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Angels are “ministering spirits” according to Scripture whose natural form as created by God is solely spirit (Psalm 104:4; Hebrews 1:7, 14, NKJV). But man was created by God to be housed in a body whether of composition from the dust of the earth as the first Adam or of eternal spirit as the Second Adam, Jesus Christ from Heaven who was made mortal to suffer death in saving fallen mankind and resurrected to immortal glory (Genesis 2:7; 1 Corinthians 15:44b-50)! Therefore, it is unnatural for man to be disembodied, yet, God has permitted it as the temporary experience and consequence of sin (Genesis 2:16-17, 3:17-19; Romans 5:12; Hebrews 2:9, 9:27-28).
Nevertheless, even the unnatural condition of being disembodied God has made wonderful for those from creation that have looked to Him in faith. In this edited 2013 repost, marvel you saints at the awesome works of our God who has made comforting provision for us in between the death of the body and our soon coming resurrection to immortal glory all brought to light by the death, burial, resurrection, ascension and glorification of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 1:8-10)!
Originally Posted April 14, 2013
According to Luke’s Gospel account, just before His death on the cross, the Lord Jesus told the repentant thief crucified with Him, ‘“Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise,’” (Luke 23:43, NKJV). After awhile, the Son spoke directly and finally to His Father saying, ‘“Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit,’” then “breathed His last” (Luke 23:46, NKJV). Clearly, even a casual consideration of these two statements of Jesus on the cross indicates He was fully expecting to be alive on the same day He was to die on the cross. How can this be?
The resolution is that while Christ’s body did die on that cross, His eternally joined spirit and soul remained alive as do all human spirits and souls when the body dies! The human spirit and soul are a package deal though functionally different as seen at the creation of man and strongly implied in Scripture thereafter (Isaiah 42:5, 57:15-16; Mark 12:29-30, 14:34-38). Indeed, as the living Word of God, Christ absolutely knows the place of their division (Hebrews 4:12) and knew exactly what He was entrusting to the protection of His Father at the death of His body. As the Lord taught, ‘“God is not the God of the dead, but of the living,’” (Matthew 22:31-32; Mark 12:26-27; Luke 20:37-38, NKJV).
Be clear at this point that though all human spirits (understood to include the soul in tandem and vice versa going forward) live in terms of existence after the body dies, only born again Christians enjoy the qualitatively superior “eternal life” of God through relationship with Him stemming from salvation by faith in Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13, 3:1-8, 14-15, 10:10, 11:25, 17:1-3, NKJV)! Otherwise, the wicked having died separated from God spiritually (Isaiah 59:1-2), remain in that condition and await a bodily resurrection to endure what is described as a “second death” in the lake of fire forever (Revelation 20:6, 11-15, NKJV). Consequently, let the saints heed the Lord (Matthew 10:27-31)!
The spirit of man separates from the body at death which renders it disembodied. So, where does it go? As noted in my blog, God Raises The Dead! under the category The Faith, the Lord Jesus Christ expressed a confidence toward God the Father through His forefather, king David, a thousand years in advance that He would not leave His soul in Sheol (the Old Testament term for the abode of the dead or disembodied called Hades in the New Testament) or let His body decay and would instead raise Him from the dead (Psalm 16:9b-11a; Acts 2:27-28a).
Always in absolute control of His creation, the holy God established that disembodied human spirits from fallen Adam should abide away from Him because of sin guilt and defilement until future divine disposition in a location that is in the bowels of the earth as understood by the often associated term “down” with the place of the disembodied (Numbers 16:28-34; 17:13-16; Matthew 11:23, NKJV). Truly, when the prophet Samuel was permitted of God to appear to king Saul he came “up” from the earth (1 Samuel 28:7-14, NKJV). Apparently, the teaching of the Rabbis in 1st century Israel that this place under the earth holding departed human spirits is divided according to divine will was correct.
The Lord did not challenge this thinking in His parable of the rich man and Lazarus found in Luke 16:19-31. In order to be meaningful for its hearers, a parable must have things in it that are familiar and relatable to them. In the parable warning of the consequence of being caught up in the riches of this life and ignoring the teaching of God’s Word containing His priorities, the Lord shows Hades divided at least in half--other portions of Scripture reveal a special place of lockdown for chained fallen angels as well (ex. 2 Peter 2:4). “Abraham’s bosom” figuratively representing a paradise of comfort and rest is where the beggar, Lazarus, ended up upon death while the rich man was tormented in flames. He saw “Abraham afar off” and learned they were separated by a “great gulf fixed” that neither could cross (Luke 16:22-26, NKJV).
