2. Rachel's Departing Soul - Pastor Stephen Bohr - State of the Dead

[Music] shall we bow our heads for prayer our father and our god thank you so much for giving us your word a sure guide in a world that is so confused where there are so many ideas about life and death we ask that you will be with us today as we open your holy book help us understand better the text of genesis 35 and verse 18. thank you for hearing our prayer for we ask it in jesus name amen many christians these days use the story of rachel and the birth of benjamin to try and prove that the soul of man is immortal and departs from the body at the moment of death in order to share this concept from genesis 35 verse 18 they actually add words to the text that is not that are not there let's read genesis 35 verse 18 this is talking about the birth of benjamin when his mother rachel passed away at his birth it says in genesis 35 18 and so it was as her soul was departing for she died that she called his name benoni but his father called him benjamin now how do many christians interpret this text they add the following words and so it was as her immortal soul was departing to heaven that she called his name benoni but his father called him benjamin the fact is that the word soul does not have the word immortal attached to it nor does the word departing say to heaven those ideas are added on the basis of preconceived ideas so let's go back and review about the creation of man because today what we want to do is we want to study the biblical terminology of the body the soul and the spirit in order to do this we have to go back to genesis so let's go to genesis 2 and verse 7 where we're told about the creation of adam and the lord god formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being i'm reading from the new king james version the old king james version says and man became a living soul now notice in this text that god did not give man a soul neither are we told that man has a soul the soul is not a part of man the soul is the man in his totality by the way i'm using the word man in a generic sense that includes male and female according to genesis 5 and verse 2 so dust plus breath equals soul by the way genesis tells us that man could die and if man could die that means that he is not by nature immortal the only way that man could continue living according to what we studied is by continuing to eat from the tree of life in the midst of the garden this means that man was created conditionally immortal when man sinned god barred him from eating from the tree of life and therefore death came into the world so let's talk about the components of man when he was created first of all we have the body that was created from dust or better from clay it was wet dust if you please notice isaiah 64 and verse 8 it says there but now o lord you are our father and we are the clay so it's wet dust because you can't form anything out of dust genesis says god form mantle of dust but we notice here in the book of isaiah that it was clay so but now o lord you are our father we are the clay and you are potter and all we are the work of your hand so the body of man is composed of clay or of dust and you know that this is the fact because when a person is cremated all of their remains their physical remains the material remains can be put in a little urn so now we've noticed what uh the forming of man was it was made out of dust of the ground his body his physical body now let's notice what the breath of life is in hebrew there are two synonymous words that are translated spirit into english the word ruach and the word neshama they are parallel words there might be a small difference between the two but not very big neither of these two words are used in the old testament for something that is conscious immortal or able to function independently of the physical body now hebrew poetry is characterized by parallelism and there are three kinds of parallelism the first kind is synonymous where one line is repeated in different words in the second line you have antithetical parallelism parallelism where the first line is contradicted or the second line says the opposite of the first line and then you have synthetic parallelism where the first line the thought is completed in the second line so an examination of these words ruach and neshama shows that they are synonymous and basically what they describe is the vital force or the energizing force or the electrical current that makes the heart pump blood that makes the lungs breathe that makes the nervous system work etc let's examine some words in the old testament or some verses in the old testament that use the words spirit and the word breath and you're going to notice many times they're used in a synonymous fashion job 33 and verse 4 we're going to use a lot of bible in our study because the bible is the source of authority if you want to know what the body the spirit and the soul are you must go to scripture so in the old testament in job 33 verse 4 we find the following word the spirit that's the ruach of god has made me and now the same thought is repeated in the second line and the breath neshama of the almighty gives me life so notice spirit is synonymous to breath notice job 27 verse 3 once again the same idea as long as my breath that's neshama is in me and the breath of god is in my nostrils there's the word ruach so notice the phrase as long as my breath is in me is the same as the breath of god is in my nostrils but the two hebrew words are used ruach notice isaiah 42 and verse 5 thus says