What Happens When You Die? - Part 1

Job 14:14

If a man die, will he live again?

Here, in possibly the oldest book in the Bible, we have an age-old question. People throughout history have wanted to know if this life is all there is. Is there something else, or is death the finale.

Let me begin with a story related by Dr. Joseph Bayly, in his book, "The View From A Hearse."

"What is death? A few years ago I was waiting to see Fr. Irving Wolman, hematologist at Philadelphia Children's Hospital. The day before, we had buried our almost-five-year-old son, who had died of leukemia. Now I was waiting to thank the man who had been so kind to our little boy and to us during the nine months between diagnosis and death.

"Dr. Wolman's secretary beckoned to me. When I approached her desk, she did not tell me, as I expected, that the doctor would now see me. Instead, she looked toward a little boy playing on the floor. In my preoccupation I had failed to notice any others in the waiting room. 'He has the same problem your little boy had,' as she spoke quietly.

I sat down next to the little boy's mother. We were far enough away from him, and we talked softly enough, that he could not hear us. 'It's hard bringing him in here every two weeks for these tests, isn't it.' 'Hard, I die every time. And now he's beginning to sense that something's wrong….' Her voice trailed off.

'It's good to know, isn't it,' I spoke slowly, choosing my words with unusual care, 'that even though the medical outlook is hopeless, we can have hope for our children in such a situation. We can be sure that after our child dies, he'll be completely removed from sickness and suffering and everything like that, and be completely well and happy.'

'If only I could believe that,' the woman replied. 'But I don't. When he dies, I'll just have to cover him up with dirt and forget I ever had him.' She turned back to watch the little boy push a toy auto on the floor.

'I'm glad I don't feel that way.' 'Why?' she said, as she kept looking straight ahead at her child. 'Because we covered our little boy up with dirt yesterday afternoon. I'm in here to thank Dr. Wolman for his kindness today.' 'You look like a rational person'. She was now looking straight at me. 'How can you possibly believe that the death of a man, or a little boy, is any different from the death of an animal?'

I begin with this true account because Dr. Bayly states, in brief terms, what is generally accepted by fundamental Christianity -- namely, that there is an existence after a person passes through the portal of death. And he relates this issue in a context that comes so very close to many of us today -- the death of his child and the near-death of another. Some people agree with the lady, that at death the existence of a person ceases to be. They believe that there is little difference between the death of a boy and that of an animal. Others believe death brings annihilation only to the wicked. A few years ago, several people on the street were asked this question: "Do you believe in an afterlife?" Here is how some of them responded.

" "I haven't given it that much thought, but I don't believe in reincarnation or hell. But I do believe in heaven because I believe in a loving God."

" "Yes, there is an afterlife. I believe that your soul goes to a spiritual reward in heaven.

" "I believe my inner being will be transmitted to different planes of existence as I approach perfection."

" Of course there is an afterlife. It's in heaven. Otherwise what's the sense in living."

" "I believe in a spiritual afterlife, that you have a soul and that the soul goes to a hereafter. But as to where the hereafter is, I'm not sure….

George Bernard Shaw, in his own straightforward way, pointed out:

"…..that, for all the medical statistics that show that fewer and fewer people die from this or that disease, the ultimate statistic still remains the same: one out of one dies."

Ecclesiastes 9:5 states it very pointedly and bluntly:

For the living know that they shall die.

People don't like to talk about death. In our culture we try to camouflage death, dress it up, by using soothing terms like "passed on," "laid to rest," "gone ahead," or "departed." Did you ever wonder as a child, when you heard these terms: Departed from where? Passed on to what? Gone ahead for how long? We don't like to say good-bye to those we love. But, try as we might, and as reluctant as we are to discuss it, we have to, because death is a very real part of life. Each one of us must release the hand of one we love, into the hand of one we have not seen. I have learned since my youthful years that others have questions about death, just as I. Others, who have lost loved one, have asked: "What about those who have already died.? What happens between the time of death and the return of Jesus?" Apparently the church in Thessalonica asked such a question. Listen to Paul's words as he respond to their question.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 TJB

13 We want you to be quite certain, brothers, about those who have died, to make sure that you do not grieve about them, like the other people who have no hope.

