This is a production of
World Video Bible School To God be the glory Where do we go when we die? I suppose this is a question that every
man who has ever lived has thought about, because Death is something
that we all face. As we grow and mature we see those
around us pass on. We see our grandparents die and maybe
later we see our parents pass away as well. Maybe even our siblings and friends. And the truth is clear that we to are
going to die and we wonder what then? You know a lot of strange ideas
have been given to answer this question. Some have suggested reincarnation.
That is the idea that if you lived a good life you come back
in the form of another creature. Some have the idea of a ghost
and they have the idea that you come back as a spirit and you live in
the house where you used to dwell. Some had the idea purgatory, that is you
go to a place of punishment until you've paid your debt and then you
can move on from there. And of course many people have
the idea that you just cease to exist, that is when you breathe your last breath
that there will be no more conscious existence. But you know as a Christian, I don't have to engage in a guessing game. I don't have to buy into
superstitions or myths, because I can know the
answers to the questions, not only where I came from,
but also where I'm going. In this lesson we're going to trace the
journey of the human soul and we're going to let
the Bible answer for us where do we go when we die? Now, the journey of the human soul doesn't
actually begin on this earth. It begins in heaven. I want you listen to Ecclesiastes
chapter 12 and verse 7. This is a verse we oftentimes use to
discuss death but I want you to listen particularly to
the end of the verse. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was. and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. Hebrews chapter 12 and verse
9 calls God the Father of spirits. And so the spirit originally
comes from heaven. It comes from God.
And so at the point of conception when the egg meets the sperm and a
human life is created God places a soul. He places a
spirit into that new body. You know the mother and the father
give that child his physical characteristics but they don't give him his soul.
God does that. Genesis chapter 1 verse 26 God
said Let us, that is the Godhead, Let us make man in Our image, after our likeness. Now, what does that mean to
be made in the image of God? Primarily that has reference to the soul of man. He is a being who will
now live on for eternity. And so when a human is conceived, God makes him in the image of God
by placing a soul into him. Now, animals don't have that. We are far superior to the animals in that way. Now, from the time that God places
a soul into the newly formed human being, it will continue to dwell in that
physical body until that person dies. 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 1 says For we know that if our earthly
house, this tent. That is just talking about our physical body. It is a tent. It's a temporary
dwelling place for the soul. We know that if our earthly house,
this tent, is destroyed we have a building from God. A house not
made with hands eternal in the heavens. 1 Corinthians 15:54 talks about our physical body and refers to the the
physical body as corruptible. And so our soul, for the 70 or
80 years that we have this physical body, it dwells in this corruptible fleshly body. Now, during that time
we worship God with our spirit, it's coming from the
physical body but it emanates ultimately from
our soul from our spirit. John 4:24 says God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. So we engage the physical body
but our spirit is the seat of worship. The spirit is the heart of man. We worship God with our spirit.
We love God with our spirit, with our soul. Luke 10 and verse 27 You shall love the Lord your God
with all of your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your
strength and with all of your mind. Now all the while the
physical body is wearing out. Solomon describes this process in
Ecclesiastes chapter 12 He says, Remember now you're Creator in the days of your youth before the difficult days come. That is when you begin to get old
the physical body gets old. He says life becomes harder in many ways. He says And the years draw
near when you say I have no pleasure in them. Many people, when they get near the end,
they're just ready to go and be with the Lord because physically, life
gets very hard for them. He says while the Sun and the light and
the moon and the stars, are not darkened. That is your eyesight begins to fail.
You've got to get bifocals. And he says in the clouds
do not return after the rain; in the day when the keepers
of the house began to tremble. He's talking about the hand as they begin
to shake and the strong man bowed down. That is your legs get weak; you fall. He says when the grinders cease because
they are few; you lose your teeth. And he says and those who look
through the windows grow dim. When the doors are shut in the streets
and the sound of grinding is low. When one rises up at the sound of a bird. You
don't sleep well like you did when you were younger. And all the daughters of
music are brought low. That is you're losing your hearing.
Also they are afraid of height, and of terrors in the way. When the
almond tree blossoms; your hair turns gray. He says the grasshopper,
this very small creature, is a burden. Desire fails.
