What Happens to You When You Die?

What Happens to You When You Die?

Prestonwood Baptist Church

November 26, 2012

Chris Kouba message

Scripture is clear when it talks about death. Everybody is going to die, and everybody is going to have to stand before God and be judged.

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment - Hebrews 9:27

There are a number of different views on what happens when we die. Below is a list:

1.        Naturalist

·         The belief that we don’t have a soul. It teaches that we are flesh in blood as a body. When we die, we cease to exist and our body decays and there is no after life.

2.      Universalist

·         All people go to heaven for the most part, but only the really bad people go to hell. Only people who commit the serious crimes go to hell. All people have the same God for every religion. Universal view is most popular among Americans. This is known as the tolerant view. This is the Oprah theology- everyone gets in and everybody goes home with a prize.

3.       Reincarnations

·         The moment when we die we come back as an animal, or another person.

4.      Annihilationist

·         Belief that if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ that you die and go to hell. However the thought is that you are only there for a little while, and God is able to judge you rather quickly. You burn up and are gone and you are never to be heard of again. It does not view hell as an eternal place.

5.      Purgatory

·         Catholic doctrine. This is basically is the thought that when people die they suffer for a little as a part of the finishing work of salvation. And it’s almost like when people die they are eventually going to get into heaven, but God is not going to let them in on the first try. So he sends them to Purgatory for this purging and cleansing period of time. This is not taught in scripture and this is a doctrine that has been abused over time.

6.      Bible

·         There is one of two options when you die. We will either go to heaven, or we will go to hell. Jesus spoke about hell more than he spoke about heaven. In fact, Jesus spoke  about hell so much that it represents 13% of his overall teaching. 

·       Jesus taught that hell is an actual, literal place and He described it as a place of eternal suffering. Consider these verses: 

Jesus made this very clear, saying in John 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

Matthew 13:49-50 says, "This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Luke 16:22-24 describes hell: "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'"

2 Thessalonians 1:9 tells us, "These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power."

Revelation 14:10-11, speaking of the antichrist, teaches us, "He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name."

Hell is a lake of burning fire, as described in Revelation 20:14-15, "Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

Some argue, “How can a loving God send someone into hell?”

·         That’s not consistent with the Bible says. God’s desire is that no one goes to hell.

·         The apostle Peter presents tells us:

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

What about Hell?

·      Hell is a place where people go who want to be there.  Hell is a place where people have lived their lives and they have said this- God I do not want you to be the ruler of my life. God answers their prayer and gives them over to the choice they have made.

·        Hell is a place where people live for their own passions, they live for their own desires, they live for their own agenda, they live for their own thoughts and goals.

·       And they get the thing that they want most which is life away from God, and they get it forever. This is hell.

·        CS Lewis said it quite well. “There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell, choose it.

·        The most unloving thing you can ever do is to believe in the doctrine of hell and not tell somebody else about Jesus…

·         If they don’t choose to trust in Jesus Christ, that God will give them over to their choice which will be in hell.

Earn a Free Pass into Heaven

·         If you confess that you are a sinner, profess that Jesus died for your sins, accept Jesus Christ into heart, and profess your faith publically, you will be saved.  It’s the only way to earn eternal life.