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Songs and Teachings of the Bible
Songs and Teachings of the Bible
Doctrine Four
MAN HAS NO IMMORTAL SOUL
Man has no immortal soul.
The dead are asleep, unconscious.
All human beings will be resurrected.
The righteous have not yet been rewarded.
The wicked will be put to death a second time -- forever.
The dead are asleep, unconscious.
All human beings will be resurrected.
The righteous have not yet been rewarded.
The wicked will be put to death a second time -- forever.
HUMAN BEINGS ARE "FLOWERS IN THE GRASS"
When God expelled Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden He cut them off from the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:22-24), imposing the death penalty on them and their descendants (Romans 5:12). All human beings in this age must die, and remain in an unconscious state (as will be demonstrated below) until the time of their resurrection (I Corinthians 15:22; Hebrews 9:27; John 5:25-29; Daniel 12:2; Revelation 20:12). No one has ascended to heaven except Jesus Christ (John 3:13; Hebrews 11:13).
The Bible compares human beings to "flowers in the grass" because flowers, although very beautiful, live only a short season and then die.
The Bible compares human beings to "flowers in the grass" because flowers, although very beautiful, live only a short season and then die.
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the Lord. . . .'
"The voice said, 'Cry out!'
And I said, 'What shall I cry?'
" 'All flesh is grass,
And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field,
The grass withers, the flower fades,
Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it,
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.' "
(Isaiah 40:3, 6-8)
The Apostle Peter, quoting the passage above, declared,
"All flesh is as grass,
And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass.
The grass withers,
And its flower falls away,
But the word of the Lord endures forever.
Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you."
(I Peter 1:24-25)
Many Scriptures describe mankind's temporary, flower-like existence:
"Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, but the rich in his humiliation, because as a flower of the field he will pass away. For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat than it withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits."
(James 1:9-11)
"As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
And its place remembers it no more."
(Psalm 103:15-16)
"Man who is born of woman
Is of few days and full of trouble.
He comes forth like a flower and fades away;
He flees like a shadow and does not continue."
(Job 14:1-2)
"You carry them away like a flood;
They are like a sleep.
In the morning they are like grass which grows up;
In the evening it is cut down and withers."
(Psalm 90:5-6)
"To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;"
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-2)
"For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away."
(James 4:14)
Flowers in the Grass
MAN HAS NO IMMORTAL SOUL
Jesus said, "if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments" (Matthew 19:17). Notice that He said,"if." Eternal life is a goal for which man must strive, something which he does not already possess (Matthew 7:14; Philippians 3:10-14; Romans 2:7). It is like hidden treasure worth seeking with all of one's heart (Matthew 13:44-45; II Corinthians 4:7). The successful Christian life after baptism is comparable to running a marathon race and enduring until the end (I Corinthians 9:24; Hebrews 12:1; II Timothy 4:7-8; Matthew 24:13). Those who are Christ's will receive immortality at the last trumpet, at His Second Coming (I Corinthians 15:50-54, 20-23; I Thessalonians 4:13-17). No human being has ascended to heaven except Jesus Christ (John 3:13). The Hidden Treasure of Eternal Life
" . . . but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
(Genesis 2:17)
"For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return."
(Genesis 3:19)
"'And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever' -- therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way; to guard the way to the tree of life."
(Genesis 3:22-24)
" . . . through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned. . . ."
(Romans 5:12)
" . . . the wages of sin is death. . . ."
(Romans 6:23)
" . . . all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. . . ."
(Romans 3:23)
"The soul who sins shall die."
(Ezekiel 18:4, 20)
When Adam Died
THE DEAD ARE UNCONSCIOUS
"For in death there is no remembrance of You;
in the grave who will give You thanks?"
(Psalm 6:5)
"Will You work wonders for the dead?
Shall the dead arise and praise You? Selah
Shall Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave?
Or Your faithfulness in the place of destruction?
Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?"
(Psalm 88:10-12)
"The dead do not praise the Lord,
Nor any who go down into silence.
(Psalm 115:17)
"Do not put your trust in princes,
Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help.
His spirit departs, he returns to his earth;
In that very day his plans perish."
(Psalm 146:3-4)
"For what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity. All go to one place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust."
(Ecclesiastes 3:19-20)
"For the living know that they will die;
But the dead know nothing."
(Ecclesiastes 9:5)
"For Sheol cannot thank You,
Death cannot praise You;
Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
The living, the living man, he shall praise You,
As I do this day;"
(Isaiah 38:18-19)
" . . . the body without the spirit is dead. . . ."