Your desire changes as you get older. He says, For man goes to his eternal home
and the mourners go about the streets. He says Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed
or the Golden Bowl is broken or the pitcher is shattered at the
fountain or the wheel broken at the well. That is you're going to die. Now listen, he says Then the dust will return to
the earth as it was. That is the corruptible body is going to die,
it's going to decay, it's going to return to the ground
and the elements. Now listen, And the spirit will return
to God who gave it. What happens then?
What happens when I die? For 75 years or 80 years, however long
my soul dwells in this this physical body. What happens when the physical body dies? Psalm 90 and verse 10 says The days of our lives are 70 years
and if by reason of strength they are 80 years yet their boast is only labor in
sorrow for it is soon cut off. Now listen, And we fly away. Isn't that
fascinating language? Genesis 35:18 describes the death of
Rachel and it uses this language. And it came to pass
as her soul was departing James 2:26 Says the body
without the spirit is dead. The body without the spirit. That's very fascinating. And so when I die
my soul leaves this old corruptible body. But where does it go? You know on the Day of Resurrection we
know that we're going to get a new body. We're going to get an incorruptible body.
But what about in the meantime? I want you to listen to this description
in 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 1 For we know that if our earthly house,
this tent, the corruptible body, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens. Right now we have a tent
we have a temporary body but we're going to get a building,
a lasting body, an eternal body. Verse 4. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened,
not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality
may be swallowed up by life. Now, there's some very
interesting language here because he speaks about being
in this body as being clothed in a tent. And then he speaks about being in the
resurrected body as being in a building
eternal in the heavens. but then he also speaks about
being unclothed. What is it? What's he referring to?
When is that going to occur? Well it's when we die and the soul
leaves the physical, corruptible body. You see, there will be a period when
the spirit, or the soul, will not have a body. It will be unclothed, if you will. Well, when I die and my spirit leaves my
body, where does it go? Now, that's going to take us to the next
part of this journey. The entire second section of this
chart comprises what is known as Hades. This is the Hadean realm. Now, many
people are confused by the term Hades because they think of Hades as referring to hell. They think about as referring to the place of punishment and that's not right. The word Hades actually
refers to the dwelling place of the dead. Its kind of a holding area
for disembodied spirits. The good who die go to Hades.
The bad who die go to Hades. I think part of the reason
why we're confused about this is because the King James Version
translates the Greek word for Hades as hell. and that confuses us. In the original
language there are two different words. There's one word for Hades
and one word for Gehenna. Now, Hades is the dwelling
place of the dead. Gehenna is hell, but the King James translates
both words as hell. In Matthew 16:18 when Jesus
promised to build his church and He said the gates of hell would
not prevail against it. This is not hell.
This is the word for Hades. It means that death would not prevent.
Death would not stop his kingdom. Now, if you don't understand the
distinction in these words, you're going to get very confused.
Now, incidently just as a side note, the Old Testament word for Hades,
the Hebrew word for hades is the word Sheol. Sheol and Hades
refer to the same place. And so, once you understand that all people
go to Hades when they die, it's going to clear up some things for you. For example, in Acts chapter 2 and verse 31,
the Bible refers to Christ after His death as being in Hades. Now the King
James Version says hell, but the word there were first to Hades.
Jesus did not go to hell when he died, he went to the Hadean realm,
to Hades. But Luke 23:43,
as Christ was about to die, He said he was going to go to Paradise.
Now, when you understand that Paradise is in Hades, it all makes perfect sense because
Paradise is a compartment of Hades. In Hades, there is a place
where the righteous go, and there is a place
where the wicked go. They're all awaiting
the day of judgement. Now, the best description that
we have in the Bible of Hades is in Luke chapter 16. It
describes both compartments. Now, I want to read it together. Let's look at
it together and then we'll discuss it. Luke chapter 16 beginning in verse 19. The Bible says, There was a certain rich
man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously evey day. But there was a certain beggar
named Lazarus, full sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came
and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died, and was
carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torments in Hades.
