Here are the definitions of Noun and Verb from the dictionary:
NOUN
A word used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things.
VERB
A word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence.
According to the same source the word Sin is both a noun and a verb. Here are the definitions for Sin:
SIN (Noun)
An immoral act considered to be a transgression against divine law.
SIN (Verb)
The act of committing a sin; to sin.
By definition Christianity is only a noun; a word which identifies a class of people. But God wants us to make it a verb - a word used to describe an action! Why should sin be an action word but not Christianity?
Do you ever feel like your sins are so great you can't be an effective tool for God?
Moses was a murderer (see Exodus 2:11-12) and so was King David (see 2 Samuel 12:9). David was also an adulterer (see 2 Samuel 11:3-5). In fact the man he murdered was the husband of a women he impregnated, which became David's motive to kill the man Uriah.
I've never killed anybody nor cheated on my wife, though in the past I have had sexual relations outside of marriage which the world may condone, but to God it is a major sin. Not just sexual sins, but if you were a mind-reader who could discern the twisted thoughts that have run through my head or had been witness to the numerous vile things I've been guilty of, you'd probably want nothing to do with me. I've done plenty of things I'm not proud of.
What about you? Do you ever feel like you're the worst sinner around? I do sometimes. And in order to feel better I sometimes tell myself other people did this or did that which is worse than anything I've ever done. But "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) so though I haven't murdered anybody I've still been guilty of dishonoring God by sinning against Him. I'm as much the reason Jesus was beaten beyond recognition and nailed to that cross as anybody else. He was tortured to death to pay the penalty for my sins, so I can have a chance for eternal life with my sins washed away. "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief " (1 Timothy 1:15).
Let me clarify something. I've never literally murdered anybody. But do you believe what Jesus said regarding the spirit of the law in Matthew chapter 5? He said "whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment" (Matthew 5:22). What judgment? Being guilty of breaking the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" that's what. So I've never literally murdered anybody but to my shame spiritually I've been a mass murderer for most of my life. In fact it's been so many people I'm practically guilty of genocide. I've been an extremely angry, hateful person in my past. Hate to say it, but I still battle with anger... and have lost that battle from time to time all too recently.
Getting back to Moses and David these men committed vile sins against the Lord. Yet through repentance and faith that God could cleanse them of sin, the Lord was able to use them and their stories to bless countless souls over the centuries.
I try not to let pride give me delusions of grandeur so I don't expect God to use me in as great a manner as them. How much of a blessing I ultimately prove to be and for how many people remains to be seen. Truth is a few years ago I thought I was going to be some kind of superstar for God, winning hearts and souls for Him wherever I went. Ha ha, I've certainly been humbled since then. Still I try to do what I can which is the main reason I do this blog. And it's not like the studies I've posted get a lot of views. In fact at the time I'm writing this I only know for sure of three people who have even read anything I've posted here.... and my wife and step-son are two of them! I've told other people about the blog and a few of them have said they'll check it out but none of them have ever commented to me about it, so I have no idea if they've read anything here or not.
I pray that over the course of time more people will read my studies and be blessed by them. In the meantime I'll keep doing them for a couple of reasons. Whether three, or fifty, or a hundred, or a hundred-thousand people get anything out of this, all of them are precious to God. It's Him I'm trying to serve so how many people I impact isn't my primary concern. For His glory not mine. Whoever I reach for His sake is a bonus of course but He is the reason I do this.
Still I really pray to impact many more people than I do now because when Jesus comes for us will He be denied the souls of His children because I neglected to do my part? Will pride tell me not enough people respond to me to make it worth my time to keep doing this? My time is a gift from God. My wife and step-son are gifts from God too. Ultimately if they are the only two who check out my posts on a regular basis that's more than good enough for me.
Another thing these studies do is help me be closer to God. Studying His word draws me closer to Him.
There's yet another reason I do this; I'm a sinner who still struggles against sin and still loses too often. When I'm doing bible studies I'm not committing the sins I used to commit all the time.
Do you have loved ones whom you can be a blessing to by setting a good example for them? Do you occupy your time indulging in things which are sin? Spend your time serving God and He will bless you for it. I'm not much of speaker so this is the route I take. When I witness to people in person I struggle with my words, my thoughts often get jumbled. But perhaps you have the gift of gab and a way about you that can be used for Jesus each and every day. There are many ways to reach people and none of us can do it all. You can witness for God with people face to face, make video's to post online, do studies on the web like me. Sometimes just a smile can be what somebody needs right now. I had a pastor who used to say that when you tell people you are a Christian, you'd better believe they will be watching you from then on out. Some might hate God and hope you do things to discredit Christianity, but other's might be silently seeking Him and want to see what kind of person He has molded you into. How you present yourself to the world matters. You could be the only "bible" those people read.
