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Lesson 17 - Where are the Dead?Introduction: If, as some teach, the dead are already in heaven with Jesus, why are they resurrected at His second coming? Why did Jesus tell the disciples they would be with Him again when He returned instead of when they died (John 14:3)? Why does God forbid us to consult with our departed loved ones, if they are alive and can talk to us? In this lesson, we will learn the answers to these important questions. 1. What does God say about consulting spiritualists and the supposed spirits of the dead? Lev. 19:31 (Leviticus 19:31 NKJV) 'Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God. [Note: God warns that in the last days some "will give heed to deceiving spirits" (1 Tim. 4:1). These spirits deceive us by coming to us in "familiar" form, such as the form of some departed loved one. That is one reason they are called "familiar" spirits. The Further-study verses are Lev. 20:27; Deut. 18:10-12; Rev. 22:15] 2. Where does the spirit go at death? Eccl. 12:7 (Ecclesiastes 12:7 NKJV) Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it. [Note: The spirit is the breath of life from God (i.e., the "element of life," the "spark of life," or the "life force"). Solomon uses "breath" and "spirit" interchangeably in Eccl. 3:19-21. Job 27:3; Gen. 2:7] 3. Is this spirit that returns to God, conscious? Eccl. 9:5 [Ps. 146:4; Ps 115:17] (Ecclesiastes 9:5 NKJV) For the living know that they will die; But the dead know nothing, And they have no more reward, For the memory of them is forgotten. 4. What did Jesus call death? John 11:11-14 (John 11:11-14 NKJV) These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." {12} Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." {13} However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. {14} Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. [Note: Paul also called death a sleep. See 1 Cor. 15:51, 52; 1 Thess. 4:15-17; 1 Cor. 15:16-18; 11:30] 5. What did David call death? Ps. 13:3 (Psalms 13:3 NKJV) Consider and hear me, O LORD my God; Enlighten my eyes, Lest I sleep the sleep of death; [Note: Other Old Testament writers also called death a sleep. See Job 14:12; Jer. 51:39, 57; Dan. 12:2; 1 Kings 1:21] 6. Is there any memory in this sleep of death? Ps. 6:5 [Isa. 38:18; Eccl 9:5, 6, 10] (Psalms 6:5 NKJV) For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks? 7. Did David go to heaven when he died? Acts 2:29, 34 [Acts 13:36] (Acts 2:29 NKJV) "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. (Acts 2:34 NKJV) "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, 8. Where will the dead be when Jesus resurrects them at His second coming? John 5:28, 29 [Job 14:12-15] (John 5:28-29 NKJV) "Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice {29} "and come forth; those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. 9. When do the dead go to heaven or to hell? Matt. 25:31-34, 41 [Matt. 16:27; John 14:2, 3; Rev. 22:12] (Matthew 25:31-34 NKJV) "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. {32} "All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. {33} "And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. {34} "Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: (Matthew 25:41 NKJV) "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 10. When did the thief on the cross look forward to being with Jesus? Did Jesus assure Him of salvation that very day? Luke 23:42, 43 (Luke 23:42-43 NKJV) Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." {43} And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." [Note: The punctuation in the Bible was supplied by the translators, for there was no punctuation in the original Greek. The comma should go after the word "today" ("Assuredly I say unto you today, you will be with Me in Paradise."), for Jesus Himself did not go to heaven that day. See John 20:17; Luke 19:9] 11. Jesus often illustrated truth with parables which, like prophecies, use symbols. Yet some have rejected the very truth Jesus so plainly taught about death by taking literally some of the symbols in the parable of the "Rich man and Lazarus" (Luke 16). What did Jesus say would happen to those who try to understand parables without "having" (or knowing) what the rest of the Bible says on a subject? Matt. 13:10-13 [1 Cor. 2:12-14; 2 Tim. 2:15; Luke 16:19-31] (Matthew 13:10-13 NKJV) And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" {11} He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. {12} "For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. {13} "Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 12. What was the devil's first lie? Gen. 3:3, 4 (Genesis 3:3-4 NKJV) "but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'" {4} Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. [Question: Who do you think told the truth, Satan or God? Today Satan is still perpetuating his original lie, and he is doing so through religion and by misapplying and twisting Scripture, as he did with Jesus in Matthew 4:5, 6. 2 Cor. 11:13-15; 2 Thess. 2:9-12] 13. With what promise did Paul tell us to "comfort one another" when death occurs? 1 Thess. 4:15-18 [1 Cor. 15:51-55; 1 John 5:11, 12; Rev. 1:18; John 6:39, 40] (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 NKJV) 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. {16} 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. {17} Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. {18} Therefore comfort one another with these words. Commitment: Isn't God's way really the best? Instead of floating around somewhere after death, a person sleeps until he is bodily resurrected as Jesus was. And, since he is unconscious, the resurrection is the next instant to him! Instead of a dying baby going to a strange place alone, the next thing he knows is his mother's smiling kiss! The parents will take up the raising of their departed child right where it left off! Will you accept Jesus' assurance that we will all go to heaven together, at the same time, after the resurrection? Notes on the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31): God has written the Bible in such a way that we must compare Scripture with Scripture to understand it (Isa. 28:9, 10; I Cor. 2:13, 14; 2 Thess. 2:11, 12). If this parable provided the only information the Bible gives on death, we would have to conclude that the dead go directly to heaven or hell, but it is not. This story comes in the middle of a group of parables and is itself a parable, for it uses figurative language throughout--i.e., Lazarus went to "Abraham's bosom"; those in hades and heaven can see and talk to each other; and a drop of water suffices to cool one's tongue in hell. In this parable Jesus used common Jewish and Greek ideas (as evidenced in Josephus' works) to teach that (1) the rich have no advantage for salvation, (2) this life provides our only chance for salvation, and (3) the Scriptures are allsufficient for salvation. Jesus was not teaching a new doctrine on death, or He would be contradicting what He Himself repeatedly taught in other places.