god the lord who created the heavens and stretched them out who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it now listen carefully who gives breath that's neshama to the people on it and spirit to those who walk on it so notice the the phrase who gives breath to the people is parallel to spirit to those who walk on the earth so the words are synonymous by the way in the old testament animals also have breasts also have nesama and they also have ruach you say how is that well let's read genesis 7 verse 22 where it speaks about uh the death of all of the animals at the time of the flood it says all in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life so notice how the words are used all in whose nostrils so the breath and the spirit the neshama and the ruach are in your nostrils what do you use your nostrils for well i use mine for breathing hopefully not to uh get into other other people's business so anyway all in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life all that was on the dry land died by the way animals also have ruach and neshama as we notice in genesis 7 22 in this respect human beings and animals are not different in the sense of the energizing force that makes the body work notice ecclesiastes chapter 3 and verses 19-21 ecclesiastes 3 19-21 hear the wise man solomon who became foolish for quite a period of time and then got his wisdom back at the end of his life for what happens to the sons of man also happens to animals one thing befalls them as one dies so dies the other surely they all have one breath that's the word neshama man has no advantage over the animals for all is vanity all go to one place all are from the dust that is animals and humans and all return to dust who knows that the spirit that's a ruach of the sons of men which goes upward and the spirit or the ruach of the animal which goes down to the earth who knows that now somebody might be saying pastor boer is saying that animals and humans are on the same level no i'm not i'm not saying that they're on the same level what i'm saying is that the energizing force that makes humans and animals function is the same energizing force let me give you an example does a refrigerator refrigerator use the same energy source as a computer of course your answer will be yes does that make the refrigerator and the computer identical yes as far as the energy source that makes them both function yes the energy source is the same however they were created to fulfill different functions the refrigerator works as a refrigerator and the computer works as a computer but they have the same source of energy now with regards to function the computer is much more sophisticated than the refrigerator the energizing force source merely makes it possible for the computer and the refrigerator to fulfill the function for which they were created yet neither one can function without being connected to the power source when they are unplugged they are so to speak dead even today when someone cuts a phone line we say that the phone went dead notice ezekiel chapter 37 where we have the famous valley of dry bones it says in ezekiel 37 verses 9 and 10 9-10 also he said to me prophesy to the breath prophesy son of man and say to the breath same word that we find in genesis 2 verse 7 thus says the lord god come from the four winds o breath and breathe on these slain that they may live so you have all these dry bones and they have to have the breath of life in order to become individuals living persons verse 10 so i prophesied as he commanded me and breath came into them and they lived and stood upon their feet an exceedingly great army so the spirit or the breath is simply the energizing force that allows the body to function it is the vital force that makes all of the different aspects all of the different uh parts of the body to function now let's notice the word spirit in the new testament somebody might say well that's all old testament okay in the old testament the spirit or the breath is the energizing force that makes the human being a human being's body function but what about spirit in the new testament well let's examine it in new testament the new testament there is one word that is translated spirit it's the word pneuma and it's used in the same way as in the old testament only in a different language notice james chapter 2 and verse 26 a very well-known verse for as the body without the spirit is dead so faith without works is dead also so the body without the spirit can't function it's dead because the spirit is the energizing force it's the breath of life that allows all of the different systems of the body to function revelation 11 verses 7 through 9 and verse 11 describe the two witnesses the two witnesses that were killed in the midst of the cities of france during the french revolution by the way it's talking about the old and new testament let's read those verses verses 7 through 9. now when they finish their testimony that is at the end of the 1260 years the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit will make war against them and overcome them and kill them because the bible was crucified during the french revolution people didn't want anything to do with the bible so the two witnesses are killed notice verse 8 and their dead bodies what happened when they were killed they became dead bodies and their dead bodies will lie in the streets of the great city that is spiritually called sodom and egypt where also our lord was crucified then those from the peoples tribes tongues and nations will see their dead