Does The Soul Ever Die?

Bible Gems #99

Question: Does the soul ever die?

In the Bible, the term “soul” (Heb. nephesh; Gk. psyche) typically refers to a “living being.” In Genesis 1:20-21 God created the creatures of the sea, which are called “living souls” (ie., “living beings”). Then, in Genesis 2:7, God breathed into the inanimate shell of a man, and the man became a “living soul.” From a biblical point of view, people do not have souls; they are souls.

In its most common sense, “soul” is another word for “person:”

         Ezek. 18:4 For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son—both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die.        

Therefore, when Jesus said that He came to give His “life,” He used the word “soul” (Gk. Psyche), because He meant that He as a person would die:

         Matt. 20:28 …just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Death does not mean that the person ceases to exist. Rather, death means that the person as a “being” enters into a different state of existence. A person who dies apart from Christ goes to the “pit,” to Sheol (Heb.), or Hades (Gk.), the realm of the dead, to await Judgment at the end of history (Rev. 20:11-15).

This is why Jesus warned His followers about not giving in to fear over what their enemies might do to them:

         Matt. 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

The word translated “destroy” (aÓpole÷sai) means to wreck something beyond recognition, or to lose something beyond recovery.

A person’s soul exists forever. The question for each “soul” is “in what condition will I exist forever?” The answer depends upon what that soul is invested in during this earthly life. As strange as it may seem, a person who spends his or her life trying to fulfill, maintain and satisfy the soul will end up losing it. That soul will end up in sheol awaiting Judgment and an eternity in hell. Why? Because investing your soul in your soul is like stuffing your paycheck in your wallet. Where’s the benefit in that?

However, if a person invests his life, his soul, in Jesus he is investing in eternal life:

         Mark 8:35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.

And the only way we invest the soul in anything is through love:

Matt. 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

So in answer to the question “does the soul ever die,” the answer is “yes.” But for those who truly belong to Jesus, that “soul” is kept, protected and made pure for eternal life by God Himself—because that’s what He does for those He loves and who love Him in return. He Himself is what our soul was made for.

         1 Th. 5:23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Building On Rock?

Biblegems #98

Question: We know and accept that Christ is our ROCK, and we are to be anchored to Him---our foundation built on a rock--not sand.  BUT, it puzzles me in the physical---with that being the example---how does one anchor a house to a solid rock foundation???  Or even "cling" to it?

This question is based upon the following passage:

Matt. 7:24-27  “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

The setting for this teaching was near the Sea of Galilee in the first year of Jesus’ ministry. During the dry summers the sandy soil surrounding the large lake would become hard-baked, offering a tempting but deceptive surface for building a home. With the onset of the winter rains the baked sand would quickly wash out from under the house, causing the structure to collapse.

Simple homes in Jesus’ day were typically constructed of either mud-brick reinforced with straw, or else flat fieldstone that was readily available. Such houses were usually a simple square, with the brick or stone layered in courses one story tall, and the flat roof made of stone slabs stretched across wooden beams. If the builder was foolish enough to erect the home on the hard summer sand, the first serious rainfall could prove catastrophic to himself and his family when the house collapsed.

In order to build a house on a secure foundation in the area around the lake the builder would have to dig down through the sand to a depth of about three feet. There he would encounter volcanic rock (basalt and igneous) that would give him the solid foundation his house would need for protection against heavy rains. He would then have to dig a trench in the rock using hand chisels. The trench would have to be deep enough and wide enough to inset the first course of fieldstone. This kind of foundation is found in archeological sites throughout Israel and the Middle East. 

So when Jesus used this real-life object lesson, He was likening the lifestyle of putting His teachings into practice as a secure foundation for building a life that can successfully weather the heavy storms people inevitably encounter. Even if the soil around the house is washed away—a picture of all that in our lives that adds beauty and joy—the house still stands. A life firmly grounded in Jesus requires the hard work of putting His teaching into practice, but it will stand strong no matter what difficulties come.

Preaching And Reputation

Bible Gems #97

Question: Galatians 2:2 reads, "And I went up by revelation, and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or had run, in vain” (Galatians 2:2 NKJV).

Why did Paul preach privately to people of reputation? Was it a secret because those people might get in trouble for listening to Paul? Why would he have potentially run in vain?

The background (and the answer) for Galatians 2:2 is found in Acts 15:1-2:

         Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.

