The Bible, I believe, is clear on this subject.
First is a statement by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13. Paul was speaking about the future, when all things would become much clearer in understand than they were in his time. Paul said:
For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known (1 Corinthians 13:9, 10, 12).
The then that Paul mentions was in the future when Christ would return to earth. Paul said, “Then . . . I will be known as I am known.” We will KNOW Paul, even though we have never seen a picture of this great man!
The Mount of Transfiguration is a second example. The inner circle of disciples—Peter, James and John—were alone with Jesus. In fact, they were sound asleep while Christ was praying. Suddenly, two other men appeared in a glory cloud, and Peter jumped to his feet!
The disciples recognized the two men as Moses and Elijah. Peter went so far as to request that three buildings be erect to commemorate this event! I have often wondered how these three men recognized Moses and Elijah when they had never seen a photograph of them. Peter didn’t say, “Who are the two strangers standing beside Jesus?” I believe the Holy Spirit quickened the knowledge of who these two men were, to Peter’s mind (see Matthew 7).
The third example is found in the story of David. David sinned with Bathsheba, and a son was born to her. Immediately after the child’s birth, a strange sickness gripped its body. David fasted for a week, but after seven days, the child died. David made an important statement about the death of this infant:
Now he is dead. . . . Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me (2 Samuel 12:23).
Small infants who die are precious in God’s sight. The angels carry their little spirits into a special place in heaven where they will one day see their parents (this is according to David’s statement).
Yes, we will recognize one another in heaven!
Will We Be as We Are Now . . . a Family?
It is difficult to imagine how we will have a family relationship once we are in heaven. Will I have a “mansion” with my wife? Will my children be spending time in my presence?
This is difficult to understand or imagine, but we will be ONE big family, where everyone feels EQUAL to the others. All relationships will be equal. Let me illustrate this:
Have you ever experienced a church service where the “glory” was filling the atmosphere and the love of the Father seemed to “drip” from the people? Remember the fellowship that followed? Remember sitting down with your close friends and sharing the secrets of God’s word? Remember how you almost hated to leave the table and go home?
If you have ever been to Israel on a tour and experienced the I-have-come-home feeling the group felt, then you will understand what I mean. While you were there, you almost forgot about everyone back home. You were so caught up in His presence that time meant nothing and the loved ones you left back home were “temporarily forgotten.”
In heaven we will still love our family, but we will also have such love toward one another that we will all be ONE BIG FAMILY.
What about Those Who Die and Don’t Make it to Heaven?
It would not be heaven if we remembered the loved ones who DIDN’T make it. You may have family members who died in a lost condition. This should give you a burden for those who are alive and need Christ to bring them in before it is too late!
The Bible teaches that the former things will not be remembered nor come into remembrance. All the BAD experiences in life, the hurts and disappointments, will be eternally forgotten when God wipes away every tear from our eyes (Revelation 21:4).
Summary
1. Every man and woman will eventually die and face God in judgment (Hebrews 9:27).
2. Death occurs only when the soul and spirit are separated from the body, or when the silver cord is broken.
3. Angels come for the spirit, and take it to a resting place called Paradise (2 Corinthians 12:4).
4. We will know one another in heaven.
Death is not to be feared; it is a passing from one stage to another!
John Quincy Adams was the sixth president of the United States. At age 80, he was asked, “How is John Adams doing today?” John replied:
Thank you for asking that question. John Quincy Adams is doing quite well, but the house in which he is living has become quite dilapidated. In fact, he will move out any day now. But John Quincy Adams is doing quite well, thank you!
As was many of our founders, this wise president was a strong believer in the Bible. He learned what we shall learn in this message. Our outward man may perish and decay, but we have an inward “man” who is eternal and who never ages!
So Whose Fault Is It?
The sharp arrows of sorrow pierce every heart along life’s way, as John’s pale horse and rider called death hakes his midnight ride through home and hospitals across the world. Death is not a friend!
The Bible teaches that “through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin” (Romans 5:12). Adam, the first man, would have lived eternally IF he had obeyed the commandment of God. As a result of sin, death followed. God said to him, “For dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19). It is interesting to note that a decayed human body contains 16 common minerals that are also found in common dirt!
Man didn’t die immediately. In fact, Adam lived to be 930 years old. Before Noah’s flood, men lived to be between 600 and 900 years of age. After the flood, man’s days were reduced to 120 (Genesis 6:3). Hundreds of years later, in David’s time, the Bible decreed that man’s days shall be 70, and by reason of strength, 80 (Psalm 90:10).
Death is an ANGEL (Revelation 6:8) who is an ENEMY of God (1 Corinthians 15:54). Adam’s sin brought death to him and his descendants!
What Causes Death?
Most people believe that death occurs when the heart stops beating. This NOT always so. We do know that the human body can only survive (without permanent damage) for about four-and-a-half minutes without blood pumping oxygen to the organs, especially the brain.
Death is actually a SEPARATION process. We will see that a man is a BODY, a SOUL and a SPIRIT. Death is the process that separates or severs the soul and spirit from the physical body. Once the spirit is removed from this “house of clay,” physical death begins.
A strange scripture in Ecclesiastes 12:3-7 gives un an unusual of what occurs a death. Finis Dake, in his Bible, describes the above scriptures as an “eighteen-fold description of man’s body at death.” Verses 4 and 5 say that:
Man will go to his eternal home, and the mourners will go about the streets [mourning his death].