If you are like me, sometimes failing to present yourself as a good Christian, don't forget the sins of Moses and David didn't disqualify them from being used in mighty ways by the Lord.
I'll end today with one more example of a sinner whose story has brought hope to millions upon millions of people; the thief on the cross from Luke 23:39-43. You know the story; Jesus was crucified along with two criminals on either side of Him. We know they (not Jesus but the other two) were guilty of the crimes they were charged with because one of them admits it in verse 41 when he says "we indeed justly" are suffering condemnation. But that dying sinner was repentant and asked Jesus to remember Him. Jesus then promised the man he would go to heaven. It only took that man a few seconds to utter a few words but those words have given hope to countless people who may have otherwise felt hopeless. Hope that they too can be forgiven and the knowledge that Jesus loves them and died to atone for their sins. What an amazing blessing that man has proven to be throughout the past 2000 years. Think the sins of your past disqualify you from being used by God. Think again!
Christianity is an action word. Live it.
Amen.
In my last post I showed that biblical names are also character traits. One name and its meaning I didn't mention was Moses but I'd like to talk about the symbolism of his name and how it relates to us all as Christians.
Moses means drawn. He was so-named by his surrogate mother who said "Because I drew him out of the water" (Exodus 2:10). In Exodus 20:21 it says Moses drew near to God. Symbolically God's people are all like Moses in that sense.
But there is extra significance in Moses having been drawn "out of the water" and how it relates to us. First here are several bible verses where water symbolically represents people.
In these first two, multitudes of men are referred to as floods.
2 Samuel 22:5 When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;
Isaiah 59:19 .. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him.
In these next two, nations are referred to as waves in the sea and rushing waters.
Ezekiel 26:3 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up.
Isaiah 17:13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
In this one the Assyrian king's armies (called "all his glory") are compared to waters from a river.
Isaiah 8:7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria, and all his glory: and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks:
And the apostle John certainly understood the symbolism as he made crystal clear in Revelation.
Revelation 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
King David also made the connection between waters and people when he wrote a song where he says when speaking of God "He drew me out of many waters." This song is repeated in both 2 Samuel and Psalms.
2 Samuel 22:17 He sent from above, he took me; he drew me out of many waters;
Psalm 18:16 He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.
I don't know about you, but I love learning bible symbolism. When I go back and reread things I find it fascinating how often you see verses with double meanings like this one:
Luke 21:25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
Luke 21:26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
I think all of us when Jesus refers to "the sea and the waves roaring" thought of storms and tumults in the oceans and I still think it means those things. But now understanding the symbolism I see a dual meaning, with the term also alluding to the masses panicking as the world around them plunges into chaos.
But what about us? Like Moses and David, we were drawn to the Lord out of the sea of people. Do you remember what happened in Mark chapter 4 when the storm kicked the waves up and was threatening to sink the ship? Jesus "said unto the sea, Peace, be still... and there was a great calm" (Mark 4:39). Because God drew us out of the waters too, when the distress of nations reaches its peak and the rest of the sea and waves roar all around us, we will have "the peace of God, which passeth all understanding [and] shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:7). Knowing as Christians that our King and Saviour is preparing mansions for us New Jerusalem means no matter what "the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18).
Amen.
In the bible names have meanings and these meanings are often character traits. Many times the bible tells you what the name means in the verse where a name is initially revealed. Here are a few examples:
The name Ishmael means God will hear. Below is the first verse his name appears. Notice it says why his name is Ishmael; it is because the Lord heard Hagar lamenting the fact that Sarai hated her due to jealousy because Sarai was unable to conceive at that time.
Genesis 16:11 And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Behold, thou art with child and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.
In the book of Ruth there is a character named Naomi, which means pleasant but after her husband and sons die she declares she wants her name to now be Mara, which means bitter. She says the reason is God dealt bitterly with her.
Ruth 1:20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me.
Even characters who are barely talked about sometimes have their names explained such as Peleg whose name means division.
Genesis 10:25 And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided ...
Some people speculate that our world was initially one large super-continent surrounded by water. They theorize that the verse is saying in the time of Peleg, God split the single landmass into multiple continents. In Hebrew there is a word which is a slight variation of peleg which is translated as rivers nine times and streams once -- streams in Psalm 46:4, rivers in Job 29:6 and eight other verses. Thus the theory that Peleg represents land being divided by water. Whether the theory of the continents is true or not I won't debate, though I believe it myself. At any rate, the point I'm making is that names have meanings in scripture. We can go to websites which tell us what modern day names mean, so our names have meanings too but I think parents largely choose names nowadays based on how they like the way it sounds. The people in scripture were often named based on circumstances going on at the time they were named.