(James 2:26)
" . . . fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
(Matthew 10:28)
Comments:
1) There are three Greek words commonly translated "hell" in most modern versions of our English New Testament. They are hades, gehenna and tartaroo. Hades, like the Hebrew word sheol, simply means "cemetery," or "graveyard" -- the place or abode of the dead. Gehenna refers to the "lake of fire" or "second death" which is the final, ultimate punishment for sin -- a death from which there is no resurrection. Tartaroo occurs only once in the Greek New Testament (II Peter 2:4) and refers to the condition of restraint which Satan and the demons have been subjected to, since the time they were cast out of heaven, to the earth (Revelation 12:8-9).
2) The Bible tells us that "it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). Jesus' parable of "Lazarus and the rich man" (Luke 16:19-31) shows that all human beings will be judged according to how they lived during their lifetime. Other Scriptures reveal the timetable for this to occur. (In the parable, Abraham and Lazarus come up in the First Resurrection, over a thousand years before the rich man finds himself about to experience a "second death" in a "lake of fire" during the great judgment period.) This will be covered in more detail below.
3) God said to Cain, "The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground (Genesis 4:10). Able was dead . . . unconscious . . . unable to speak, yet God was able to "hear" -- or to imagine in His mind -- Able's voice crying out to Him. In like manner God is able to "hear" the voices of all the righteous dead crying out to Him from their graves -- many of whom have been martyred, as Able was (Revelation 6:9-11).
4) About 2,500 years ago God cast the ancient nation of Judah out of the Promised Land, and the people in the diaspora were heavily influenced by the pagan religions which surrounded them (Deuteronomy 4:27-28; 28:36, 64; Jeremiah 16:13; Ezekiel 20:25). The "apocryphal" books, written at that time -- during the dark half of The Fourth Millennial Day when the Jews were cut off from God -- reflect the false doctrine of "the immortality of the soul" and other beliefs not taught in Scripture. It was Satan who had said to mother Eve, "You will not surely die" (Genesis 3:4). This false teaching had grown to prominence in the ancient world, and has been perpetuated to the present day. The Fourth Millennial Day -- A World in Confusion
5) The Bible condemns such practices as witchcraft, séances, divination, the occult, sorcery, mediums, interpreting omens, casting spells and any means of trying to "contact the dead" (Leviticus 19:31; 20:6, 27; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; I Samuel 28:3-25; I Chronicles 10:13-14; Galatians 5:19-21). Satan and the demons do exist, and desire to draw human beings into their dark realm (Ephesians 6:12; Isaiah 47:9, 12-13, Revelation 18:2; 16:14; 13:13-14; 19:19-20). People who try to "contact the dead" are unwittingly seeking demonic powers which are subtle, crafty, deceitful and powerful (Genesis 3:1; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 2:2-3; Revelation 12:9; 20:3, 7-8). God wants us to avoid such contact and to be on guard against wicked spirits at all times (James 4:7-8; I Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:10-18; II Corinthians 6:17; Revelation 18:4; 21:7-8). Remember always that God is far greater than Satan (John 10:28-29; I John 4:4; Exodus 12:12; Numbers 33:4; Matthew 12:29; Revelation 20:1-10).
1) There are three Greek words commonly translated "hell" in most modern versions of our English New Testament. They are hades, gehenna and tartaroo. Hades, like the Hebrew word sheol, simply means "cemetery," or "graveyard" -- the place or abode of the dead. Gehenna refers to the "lake of fire" or "second death" which is the final, ultimate punishment for sin -- a death from which there is no resurrection. Tartaroo occurs only once in the Greek New Testament (II Peter 2:4) and refers to the condition of restraint which Satan and the demons have been subjected to, since the time they were cast out of heaven, to the earth (Revelation 12:8-9).
2) The Bible tells us that "it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). Jesus' parable of "Lazarus and the rich man" (Luke 16:19-31) shows that all human beings will be judged according to how they lived during their lifetime. Other Scriptures reveal the timetable for this to occur. (In the parable, Abraham and Lazarus come up in the First Resurrection, over a thousand years before the rich man finds himself about to experience a "second death" in a "lake of fire" during the great judgment period.) This will be covered in more detail below.