Now, the King James uses the word hell. It says that he was in hell, but that's
not right, the New King James correctly says that he was in Hades. Being in Hades he lifted up his eyes
and he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
And then he cried, Father Abraham, have mercy on me,
and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember
that in your lifetime you received your good things and likewise
Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are
tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there
is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to
pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us. Now, I want us first to look at this
place where Lazarus was taken. We're told that when he died, when Lazarus died, he was carried
by angels to Abraham's bosom. Now, this is the compartment of Hades where
the righteous go to await judgement. It's the place known as Paradise. This is the same place that Christ promised
the thief on the cross that he would go. Remember He said in Luke 23:43, Assuredly, I say to you,
that you will be with me in Paradise. In Luke 16:25 the Bible tells us, that in this place
the righteous are comforted. In fact, if you study the background,
the etymology of the word Paradise, it carries with it the idea of
a pleasure garden. Now, the opposite compartment of Hades
is where the rich man went. This place is a place of torment. Now, this section in Hades is called
Tartarus in the original Greek. Peter uses this word in 2 Peter 2
and verse 4 when he said, For if God spared not the
angels that sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus and delivered them into chains of
darkness, to be reserved unto judgement. They are waiting for the
judgment day. Now, this place is described for us in
Luke 16 verses 22 and 23 this way. Verse 22 says, the rich man also died,
and was buried. Verse 23. Listen to this.
And in hell, the King James says hell. The word is Hades. And in Hades he lift
up his eyes, being in torments. Now, normally when I teach on
this subject, I would spend some time here talking
about the misery and the suffering of this place. And we could spend an entire
lesson just on that subject, but for now, let's briefly observe
that this rich man, in torment, is burning in fire.
He is crying out for mercy, he's begging for mercy. He believes that a mere drop of water
would bring him at least a moment's relief. I want you to appreciate with me that every person from the beginning of this world until now, every person who has died, lost in the
eyes of God, is in this place. Many of them have been
there for thousands of years, many just for minutes, some for seconds, but they're there and are suffering. Now,
another observation that I want us to notice is the fact that there is consciousness
in the Hadean realm. You know there is a doctrine taught by some of the religious world
called soul sleeping. And soul sleeping suggests that
when a person dies that he goes into a shaded unconsciousness
and he ceases to be aware. But this passage, as well as others,
teach us that after death, men are very much
aware of what's going on. The rich man's crying in pain. Lazarus is comforted. You know Psalm
116 and verse 15 says, Precious in the sight of the Lord is the
death of his saints. Friends, I don't believe that refers to
them slipping into a state of unconsciousness. That doesn't make any sense to me. You know,
I taught on this subject on one occasion and a gentleman came to me afterwards and he
said, Don, that was a great lesson. He said, but you need to read this
particular passage because you're wrong about there being
consciousness in Hadean realm and he handed me a piece paper.
Well, I unfolded it, and I looked at it. It was Ecclesiastes
chapter 9 verse 5. Where the Bible says, The dead know not anything. The dead know not anything. But you know he
was misinterpreting that verse because he was pulling it out of context. In fact,
if you will look at the next verse in Ecclesiastes chapter 9
verse number 6 uses that phrase again, under the sun. Again, it's used in verse 3, it's used in verse 9, it's used in verse 13. And the context of this passage is things going on in this world,
things under the sun, the things on this earth. And the point of the passage is, that when you die, and you go to Paradise
or torment, you are no longer aware of what's
taking place on this earth. Now, to prove that. In 2 Chronicles chapter 34,
King Josiah was told by God that God was going to bring punishment
upon Jerusalem for their sins, but that he was going to die and he
was not going to see it happen. Now, I want you listen to the
language in verse number 28. He said, Surely I will gather you unto
your fathers that is you're going to die. You shall be
gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity that I
will bring on this place and its inhabitants. Now, what's the point? He will have died. He will have gone to
the Hadean realm. So he was not going to see what was
going to take place on this earth. The dead know not anything
with regard to what's going on back here. Now, one final thing that I want you to
notice about the Hadean realm. You notice that on the chart that,
between Paradise and Torment, There's a green line and it has the words great gulf. That's because Luke 16:26
says that there is a divide. There is a a great gulf fixed so that no one can pass from one side to the other. Once you are in Paradise,
you are there to stay until the date judgment. Once you are
there in Torment, you are there to stay until the day of judgement.