bodies because they don't have the breath anymore by the way they see their dead bodies three and a half days and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves but now what happens at the end of the three and a half days discussing the french revolution it says in verse 11 now after the three and a half days the breath that's the pneuma the breath of life from god entered them and they stood on their feet and great fear fell on those who saw them are you catching the point clearly we're told in these verses that when they no longer have the spirit they're dead when the spirit comes into them then they live notice john chapter 19 and verse 30. this is speaking about the death of christ and we're going to compare it in a moment with luke 23 verse in john 19 verse 30 we're told so when jesus had received the sour wine he said it is finished and bowing his head he gave up his spirit what does that mean that some intangible thing went up to heaven or went down to hell no it simply means that he didn't breathe anymore you say how do we know that well because the parallel verse is in luke chapter 23 verse 46 and instead of saying that he gave up the spirit it simply says he breathed his last the greek word equino it means to breathe out or to excel so jesus excelled and he died because the breath no longer kept his body alive so both the old and new testaments are in harmony when it comes to what the spirit is it is not something intangible something immortal that flies out of the body at the moment of death it simply means the energizing force that allows the body to work your breaths breathing power if you please now what about the word soul we've already examined the the word uh body it's made out of dust it's our material composition we notice that the spirit that is joined to the body is uh the breath or the energizing force force that makes the body work but what is the soul the word soul in the bible can refer to man's spiritual nature as compared to its physical nature however when the bible describes what man is composed of the word soul simply refers to the living being or to the person in its totality the king james and the new king james versions are very inconsistent when they come to translate in the hebrew in greek words for soul sometimes they translate the word soul the word with soul and sometimes they translate persons and sometimes they translate life but they're not consistent genesis 2 verse 7 tells us and the lord god formed man of the dust of the ground breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a nephesh man became a living nephesh in other words he became a living soul in genesis chapter 14 verse 21 we're going to notice several examples of the use of the word soul in the old testament now in genesis 14 verse 21 the king of sodom speaks to abraham who has returned with the goods that had been stolen by marauders and notice what the king of sodom says to abraham now the king of sodom sent to abram give me the persons and take the goods for yourself that word persons is the word nephesh the identical word that is translated soul in genesis 2 and verse 7. notice deuteronomy chapter 10 verse 22 here moses is speaking to israel and notice what he says your fathers went down to egypt with 70 persons once again it's the word nephesh soul it could be translated with 70 souls but bible versions recognize that the souls the 70 souls are not intangible things that go down with with with abraham but actually it refers to persons so it says your fathers went down to egypt with 70 persons and now the lord your god has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude so the question is why does the king james version sometimes translate the word nephesh as person and at other times it translates the word nephesh as soul it becomes somewhat confusing now notice genesis chapter 12 and verse 5. this is speaking about the people that went with abram to the promised land to canaan it says there then abram took sarai his wife and let his brother's son and all their possessions that they had gathered and the people in that king james version it translates souls but the new king james says and the people whom they had acquired inherent and they departed to go to the land of canaan so they came to the land of canaan so what is abraham taking to the promised land he's taking these intangible souls you know that nobody can see and nobody can feel he's grabbing them he's taking them to the promised land no the word souls there simply means what the word souls means persons notice leviticus 17 and verse 11 the word soul is also translated life because the soul is the living person it says in leviticus 17 verse 11 for the life of the flesh is in the blood so i guess the in the immortal intangible soul is in your blood well of course not it's the life that's in your blood for the life of the flesh is in the blood and god says i have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul you know this could very be very easily be translated make atonement for your life because it's the blood that makes atonement for the life or for the person because that's what the soul is the soul is the person in his or her entirety notice deuteronomy chapter 12 verse 23 once again it says that the blood is the soul or the life here it says only be sure that you do not eat the blood for the blood is the life you may not eat the life with the meat the word life here is nephesh the same word in genesis 2 and verse 7. when a person breathes the air the blood carries the life-giving oxygen to all the