Eve means life "because she was the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20) . The word evangelical comes from combining her name and the word angel, which means messenger. To evangelize means to share the message of life.
So as you see names are character traits. The name David means beloved. King David's son Solomon's name means peaceful; Solomon in Hebrew is pronounced Shelomah, which is a variation of shelom or peace. The character traits aren't always so nice as Satan means adversary or enemy and devil means deceiver.
Sometimes a names' meaning can add deeper significance to a story or event. For example when Pilate offered to release a prisoner on Passover, the two choices he offered the Israelites were Jesus and a murderer named Barabbas. We all know Jesus is the Son of the Father in heaven. Barabbas' name is a combination of two words; bar which is Aramaic for son and abba which is Aramaic for father. Combined the name means son of his father so symbolically the Jews rejected the Son of the Father for the son of another father.
Just because a name means something doesn't mean people always live up to their "name" as Judas is a prime example. Judas is a variation of Jude or Judah. Whichever way you spell or pronounce it, it means he shall be praised. The infamous Judas Iscariot certainly isn't praiseworthy. But he definitely made a name for himself as Judas is now a name given to people who betray others.
We have all seen fellow Christians who give Christianity "a bad name." I try not be one, though I know I'm guilty of doing so myself sometimes. My first name is Scott, which literally means of Scottish origin. Ha ha, it's not like I can do anything to live up to that name. It just is what it is. But I can strive to be the Godly man I'm supposed to be. Then perhaps I'll make a name for myself, a good name. Well, actually it would be God in me making a good name and I pray for that constantly. If people think of me as honest, decent, caring, a good example of what a Christian can be, then my name - my character - will be the reflection of Christ it needs to be. I am drawn to God every day. Won't you be drawn to Him with me?
Amen.
To begin I'm going to once again ask you to pray for the Holy Spirit to be with you so you can receive "the word with all readiness of mind" (Acts 17:11).
If you haven't already done so please read the other parts of this study first. You can access Part 1 by clicking here , Part 2 here and Part 3 here.
I said I would address three issues in the conclusion of this study:
- Paul said we will be raised with spiritual bodies because flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. How can that be if we have physical bodies?
- What about the ghost or spirit of Samuel who spoke to King Saul after Samuel's death?
- What about people who claim to have near death experiences and say their "spirit" left their body and briefly went to heaven?
Point 1) Paul said we will be raised with spiritual bodies:
When one reads 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 42-54 in particular, it talks about "a natural body" as opposed to "a spiritual body" (1 Corinthians 15:44) and says "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Corinthians 15:50).
1 Corinthians 15:44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1 Corinthians 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
Can flesh and blood, a physical body, also be a spiritual body? Symbolically being "in the flesh" or "of the flesh" means to have a sinful nature, but to live in the spirit is to conquer sin as illustrated here:
Romans 8:4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Romans 8:5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Right now, in my flesh and blood body, I can be spiritual if "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection" (1 Corinthians 9:27). When our bodies are transformed as spiritual bodies at Christ's return it means our sinful nature will be completely removed thus the "fleshly lusts, which war against the soul" (1 Peter 2:11) will no longer have dominion over us. We will have physical bodies in heaven; it will be the sinful natures we currently possess that won't "inherit the kingdom of God."
In 1 Corinthians 6:13 Paul says God will destroy our bellies. Some people believe this means we won't have physical bodies anymore, so there will be no more need to eat. But that is not what Paul meant. Scripture tells us we will eat in the heavenly kingdom. Jesus promises to dine with us in Revelation 3:20 and Isaiah 65:25 says the animals in heaven will eat as well. Please remember the bible tells us some of Paul's writings can be hard to understand so we need to be careful that we don't misunderstand him. Do you want to know what Paul meant when he said God would destroy the belly? Look at how he used the word belly in his epistle to the Romans:
Romans 16:18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
The belly represents ones appetite to serve his own self-interest. Paul was saying our selfish, sinful desires will be destroyed in 1 Corinthians 6:13. Even though he knew the his selfish nature would not be fully removed until Jesus transforms him, it was still the standard he strove for as evidenced here:
Romans 7:25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God...
Now onto the second issue I wanted to discuss.
Point 2) Didn't King Saul speak to the spirit of Samuel after Samuel had died?
As you recall, King Saul was the first King of Israel. You may also recall he started out as an honorable king but went on to habitually disobey the Lord. For his rebellion, God eventually withdrew His protection and Saul was killed by the Philistines. In 1 Samuel chapter 28 Saul committed perhaps his most blatant sin against God, seeking a witch to conjure up the alleged spirit of the prophet Samuel. God specifically commanded His people to never do such a thing:
Deuteronomy 18:10 There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch.
Deuteronomy 18:11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
In the following verses we find that Saul was fully aware he was forbidden by God to do such things, yet he turned is back on the Lord and did it anyway.
