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What happens after we die? Part 2
This is the second study on what happens to us after death. In the first study, we looked at what happens to us immediately after death. In today's study we see what will happen to us in and after the day of judgment and where we will spend eternity.
The Eternal State, after the Day of Judgment is what we will look at today:
1. The eternal state
There will come a day when our Lord Jesus Christ will return to this earth. On that day He will gather all the deceased believers with Him (1 Thessalonians 3:13; Jude 1:14). Their bodies will be resurrected and the believers who are still alive will be raptured and we will meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). I realize that people have different opinions about exactly when this 'rapture' will take place, but there is no doubt that it will take place.
After these events, the final judgment will take place (Matthew 10:15; 11:22, 24; Acts 17:30-31; Revelation 20:11-15). This will be the judgment of the righteous (believers) and the unrighteous (unbelievers). Anyone who does not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ will be judged according to their works and words (Romans 2:3-8; Revelation 20:12-13). Their punishment will be death (eternal death, or to put it another way, eternal misery and separation from God's grace).
However, we must realize that the final judgment will also come upon the believers. Paul refers to it in 2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” (see also Matthew 25:31-46 and Romans 14:10, 12). However, the believer does not have to fear eternal damnation, because we are in Christ. Our sins are forgiven for His sake and therefore Paul says in Romans 8:1 there will be no condemnation for us who are in Christ. In Jesus we already have eternal life, as He Himself says in John 5:24. We need in no way fear that this eternal rest will be taken away from us on that last day if we are in Christ, because Jesus bought us with His own blood, which will be confirmed on that day by our eternal rest will enter.
While this will be a great occurrence for every human being, it will also have a great impact on the entire creation. The creation we see now groans and complains in pain in anticipation of that day when the children of God will be made known (Romans 8:19-21). On that day, at Jesus' second coming, when the children of God will be revealed, this entire creation will also be 'reborn' in a new creation.
a.The eternal rest of the faithful (Heaven)
The whole creation will be recreated, that's what the Scripture refers to the 'new heavens and new earth'. It will be a whole new physical reality that will be suitable for our new glorified bodies (Romans 8:19-21). These new bodies will be actual physical bodies, they will be able to eat and drink (Luke 22:18; Revelation 19:9; 22:1-2) and they will be able to move around the streets in the city (Revelation 21:10-11, 21 -26). I realize that many of the descriptions in Revelation are probably symbolic, but they undoubtedly point to the fact that we will have a physical existence in physical bodies.
While these glorified bodies will indeed be physical, they will also be immortal, powerful and spiritual (i.e. guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit). For example, Paul says the following in 1 Corinthians 15:42-44 “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.”
Marriages will not exist in the future age (Matthew 22:30) and there will be no intercourse, because new children will not be born. Earthly families will be replaced with the worldwide family of God. However, from Jesus' story of Lazarus and the rich man, and the disciples' recognition of Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration, it is clear that we will recognize each other. Eternity will also not be a place of less intimacy, but of more intimacy in our relationship with God and with all fellow believers through all ages and from every nation. There will also be no suspicion, fear or envy and we will talk openly with each other about who we are, what we think and what we can do. This intimacy will be greater and more glorious than we have ever experienced.
The book of Revelation shows us that most of our time will be spent in worship to God. This worship will take two forms: firstly, there will be times in which we gather around the throne of God in praise of His glory, but secondly, there will also be, what I want to call, inner worship in which we will offer our bodies as holy and God acceptable sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2). But we will also do other things. There will surely be many things to explore and learn, and see, and enjoy. Eternity will surely never get boring.
However, our main focus will always be God. We will have an infinite awareness of his greatness and goodness that will dominate everything (Revelation 21:3-4; 22:3-4). A temple will not be there, because God himself and his Lamb are the temple (Revelation 21:22). In this way we will always have direct and intimate contact with God.
b.The Eternal Punishment of the Unbelievers (Hell)
For those who do not believe in Christ, great misery awaits. The Bible is certainly not silent about the misery that awaits unbelievers. The Scriptures are clear, everyone who does not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ will be damned (John 3:18; 3:36). God's wrath rests on them.
But what does it mean that God's wrath rests on them? To understand some of this we can look at what Exodus 15 tells about what happened to the Egyptians after God led his people through the Red Sea. In Exodus 15:6-7 we find a description of the Egyptian army's fate "Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power, your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy. In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries; you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.” These types of descriptions abound in the Old Testament but are mostly focused on the misery that will befall the enemies of God's people in this life, not in the life to come.
However, the full punishment of the wicked will not be a temporary punishment in this life, but an eternal punishment in the life to come. For example, Hebrews 10:26-27 gives us a description of this “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.” An eternal judgment of God awaits everyone who is not in Jesus Christ.
This judgment will then be according to the deeds that the wicked have done in this life (Hebrews 9:27). It would appear that there will be different levels of punishment for the wicked. Jesus says in Matthew 11:22 that it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon than for Chorazin and Bethsaida. In Luke 20:47 Jesus says that the scribes will receive a heavier judgment. It confirms the idea that their punishment will be in relation with their deeds. So someone who sinned in ignorance will have a lighter punishment than others, like a scribe, who knew what is right and still lived in sin.
However, there is no doubt that the Scriptures show that the punishment of the unbelievers in hell will last forever. Just as the blessing of Christ's 'sheep' is eternal, so the punishment of the 'goats' who rejected Him will be eternal. (Matt. 25:41, 46; Mark. 9:43; Luke 16:22-24, 28; Rev. 14:11; 19:3; 20:10).
There are some who believe that the torment of the unbelievers will stop at some point (Annihilationism), but the Scriptures are clear that it will never stop in eternity. It will not only be the fire of God's wrath that continues forever, but their torment in it will also be forever (Revelation 14:11; 20:10). The Bible does says that the wicked will be 'destroyed', but this does not mean annihilation. For example, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 5:5 that the congregation must expel a sinner from the congregation 'for the destruction of the flesh'. Does Paul mean by that that his flesh will perish? No, on the contrary, Paul means that this sinner may repent. So when the Scriptures speak of the destruction of the sinner in hell, it does not mean that they will cease to exist, but that they will suffer forever as a result of their sin.
Hell is ultimately an eternal
place of torment and while God will indeed be there in his wrath, God's grace
and mercy will be withheld from them while they will suffer the deserved
eternal punishment for their sin.
This is an attempt to think Scripturally about what happens after death, to the believer and to the unbeliever. It is certainly possible to understand certain texts differently than I understood them, as long as they are interpreted biblically. I myself do not understand everything and neither has God revealed everything to us. The human mind can also only understand what is possible for it to understand and thus this is not an attempt to speak fully and finally about the matter. Ultimately, what will make heaven heaven is the presence of God in his unlimited grace, and what will make hell hell is the presence of God's wrath without any grace or mercy. Our excitement about heaven must be primarily driven by an unquenchable longing to be with Him.
ds. Leon Harmse
The pastor of Sunward Park Baptist Church