parts of the body however when a person ceases to breathe the blood ceases to flow the body is deprived of life-giving oxygen and the result is death are you understanding what i'm saying notice first kings chapter 19 and verse 10. here's talking about uh the enemies of elijah that were seeking his soul they weren't seeking his soul they were seeking his life his nephesh notice first kings chapter 19 verse 10 so elijah says i have been zealous for the lord god of hosts for the children of israel have forsaken your covenant torn down your altars and killed your prophets with the sword i alone am left and they seek to take my life the word nephesh same word that appears in genesis chapter 2 and verse 7 man became a living soul notice leviticus chapter 7 and verse 20. the nephesh is the person it says there but the person incidentally the king james version translates here soul but the new king james translates person but the person who eats the flesh of the sacrifice of the peace offering that belongs to the lord while he is unclean that person the king james says soul that person shall be cut off from his people psalm 22 and verse 20 hear the psalmist prays deliver me this is the new king james the king james version says my soul deliver my soul but the new king james understands that the soul is me so deliver me from the sword my precious life from the power of the dog souls can die when you understand that souls are persons it says in ezekiel 18 verse 4 behold all souls are mine it means all persons it means all lives are mine the soul by the way it's the same word nephesh the soul or nephesh of the father as well as the soul or nephesh of the son is mine the soul who sins shall die you know you could translate this behold all persons are mine the the life of the father as well as the life of the son is mine the person who sins shall die because the life and the person are used interchangeably in the translations notice psalm 30 verse 3 by the way here the soul goes down many people think that when a person dies their soul goes up but notice what psalm 30 verse 3 says oh lord you brought my soul up from the grave so where was the soul of the psalmist was it up in heaven no no the soul is brought up from the grave you have kept me alive that i should not go down to the pit are you understanding this i certainly hope so notice psalm 49 and verse 15 here the psalmist says but god will redeem my soul from the power of the grave so where does the soul go the soul goes to the grave god will redeem my soul you could translate it god will redeem my life it's the word nephesh from the power of the grave so the soul if it's delivered from the grave it means that the soul or the person goes to the grave at the moment of death so once again god will redeem my soul my nephesh from the power of the grave for he shall receive me by the way in the bible animals are also souls they are not persons they are lives their living entities notice genesis 1 verse 21 so god created great sea creatures and every living thing it's the word nephesh every nephesh that moves with which the waters abounded according to their kind and every winged bird according to its kind and god saw that it was good we're going to see later in this study that on repeated occasions in the old testament the new international version translates the word nephesh or soul simply with a personal pronoun we're going to see that a little bit later by the way in numbers 19 and verse 10 this is super interesting 12 times we find in the old testament not in this specific verse but there's an example in this verse 12 times in the old testament uh the bible speaks about a dead soul which is really a corpse notice numbers 19 verse 10 speak to the children of israel saying if any one of you or your posterity is unclean because of a corpse that's the new king james the word is nephesh so in other words unclean because of a nephesh because they've touched a nephesh or a dead body or is far away on a journey he may still keep the lord's passover so what does the word soul mean when it talks about the composition of men folks is very simple it simply means the person in his or her entirety it means the living being the life the person the individual any way that you want to look at it that is the nephesh that is being spoken of in genesis 2 verse 7 and in all of these other verses now you say abba what about the soul in the new testament because we're new testament christians okay let's go then and satisfy new testament christians as to the meaning of the soul it's the same meaning as we find in the old testament notice first corinthians 15 verse 45 and so it is written the first adam became a living being the last adam became a life-giving spirit so notice the first adam became a living being the same idea that we find in genesis chapter 2 and verse 7 a living person in other words in psalm 16 verse 10 we have a messianic prophecy written a thousand years before this occurred it says there he or jesus is speaking about his experience when he's going to be in the grave for you will not leave my soul it's the word suh by the way that's a greek word for soul you will need not leave my soul my success which really means the grave it's translated in the king james as hell but we're going to have an entire study on the word hades or sheol which is the old testament word so for you will not leave my soul or my life in sheol which means the grave nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption by the way the apostle peter on the day of pentecost quoted this