1 Samuel 28:3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land.
Then just four verses later...
1 Samuel 28:7 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.
Why is it so dangerous to speak to familiar spirits? First and foremost because God commands us to not do it. No other reason needed. But why does He tell us not to? Because they are demons! Think about it. The bible tells us multiple times the dead have no conscious thoughts. The bible also tells us to not believe fables (1 Timothy 1:4; 2 Timothy 4:4, Titus 1:14) and to not fall for seducing spirits or doctrines of devils (1 Timothy 4:1). Truth is NOT a democracy. Every Christian on the face of the earth can vote to believe people can manifest as ghosts but it isn't true. Claims of ghosts can only be explained three ways; hoaxes, imagination getting the better of you, or demons. Please understand, if you or a loved one is convinced you have seen ghosts in the past I am not calling anybody a liar or trying to insult people. I'm trying to enlighten them and warn them that they have been deceived. Please pray about it.
Getting back to King Saul and the witch here is where the alleged spirit of Samuel is manifested:
1 Samuel 28:13 And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
1 Samuel 28:14 And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.
Did you notice she blasphemously refers to the so-called spirits of the dead as "gods" coming out of the earth? Also keep in mind Samuel was a beloved prophet of the Lord and it stands to reason he will go to heaven yet his ghost ascends out of the ground. If you still believe people have spirits which go to heaven at the time they die, wouldn't he have descended from heaven. Personally I think the way this is written it is obviously a demon, not the ghost of Samuel. Also notice it doesn't say it was Samuel but that Saul "perceived" it was Samuel. In other words he gave heed to a seducing spirit, which we are warned against.
If you read 1 Samuel 28:15-19 you'll see that alleged ghost of Samuel foretells that the Philistines will defeat Israel in battle. He also says that Saul along with his sons will die the next day; the familiar spirit tells him "tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me" (verse 19). I've had people in the past tell me this proves it was really Samuel and he must have been sent by God. Why? Because only God can foresee the future, and since it comes true God must have told him what would happen, they said. But keep this in mind; when it comes to Satan or his demon's and their dealings with us, they are still subject to God rules.
Read Job 1:6-12. Satan alleges to God that the only reason Job is faithful to Him is because God blesses Job so greatly. In response God gives Satan control over all that Job has, with the exception that God forbids any physical harm to Job; "And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand" (Job 1:12). Later in Job 2:6 God gives the devil permission to torment Job with physical ailments so long as he doesn't kill him. The point I'm making is that Satan and his demons cannot do more to us than the Lord allows. Now I know this can be a bitter pill to swallow because we've all suffered horrible tragedies and pain in our lives, so it's hard to understand why God would allow these things. But nonetheless demons are still subject to God's authority when it comes to their dealings with us. So if God let a demon in on the fact that Saul and his sons would die the next day, and told the demon to say so, that's His prerogative. Just because that spirit knew the future doesn't mean it was really Samuel.
Another biblical example of demons being under the authority of God is the account of Legion from Mark 5:1-20. In that story, plus every other tale of demons possessing people, the demons are under the authority of God, again at least to the extent they are allowed to torment us. For "God is faithful, who will not suffer [tolerate] you to be tempted above that ye are able" (1 Corinthians 10:13).
You might still be struggling with the idea that God would have allowed Saul to believe it was Samuel's spirit because you might think it would be deceptive of God to do such a thing. But here is a question for you; was it a deception or a test? Read the following passage from Deuteronomy and you'll see that God tells us He can and will use miracles through false prophets to test us.
Deuteronomy 13:1 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,
Deuteronomy 13:2 And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;
Deuteronomy 13:3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Let me paraphrase that for you in more modern terms.
If you come across a prophet or someone claiming to receive visions from God, and he or she promises you a miracle,
If that miracle comes to pass, just as he or she said it would... but the "god" this person claims to represent doesn't match the true God of the bible as described in scripture...
You will reject the false teachings of the prophet or visionary. This includes Christians who preach a version of Jesus which doesn't match the bible. You will reject him or her because the Lord your God is testing you, to see if you love and believe Me or if you will let a miracle convince you to believe lies. If you truly love Me with all your heart and soul then you will believe My word over and above your emotions.
It's telling you a miracle might happen but then so what? Will you view treat the miracle as proof that someone is a true prophet of God? The miracle itself proves nothing! For all you know it was a false miracle from Satan. But here's the thing you must consider as well... for all you know God Himself performed the miracle. Now if God performs a miracle but allows it to be done through a false prophet does that make Him a deceiver? Of course not! He's testing you and since His word warns you to always test the spirits, to prove all things, then it's on you if you don't do what He told you to do.