And so that means every person who has ever died unfaithful
in the eyes of God is still there. Many have been there for thousands of years,
some for minutes, some for seconds. But I think about them crying,
I'm tormented in this flame. But it doesn't end. Now, that takes us to the
next section of this chart, which is the resurrection day. The resurrection day is what we typically call the judgement day. The Bible calls this
day the day of the Lord. Peter says, But the day of the Lord
will come as a thief in the night. 2 Peter 3:10. Now, what is going to happen on that day,
the day of judgement, to the souls who are in Hades,
who are in Paradise or Torment, what's going happen to them? On that day, the Hadean realm is going to give
up all the souls that it contains, and it will cease to exist. Also on that day, the earth is going to
give up the bodies. John 5:28 and 29, Jesus said, For the hour is coming in which all that
are in the grave will hear His voice and will come up forth those that have
done good, to the resurrection of life, those that have done evil, to the
resurrection of condemnation or damnation, and then the souls, the spirits that have
come from Hades will be reunited with the bodies that have been
resurrected on the earth. But with this new union, the new body. The new body is going to be different.
The resurrected body is not going to be like the physical
body that we have now. The resurrected body
will not be made of the same particles that were put in the grave.
The resurrected body will be a different material if you
want to use that term. You know sometimes people will express
concern about having their bodies cremated because they think that's gonna pose a
problem at the resurrection. But the resurrected body is not going to
be made up of the same elements that we have on this earth.
How do I know that? 1 Corinthians 15:50 says, Flesh and blood
cannot inherit the kingdom of God. The resurrected body will not be a
flesh and blood body. Listen to this from
verse 44 of 1 Corinthians 15. The body, that is
the physical body, is sown in corruption, it, the
resurrected body, is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor,
it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is
raised in power. It is sown a natural body,
it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body.
There is a spiritual body. Now, let's break this down;
what we've just read. It says the resurrected body
will be incorruptible. You see, our current bodies
are subject to death. They get old, they wear out.
But the new body won't wear out. Secondly, the resurrected body
will be a glorious body. Our present bodies have many things associated with them that
that are not glorious. They're low and vile. The new body will be a thing of
beauty and joy and purity. Thirdly, the resurrected body,
he says, will be raised in power. You know, our present bodies get tired.
They're inherently weak. The resurrected body will have unfailing vigor.
It will be capable of unwearying activity. The resurrected body
will be a spiritual one. And our present bodies
are natural, he says the resurrected body will
be designed for spirit life as opposed to physical, fleshly life. So, the day of judgement is going to be a
resurrection day. Its the day that Hades will be destroyed.
It's the day that we will get our resurrected, new, incorruptible,
spiritual bodies. Now, with that in mind,
listen to 1 Corinthians 15:54 and 55. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality,
then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written:
Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory? Death and Hades will be overcome on that day. In other words, the physical grave and
the temporary abode of the dead, the Hadean realm, will both
come to an end, on the day of judgement. You say well, what about
those of us who are still living when the judgment day comes?
1 Corinthians 15:52 says In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trump, the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed. And so, the living also will be
changed into an incorruptible body. And then we'll be
gathered before the throne of God. After both the good and the bad
have received their resurrected body We will stand before the throne of Christ.
And we will be judged. Matthew 25 and verse 32 says, And the
nations will be gathered before Him, and He shall separate them one from another,
as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats, and all humanity, friends,
all humanity will be there on that day. The rich man
and Lazarus will stand before God to receive their eternal judgment. Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob will be there. Ahab, Jezabelle and
Judas will be there. Romans 14:12 says,
so that everyone of us shall give an account himself to God.
2 Corinthians 5:10 says for we must all appear before the judgment seat of
Christ. That everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that which He hath done
whether it be good or bad. You know, sometimes people will ask, well, what is the point of
the judgment if people have already been in paradise or torment?
It seems like they've kind of already been judged. But you see, the judgment day is not a day
in which God has to make a judgment call. It's not like God has to weigh
the facts and the figures and figure out who is saved and who is lost.