particular verse of psalm 16 verse 10 and applied it to jesus christ i quote now from acts 2 25-27 for david says concerning him that is concerning jesus i foresaw the lord always before my face for he is at my right hand that i may not be shaken therefore my heart rejoiced and my tongue was glad moreover my flesh also will rest in hope this is jesus expressing his assurance of the resurrection verse 27 4 you will need not leave my soul by the way the niv translates you will not let me you will not leave me so the soul is me you will not leave my soul in hades the king james says the hell but really it means the grave we'll study that later nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption the apostle paul was once involved in a shipwreck the captain was very afraid of the loss of lives but notice what paul said in acts 27 and verse 22. he said and now i urge you to take heart for there will be no loss of the word suchet it's translated no loss of life among you but only of the ship you know it could be translated no loss of souls but the translators realized that translating soul wouldn't make much sense and so paul is saying i urge you to take heart for there will be no loss of life so the soul is the life or the living person the angel warned joseph you remember to flee with baby jesus because herod wanted to kill baby jesus now notice matthew chapter 2 verses 19 and 20 where we have a description of the flight of joseph but when heron was herod was dead behold an angel of the lord appeared in a dream to joseph in egypt saying arise take the young child and his mother and go to the land of israel for those who sought the young child suh are dead the young child's soul are dead were they seeking the the child's soul to kill the soul as understood by christians no it simply means that they were seeking to take the child's life and that's the way that it is translated in the bible versions notice matthew chapter 20 and verse 28 jesus is speaking about his mission just as the son of man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many it wouldn't make much sense to say to give his soul a ransom for many jesus came to give his his life for many so once again the word soul is translated life notice john chapter 10 and verse 11. it's speaking about what the good shepherd does for his sheep jesus says i am the good shepherd the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep the word life once again is suhei the same equivalent word in greek as the old testament word nephesh paul and barnabas were individuals who risked their lives for the cause of the gospel notice acts 15 verse 26 it says barnabas and paul men who have risks their tsuke who have risked their lives that's the way it's translated properly for the name of our lord jesus christ the soul is the life the living person the same in the new testament as in the old testament notice acts chapter 20 and verse 24 we're told that paul did not consider his life worthy to be saved for the cause of christ it says in acts 20 verse 24 but none of these things move me says paul nor do i count my life the word sukhe it wouldn't say that it wouldn't make sense to say that he didn't count his soul as him being important because paul was concerned about his soul but it's properly translated life but none of these things move me nor do i count my life dear to myself so that i may finish my race with joy and the ministry which i received from the lord jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of god in acts 2 verse 41 we find that on the day of pentecost three thousand souls were added to the christian church does that mean three thousand intangible ghosts ghostly figures that came out of the bodies of people no it simply means that 3 000 persons joined the church or 3 000 lives joined the church now 176 persons survived a shipwreck in the days of paul in acts 27 verse 37 we find these words all in all and in all we were 276 suchet on the ship in other words 276 persons not 276 souls you know how how could paul know that there were 206 soul 76 souls if they were intangible and invisible notice romans chapter 13 and verse 1 it's saying here that souls should be subject to the governing powers i read romans 13 verse 1 let every soul better translation this person be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from god and the authorities that exist are appointed by god you know this becomes absolutely clear when we compare two texts in the gospels matthew 16 26 and luke 9 verse 25 let's read first of all matthew 16 26 here jesus says for what prophet is it to man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul that's the word sukhei once again or what will a man give in exchange for his soul the word suke notice how it's expressed in luke 9 25 this is the parallel verse but it expresses it in different words it says there in luke 9 25 for what prophet is it to a man if he gains the whole world and is himself destroyed or lost so the the soul is the person because matthew 16 26 says loses his own soul luke 9 25 says loses himself so the soul is the self notice acts chapter 12 in verse 23 it's speaking about the moment that king herod died it says then immediately an angel of the lord struck him because he did not give glory to god and he was eaten by worms and died that word died is very interesting it's the greek word exe which means he gave up his soul but what really did he give up he gave up his life because the soul is the life or the living person in the story of ananias and sapphira we find once again the same