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Spiritualism and what happens when a person dies
The Lesson: Children, teenagers and adults around the world are becoming fascinated by mysterious energies. In rapidly increasing numbers, young and old are visiting popular witchcraft web sites, buying spell books, mixing potions, contacting the dead and practicing magic. National Public Radio reported the following in a May 2004 story entitled, “New Religion in America: Teens and Wicca”: “It’s hard to know the exact numbers, but Wicca is believed to be one of the fastest growing religions among high school and college students. This form of witchcraft, with its reverence for the earth and nature, appeals to young environmentalists, and Wicca’s emphasis on a goddess, as well as a god, draws young girls.” The report testified that growing numbers of teenagers are secretly setting up witchcraft altars in their bedrooms, offering prayers to the goddess, and invoking the aid of spirits. A similar trend is sweeping Canada, England, Europe, Australia, Russia, and other countries. The book, “Rocking the Goddess: Campus Wicca for the Student Practitioner”, by Anthony Paige (Citadel Press, 2002), documents Wicca’s explosive growth on college campuses across the USA. Witchcraft is growing so fast that Wiccan visionaries are rushing to establish their own schools. “The growth has been so explosive that what structure there is cannot accommodate it,” says Chas Clifton, editor of Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies. It is practiced, not just amongst youth, but also by professionals such as university faculty, doctors, lawyers, secretaries, salesman, and all kinds of people. There are millions today who believe they can hear voices from the dead. Asia, Africa, and South America have long been known for witch doctors, mediums, magic, etc. But throughout America, Europe and other western countries, this phenomenon is increasing! The popularity of mediums continues to climb as millions around the world long to speak with the dead. Television and the movies capitalise on the public’s fascination with the unseen. What are these voices from the dead? Is it possible to communicate with our departed loved ones? Does Bible prophecy give us any guidance in these matters? Who are these spirits of spiritualism? Prophecy’s Revelation “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:13, 14 Two thousand years ago, Bible prophecy predicted that just before the battle of the great day of God, the forces of the supernatural would be at work. It pictures spirits of demons performing miracles and uniting the world to march headfirst into this battle. The Bible speaks about spirits; let us examine the difference between good and the bad spirits. Good Spirits “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” Psalm 34:7 “Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire.” Psalm 104:4 “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” Hebrews 1:14 The Lord has promised us that there are good spirits that are ministering for our salvation. These spirits are commonly referred to as angels. Angels from heaven are constantly working in ways that we do not know and do not see. Unceasingly they are ascending and decensing between heaven and this world, as they guide and protect us. These supernatural spirits are powerful and have come to the aid of God’s people again and again. They can see behind closed doors and hear secret conversations. They can appear as men or even animals to assist humanity. They have rescued the imprisoned, saved the stranded, defended the helpless and encouraged the desponding. The Lord has promised us protection and guidance through the ministration of His angelic messengers. Maybe you have experienced some type of miraculous intervention by these angel spirits. Evil Spirits “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” I Timothy 4:1 “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Revelation 12:7-9 Not only are there good spirits, but there are evil spirits as well. These evil spirits were actually good spirits at one time, but a rebellion broke out in heaven. In this rebellion, one of the highest angels coveted the privileges given to God alone. When denied the usurped authority and devotion that he desired, he began to incite distrust and suspicion in the hearts of the other angels. Before long, outright war broke out. Lucifer and his followers were defeated and cast out of heaven. These once holy angels, through sin, lost their exaltation and fell to the position of demons. Since these evil spirits were once good spirits, they have retained most of the power of the good spirits. They can appear as glorious beings of light and power. They can reveal the deepest secrets and appear as men or animals. They can work miracles and perform great signs, but these are false signs leading to destruction. The very existence of both good and evil spirits makes it of utmost importance that we do not believe every spiritualistic manifestation. Test the Spirits “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” I John 4:1 “And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:19, 20 The Word of God makes it extremely clear that we must test each and every supernatural manifestation. To do otherwise than this is opening the door for the arch-enemy to flood his deceptions upon us. The unerring test given in the Scriptures is to match each and every supernatural occurrence to the Law of God and to the testimony of the other Biblical writers. Everything must be in accordance with God’s Word and His Law. If the manifestation does not match, we know it comes from evil spirits. The danger is that so many are willing to investigate the supernatural but so few investigate the guidelines given in God’s Word. Some very important instructions are given in the Bible that many Christians and non-Christians are disregarding. The Impassable Gulf “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. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.” Deuteronomy 18:10-12 “As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to the grave shall come up no more. He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him any more.” Job 7:9, 10 “But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up: So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.” Job 14:10-12 Although it has become common for individuals to seek to contact their dead loved ones, the Word of God strictly prohibits this. Stronger language could not be employed to warn about those who do such things. It is an abomination. The reason that it is such an abomination is because God has put an impassible gulf between the dead and the living. God’s Word emphatically states that once a person dies, he will not return to his place. When a person dies, he cannot communicate with the living. He will raise no more until the resurrection when the heavens pass away. If a spirit returns and claims to be someone that has passed away, this is undeniable proof that it is an imposter. When people today think that they are communicating with the dead, they are, in reality, holding converse with the evil spirits. God has established this impassible barrier for our safety and protection. Evil spirits can impersonate the dead exactly. They know the exact tone of voice, the facial expressions, and the secrets that no one else knew. If the dead could communicate with us, there would be no way to tell the difference between an impersonating demon and our loved one. Thus God has set a gulf between the living and the dead that cannot be crossed. Any spirit that appears and claims to be a departed one is not from God. It is not the dead one who is speaking. It is an evil spirit intruding to introduce his subtle deceptions. The Weight of Evidence “Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:” Isaiah 28:9, 10 An important principle that must always be remembered when researching any subject is that one must look at the weight of evidence. We must compare Scripture with Scripture, verses with verses. The only way that we can correctly understand what the Lord is seeking to tell us is by looking at everything upon a given subject. There are always verses that can be construed to contradict the plain testimony of Scripture, but we must look at what the entire Bible says upon a topic. Then with an understanding of what the rest of the Bible says, the difficult verses are made plain. There is no surer way of arriving at the wrong conclusion than by holding to a preconceived idea substantiated by one or two verses while the majority of Scripture testifies against the theory. We must take into account the entire testimony of Scripture in order to understand God’s will. What Happens at Death? “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” Ecclesiastes 12:7 “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.” Genesis 2:7 “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?” Ecclesiastes 3:19-21 The question of what happens to a person at death is one that has intrigued the greatest men for millennia. When Socrates was about to drink his cup of poison, he said, “Farewell, I go the way of all flesh, but whether to life or oblivion, I know not.” The Bible gives the solid facts for what happens at death, since its divine Author died and broke the fetters of the tomb for us. God’s Word states that at death the body returns to dust and the spirit returns to God. In order to understand this, we must realise the composition of the human body at creation. It consisted of dust, which the Lord moulded into the shape of man, and the breath or spirit of life that God breathed into man. The combination of the dust and the breath equaled a living soul. The soul did not exist until it had these two components. When these two components separate the soul once again does not exist. The spirit is simply the element or spark of life that God gives to every living thing. It is not a conscious spirit for God gives the same spirit to man and beast. The only difference is that God preserves the spirit of man until the resurrection. We can be certain that this spirit is unconscious and does not know what is occurring around it from the testimony of other Scriptures. An Unconscious State “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. 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… 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.” Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, 10 “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.” Psalm 146:4 God’s Word tells us that when a person dies they know nothing. Their emotions and thoughts perish. When a person dies their conscious existence comes to an end (until God restores it at the resurrection).The dead know nothing. Dead do not Praise the Lord “For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?” Psalm 6:5 “What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?” Psalm 30:9 “Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah. Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction? Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?” Psalm 88:10-12 “The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.” Psalm 115:17 “For the grave cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.” Isaiah 38:18 God’s Word repeatedly states that once a person dies they cannot praise the Lord. The living can praise and thank the Lord, but the dead cannot. The living know of the wonderful works of the Lord, but the dead do not know the Lord’s loving kindness and faithfulness. Certainly then, death is an unconscious state. All of heaven is praising the Lord. If the dead ascended directly to heaven, they would undoubtedly be praising the Lord, too, but they are not. The dead do not know what is taking place in heaven or on earth; they know nothing. At death the thoughts perish. Why this unknowing inactive state? What is death called in the Bible? Death is a Sleep “Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death.” Psalm 13:3 “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Daniel 12:2 “These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.” John 11:11-14 “For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption.” Acts 13:36 “And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” 2 Peter 3:4 Sixty times in the Bible death is referred to as a sleep. Over and over again Bible writers have revealed the concept that death is an unconscious sleep. If we are going to believe the Bible, we must believe that death is a sleep. This is emphatically stated over and over again and there is no way around it. It may be different from what we have always thought or heard, but we must trust that God’s way is best. It is beginning to be clear why there is an impassible gulf between the dead and the living. While the spirit does return to God, it is simply the breath of life which God gave at creation. It is merely the life force that God is preserving until He restores it at the resurrection. When a person dies, he is actually sleeping in the grave until the Lord calls Him forth at the resurrection. Just as in a physical sleep, a person does not know what is transpiring while he is asleep. He might have won some grand prize or World War III might have broken out, but the sleeper would be completely oblivious to everything that is transpiring. He would know nothing of what had taken place until he awoke. He might have slept for ten minutes or for eight hours, but it would have been instantaneous to him. He would know nothing until he awoke and the lapse of time would seem to have been merely a second. So is the sleep of death. When a person dies their thoughts and emotions cease, and he is oblivious to anything that might occur. The next thing that he will know is the Lord calling him forth from the grave. God’s solution to the mystery of death is indeed the best. Righteous are Not in Heaven “Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day… For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand.” Acts 2:29, 34 God has given us unmistakable proof that the righteous are not right now in heaven. David was a highly favoured prophet and king. He sinned, but his sincere repentance made him a man after God’s own heart. This highly favoured righteous man has not ascended into heaven. He is still in his grave awaiting the Lord to call him forth. If David, a man after God’s own heart, did not ascend into heaven when he died, who would? The answer is plain, no one. The Resurrection Our Hope “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live… Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.” John 5:25, 28, 29 “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: 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. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” I Thessalonians 4:16-18 If the righteous ascended directly to heaven at death, the resurrection would not be needed. There would be no need for a resurrection if the righteous had already been rejoicing in the Lord for thousands of years. If when a person dies they go directly to Paradise, then Jesus would not have said three days after His death that He had not yet ascended to Paradise. (John 20:17). If a person ascended directly to heaven at death, then death would be the believer’s hope, for death would set him free from the bondage of this world. But death is not the believer’s hope. We are told that the resurrection is to be our hope. The resurrection is how we are to comfort believers when their loved ones are laid in the grave. It is at the resurrection that the righteous ascend to Paradise together—both the righteous dead and the righteous living. God’s way truly is best! The Two Resurrections “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Revelation 20:6 “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished…” Revelation 20:5 The Bible is clear that both the righteous and the wicked sleep in the graves until the resurrection. Those who have been disobedient to our Lord do not descend to the recesses of hell, but await their resurrection and punishment, as well. Jesus said that there are two resurrections—one of life and one of death. When Jesus comes again the righteous are taken to heaven. They will be reigning in heaven for one thousand years. During this time the earth is desolate, and the only ones who are there are the devil and his angels (Revelation 20:1-2). Satan is bound to the earth for a thousand years. At the end of the thousand years, the wicked are resurrected. According to Revelation chapter 20 the wicked will then surround the city of Jerusalem that has come down from heaven and settled on the mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4). Satan as captain will lead all the wicked to surround the city in a final attempt to overtake it by force. The sad thing is that the lost people could have been in the city of Jerusalem if they had heeded the loving call of Jesus. Now it is too late and the final events take place (Revelation 20:9). Fire comes down from heaven and devours the wicked. The new earth is then inhabited by the righteous. We will have a closer look at these prophecies in our next study. Revelation chapter 21 gives a beautiful picture of the earth made new. Every one that reads this description must feel a longing to be there. And just as prophecy has been fulfilled time and time again in history, the glories it predicts are no fairy tales. There is a beautiful new world waiting for the faithful Christian. A Closer Look Even though the Scriptures are plain concerning death and the resurrection, there have been many misunderstandings. Even among Christians, the Biblical evidences have often been put aside for the teachings of men. The teaching of an immortal soul originated from Satan himself. In the garden of Eden Satan spoke the first