Now since God can work miracles through false prophets to test us and since demons must obey His authority in their dealings with people, there is no reason to reject the notion that God didn't reveal the future to the demon spirit who was pretending to be Samuel. You might still believe it was the real Samuel (though I can't imagine why) but don't reject the idea that God would never work in such a manner. I'm fully convinced millions of Christians have been and will continue to be led astray by false prophets because they let miracles be their proof that someone is a servant of God. I've personally eye-witnessed this very thing. And sadly, I've been scorned by Christians for trying to warn them what was happening.
This is one more major issue I want to address to conclude this study:
Point 3) What about people who claim to have near death experiences with their spirit's leaving their bodies?
Let me address this issue by first stating that I am not, I say again, I am not calling these people liars. Not all of them at least. Let's face it there are always people who just want attention that will make things up. But enough about the attention-seekers. Let me address the people who sincerely believe they had an out-of-body experience. Some say the saw a bright light, other's say they saw God, some say they went to heaven, some say they went to hell. And many other claims have been made; they floated above the grounds and saw their own body, they were greeted by long dead relatives, they went to other planets, even heard a guy claim he was able to time travel back to the days when the Roman Empire was at its zenith. Who am I to say these things didn't happen? I'm a man who believes God reveals the truth in scripture, that's who, and His truth says otherwise. However, I do believe that they believe their near death experiences are true. Again I'm not calling them liars.
I've seen video testimonies of near death experiences and read them too. I've heard about people who were allegedly dead for hours and even for three days. Were they really dead? I don't know. What doctor's call being clinically dead might not be the same as being really dead. As for the people who were dead for hours or days, I don't know. There are only two possibilities. They were either not actually dead, or they were dead but for whatever reason God chose to see fit, He gave them life again. If God chooses to do that, so be it. Even if you still believe people have spirits which go to heaven or hell at death, if you are a Christian you've got to at least question the claims of time travel, going to other planets, etc.
But I've even heard non-Christians claim they were going to heaven in their near death experiences. That's a major red flag folks. You don't go to heaven if you reject Jesus so something is seriously wrong with this picture. How many people claim to see a beautiful light? I've heard stories of people shouting and crying in sadness after being revived from a near death experience because they felt so much peace, they didn't want to come back. Remember that 2 Corinthians 11:14 says "Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light." Demons have supernatural abilities and can perform miracles to deceive the masses. In the end times the antichrist will demonstrate "all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thessalonians 2:9). Revelation 19:20 speaks of "the false prophet that wrought miracles." Mark 5:15 says the man which had the legion of demons in him was now "in his right mind" after Jesus cast them out. Obviously this means the demons were affecting his mind beforehand, making him think whatever manner of things he otherwise wouldn't have believed. I attribute these near death experiences to demons working miracles. Demons got in their heads putting thoughts and visions there which really didn't happen.
There are a handful of stories in the bible of the dead being brought back to life, and NOT ONE SINGLE TIME is there an example of any of them saying they went to heaven or hell or another planet or through time or saw a bright light. So those who the bible says were actually dead made none of those claims. Makes me think the near dead were in a vulnerable state of consciousness and demons took advantage of the situation.
Time to wrap this up, I'll answer one last question you might be asking. That question is does it really matter?
When asked by His disciples what would be the signs of His coming and the end of the world the first thing Jesus said was "Take heed that no man deceive you" (Matthew 24:4). I cannot make you believe the way I do, but I can say for myself a seducing spirit will not be able to impersonate a deceased loved one of mine telling me to believe this or that because I know the dead are not alive as spirits. If a false prophet or even Satan himself comes along preaching unbiblical things about spirits or the afterlife, I'll know not to believe them. And frankly it matters because God commands us to study to show ourselves "approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). Want to know how important it is to do just that? The apostle Paul says that at the time when Jesus returns to gather His people together, those who perish do so "because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved" (2 Thessalonians 2:10). Studying to show yourself approved is vitally important!
I'm certainly not saying if you don't believe me then you won't be saved. That would be ridiculous. The Lord knows your heart, I don't. But He also knows if you are truly striving for the truth, and if you aren't striving, you might be found wanting. So if nothing else I hope this study instills a desire to continue studying this and other topics from the bible with a fervent desire to gain as much insight into the truth as you possibly can.
Amen.
In this study I'm showing you a lot of information and I hope you don't think I'm being too repetitive. I hope you will realize that the bible is loaded with evidence to back my claims up and perhaps this will inspire within you an even greater love for studying scripture than you already have.
Please read Part 1 and Part 2 first if you haven't already. In those parts I asked that you pray for the Holy Spirit to be with you and to guide your understanding of the truth and I hope you'll do the same before reading this as well. As Christians we always want to be open to a better understanding of scripture. My prayer is that you find this study to be edifying.
