Welcome to the For the Gospel Podcast, where we provide sound doctrine for everyday people. I'm your host, Kosti Hinn, and whether you're listening to this on your favorite podcast platform or watching on our YouTube channel, I'm so thankful that you've joined me for this episode and this new series. After my last series on eschatology, the study of the end times, I got so fired up, I told a lot of you this already on those episodes. I started thinking about all the questions that arise when we're talking about the end of the world and the end of all things and the return of the Lord and the afterlife then comes into focus. And all these questions about death and life and heaven and hell, they emerge in the mind, like what happens when I die? What is heaven like? What is hell like? What do other religions teach versus the Bible? Maybe what are some of the misconceptions about heaven? Will I be married in heaven one day? Will we all be just reunited with our loved ones? And when you look at what the Bible says regarding the afterlife, you've got terms like Hades and Sheol, and maybe concepts from Roman Catholicism like purgatory that come up and pressing questions like can the dead see what we're doing right now here on earth? These questions and more are going to be addressed in this series. It's all about life after death. And so you can be encouraged and never to fear death as a Christian, but also you can be equipped in conversations with other people, maybe within the church, maybe outside the church. And then lastly, I believe this is such an important topic because a lot of people in the church today are confused when it comes to this subject. They maybe think their parents are married in heaven and they're like, oh, I just can't wait for you to be back and going on date nights up there. Or guys say at a funeral, maybe, you know, I can't wait to crack a cold one up there, you know, say hi to the big guy for me, you know, keep it warm for me. You know, all of these different things. And, you know, like as if the scene in heaven is just a continuation of our life on earth. It's not. The Bible paints a very clear picture of what it is, and it's certainly not that. And people would say, oh, that seems so insensitive. Why would you bring that up? Or death is such a taboo subject. People fear it so much. Nobody wants to talk about it. Here's the deal: it is way more insensitive to let people be sucked into a lie and stuck in it than to ever tell them the truth, or for you to be equipped and say, as uncomfortable as the subject of death is. I want to know what the Bible says because I want to know the truth. So the series is meant to give you the truth and clear up the confusion that a lot of fairy tale, kind of fortune cookie Christianity has led to. Today, first episode in the series, I'm tackling one of the most important and sometimes confusing questions that people ask. What actually happens when you die? The Bible is not silent about this. Now, culture makes it out like you and I are little chubby cupids, we're floating around on clouds, or people come back as ghosts, or they come back as angels, they come back as spirits or animals, and they see a butterfly and think, oh, I just know that's my mom or that's my dad. And that's, you know, kind of heaven or the afterlife. And then hell gets painted like the devil's playground, where, you know, maybe he torments people forever, or maybe it's just a big party, and there's people who say terrible things like, I just would rather go to hell. It sounds more fun. Yikes. We need what the Bible teaches about the afterlife, not what culture says. And the Bible really gives a sobering answer to this. I want to walk through all of this from a biblical perspective under kind of five headings. First, we're gonna define death. Second, I want to talk about two paths after death. Then I'm gonna give you some key terms in the Bible, and then we'll look at misconceptions about death and kind of put all that out there that people say and believe. And then I want to leave you with hope for Christians. Hope for Christians. All right, number one, defining death. Death is separation. Death is separation. That's the first thing that the Bible makes clear. Death is not the end of our existence, it's the separation of the body and the soul. Ecclesiastes chapter 12, verse 7 says this. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it. Your body, after you die, goes into the ground, but your soul, the minute you die, the minute your earthly faculties shut off and you are done here, let me tell you, the immaterial, the immortal, if you will, person, that which is your spirit or soul, interchangeable term, I'll explain in a moment, goes on. And that's important because some people get really confused out there about this. And there are two views, roll with me here with some big theology terms, but there's trichotomy and dichotomy. You can hear tri, three, and then die, or like double dichotomy. A trichotomist, more charismatic Pentecostal view that we are spirit, soul, and body. We are three, like God is three, and it it kind of preaches well. Like you're like, oh, that makes sense, but it's not actually biblical. Dichotomy is a dichotomist view, is we are spirit or soul, and then we are body, because the words used for