Doctrine
Soul Sleep [Deviant Doctrine to Avoid]
What happens to the human soul when a person dies?
Does it disintegrate the moment a person’s brain flat lines like materialists argue?
Or does it survive the body to live forever?
Of course most Christians agree that the soul survives.
However, not everyone agrees on what happens to that soul once a person dies.
Roman Catholics insist they trudge through purgatory.
Sects like the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists, on the other hand, believe the soul remains unconscious until resurrection day.
This is called “soul sleep.” Or “conditional immortality.”
Soul Sleep: Biblical Proofs
Sects who embrace the soul sleep concept base their beliefs off of a host of verses:
Who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see…. 1 Timothy 6:16
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
The soul that sins shall die. Ezekiel 18:20
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
At first blush it seems they might have a case. But they don’t. These verses have been wrenched out of their context.
Here’s how.
Soul Sleep: Where These Sects Went Wrong
Yes, First Timothy 6:16 suggests that it is God alone who has immortality. No argument from me. But in no way can we assume that he’s the only one.
In fact, Paul argues it’s BECAUSE God is the author of immortality that he is also the giver of immortality. We live forever because God sustains us.
I’ll admit, the notion of death in Genesis 2:17 is peculiar simply because Adam and Eve don’t actually die. At least not right away.
What’s going on? Here we have the promise of [future] physical death AND [immediate] spiritual death…
But the spiritual death the author of Genesis had in mind isn’t the soul sleep kind. No.
He had in mind the deadness in our desire for God…we turn the corner from agents who can sin to to agents who are slaves to sin, blind to his beauty and incorrigibly bent to reject his son Christ.
What about Ezekiel and Romans? They simply echo the notion that physical and spiritual death is the punishment of sin. Adam’s original sin.
Okay. If souls don’t sleep while they wait for resurrection, what do they do? Here’s what the Bible teaches.
Orthodox View of the Soul After Death
Traditional Christians affirm that the human soul survives death. But not in a slumber.
In Matthew 10:28 Jesus said, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”
The Apostle Peter suggested that death meant the “shedding of this body” and union with Christ in spirit.
Paul echoed a similar sentiment when he said, “I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” Philippians 1:23.
Then you have the spirits of the martyred tribulation saints in heaven who cry: ”O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Revelations 6:10
The clincher, of course, is Jesus who said to the thief on the cross, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” Luke 23:43.
Conclusion
As you can see, the biblical evidence for soul sleep is lacking while evidence for the souls immediate union with God is strong. In a nutshell, when a redeemed person dies his soul is united with God immediately to wait the final resurrection of his body…
And when an unregenerate person dies, he is immediately ushered out of the presence of God to await final judgment.
Now, it’s your turn. What did I miss? Got any questions? Share your thoughts. Brutal and all.
Monergism.com: A Quick and Dirty Guide
Monergism is the name for the doctrine that the Holy Spirit acts independently of the human will in the work of new birth.
It’s also the name for one of the best online resources for all things reformed: Monergism.com.
In many ways, it’s the reformed communities best kept secret.
But it’s not likely to stay that way for long.
The Birth of Monergism
Around the year 2000, web developer John Hendryx started to get disturbed by the growth of heretical information on the web.
At the same time he also noticed that there wasn’t anywhere online you could go to find sound doctrine in a single place. Naturally, he felt like he should use his God-given creativity to spread the gospel.
So, in his spare time, he built Monergism.com to help recover the true biblical doctrines of the historic faith by collecting and centralizing reformed resources across the web on one site.
And what began ten years ago as a small website with a handful of links has grown into a mammoth directory of all things reformed.
Five Things You Can Do at Monergism.com
Monergism.com amounts to a vast archive of online articles, PDFs, books and mp3s. So if you’re new to monergism–whether the doctrine or the website–start here…
With over 80 links to topics on regeneration, the will of God, justification and biblical devotion you’re likely to be busy for awhile–especially if you settle into the 26-part audio lecture on Calvin’s Institutes.