word let's read acts chapter 5 and verses 5 and verse 10 in the new american standard bible this is how it reads speaking about uh sapphira and immediately she fell at his feet that is at the feet of peter and breathed her last once again it's the word except which means that she gave up her soul which means that she gave up her life and then they it continued saying and the young men came in and found her dead so when you give up the life you're dead and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband now i mentioned before that the new international version very frequently translates the word soul simply with a personal pronoun i want to give you now several examples acts 2 verse 27 verse 31 it says you will not leave my soul in hell the new international version simply says you will not leave me in the grave so the soul is me acts 2 verse 43 says that fear came upon every soul well the niv says fear came upon everyone in romans chapter 2 verse 9 it speaks about tribulation and anguish upon every soul who does evil the niv says every human being who does evil romans 13 verse 1 says let every soul be subject to the higher powers the niv translates let everyone be subject to the higher powers hebrews 10 verse 38 says if one draws back my soul has no pleasure in him god is speaking the niv simply trans translates that if somebody draws back god says i have no pleasure in him hebrews 10 39 speaks about saving of the soul in the king james version whereas the niv says those who are saved so the soul is those james 5 20 says he who converts a sinner saves the soul from death the niv says saves him from death the soul is him luke 21 verse 19 says in patience you shall possess your souls well in the niv it says in patience you shall possess yourselves in acts 2 verse 20 41 the word soul isn't even translated the king james version uh speaks about the soul but the niv says two thousands were added the king james says two thousand souls were added whereas the niv says uh actually three thousand souls three thousand were added hebrews 13 verse 7 it says submit to those who rule because they watch out for your souls the niv translates they watch out for you matthew 12 18 says behold my servant with whom my soul is well pleased the niv says the one who with whom i am well pleased so the niv makes it clear that the soul is not some invisible intangible entity inside human beings that leaves at the moment of death it's simply the life or the person that goes to the grave when a person dies let's compare luke 12 19 and 20 in the new king james and in the new international version so you can see the contrast sometimes the translations luke 12 19 and 20 first of all from the new king james version this is a person who uh kept on building bigger barns and bigger barns and i will say to my soul this is a new king james soul this is all the word psyche you have made many goods laid up for many years take your ease eat drink and be merry but god said to him fool this night your soul will be required of you then whose will those things be which you have provided so it is who lays up treasure now listen carefully for himself and is not rich toward god now it's interesting that the the new king james uses the word soul uh very frequently in this passage it says i will say to my soul soul you have many goods laid up this night your soul will be required of you but then when it ends it says so it is he who lays up treasure for himself the soul is himself now let's read it from the new international version and i'll say to myself the new king james says the soul here it says i will say to myself you the new king james says so you have plenty of good things laid up for many years take life easy eat drink and be merry but god said to him you fool this very night your life the new king james translates to your soul the niv simply says this very night your life will be be demanded from you by the way we use the same type of language in expressions today for example we say not a soul shoulder for the meeting is that talking about an intangible thing that's inside human beings that didn't show up for a meeting of course not we speak of 100 souls were baptized does that mean that we baptize intangible an intangible soul inside the body of course not we say oh i feel so sorry for that poor soul we're talking about persons we're not talking about something intangible inside the person by the way the bible says that a soul can die you say really notice james chapter 5 and verse 20. brethren if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back let him know that he who turns a sinner from error of his way will save a soul from death interesting so if you reach somebody for christ you are saving a soul from death what does that mean you're saving a person from death by the way can a soul die then sure because you're saving the person from death and then it continues saying and cover a multitude of sins by the way animals are also souls according to the new testament not that they're persons but they're living entities it says in revelation 16 verse 3 this is a description of the seven last plagues then the second angel poured out his bowl and the sea and it became as the blood of a dead man and every living creature in the sea died that's the word suchet once again every living being in the sea died so animals also are living entities you remember when eutychus fell out of the window when the apostle paul uh got long-winded in preaching uh this story is in the book of acts chapter 20. i want to read acts chapter 20 and verse 