Where Are the Dead?

THESE are the questions that people have thought about for thousands of years.  They are important questions. No matter who we are or where we live, the answers concern each one of us.

In the preceding chapter, we discussed how the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ opened the way to everlasting life. We also learned that the Bible foretells  a time when "death will be no m ore." ( Revelation 21:4) Meanwhile, we all die.  "The living are conscious that they will die," said King Solomon.  (Ecclesiastes 9:5)  We try to live as long as possible.  Still, we wonder what will happen to us when we die.  

When our loved ones  die, we mourn. And we may ask:  "What has happened to them? Are they suffering?  Are they watching over us? Can we help them? Will we ever see them again? The world's religions offer differing answers to these questions.  Some teach that  if you live a good life, you will go to heaven but if you live a bad life, you will burn in a place of torment.  Other religions  teach that at death, people pass on to the spirit realm to be with  their ancestors.  (that is a hoot)  Still other religions teach that the dead go on to an underworld to be judged and are then reincarnated, or reborn in another body. 

Such religious teachings all share one basic idea-that some part of us survives the death of the physical body. According to almost every religion, past and present, we someone how live on forever with the ability to see, hear, and think. Yet,m how can that be?   Our senses, along with our thoughts, are all linked to the workings of our brain. At death, the brain stops working. Our memories, feelings, and senses do not continue to function independently in some mysterious way.  They do not survive the destruction of our brain. 

Next time: WHAT REALLY HAPPENS AT DEATH?

From the Book: What Does the Bible Really Teach? 2005 and 2006