The second great way to use Monergism.com involves the exposition of Scripture. Simply pop in any Bible verse into the search box, press submit and voila: a stout list of written and audio commentaries on that verse.
The third great feature at Monergism.com is it’s biography pages. Take Tim Keller, for example. On his bio page you get a professional summary then a long list of resources.
Then there’s the Monergism mp3 library–a massive archive of sermons and lectures on just about any topic under the reformed sun. Name a living theologian or pastor–like Tim Keller or D. A. Carson–and you are likely to find all their available sermons.
Lastly, Monergism.com has developed into a bookstore where you can find classic Puritan works by Flavel, Edwards and Newton to current works by Francis Chan, Kevin DeYoung or Adrian Warnock–often at reduced prices.
Keep This in Mind
Monergism.com is a non-profit organization. That means Hendyx and Co. work off of donations and book sales…
Anyone who’s worked in non-profit knows that this often amounts to dirt, which should give you an indication when you consider the size and quality and longevity of Monergism.com that this venture has a lot to do with one man’s unrelenting vision to see the historic confession of Jesus Christ dominate the theological landscape…
Something I can wholeheartedly get behind. What about you?
Hell: What’s at Stake If We Neglect It?
Hell doesn’t get much press.
Blame it on the Enlightenment and its fear of all things supernatural.
To be fair, Enlightenment writers were reacting to a gross abundance of commentary on hell.
In fact, this environment forced Erasmus to remark that some Paris theologians wrote so well about hell that they evidently had been there themselves!
However, contemporary Christians have lost their backbone on this important biblical doctrine. That’s troubling for many reasons. Let me show you what I mean.
Hell: A Ghastly Nightmare
The doctrine of hell is a repulsive doctrine. In fact, it’s hard to believe someone just made it up. But the Bible says a lot about hell. Mostly in the words of Jesus himself.
First off, what is hell? The orthodox meaning is eternal punishment for those who reject God and His grace.
What does that punishment look like? Outer darkness. Weeping. Gnashing of teeth. Fire.
Fire, no doubt, is symbolic. But this shouldn’t comfort the lost because fire is symbolic of something much worse.
How much worse? We just don’t know.
We do know that hell will last forever and in addition to physical agony, occupants will experience unrelenting guilt and regret due to their decision to reject God’s offer of mercy in Christ.
Objections to Hell
As noted above, some people simply dismiss hell as superstition. These are your skeptics and atheists.
Then there are your evangelicals…
Some evangelicals–Unitarians, for example–believe in universalism–the idea that everyone will eventually be saved. But Jesus’ words are unmistakable: “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Matthew 25:46
Others believe in postmortem evangelism. These evangelicals insist the dead will be given another opportunity to repent after death. Again, the Bible doesn’t support this notion. Just the opposite: “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” Hebrews 9:27
Finally, you have your annihilationists who believe that the wicked are exterminated at death. But annihilationists must hold this belief in the face of ample biblical reference to hell being eternal.
Now let me ask you: Why are so-called evangelicals busy reducing, revising and removing the biblical doctrine of hell when those who were evangelicals in the past would’ve ferociously resisted such ideas?
Here’s your answer: Hell is marked by so much awkwardness and embarrassment evangelicals are looking for anyway out of this doctrine.
The Logical Reason Behind Hell
Yes, hell is terrible. But NOT the least bit unfair. It is simply a gesture by God to honor those who reject him, his love and his offer of grace through Christ.
In essence, he gives them what they want: separation from God.
However, because of sin everyone deserves hell… including both those who accept God’s offer of rescue through Christ and those who reject it.
Yet hell is not a fate God wants people to experience:
The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 2 Peter 3:9
The Benefits of the Doctrine of Hell
Yes, even though hell is a horrifying doctrine, it does provide certain benefits.