After you finish this installment you can access Part 4 here.
Does the bible say people have souls? No actually it says people are souls. In Genesis it says God made Adam's physical body then breathed life into him. At that point he wasn't given a soul; it says he became a soul.
Genesis 2:7 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 soul.
So a soul isn't a disembodied consciousness. Here is the formula for what a soul is:
A physical body + breath = a soul.
The word soul is used to describe living people dozens upon dozens of times in the Old Testament. Here are a couple of examples but there are many, many more to be found if you search:
Genesis 46:26 All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six;
Leviticus 7:27 Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Did you know the original Greek word for soul from the New Testament is psyche. You can look it up in Strongs Concordance, listed as word G5590. In case you don't know, Strongs concordance is a listing of the English words in the bible telling you what the original Hebrew (from the Old Testament) or Greek (from the New Testament) words are. The Greek word psyche was translated as soul 58 times in the New Testament but was also translated as life 40 times. Nowadays we think of "psyche" as the mind or consciousness but that's not what it meant originally. Here are two examples of psyche translated as soul:
Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls [psyche].
...
Act 2:43 And fear came upon every soul [psyche] : and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
Now here are two examples where psyche is translated as life. Both of these examples are about Jesus living up His life for us.
Mark 10:45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life [psyche] a ransom for many.
1 John 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life [psyche] for us: and we ought to lay down our lives [psyche] for the brethren.
Now think about it; if psyche in Greek meant your consciousness or mind, then Mark 10:35 would basically be saying Jesus only lost consciousness for us, yet we know He died. So again, just as Genesis 2:7 tells us, a soul is a living being. And once again the formula for that is a physical body + breath = a soul.
Now let's talk about the words spirit and ghost. In the Old Testament the Hebrew word Gava means to die. Gava is translated into English fourteen times as die, dead or perish. Nine times in the Old Testament the word gava was translated as the phrase "gave/give/yield up the ghost" and each time it meant someone died.
Now the word for spirit is a little bit tricky because the same word has slightly different meanings based on the context. The Hebrew word is ruwach and it means breath or wind but it's translated as spirit 232 times.
Here is the first time the word spirit is in the bible:
Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit [ruwach] of God moved upon the face of the waters.
In this case the Spirit is an unseen force which moves or causes things to happen. God "breathes" then the Spirit moves. In Exodus at God's command the wind parted the Red Sea, so the wind was the breath or spirit of God:
Exodus 14:21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind [ruwach] all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
What the Hebrews did in scripture was use the word spirit to symbolically describe what motivates or drives things, or in other words the spirit is what sets things in motion. The spirit of anger is the unseen force which drives anger in a man. Likewise the spirit can be that internal desire which drives a man to seek the Lord. Here are examples of each of those things:
Ecclesiastes 7:9 Be not hasty in thy spirit [ruwach] to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
Isaiah 26:9 With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit [ruwach] within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
When Paul talks about being absent in body, but present in spirit with his brethren in both 1 Corinthians 5:3 and Colossians 2:5 he is simply saying though he isn't with them physically the same "unseen force" is moving them all closer unity with God.
As Christians we know Satan and his other fallen angels (better known as demons, or devils as the King James Version calls them) are also capable of moving people to commit evil deeds. They are supernatural, unseen forces therefore the Hebrews also symbolically referred to them as "spirits". Demons possess supernatural powers that we don't exhibit. They are invisible conscious entities in the sense we typically think of spirits but again they are supernatural and we aren't. If you recall, at the end of Part 2 of this study I posted several scriptures where we are told when people are dead they have no conscious thoughts at all. When a man dies no spirit lives on.
Finally sometimes spirit simply means breath and nothing else. It depends on the context. Here are some examples where ruwach is simply the breath in your lungs. This first one is in reference to the people and animals who were caught up in the great worldwide flood during the time of Noah:
Lamentations 4:20 The breath [ruwach] of our nostrils, the anointed of the Lord, was taken in their pits, of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the heathen.
Psalm 104:29 Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath [ruwach] , they die, and return to their dust.
Did you notice in that last verse when people breathe their last breath, they die. A popular verse used to convince people that we have disembodied spirits which go strait to heaven is Ecclesiastes 12:7. Read it below, then compare it with Psalm 104:29.
Ecclesiastes 12:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit [ruwach] shall return unto God who gave it.
The "spirit" in this case is your breath. When you cease to breathe you die. As we've already established, the dead have no conscious thoughts so it is the breath of life that returns to God, not a disembodied consciousness. And here is a point to ponder; another word for breathe is respirate. Break down the word respirate and it means to be re-spirited or to re-breathe.