That God would create a divide where condemned sinners suffer and His people are comforted and protected is plainly seen in the way He made such a distinction between the Egyptians and the Israelites during the plagues He brought on the land of Egypt in the Exodus (Exodus 8:20-23). In Samuel’s disembodied appearance to Saul, he seemed to be annoyed that he had been disturbed--not the attitude you would expect if his spirit and soul were in torment (1 Samuel 28:15-19). Truly, Saul and his sons would join Samuel like the rich man with Abraham in the same place of the disembodied, but each in separate accommodations according to God’s judgment! Thus, with joyful anticipation of a restful paradise for saved by faith disembodied spirits under the earth, our Lord comforts the thief on the cross.
One of the important tasks God has assigned aspiring strong men and great women of God in the image of Jesus Christ is to stand in every generation against the barrage of assaults upon the historicity, mission and literal resurrection from the dead of our Lord Jesus Christ! Tied to the doubt about the possibility of His resurrection, of course, is His bodily ascension into Heaven and this whole business of the unseen spiritual realm. While God in His infinite wisdom has cloaked the spiritual realm from our natural observation at this present time in His plans for mankind, He has not left us without some knowledge and insight about it in His Word (2 Kings 6:15-17)!
Without exception, though, no man can begin to glean the slightest appreciation for God, His power even to raise the dead, the unseen eternal spiritual realm He inhabits or the things therein unless he is first willing to believe that He is. For faith is the normative prerequisite for seeing God and His power through the general and special revelation of His Word as written testimony (Psalm 19:1-6; Habakkuk 2:4; Mark 5:21-43; Romans 1:16-20; Hebrews 11:1-7)! Thus, this edited 2013 blog repost and the three to follow are intended to edify, encourage and inspire rejoicing in faithful Christians as aspiring strong men and great women of God in Christ’s image that continue to celebrate the eye opening events on and which follow Resurrection Sunday. Keep standing, beloved; keep standing!
Originally Posted April 7, 2013
That “the Lord God Omnipotent” is able to raise the dead should not be of any issue whatsoever for anyone that even just acknowledges the existence of God (Revelation 19:6, NKJV). However, to make a valid case against the power of God to raise the dead unbelievers and professing Christian scoffers as impostors, willful and de facto apostates alike must overcome the towering hope of ancient men of faith and important historical narrative witness recorded in the Old Testament of the Bible that precedes that of the New Testament centering upon the Lord Jesus Christ.
Of course, they try anyway because they must find a way (any way) to justify their unbelief and the heavy weight of sin guilt and condemnation that otherwise awaits them in refusing to accept the divine testimony preserved in Holy Scripture. Born again, faithful Christians rejoice to have the testimony of the Word and inner working of the Holy Spirit to appreciate the awesome power of God to accomplish whatever is His will (Jeremiah 32:16-27; Luke 1:30-37; Ephesians 2:1-7)!
Indeed, the book of Job may be the oldest in the Bible. Job in great affliction and distress of soul nevertheless, expresses hope in his own bodily resurrection from the dead accomplished by God when he says: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me,” (Job 19:25-27, NKJV)! God, the Redeemer here is none other than Jesus Christ! Faith in God’s power to do the impossible including raising the dead is typical of the Old Testament saints (Hebrews 11:30-40) but for brevity’s sake, consider two more.
The great patriarch and father of faith, Abraham, was commanded of God as a test to sacrifice to Him his promised son, Isaac (Genesis 22:1-10). In commenting on Abraham’s state of mind during the test, the writer of Hebrews states: “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac…concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead,” (Hebrews 11:17-19, NKJV). King David was presented a glorious promise by God of an eternal Descendant to sit upon his throne. Being a prophet of the Lord, he was blessed to offer up prophetic utterance concerning his future Descendant captured in many of his Psalms.
In Psalm 16 quoted by Peter on the Day of Pentecost in the aftermath of Christ’s resurrection and ascension, the voice of David’s future Son is heard through him expressing confidence that God will not leave His body dead or His spirit in the realm of the departed. He says, “My flesh also will rest in hope. For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. You will show me the path of life,” (Psalm 16:9b-11a; Acts 2:22-32, NKJV). Finally, there are narrative resurrection accounts featuring two of God’s well known Old Testament prophets, Elijah and his understudy, Elisha and alluded to in Hebrews 11:35.
The Lord answered the intercessory acts and prayer of Elijah to raise a dead boy to life so that the joy filled prophet exclaimed to his mother, ‘“See, your son lives,’” (1 Kings 17:17-24, NKJV)! While it was a bit more involved, sometime later after Elijah’s whirlwind ride into glory, Elisha also was God’s vessel for displaying His power to raise another woman’s son from the dead (2 Kings 4:8-37). The God who created the heavens, earth and all living things has the power to kill and make alive again (Genesis 1:1; Deuteronomy 32:39; 1 Samuel 2:6)! Therefore, the issue of believing whether God raised Christ from the dead is not can He, it is will the person hearing the Gospel believe it or not to the saving of his soul (John 3:16-21; 1 Corinthians 15:1-20)?
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