One benefit is a sense of relief and gratitude for God’s mercy and forgiveness and promise of heaven. Mercy and forgiveness and heaven are meaningless if there is no depth…
We would certainly respond one way to a friend who kept us from stepping into a puddle. Quite another way to a friend who kept us from stepping off the edge of a cliff.
Another benefit involves our future and reminds us how important life decisions are here and now. The doctrine of hell motivates us to share the gospel when we know the outcome for those who reject Christ or remain in their sins is eternal physical agony.
Why We’ve Lost Our Backbone Over Hell
Yet, in spite of these benefits, contemporary Christians have lost their convictions about hell. There is at least one good reasons for this: Our view of the nature of God has changed.
In an attempt to shed any repulsive concepts attached to God, we redefine him to suit our preferences. Here are four ways we’ve done that.
1. We redefine God’s love so that it resembles sentimentalism and indulgence minus God’s hatred for sin. In turn, we love the sinner and ignore his sin.
2. Hell seems so excessive, so we limit God’s holiness. However, the traditional doctrine of hell argues that eternal punishment is a just penalty for an insult against the infinite holiness of God.
3. We limit God’s knowledge to suggest that he doesn’t stop decades of megadeath simply because he didn’t see it coming. This is the heresy of open theism.
4. We minimize God’s justice by arguing that it would be easier to persuade a skeptic to embrace a God without wrath and righteousness.
But what’s more important: That we properly market God to our culture? Or that we stand up for orthodoxy–no matter the cost?
What’s at Stake if We Neglect the Doctrine of Hell?
Here’s the deal: The Bible presents hell as a concrete reality. It’s existence is not up for Debate. Revision. Or vote. To do otherwise is to pervert the truth, reduce the sting of sin and minimize the threat of hell.
So WHAT if hell is scandalous or too out of step with the contemporary mind?
That won’t make it go away.
We must deal with it. As Christians, that means defending it’s classic treatment. If we don’t, what’s at stake? Our very concept of God and the gospel are diluted.
And where does this end? Our culture gets to define our model of God? To do so would be to feed on lies. And I don’t want that to happen. Do you?
Five Posts You Haven’t Seen–But Should
From advice to new Christians on what to do with old friends…
To a novel approach on how you can get people to support your non-profit…
Here’s a round up of my latest posts across the web.
Should a New Christian Cut Off Old Friends?
No matter how you’re salvation occurred, at some point you owe someone a frank conversation. Namely your friends. This is how it should go.
10 Surprising Books That Will Transform Your Writing
Want to inject a tangible and seductive element in your writing that growls “You better take notice of me”? Then read these books.
Dug Down Deep: A Review
Josh Harris of I Kissed Dating Goodbye fame is all grown up now. He’s entered the early stages of mid-life. And now he’s wondering what in the world he believed in the past–it certainly wasn’t sturdy or even safe.
Three Kings: What Your Sunday School Teacher Didn’t Tell You
Okay, if so much of what we know about the story of the “Three Kings” is wrong, what’s true? Well, here’s what’s true.
The Curious Secret to Getting People to Support You
Ever wonder how you could get more people to buy into–with actual dollars–your vision to change the world? It’s easy, actually. And quite odd the way it works.
By the way, I’m available to write guests posts. Email me if you’re interested.
How ‘The Shack’ Mocks God’s Holiness
Yes.
I’m picking on my favorite rogue Christian and his wild speculations about God again.
Is it because I’m nothing more than a sadistic blogger?
Curmudgeon? Bored?
Or is it because the love affair with The Shack is a good commentary on our contemporary evangelical environment?
Yes to all the above. [Except the bored part.]
See, The Shack still holds clout with the spiritually curious.
Still creeps up in conversations.
And most of the copies I see of The Shack owned by Christians show considerable more wear than their Bibles.
That’s troubling…
Because The Shack presents a flawed portrait of God–what Albert Mohler calls diluted heresy. Let me who you what I mean.