The silver cord of life will be loosed.
The golden bowl of life will be broken.
The fragile pitcher of life will be shattered at the fountain.
The wheel of human existence will be broken at the well of life.
“Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7).
In this picturesque description of separation through death, Solomon knew that the SILVER CORD of life must be cut before the SPIRIT of a man could return to God.
Solomon became involved in many strange religions, including the eastern mystical religions of his day. Mystics had experienced strange, supernatural occurrences involving death. Even mystics today quote this verse about death. They have “out-of-body” experiences and have seen the SILVER CORD. These mystics are spiritually ignorant of the truth, and don’t know what the “cord” is!
Yet, the Bible gives us the insight into what occurs at physical death and the importance of this SILVER CORD.
Before a child is born, his little body (the fetus) is attached to his mother’s womb through a special cord, called the umbilical cord. Through this cord, the child receives all nourishment and strength to grow and develop. Once the child is born (separated from its mother), the cord must be CUT in order for the child to develop a life of its own, separate from its mother.
The human spirit is centered in the area of the BELLY! The Bible says, “The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly (Proverbs 20:27).
AS THE HEART is the center of the physical body, so the area of the BELLY is the center of the human SPIRIT. When the Holy Spirit fills you, He enters into your spirit. Jesus said, “Out of [your] BELLY shall flow rivers of living water (John 7:38, KJV).
Apparently there is a thin silver cord that connects your spirit to your physical body. At death, which is a separation of your spirit from your body, this silver cord is cut so your spirit can be released from your house of clay. It is then taken to either Paradise (if you are righteous) or into a lower compartment in the earth called hell. There you will be confined until the resurrection and the day of judgment.
The Bible calls this separation DEATH!
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also (James 2:26).
For we know that if our earthly house . . . is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. So we are always confident . . . that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. We are confident, yes, and willing to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:1, 6, 8).
Death does not necessarily come when the heart stops beating, because people who have been revived from heart attacks are still living. Death comes when the silver cord is broken and the pitcher (house of clay) is broken so the spirit of a man can be released.
According to Luke 16, angels are responsible for releasing the spirit from the body of a righteous person, and carrying him or her to Paradise.
Will We Know our Loved Ones in Heaven?
This has been a common question for hundreds of years. The Bible, I believe, is clear on this subject.
First is a statement by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13. Paul was speaking about the future, when all things would become much clearer in understand than they were in his time. Paul said:
For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known (1 Corinthians 13:9, 10, 12).
The then that Paul mentions was in the future when Christ would return to earth. Paul said, “Then . . . I will be known as I am known.” We will KNOW Paul, even though we have never seen a picture of this great man!
The Mount of Transfiguration is a second example. The inner circle of disciples—Peter, James and John—were alone with Jesus. In fact, they were sound asleep while Christ was praying. Suddenly, two other men appeared in a glory cloud, and Peter jumped to his feet!
The disciples recognized the two men as Moses and Elijah. Peter went so far as to request that three buildings be erect to commemorate this event! I have often wondered how these three men recognized Moses and Elijah when they had never seen a photograph of them. Peter didn’t say, “Who are the two strangers standing beside Jesus?” I believe the Holy Spirit quickened the knowledge of who these two men were, to Peter’s mind (see Matthew 7).
The third example is found in the story of David. David sinned with Bathsheba, and a son was born to her. Immediately after the child’s birth, a strange sickness gripped its body. David fasted for a week, but after seven days, the child died. David made an important statement about the death of this infant:
Now he is dead. . . . Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me (2 Samuel 12:23).
Small infants who die are precious in God’s sight. The angels carry their little spirits into a special place in heaven where they will one day see their parents (this is according to David’s statement).
Yes, we will recognize one another in heaven!
Will We Be as We Are Now . . . a Family?
It is difficult to imagine how we will have a family relationship once we are in heaven. Will I have a “mansion” with my wife? Will my children be spending time in my presence?
This is difficult to understand or imagine, but we will be ONE big family, where everyone feels EQUAL to the others. All relationships will be equal. Let me illustrate this:
Have you ever experienced a church service where the “glory” was filling the atmosphere and the love of the Father seemed to “drip” from the people? Remember the fellowship that followed? Remember sitting down with your close friends and sharing the secrets of God’s word? Remember how you almost hated to leave the table and go home?
If you have ever been to Israel on a tour and experienced the I-have-come-home feeling the group felt, then you will understand what I mean. While you were there, you almost forgot about everyone back home. You were so caught up in His presence that time meant nothing and the loved ones you left back home were “temporarily forgotten.”
In heaven we will still love our family, but we will also have such love toward one another that we will all be ONE BIG FAMILY.
What about Those Who Die and Don’t Make it to Heaven?
It would not be heaven if we remembered the loved ones who DIDN’T make it. You may have family members who died in a lost condition. This should give you a burden for those who are alive and need Christ to bring them in before it is too late!
The Bible teaches that the former things will not be remembered nor come into remembrance. All the BAD experiences in life, the hurts and disappointments, will be eternally forgotten when God wipes away every tear from our eyes (Revelation 21:4).
Summary
1. Every man and woman will eventually die and face God in judgment (Hebrews 9:27).
2. Death occurs only when the soul and spirit are separated from the body, or when the silver cord is broken.
3. Angels come for the spirit, and take it to a resting place called Paradise (2 Corinthians 12:4).
4. We will know one another in heaven.
Death is not to be feared; it is a passing from one stage to another!