This is why I always say we should study scripture the way Isaiah 28:10 tells us to; "For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little." We must let the bible set the rules/precepts and we must read things in context. If the bible teaches that spirit can mean breath in some cases, so be it. And we must remember one verse or passage doesn't always reveal the whole truth. All these verses I'm showing you, they are bits (here a little) and pieces (and there a little) of truth found scattered throughout the bible.
The prophet Ezekiel in chapter 37 of his book spoke of the resurrection of the dead which John also prophesied of in Revelation chapter 20. Here's a excerpt:
Ezekiel 37:5 Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath [ruwach] to enter into you, and ye shall live:
Ezekiel 37:6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath [ruwach] in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
Again it shows that without breath they are dead. Given breath they live and then they "shall know" God is the Lord. This is another illustration that the dead aren't alive as spirits in heaven, it's not until their physical bodies are restored that they can know who their God is because the bible assures us "the dead know not any thing" (Ecclesiastes 9:5).
Ruwach was the Hebrew word for spirit. The Greek word is Pneuma (Strongs Concordance word G4151) which where we get the English word pheumo which refers to the lungs. It also translates as spirit and ghost. When it says Jesus gave up the ghost in Matthew 27:50, Mark 15:37 and Luke 23:46 it means He stopped breathing. In the 400 years since the translators of the King James Version chose to use that word, Satan has managed to convince the world that "ghost" means disembodied conscious spirit or soul. It's one of Satan's most successful deceptions.
In fact the belief that people have immortal souls is simply a continuation of the first lie ever recorded in the bible. Who spoke that lie? Satan did, in the form of a serpent. The first lie he ever told to a human is still believed by humans all over the world to this day. Eve said God warned Adam that if they ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they would surely die (Genesis 2:17). And the first lie the serpent told Eve was this:
Genesis 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
And to this day people believe we never truly die. They think we are born with immortal souls that that live on for all eternity in heaven or hell as conscious spirits. But the bible tells us ONLY the saved will be given immortality, that they will never die once Jesus returns to claim His bride. Then and only then is death defeated (1 Corinthians 15:53-54). On the other hand scripture assures us that the unsaved will die in the lake of fire. How can that be if they if their souls are immortal from birth? Click here to see the biblical proof the wicked will die in those flames never to rise again. There's a reason Revelation calls it the second death.
So far I think of covered this subject quite thoroughly but there are still three major things I want to address before I'm finished.
- Paul said we will be raised with spiritual bodies because flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. How can that be if we have physical bodies?
- What about the ghost or spirit of Samuel who spoke to King Saul after Samuel's death?
- What about people who claim to have near death experiences and say their "spirit" left their body and briefly went to heaven?
I'll save those questions for Part 4, which will be the final part of this study.
I'm grateful to you for taking the time to read this. Hope you've found it interesting and informative so far. Until next time please continue to the let the word of Christ dwell richly within you in all wisdom.
God Bless.
I'm breaking this study down into multiple parts because it takes a lot of information to cover this subject properly. Please read Part 1 first if you haven't already done so. Too much all at once could be information overload. I pray this reading blesses you. After you finish this installment you can reach Part 3 here and Part 4 here.
Today I'm going to show you that people go to heaven with physical bodies, not as disembodied conscious spirits or souls.
Now if you believe a person dies then goes to heaven as a spirit how do you explain this passage from scripture?
1 Thessalonians 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep [dead], that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1 Thessalonians 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
1 Thessalonians 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1 Thessalonians 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Did you notice Paul did not tell Christians to comfort one another by declaring that your deceased loved ones are already living in heaven right now as spirits? Why not? Isn't that what we do now? How many times have you heard someone say regarding a loved one who passed away "well, at least he's in a better place right now?" How come Paul didn't say that? Think about it.
You've heard all your life that people go to heaven or hell as spirits at the moment of death haven't you? Could it be that you were so indoctrinated and convinced it is true, you never thought to even question it? Perhaps that's why you read things in the bible that clearly refute such a belief, yet those things went right over your head?
As I did with Part 1, I'm now going to ask you to please pray for the Holy Spirit to be with you before you continue reading for "He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13).
In scripture we are given some examples of people going up to heaven before the resurrection of the dead at Christ's Second Coming. They are:
Guess what they all had in common; they all had physical bodies when they went to heaven. None went as an ethereal spirit. The belief that people go to heaven as disembodied conscious spirits is one of numerous pagan myths which have infiltrated and defiled Christianity.
The first was Enoch. Let's look at a couple of verses from Genesis and Hebrews then I'll discuss them.
Genesis 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
When it says Enoch was translated that means he was transformed or changed. Enoch never died. Now let's look at what Paul said will happen to Christians when Jesus comes back to claim His bride. Their bodies will also be transformed. In this passage Paul is speaking about our gathering together with the Lord at the "last trump." This is the harvest or the rapture, whatever you want to call it.