The Thessalonian church had already buried her share of loved ones. And Paul wants the members who remain to be at peace regarding the ones who have gone ahead.

Many of you have buried loved ones as well as they. And just as God spoke to those in that church, He speaks to you today in this church. If you will be celebrating a wedding anniversary alone this year, He speaks to you today.

If your child made it to heaven before making it to kindergarten, He speaks to you.

If you lost a loved one through the violence of another, He speaks to you.

If you have learned more than you wanted to know about a disease, He speaks to you.

If your dreams were buried as they lowered the casket, God speaks to you today.

He speaks to all of us who have stood or will ever stand in the soft dirt near an open grave.

And to us, He again gives this confident word:

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 TLB

13 ……I want you to know what happens to a Christian when he dies so that when it happens, you will not be full of sorrow, as those are who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and then came back to life again, we can also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him all the Christians who have died.

So what IS death? What is this thing - or event - which seems so final? There is something about death that seems so unnatural - even grotesque. It is very difficult, if not totally impossible, to beautify death. We may live with it and accept its presence, but we cannot change its foul nature. Death is an offense to beauty.

King David put it bluntly: "The terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me." (Psalm 55:5-6)

Hebrews 2:15 speaks about those "who through fear of death have been living all their lives as slaves to its constant dread"

What is it about death that creates this unnatural horror in us? From the beginning of time, philosophers have told us that if you really want to understand life, you have to understand death. There is no dearth of ideas about what death is. But anybody other than Jesus Christ who gives you an opinion about death is giving you an uninformed opinion.

The reason we can trust Him is because He's been there and done that. He knows what it is to die and has come back to let you know. Like we noted earlier, George Bernard Shaw said it right: Unless Jesus Christ returns in our lifetime, one out of one of us are going to die. You and I are marching toward a date with death.

SO, HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE DEATH?

WHAT IS IT?

The word "death" does not merely mean "the cessation of life." The word "death" means separation.

HOW MANY KINDS OF DEATH ARE THERE?

There are at least two kinds of death:

o Physical death

o Spiritual death

Let's look at these two kinds of death.

PHYSICAL DEATH:

This is the separation of the inner, or spiritual, part of a person from their outer, or bodily, part.

2 Cor. 5:8 tells us that to be absent from our bodies, is to be immediately present with God. This certainly speaks of a form of separation. In other words, the spirit (soul) takes leave of the body.

James 2:26 NIV

26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

Most of us are familiar with the last half of this verse. But notice how he illustrates that "faith without works is dead." He mentions that when the spirit is separated from the body…….death occurs. So, physical death is the separation of one's spiritual nature from their physical.

SPIRITUAL DEATH

This kind of death is also depicted by separation. It is separation of a person from God. Ephesians 2:1 relates that those who are separated from God are dead in trespasses and sins.

1 Timothy 5:6 speaks about those who are alive physically but dead spiritually. She that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. This is spiritual death……i.e., separation from God.

At the Great White Throne judgment, in Revelation 20, which we will study later, those judged are cast into the Lake of Fire, where they are forever separated from God. And verse 6 of that chapter calls this "the second DEATH." So, spiritual death is "separation from God."

For the remainder of our time, let's address the physical side of this issue.

WHY DO WE HAVE TO DIE?

Romans 5:12 NIV

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.

Man has to die because of the law of sowing and reaping. If he sows sinful acts, he will reap death.

Genesis 2:15-17 NIV

15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

Because man disobeyed their Creator, and sinned……..he dies. It's all part of the law of sowing & reaping. All of us have been given the free will to choose whatever path we want to take. But you and I do not have the ability to choose the consequences of our free choices. They are determined by God as part of the law of sowing & reaping. If you sin, the consequence is death.

Last Updated: Wednesday September 07 2011
©2001 John's Notes