He knows that at the very moment that you die. In fact, he knows before you die
where you will be eternally. Judgment day isn't a trial
like we might think of. In fact, you might call it the
pronouncement of judgment day. It's the sentencing day. It's the day that God states the reasons
why you were lost or saved. And then he pronounces your
eternal sentence or reward. Somebody says but you know it
seems rather unnecessary. Since the righteous and the wicked already
know where they will spend their eternities, it seems unnecessary.
Friends, let me suggest to you that the judgment day is necessary for
several reasons. Number one, those who are still living;
they haven't been assigned punishment or bliss, and so its necessary for them. Number two, righteousness must be
displayed. Now listen to me, the last time
that the world saw Christ, He was dying as a criminal. Remember, He was only seen by his
followers after his resurrection. But on the day of judgement,
every eye will see him as the righteous judge. Number three, Number three, the judgment day is necessary
because it will be a day of exposure. The reasons why a man
is lost will be stated. The reasons why a man is saved
will be heralded. Number four, it is the day
when death is finally defeated. You know, for years, I wondered about to the meaning of It says the last enemy that will be
destroyed is death. And I thought to myself, you know,
hasn't Christ already defeated death? Did not He do that at his resurrection?
And so I was puzzled about this. But listen to the context. Verse number 24.
Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when he puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he has
put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. Now friends, this is talking about the day
that the tombs will be emptied and the Hadean world will come to an end.
It is this day. The judgment day is oh so very necessary. Now, the next part of the chart we're
going to talk about is eternity. In Matthew 25:46 the Lord said, And these shall go away
into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal. You know,
man has been created in the image of God and thus has been given
an eternal soul and that soul will never
cease to exist. Now, the Greek word that's
translated as eternal means eternal, everlasting,
without end, never to cease, indeterminate as to
duration. Now, you'll see in the chart there are
two alternatives as to where we will
spend eternity. One is a place of eternal bliss.
That's the destination at the faithful. Its heaven. And to them, the King will say
on the day of judgement, Come, you blessed to my father inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Matthew 25:46.
He calls this place life eternal. Now, the other destination is a place at the eternal torment.
It's hell. It's described in Revelation 21:8 as the
lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
It's the place the Lord has in mind in the judgment seen in Matthew 25 where He
says to the sinners, And these shall go away into
everlasting punishment. How long then is the punishment
in hell going to last? Is the punishment in hell
going to be temporary or are people just going to
burn up and cease to exist? Oh but the Bible says it's
going to last eternally. It's going to be everlasting.
Revelation 14:11 says, and the smoke of their torment
ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest
day or night. Friends, I can't imagine anything
more terrifying than that. You know, the man who dies
and goes to hell; he has tomorrow, and the next day,
and the next year, and the next 100 years and a million years from now
he will still be suffering and burning and continuing to exist. Each day that
passes, he's no closer to the end. Now, you know we're speaking
rather accommodatively because there is no time in eternity.
He will simply be suffering forever. The soul of man enters the physical
body at the point of conception and at death it
goes into Hades were it remains, as a spirit,
until the day of resurrection. On that day, it reunites
with the body, the new, incorruptible body,
and then that soul and the new body will spend eternity
in heaven or hell. Now, we've been discussing
the future of our souls, but let's bring the discussion back
home to were you when I live. If you go back to the beginning
of the chart, you will notice that on the earth there are two categories:
the saved and the lost. And everyone on earth fits into
one of these two categories. You'll also notice that the saved and
the lost are traveling on different pathways. Notice that for the saved,
for the righteous, the pathway representing
death is very narrow. Now that's because Matthew 7:14 says, Strait is the gate and narrow
is the way that leads to life, and few there be that find it.
Notice also, that for the lost, their pathway for death is wide and
that's because Matthew 7:13 says, Wide is the gate and broad is the way
that leads to destruction, and there are many
who go in by it. And perhaps the most
important thing to notice is that after death,
the saved and the lost, end up in different locations. And friends, where you will go
when you die depends on where you are heading
while your alive. Every person alive today
is on one of two paths. It is either their narrow path that leads to
heaven or it is the wide path that leads to hell. If you die today, what does
eternity hold for you? If you died in the next few moments,
where would you be when you opened your eyes? What would you see, seconds from now,
what would you see? Would it be angels carrying
you to paradise or would you lift up your eyes
being in torment?