Paul had been proclaiming salvation through faith alone in Jesus Christ to the Gentiles for 14 years—since the last time he had met with the apostles in Jerusalem. His message had consistently been “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8). He never placed any requirements upon these new, non-Jewish believers to adhere to Jewish laws or customs such as circumcision. But for all of those years there had been some Jewish Christians who had followed him around trying to convince Gentile Christians that in order to be really saved they had to submit to Jewish laws and customs.

When Paul received confirmation from the Lord (Gal. 2:1) that he should meet with the apostles in Jerusalem to get this question settled once and for all, he did not know for certain whether they would agree with his position or not. If they did not, Paul was not about to change his gospel message. But at the same time, a public hearing of the issue—no matter how it turned out—could create a lot of confusion and mistrust of authority within the Gentile sector of the fledgling church.

The apostle Paul’s deep love for the Body of Christ, the church, guided his decision to meet with the leaders in Jerusalem privately. He did not want any potential disagreement between them to create division within the church at large. Creating division within the church he worked so hard to establish would render all his efforts and sacrifice meaningless. So he spoke “privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or had run, in vain.”

Paul’s discretion and diplomacy is a good example for all who want to know how to bring up issues in the church that they feel strongly about. Paul’s first concern was for the purity of the gospel message he preached, and secondly to “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3).  Too often people get so focused on their need to stand firm on an issue of importance that they become blinded to the damage they could cause the church as a whole by not practicing a little tact and diplomacy. 

Remember this adage that Paul practiced as well as preached:

         Phil. 2:3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.

A Body You Prepared For Me — Heb. 10:5

Bible Gems #96
Question: If Hebrews 10:5 is quoting Psalm 40:6, why does the NT quote sound so much different than the OT original?

Where Psalm 40:6 reads “mine ears thou hast opened” (KJV), or “my ears you have pierced” (NIV), Hebrews 10:5 reads: “a body you prepared for me.”  The New Testament quote appears widely different from the Old Testament source.

Here's why:

The apostles and the early church used the Septuagint, rather than the original Hebrew, as their primary version of the Bible. The Septuagint (commonly known as the LXX) is a Greek translation of the Hebrew OT made by Greek and Hebrew speaking Jewish translators in Egypt around 285 - 246 BC. Since Greek was the common language of the NT world, it made sense to use the Greek translation of the Scriptures.

In most ancient manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible, Psalm 40:6 reads (in English): “ears you have dug for me.”  The LXX translates this into Greek as “a body you prepared for me.” Most likely, the translators of the LXX were attempting to make a vague Hebrew figure of speech (‘digging out ears’) more understandable to a Greek speaking audience by making the ‘digging out of the ears’ a reference to God forming the human body, even as He first molded Adam out of the dust of the earth.

The writer of the book of Hebrews used the LXX as his Bible version. On the surface, the difference in his translation compared to the Hebrew seems significant. But the LXX was simply trying to make the sense of the Hebrew text clear to non-Hebrew speaking people. The Hebrew language is very colorful, much like the American Indian languages are very picturesque. Rather than presenting a word-for-word translation from Hebrew to Greek, the translators sought to accurately convey the meaning of the phrase.

  

So the meaning of the original Hebrew was captured by the LXX, and then carried faithfully over into English by both the KJV and the NIV, both capturing the LXX translation of the Hebrew translation of Psalm 40:6.

Once again, God demonstrates how He preserves His Word across time, cultures and languages.

         Ps. 119:89 Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.

2 Thessalonians 2:7 Who Is The "Restrainer"?

Biblegems #95

Question: Will the Holy Spirit be taken out of the world during the Tribulation?

This question arises from a common misinterpretation of 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7, which reads:

         And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way.

The one who “holds back” (“hinders” — KJV) or restrains the Antichrist is neither the Holy Spirit nor human government.  The restrainer is Michael the archangel, God’s appointed protector of His covenant people, Israel. Daniel is told:        

         Dan. 12:1 At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.

This time of “great distress” is the Great Tribulation mentioned by Jesus, who uses almost exactly the same words:

         Matt. 24:21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.

This unprecedented period of “great distress” (“great tribulation” — KJV) is also called the “time of Jacob’s trouble” by the prophet Jeremiah, a time when the Antichrist will seek to annihilate the Jewish people:

         Jer. 30:7 How awful that day will be! None will be like it. It will be a time of trouble for Jacob, but he will be saved out of it.

Daniel prophesied that this would occur at the time when the Antichrist establishes his capitol between the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean Sea in Jerusalem:

         Dan. 11:45 He will pitch his royal tents between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.  