1 Corinthians 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed [translated].
1 Corinthians 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1 Corinthians 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
This is what happened to Enoch and it is what we all have to look forward to as long as we remain faithful to the Lord all the way to end. Our corruptible hearts and minds will be made sinless, our mortal bodies will become immortal; this is the moment when we are truly born again. Remember what Jesus said in John 3:3? "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." You cannot see the kingdom of heaven until this happens. And scripture tells us it won't happen until Jesus returns, further proving you don't go to heaven as a disembodied spirit.
Take a look at Jesus says here:
John 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
That's the Second Coming. It makes no sense whatsover for Jesus to come and get the dead if they were already in heaven with Him. As Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 "... the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then [not before - but THEN] we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord [finally going to the mansions He prepared for us]."
Now I know this is a touchy subject but have you ever been to an open casket funeral? There was a dead body right? Well that means the person was not in heaven or hell because they hadn't been resurrected for their judgment yet. Again no matter how much people like to think otherwise, their deceased loved ones are not in heaven. Now if you say that at a funeral it probably won't go over very well... but it's true. Here are those two verses about Enoch again:
Genesis 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
There was no physical body left behind.
Scripture records that Elijah and Moses also went to heaven early, rather than having to wait until the Second Coming of Jesus. Why the went before everybody else I'm not sure but nonetheless scripture records it and I believe it. Now let's see what it says about Elijah:
2 Kings 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
Afterwards fifty men went to search for him, but they don't find him because just like Enoch no physical body was left behind.
2 Kings 2:17 ... They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.
Now consider this; if someone is alive in heaven why would God leave a corpse behind? After all a corpse is proof someone is dead, not alive, and "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living" (Matthew 22:32). Satan is the god of the dead. You cannot belong to God and Satan at the same time. "No man can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24) and "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils" (1 Corinthians 10:21). You cannot be blessed with immortality and be dead at the same time! Praise God!!!
Now what about Moses?
Deuteronomy 34:5 So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.
Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
Moses died but then God claimed his body. That's why he was able to be with Jesus along with Elijah at the mount of transfiguration (Matthew chapter 17 & Mark chapter 9).
In Matthew 27 it is recorded that when Jesus died on the cross the earth did quake and many graves were opened. When Jesus resurrected after the third day it says many bodies of the saints were also resurrected and came out of those open graves. Who these saints were I don't know. I wouldn't be surprise if it was some of the patriarchs (perhaps Abraham, Isaac & Jacob) along with some of the prophets like Isaiah for example. But they aren't identified so who can know? Perhaps these were the twenty-four elders in heaven from Revelation 4:4.
And for the record Jesus didn't go to heaven as a spirit either. Like the others He had a resurrected physical body before He ascended into heaven. In fact Jesus goes so far as to specifically tell us He was not a spirit but flesh and bones before He goes to heaven... just like Enoch, Elijah and Moses.
Luke 24:39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I myself: handle Me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me have.
...
Luke 24:51 And it came to pass, while He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven [with His physical body].
I hope this study has been eye-opening so far. But I also suspect you have some legitimate questions regarding spirits or ghosts. For example how would I explain what it means in Ecclesiastes 12:7 when it says "the spirit shall return unto God who gave it" and what does it mean when the bible talks about Jesus and others giving up the ghost? The phrase "gave up the ghost" or a variation of it can be found 10 times in the King James Version; Genesis 25:8, 25:17, 35:29, Lamentations 1:19, Mark 15:37, 15:39, Luke 23:46, John 19:30, Acts 5:5 & 12:23. It's definitely a fair question. And didn't Samuel appear before King Saul as a ghost in 1 Samuel 28:14?
Naturally you should want me to explain these things and I will as this study progresses. But first let me show you a few more scriptures which prove the dead have no conscious thought, therefore they cannot be with God in heaven or screaming in agony in hell.
Psalm 115:17 The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.
If the dead cannot praise the Lord, how can they "be in a better place" with Him?
Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Ecclesiastes 9:6 Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
Isaiah 38:18 For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.
Isaiah 38:19 The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth.
See all that? The dead have no conscious thoughts whatsoever. They know nothing, they have no reward, they don't feel love (which proves they aren't in heaven), no hatred (which proves they aren't in hell), they have no knowledge, nor wisdom, they cannot praise God, they have no hope for His truth (again completely proving the dead are not in heaven). Only the living can praise the Lord. The world at large says the dead have immortal souls, spirits or ghosts which can praise God, which feel love, etc, etc. Who will you believe, the world or the word of God?
I thought I could cover this subject in only two parts but I have more to say. This seems like a good place to stop for now. Thanks for reading. Part 3 will be posted soon and I sincerely hope this has been a blessing for you.
Amen.