3) God said to Cain, "The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground (Genesis 4:10). Able was dead . . . unconscious . . . unable to speak, yet God was able to "hear" -- or to imagine in His mind -- Able's voice crying out to Him. In like manner God is able to "hear" the voices of all the righteous dead crying out to Him from their graves -- many of whom have been martyred, as Able was (Revelation 6:9-11).
4) About 2,500 years ago God cast the ancient nation of Judah out of the Promised Land, and the people in the diaspora were heavily influenced by the pagan religions which surrounded them (Deuteronomy 4:27-28; 28:36, 64; Jeremiah 16:13; Ezekiel 20:25). The "apocryphal" books, written at that time -- during the dark half of The Fourth Millennial Day when the Jews were cut off from God -- reflect the false doctrine of "the immortality of the soul" and other beliefs not taught in Scripture. It was Satan who had said to mother Eve, "You will not surely die" (Genesis 3:4). This false teaching had grown to prominence in the ancient world, and has been perpetuated to the present day. The Fourth Millennial Day -- A World in Confusion
5) The Bible condemns such practices as witchcraft, séances, divination, the occult, sorcery, mediums, interpreting omens, casting spells and any means of trying to "contact the dead" (Leviticus 19:31; 20:6, 27; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; I Samuel 28:3-25; I Chronicles 10:13-14; Galatians 5:19-21). Satan and the demons do exist, and desire to draw human beings into their dark realm (Ephesians 6:12; Isaiah 47:9, 12-13, Revelation 18:2; 16:14; 13:13-14; 19:19-20). People who try to "contact the dead" are unwittingly seeking demonic powers which are subtle, crafty, deceitful and powerful (Genesis 3:1; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 2:2-3; Revelation 12:9; 20:3, 7-8). God wants us to avoid such contact and to be on guard against wicked spirits at all times (James 4:7-8; I Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:10-18; II Corinthians 6:17; Revelation 18:4; 21:7-8). Remember always that God is far greater than Satan (John 10:28-29; I John 4:4; Exodus 12:12; Numbers 33:4; Matthew 12:29; Revelation 20:1-10).
DEATH IS LIKE SLEEP
I Corinthians 15:20, 51; I Thessalonians 4:13-15; Daniel 12:2; John 11:11-14, 21-26, 32-44; Acts 7:60; 13:36; I Corinthians 11:30; I Thessalonians 5:10; Matthew 9:24; Mark 5:39; Luke 8:52; Matthew 27:52-53; Job 3:13; I Kings 2:10; 11:43; 14:20, 31; II Kings 20:21, etc.
NO ONE HAS GONE TO HEAVEN EXCEPT JESUS;
THE SAINTS ARE "ASLEEP" UNTIL THE FIRST RESURRECTION
THE SAINTS ARE "ASLEEP" UNTIL THE FIRST RESURRECTION
"Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. . . . For David did not ascend into the heavens. . . ."
(Acts 2:29, 34)
"No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven."
(John 3:13)
Notice the expressions "at His coming" and "at the last trumpet" in the following passages, as well as the references to "sleep." They explain that all Saints will be rewarded at the same time -- at the Second Coming of Christ -- and that the dead in Christ are presently "asleep":
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming. . . .
"Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed -- in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed."
(I Corinthians 15:22-23, 51-52)
"For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air."
(I Thessalonians 4:15-17)
"These all" [human beings who obeyed and pleased God while they were alive] "died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."
" . . . that they might obtain a better resurrection."
"And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us."
(Hebrews 11:13, 35, 39-40)
" . . . for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just."
(Luke 14:14)
Herbert W. Armstrong taught the Church to follow the Seven Laws of Success, the first of which is to establish the right goal for their lives. The Apostle Paul stated that the goal of his life was the resurrection -- "the First Resurrection" at the Second Coming of Christ (Revelation 20:4-6):
"If, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected, but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
(Philippians 3:11-14)
" . . . the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing."
(II Timothy 4:6-8)
The resurrection is the goal for every true Christian, the "one hope of your calling" (Ephesians 4:4).
Jesus referred to those whom God the Father had called and drawn to Him when He said,
Jesus referred to those whom God the Father had called and drawn to Him when He said,
" . . . and I will raise him up at the last day."
(John 6:40; verses 44 and 54 also)
The Apostle Paul stated,
"God . . . 'will render to each one according to his deeds': eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness -- indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish. . . ."
(Romans 2:5-9)
The Apostle John wrote,
"And I saw thrones, and they" [the resurrected Saints] "sat upon them, and judgment was committed to them. . . . And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. . . . This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years."