According to Rev. 12:7-15, Michael and his angels permanently force Satan out of heaven in a great war in the spiritual realm. In response, Satan and his demonic horde persecute Israel, seeking to destroy her. This fierce persecution takes place during the 3 ½ years of the Great Tribulation (Rev. 12:13-15).

The biblical evidence is clear: the archangel Michael has been assigned by God as Israel’s angelic bodyguard (Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9).

But Michael will be “taken out of the way” by God at the time of the Great Tribulation, when the Antichrist is headquartered at the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. At that time, the Antichrist will set himself up to be worshiped as God (2 Thess. 2:4). The Jewish people who once trusted him and hailed him as a hero, will be disgusted and repulsed by this “abomination,” and will flee Jerusalem, leaving the temple and the city desolate (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15). The Antichrist will be enraged and will seek to destroy Israel, and will nearly succeed (Jer. 30:7). But Israel will be rescued and the Antichrist will be overthrown at the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ (2 Thess 2:8). 

The Bible & Slavery

Biblegems #94

Question: What is the Bible’s teaching about slavery?

Much of what the Old and New Testaments have to say regarding slavery is descriptive. Slavery was a fact of life in the ancient world. That is not to excuse it, but to recognize that when we use the term “slavery” we may have images in mind that reflect 18^th century America rather than slavery in biblical times. I encourage you to read Bible Gems #13, “Hired Hand Or Bond Slave.”

What the Bible teaches about slavery falls into three broad categories:

         • Proper relations between masters and slaves

         • Slavery as a spiritual symbol

         • A Christ-like attitude toward slavery

Proper relations between masters and slaves

When the Hebrews left their 400-year period of slavery in Egypt Moses established a system of regulations concerning slavery. Remember, God had not given any special revelation that slavery was wrong and should be discontinued. Instead, as with many institutions of this world, God chose to teach His people how to live righteously in unrighteous situations.

So, for example, if a convicted thief could not pay back his victims, the thief could be sold as a slave and the money used as restitution to the victims:

         Ex. 22:3 …A thief must certainly make restitution, but if he has nothing, he must be sold to pay for his theft.

Slavery in Israel was largely aimed at providing a way for someone in debt to clear his name and start fresh once the debt was paid. Such servitude was  limited to six years:

         Ex. 21:2 If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free, without paying anything.

Slavery as a spiritual symbol

Jesus used the image of slavery to illustrate the power that sin has over a person—like a master over a slave—and how freedom from slavery of any kind except slavery to Christ is desireable:

         John 8:34-5 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.

The apostle Paul drew on this symbol as well:

         Rom. 7:14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin.

A Christ-like attitude toward slavery

The New Testament clearly depicts slavery and the slave trade as a despicable practice:

         1Tim. 1:10 …adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine…

         Believers already enslaved should seek freedom, if at all possible:

         1Cor. 7:21 Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so.

But believers need to recognize that freedom, ultimately, is not a matter of circumstance but of the heart:

         1Cor. 7:22 For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave.

What Jesus Didn't Know

Biblegems #93

Question: If Jesus is God, why did Jesus not know the "day and the hour" of His Return, even though God did? Matt. 24:36

Why Jesus didn’t know the day or hour, even though God did, is a fair question. After all, God is omniscient (He knows all things), therefore Jesus—if He is God— would also be expected to be omniscient. Right?

No, not exactly.

The Scripture is clear that Jesus and God are one being:

         John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

         John 10:30 I and the Father are one.

         John 8:58 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”

The Scripture also makes it clear that within that unity God exists in three persons—the Father, Son and Holy Spirit—and that there is a one-another relationship, love and deference that goes on continually between these three persons in One God. The very verse in John that declares that Jesus (the Word) “was God” also says that “the Word was with God.” Likewise, when Jesus says in John 10:30 “I and the Father are one,” He is stating that the “One” being who is God is also a relationship between persons—the Father and Jesus.

The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is also portrayed by Jesus as sharing in this divine union. Notice in John 14:18, when Jesus speaks of the coming Holy Spirit, He claims to be that Spirit:

         John 14:16-18 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

When Jesus entered the human race He intentionally deprived Himself of certain divine attributes, such as omniscience and omnipresence. It was necessary that the Savior of mankind come in the sinless purity of His God nature, while at the same time be perfectly human, yet without sin.

         Heb. 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.

Jesus did not know the day or the hour of His Return because He intentionally surrendered His ability to know all things in order to become like us and have to depend upon God for everything. He yielded His position of equality with God so that He could identify completely with us and offer His life in exchange for sinful mankind, a perfect sacrifice:

         Phil. 2:5b-8  …Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!