10. here once again the word suchet soul is used but paul went down because he fell out of the window he died paul went down fell on him and embracing him said do not trouble yourselves for his is in him by the way interestingly enough the king james version translates his life is in him whereas in many other verses it translates his soul so it becomes confusing many times when you look at the king james version when it comes specifically to the issue of the spirit and the issue of the soul so it says once again but paul went down fell on him and embracing him said do not trouble yourselves for his life is in him now does the following text say that the young man's soul or life was intangible immortal or conscious we're going to look now at another passage this one is in the old testament first kings 17 verse 17 and verses 21 and 22 does this passage that we're going to read say that the life of this young boy who died was intangible his soul was intangible immortal or conscious let's read verse 17. it's talking about the son of the widow of zarepta now it happened after these things that the son of the woman who owned the house became sick and his sickness was so serious that there was no breath left in him in other words he died so she said to elijah what i have what have i to do with you o man o god man of god have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to kill my son and he stretched himself out on the child three times this is elijah and cried out to the lord and said o lord my god i pray let this child's soul come back to him so many say see the soul left the body it can't come back unless it left him now let me ask you the question does it say let this child's immortal soul come back to him from heaven no those words are added by individuals who believe in the immortality of the soul it simply says let this child's soul come back to him but in the light of what we've studied what is the soul it's the life let his life come back to him in other words because he had ceased to breathe we're told clearly in the text it says in verse 22 then the lord heard the voice of elijah and the soul of the child that is the the nephes of the child returned back to him and what happened when the soul came back to him when the nephesh came back to him because we're dealing with the old testament it says he revived this word means that he lived again because his life came back to him so don't insert into the bible words that are not there it doesn't say in this passage that the child's immortal soul came from heaven back to him it simply says his life came back to him now let's notice another text that uses the word soul that has confused many matthew chapter 10 and verse 28 jesus said and do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul so some people say ah see there are souls that can't be killed well let's examine the text do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul doesn't that sound like the body is one thing and the soul is another but we need to look at these texts carefully we need to be careful not to misinterpret the bible based on our preconceived ideas do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul but rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell what is this text telling us it's very simple when we look at it within its context it's simply saying don't fear those who can take your present life fear rather the one who is able to take your future life in other words it's saying don't fear those who are able to take away your present physical life but cannot take away your eternal life fear rather he was able to take away your physical life and your eternal life as well now the key to understanding matthew chapter 10 verse 28 is in verse 39 notice verse 39 of matthew chapter 10. jesus ends his teaching on this when he says he who finds his life that's the word sohei the word that many times is translated soul he who finds his life will lose it and he who loses his life for my sake will find it what is the text saying the text is saying that he who finds his present life will lose it and he who loses his present life will find it basically it means the one who finds his present life will lose it the one who seeks to save his present life and not by not being faithful to the lord he's going to lose it and he who loses his present life because of his faithfulness to the lord god will give him eternal life the sense is even clearer in luke 12 verses 4 and 5 luke 12 4 and 5. here jesus says and i say to you my friends do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do don't fear those who are able to kill your physical body right now jesus is saying he goes on to say but i will show you whom you should fear fear him who after he has killed has power to cast into hell yes i say to you fear him however don't fear the person who is able to take your present physical life fear him who is able to take away your eternal life of course based on your own choice so matthew chapter 10 verse 28 is not saying that the soul is immortal it's inside the body and it can leave the body after death that's all injected into the text it simply says do not fear those who kill in the kill the body that is your present physical life but cannot kill the soul that can they can't take away your eternal life but rather fear him who is able to destroy both your eternal life and your present physical life other people are confused about another verse that we find in first thessalonians 5 23 and 24 where the apostle paul describes man as being composed of three dimensions