Further Study VersesQuestion 1 - Further Study (Leviticus 20:27 NKJV) 'A man or a woman who is a medium, or who has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones. Their blood shall be upon them.'" (Deuteronomy 18:10-12 NKJV) "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, {11} "or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. {12} "For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. (Revelation 22:15 NKJV) But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. -->Back to Study Question 2 - Further Study (Ecclesiastes 3:19-21 NKJV) 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. {20} All go to one place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust. {21} Who knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, which goes down to the earth? (Genesis 2:7 NKJV) And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. (Job 27:3 NKJV) As long as my breath is in me, And the breath of God in my nostrils, -->Back to Study Question 3 - Further Study (Psalms 115:17 NKJV) The dead do not praise the LORD, Nor any who go down into silence. (Psalms 146:4 NKJV) His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; In that very day his plans perish. -->Back to Study Question 4 - Further Study (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 NKJV) Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed; {52} 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. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 NKJV) 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. {16} 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. {17} Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:16-18 NKJV) For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. {17} And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! {18} Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. (1 Corinthians 11:30 NKJV) For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. -->Back to Study Question 5 - Further Study (Job 14:12 NKJV) So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, They will not awake Nor be roused from their sleep. (Jeremiah 51:39 NKJV) In their excitement I will prepare their feasts; I will make them drunk, That they may rejoice, And sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake," says the LORD. (Jeremiah 51:57 NKJV) "And I will make drunk Her princes and wise men, Her governors, her deputies, and her mighty men. And they shall sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake," says the King, Whose name is the LORD of hosts. (Daniel 12:2 NKJV) And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt. (1 Kings 1:21 NKJV) "Otherwise it will happen, when my lord the king rests with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted as offenders." -->Back to Study Question 6 - Further Study (Isaiah 38:18 NKJV) For Sheol cannot thank You, Death cannot praise You; Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth. (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 NKJV) For the living know that they will die; But the dead know nothing, And they have no more reward, For the memory of them is forgotten. {6} Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; Nevermore will they have a share In anything done under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NKJV) Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. -->Back to Study Question 7 - Further Study (Acts 13:36 NKJV) "For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption; -->Back to Study Question 8 - Further Study (Job 14:12-15 NKJV) So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, They will not awake Nor be roused from their sleep. {13} "Oh, that You would hide me in the grave, That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past, That You would appoint me a set time, and remember me! {14} If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait, Till my change comes. {15} You shall call, and I will answer You; You shall desire the work of Your hands. -->Back to Study Question 9 - Further Study (Matthew 16:27 NKJV) "For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works. (John 14:2-3 NKJV) "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. {3} "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. (Revelation 22:12 NKJV) "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. -->Back to Study Question 10 - Further Study (Luke 19:9 NKJV) And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; (John 20:17 NKJV) Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'" -->Back to Study Question 11 - Further Study (Luke 16:19-31 NKJV) "There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. {20} "But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, {21} "desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. {22} "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. {23} "And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. {24} "Then he cried and said, '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.' {25} "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. {26} '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.' {27} "Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, {28} 'for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' {29} "Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.' {30} "And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' {31} "But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'" (1 Corinthians 2:12-14 NKJV) Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. {13} These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. {14} But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (2 Timothy 2:15 NKJV) Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. -->Back to Study Question 12 - Further Study (Matthew 4:5-6 NKJV) Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, {6} and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'" (2 Corinthians 11:13-15 NKJV) For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. {14} And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. {15} Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 NKJV) The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, {10} and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. {11} And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, {12} that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. -->Back to Study Question 13 - Further Study (1 Corinthians 15:51-55 NKJV) Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed; {52} 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. {53} For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. {54} 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." {55} "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" (1 John 5:11-12 NKJV) And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. {12} He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. (John 6:39-40 NKJV) "This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. {40} "And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day." (Revelation 1:18 NKJV) "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. -->Back to Study
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