Life After Death #1

All of us who believe in the authenticity of the scriptures, believe they say there will be life after death; however, all people do not believe they teach that both the righteous and the unrighteous shall live again.

I believe there are scriptures which teach the wicked will live after death, and I invite you to consider a few of these with me.

1 Corinthians 15:22 says "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Now notice please this scripture does not say only the righteous shall be made alive but what it does say is that all shall be masde alive. So beyond all doubt this passage says both the godly and the ungodly shall have life after death.

Acts 17:30-31 says that God by raising Christ from the dead gave assurance unto all men that they would also be resurrected.

John 5:28-29 says "The time will come when all they that re in the tomb shall hear His voice and shall come forth."

Revelation 20:12-13 says that the Apostle John in a vision was permitted to forsee all the dead standing before God in Judgement.

Oh, yes, these passages say that both the righteous and the unrighteous shall be raised from the dead.

Now, if the wicked are not to live after death then it necessarily follows they will not be resurrected. So the above referenced scriptures which teach they will be resurrected stand in direct contradiction with the doctrine which proclaims there will be no life after death for them.

The people who take this position also contend that God's ordained punishment for the ungodly is to deny them an existence after this life is over.

Now in regard to this, first let me say the above cited scriptures which destroys the position that the wicked dead will not be resurrected likewise sweeps away the one which teaches the only punishment for the wicked will be a denial of an existence after death.

Yes, these scriptures deny this. Because if no life whatsoever after this were God's only punishment for the sinners, then there would be no reason for resurrecting them.

Then, too, there are many other scriptures which render a death blow to this belief, a few of which I shall submit.

Hebrews 10:25-29 says that God's punishment for sinners will be something worse than physical death. If their punishment is to be more severe than physical death then it must be something beside it; because it is impossible for anything to be worse than itself.

Again through Christ in Matthew 23:14 and Luke 12:46-48 declares that the hypocrites and willful sinners will receive a greater punishment than those whose sins are due to their lack of knowledge.

Now if God's punishment for the ungodly is to deny them any kind of life after death, then none of them will be punished more than any of the others. Yet, these two scriptures teach otherwise.

Now here is something else. According to Acts 17:30-31, 2 Corinthians 5:10, and Matthew 25:30-41 God has set aside some future day for judging all according to that which they have done.

In these same scriptures it is also revealed that everyone who has ever lived upon this earth shall be present on that day.

Now Matthews 25:31-46 and Revelation 20:12-15 say that the unrighteous on that day shall be cast into the lake of fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Just what is this lake of fire? Is it that which represents a state of non-existence? Oh, no, because Revelation 20:10 teaches it is a place which its inhabitants shall be punished day and night forever and ever.

There are other scriptures which also teach that from the Judgment Day hense the unrighteous shall experience suffering.

Matthew 25:31-46 teaches the unrighteous (after being separated from the righteous), will go away to everlasting punishment.

Matthew 25:14-30 describes their place of abode as a place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Romans 2:6-11 says that the unrighteous shall know punishment such as wrath, indignation, tribulation, and anguish.

Yes, there are those who say that the only punishment for living an ungodly life will be annihilation, BUT WHAT SAITH THE SCRIPTURES?

I believe those which we have considered today say that they will be resurrected and be cast into a place where they shall suffer untold punishment forever and ever.

I hope and pray that all of us will allow this portion of God's revelation to be one of the motivating factors which will help us to turn from unrighteousness to righteousness.

My friends, it would be nothing less than foolish to trade away our spiritual birthright for one mess of half spoiled pottage of ungodliness.

By - Tommy Hodge.

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