let's read that verse first thessalonians 5 23 and 24 the apostle paul wrote now may the god of peace himself thank you sanctify you completely that's a key word the lord sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our lord jesus christ he who calls you is faithful who also will do it so some people say see man is composed of three parts spirit soul and body but there's no reason why this text should confuse us no one denies that human nature has three dimensions physical mental and spiritual however nowhere does the bible tell us that one dimension can live alone independently of the others nowhere does any text tell us that the soul dimension is conscious immortal and leaves the body at the moment of death the point of the text is that god wants to sanctify us completely he wants to sanctify us physically he wants to sanctify us mentally and he wants to sanctify us spiritually ellen white wrote about these three dimensions you know ellen white firmly believed that when a person dies you know they're dead she didn't believe that the soul leaves the body at the moment of death yet she had no problems with first thessalonians 5 23 and 24. notice what she wrote adventist home page 329 ignorance pleasure loving and sinful habits habits corrupt soul body and spirit make the world full of moral leprosy a deadly moral malaria is destroying thousands and tens of thousands so she realized that man has three dimensions let me explain what i mean for many years i taught at our seventh-day adventist university in the theology department in the city of medellin colombia when you enter the university you find a obelisk in front of the administration building and the obelisk has a triangle with the words mano mente corazon basically that means hand mind and heart what does that mean it means that education trains the body trains the soul and trains the spirit in the book education page 13 ellen white wrote that true education is the harmonious development of our physical mental and spiritual powers but nowhere folks in the bible do we find that the mental part can exist without a body or that the spiritual part can exist without a body and without a a mind actually the mind is based on having a physical brain you developing your relationship with god depends on having a physical brain all three dimensions function together they cannot function independently one of the other now let's go back to our original text with which we began this study genesis 35 and verse 18 and let's notice that we do not have here the words that many inject into the text don't put words into the text folks that are not there it says in genesis 35 verse 18 and so it was as her that is rachel's soul was departing for she died what happens when the soul departs when the life departs well a person dies according to the text so it says so it was as her soul was departing for she died that she called his name benoni but his father called him benjamin how do many people read this text they say and so it was as her immortal soul was departing her body to heaven before she died you know they inject ideas greek philosophy into the text of the bible because they believe that man has an immortal soul inside that flies out at the moment of death let's read several texts in closing to find out what happens with people who die psalm 146 verse 4 his spirit departs remember that's the breath he returns to his earth in that very day his plans the king james version translates his thoughts perish dead people can't think folks when a person dies when the spirit departs the person returns to the earth person no longer breathes that very day his plans or his thoughts perish psalm 104 verses 29 and 30. it speaks about what happens when god creates someone and when someone dies it says speaking about god you hide your face they are troubled you take away their breath they die and return to their dust and then it speaks about when god creates people you send forth your spirit they are created and you renew the face of the earth genesis 3 19 which we read previously in the sweat of your face god says to adam you shall eat bread till you return to the ground for out of it you were taken for dust you are and to dust you shall return in other words death is simply the opposite of life when god created man he took his body from the dust of the earth breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and this became a living person well at the moment of death the body returns to the earth the person breathes their last and as a result there is no soul there is no person until the resurrection now i find it somewhat uh uh humorous that some people will say that if somebody hicks hits hits you with a brick uh and kills you or rather somebody hits you on the head with a brick and you're rendered unconscious you know absolutely nothing but if they hit you a little bit harder and they kill you suddenly you know everything does that make any sense no the bible tells us the living know that they will die but the dead no nothing that's ecclesiastes chapter 9 and verse 5 and you also might want to read verse 10. so we've studied the terms that speak about the state of the dead and we find no text of the bible that says that man has inside a mortal soul that flies off at the moment of death our only hope if we should die is to have our life hidden in jesus christ as our savior and lord may that be our experience today you

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Length: 58min 30sec (3510 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 02 2021