(Revelation 20:4-6)
We Shall Be Changed
WHAT ABOUT "THE REST OF THE DEAD"?
"For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Now
'If the righteous one is scarcely saved,
Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?' "
(I Peter 4:17-18)
The following Scriptures show that the rest of the dead -- those who are not in the First Resurrection -- shall be resurrected after the Millennium, and that those who had not been called by God previously shall have opportunity for salvation at that time:
" . . . there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust."
(Acts 24:15)
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive."
(I Corinthians 15:22)
"Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live."
"Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."
(John 5:25, 28-29)
" 'Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it,' says the Lord."
(Ezekiel 37:12-14)
"And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt."
(Daniel 12:2)
"And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him -- the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day."
(John 12:47-48)
"But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished."
"And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books."
"And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."
(Revelation 20:5, 12, 15)
JUDGMENT DAY
" . . . it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. . . ."
(Hebrews 9:27)
"And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!"
(Matthew 10:14-15)
"Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you."
(Matthew 11:21-22)
"And you Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."
(Matthew 11:23-24)
"But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment."
(Matthew 12:36)
"The men of Ninevah will rise up in judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here."
(Matthew 12:41)
"The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."
(Matthew 12:42)
CONCLUDING MATERIAL
Spiritually, Adam died on the very day that he sinned (Genesis 2:17; 3:7). Physically, he remained alive 930 years (Genesis 5:5). After he sinned, Adam was "dead while he was alive." From God's perspective, all human beings who lack the Holy Spirit are "dead while they are alive." However, it is also true that God views those who are now being led by His Holy Spirit as already possessing eternal life. God, who "calls those things which do not exist as though they did" (Romans 4:17), occasionally speaks in the "past prophetic tense." This is why there are some biblical passages which make the righteous dead seem as if they were alive -- they are "alive while they are dead." *
* I Timothy 5:6; II Corinthians 5:14; Ephesians 2:1, 5; 4:17-18; 5:14; I John 5:11-13; John 3:36; 5:24-25; 6:53-54; 11:25-26; Luke 9:60; 15:24, 32; 16:19-31 (Matthew 22:31-32); Romans 6:11, 13; Colossians 2:13; Revelation 3:1-5; 5:8-9, 13; 6:9-11 (Genesis 4:10); I John 3:14; I Peter 3:18-22; 4:6
The human race, since the time of Adam and Eve, has been cut off from the tree of life, separated from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). It is God's purpose to turn men from death to life (Isaiah 55:6-9; Deuteronomy 30:19). The annual Holy Days outlined in Leviticus 23 foreshadow God's Master Plan for accomplishing this Great Purpose. God's Plan of Salvation for Mankind
* I Timothy 5:6; II Corinthians 5:14; Ephesians 2:1, 5; 4:17-18; 5:14; I John 5:11-13; John 3:36; 5:24-25; 6:53-54; 11:25-26; Luke 9:60; 15:24, 32; 16:19-31 (Matthew 22:31-32); Romans 6:11, 13; Colossians 2:13; Revelation 3:1-5; 5:8-9, 13; 6:9-11 (Genesis 4:10); I John 3:14; I Peter 3:18-22; 4:6
The human race, since the time of Adam and Eve, has been cut off from the tree of life, separated from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). It is God's purpose to turn men from death to life (Isaiah 55:6-9; Deuteronomy 30:19). The annual Holy Days outlined in Leviticus 23 foreshadow God's Master Plan for accomplishing this Great Purpose. God's Plan of Salvation for Mankind
Seek the Lord
" . . . he who does not have the Son of God does not have life."
(I John 5:12)
" . . . whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."
(John 3:15, verse 16 also)
"God . . . alone has immortality. . . ."
(I Timothy 6:13, 16)
God offers immortality -- eternal life -- to man through Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 15:51-53; I John 2:25; Romans 8:28-32; Hebrews 2:9-10; II Timothy 1:10).
For God So Loved the World
Risen From the Dead
When the Bible states, "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished" (Revelation 20:5), it shows that the dead are dead -- not alive -- because they "did not live" between the time of their death and the time of their resurrection. The fact that the lake of fire is called the "second death" (verse 14) also demonstrates this point: it is possible for a human being to live twice, die twice, and not to live between the two periods of life. Since they "did not live" after their first death, it follows that those who experience the "second death" will not live thereafter.
After Death, then What?