Write Fiction? You Must Follow These Rules
Believe it or not, when you write fiction, you follow certain rules. Rules that guide the plot, setting and characterization.
Young nails it on plot and setting. It’s that last one–characterization–that he misses, a point Trevin Wax made back in September…
I want to expand on that point. Here’s how it works.
If you’re going to write a novel about 18th century Russian peasants…you better get the characterization of those peasants right.
Nineteenth century mathematicians from Brooklyn? Get them right.
Twentieth century bicyclists training in northern California? Get them right.
The God of the Christian Bible? Get him right.
Get your characterizations wrong and you look like a silly know-nothing. And sadly, that’s exactly what Young did–he got the characterization of God wrong.
Let’s compare Mack’s controversial confrontation with God versus some of the Bible examples of confrontations with God to show you what I mean. I’ll start with the Bible.
Biblical Responses to the Holiness of God
When Adam sinned in the garden, Adam hid from God…
When a sixteen year-old king named Josiah read the long-forgotten law of God, he tore his clothes in grief…
When Job antagonized God about his plight, God rose up and riddled off a litany of questions…questions Job could not answer…
When Isaiah bent before the alter of God he screamed “Woe is me for I am ruined”…
When Peter saw Jesus conquer the storm he was terrified and said, “Who is this that the wind and the sea obey him?”
And when John encountered Jesus in a vision he fell at his feet as though dead.
As you can see, the Bible provides an abundant amount of examples that suggest encountering God is NOT a light affair…
And we haven’t even dealt with the hard texts of the Bible. Let’s do that now.
Compare These Tough Texts to…
In Leviticus 10 Aaron’s priestly sons–Nadab and Abihu–offer the wrong type of sacrifice on the altar…
In 2 Samuel Uzzah and his cohorts carry the ark of God on a cart [against God's prohibition to do such a thing] and when the ark threatens to crash into the mud, Uzzah sticks his hand out to catch it…
In Acts 5 Ananias and Sappira hid away some money they promised to share with the community of Christian believers.
What do all of these encounters share in common? Swift execution for what Jonathan Edwards called the “sins of arrogance.”
Mack’s Encounter with God
When Young’s protagonist Mack encounters God, what does he do? Let’s him have it. Throwing in a few choice words to boot.
Nothing out of the ordinary there. In fact, smells like a sin of arrogance. But it’s what God does in response that makes your jaw drop.
He merely shrugs.
My question to you is this: Why should Mack’s encounter with God be any different? I have a thought.
What’s obvious is that Mack is not in the presence of a being who is far superior to him.
We have no sense of awe for Papa. We don’t revere him.
In fact, the God of Young’s book accommodates us. Makes us feel comfortable –not convicted. He appeals to our native narcissism…
A narcissism our secular AND sacred culture nurtures to no end.
As I said in the Craptastic Book That Won’t Go Away post:
We want God on our terms. We want God to accommodate us. To make us feel welcome. We want him to present himself in a way that we can stomach. To justify our emotions like anger, bitterness and resentment.
But Here’s the Problem
In the end, my beef is not with The Shack. It’s with this: Our human tendency to fashion God into our own image, which is tantamount to tampering with the way God portrays himself…
A God who declares he is ferociously jealous for his name.
So what could Young have done to make me happy [not that he's obligated to make me happy]? Killed Mack on the spot after his fit of foul language.
As I demonstrated above, this would not have been the least bit out of character for God.
Understand: Defamation of God’s character carries strict consequences. A character that is illustrated in a demand for perfect obedience to the law of God.
A demand that you and I cannot satisfy. Only Christ.
And only when we see this full, out-stretched picture of redemption do we realize the depth of our dependence upon Christ and sob in relief at his mercy and then bend over backwards in our proclamation to the lost that it is, in fact, possible to have peace with a holy and just God.
Christmas is looming. Do you have an appropriate concept of God?
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