lie concerning death. He said to the woman: “Ye shall not surely die.” (Genesis 3:4). Throughout time Satan has tried to deceive on this very point. He succeeded in deceiving the pagan world into believing this lie. Babylon was steeped in ancestor worship and this practice was passed on to other nations. But not only did the devil succeed in deceiving the pagans, he also managed to blind the eyes of the Christians to the wonderful truth. Paganism found a way into the Christian church, and gradually pagan rites such as sun worship, idol worship, and ancestor worship entered into the church. The Roman Catholic church, along with many Protestant churches believe in the immortality of the soul. Let us look briefly at some of the arguments that are used in favour of this teaching. As we have a closer look at these Scriptures we will see that the arguments crumble and that the truth is made plain. The Rich Man and Lazarus “There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And 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. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” Luke 16:19-31 A parable that has been used to defend the groundless position that at death individuals go directly to heaven or to hell is the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. When you first read this parable, it appears to contradict other clear statements of Scripture, but with a deeper investigation this parable becomes plain as well. The first thing to note is that this is a parable. To base a doctrine on a symbolic parable is shaky, to say the least. It is included in an entire string of parables—the lost sheep, the lost coin, the prodigal son, and the dishonest servant. The details of this story are unquestionably figurative. Would all of the righteous be comfortable in Abraham’s bosom? Will there be communication between heaven and hell for the cycles of eternity? Would one drop of water really be helpful? When studying parables, one must look at the truth that is taught and not necessarily the avenue through which it is taught. The beautiful truths illustrated by this parable are as follows: 1) the rich are not favoured above the poor, 2) there is no second probation, this life is our preparation ground, and 3) our faith must be built solidly on the Word of God. When we realise these important gems of truth our minds will not be perplexed with the details of this parable. To take every detail of a parable literally does great injustice to the Word of God. If we took every detail literally in the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matthew 13:24-30), we would believe that it is wrong to weed your garden. By taking every detail of the parable of the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8) literally, we would be teaching that God is an unjust king. By literalising the parable of the unjust steward (Luke 16:1-9), we must take the inconsistent position that Jesus sanctions dishonesty. So it is plain that every detail of parables cannot be capitalised upon. The truth that it taught must stand out in its glorious luster not dimmed by the details used. The Thief on the Cross “And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:42, 43 “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” John 20:17 Another text that has been twisted in an attempt to cling to the tradition that at death a person does not really die is the conversation between Jesus and the thief on the cross. The thief accepted Jesus’ atoning sacrifice by faith and pled to be remembered when Jesus entered His kingdom. Jesus assured Him that he would be in Paradise. First of all, Jesus did not go to Paradise that very day. It was not until sometime after the resurrection on Sunday that He ascended to His Father. How could Jesus have promised the thief to be in Paradise with Him that day if He was not even there Himself? When we understand that there was no punctuation in the original languages, but that the punctuation was added afterward by the translators, the puzzle is solved. The translators did a very good job supplying the chapter/verse division and punctuation, but occasionally they made a minor mistake. Luke 23:43 can be read two ways. It can be read as, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise,” or it can be read, “Assuredly, I say to you today, you will be with Me in Paradise.” When compared with the textual evidence the latter reading is in perfect accord with the rest of the Bible. Jesus was simply saying to the thief, “I am telling you today, you will be saved.” He was giving him the assurance, even as they were both hanging on the cross, that they would be together in the kingdom of God. Once again the truth in these words is awesome. It is unfortunate that the words have been construed so, but it does not negate the beauty from the passage. Jesus, hanging upon the cross, rejected by His nation, despised by the religious leaders, His own disciples ashamed of Him, finds in this poor despised criminal a believer. Hanging upon the cross, the Saviour is recognised for who He really is by the most unlikely of people. The thief had witnessed Have you grasped the hand of your Saviour? Has your faith seen Him as your only hope? Like the thief, are you willing to bear any insult and reproach for His name? Do you see that it is only in Him that you can have resurrection and life? Will you make the choice that the thief made so many years ago? If you do, the Lord will assure you salvation just as He did the thief. The key is that we must be willing to follow Him at every step, to do whatever He asks us to do. Will you accept Him so that you may be a part of that glorious first resurrection? |
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The Occult Explosion
the events of the day. He saw that prophecy had been fulfilled and by faith grasped the dying Son of God. When his faith took hold of the hand of the Saviour, Jesus assured Him salvation that very day. 