spirit and soul are used interchangeably throughout the entire Bible. If you mention the word soul or spirit, what you're talking about is the inner man or the inner woman, the inner person. Paul says the spirit, the lowercase s, inner man, is being built up. And so you have this inner you, and that is your spirit, your soul, then you have your body. And the Bible uses the terms soul and spirit interchangeably, generally describing the same thing. Again, the spiritual part is the inner man, and the body is the body. Only humans have a spirit, the way that God has created, made in his image. Animals, regardless of your kind of fairy tale books, and I love dogs like crazy, I'm such a dog person. They do not have a spirit or a soul. They have life in them, like any other living thing, like a tree, a lizard, or a whale, then they die. They do not have a moral compass in the sense that we do, a redeemable aspect of their life, their soul or their spirit, made in the image of God like we have. It doesn't mean there won't be animals in heaven, but they are not like us, we are not like them. You're not coming back as an animal. You're not coming back as a floating spirit. We have a body, we have a soul or spirit, those are united by God, given, every person has them, and then the soul and spirit will depart from the body. The body goes back to dust, the Bible says. And it literally says the spirit will return to the God who gave it, to God who gave it, the only God. And so you're going somewhere after death occurs. You're not in that shell, the body. And here's the sobering reality: there are only two destinations. And so the second aspect to this is two paths after death, two paths after death. The Bible shows us that for believers to die is to be immediately with Christ. Paul says in the book of Philippians, chapter 1, verse 23, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is much better. Paul's describing, to live is Christ, to die is gain. Oh, I long to be with him. Well, you know that that's a place where Christians are going, those whose spirit or soul is in Christ. 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 8 says the exact same type of thing. Paul says to be absent from the body is to be at home with the Lord. If I'm not in this shell and I'm a Christian, where am I? Where's the real me? Well, it's not this what you're looking at. That's just what my flesh looks like. But my spirit, my soul, very much alive and with the Lord Jesus Christ. If I'm absent from the body as a believer, I am ever present with the Lord. Very important for you to understand. While we mourn, cry, weep, and we are in sorrow over the death of a friend or a loved one or somebody who means so much to us, when they are gone from this carnal, if you will, earthly, physical, material world that we're in, and their body, we might weep as we look at the casket, but they're not in there. When they're in Christ, they are in the ever presence of the Lord. Now, so it is by uh we'll call it mechanism or method for the unbeliever as well, though they're not with the Lord. For the unbeliever, the story's different. Hebrews 9 27 says it's appointed for men once to die, and after this comes judgment. Everyone, you will die, and and judgment comes. Jesus tells a parable in Luke 16 about a rich man and then a poor man named Lazarus. And the rich man dies, and Lazarus dies, and Lazarus is carried to a place called Abraham's bosom, and that is a picture of paradise and rest. And the rich man dies, and Jesus says this in Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment. That's in Luke chapter 16, verse 23. This rich man looked up, lifted up his eyes in Hades. He he's he's aware this is after death. And so right now, every person who dies is either with Christ in joy, the Bible says, or separated from him in conscious torment, awaiting the final judgment. Those in torment are 100% aware of their plight. And like the rich man, they only wish that they could somehow warn their loved ones and people to repent and believe in Christ, to turn to God for salvation, but it is too late. Everybody's going somewhere. There are two destinations: the presence of Almighty God or Hades and eternal torment. Now, there's some confusion surrounding the afterlife, and a lot of that comes from different terms used in the Bible. So I want to move into a third aspect of our episode and key terms explained, really important. I want to break down some of these biblical words that get confusing. So if you're watching this, they'll be on the screen. We have first sheol. Sheol is Old Testament Hebrew, broad term for the place of the dead, sometimes just the grave, sometimes a shadowy realm, but you'll see the term sheol in the Old Testament. Then you have Hades in the New Testament and in the Greek Hades, different word. It's the rough equivalent of Sheol, just to kind of summarize it. But in the New Testament, it often refers to the realm of the wicked dead. So not just a general Sheol, like down to Sheol, but generally speaking, a place where the wicked are. And then you have a reference to Abraham's bosom. And so we have to talk about that as well. It's the place of rest for the righteous before Christ's resurrection. I read to you already and talked about Luke 16. In Luke 16, verse 22, you have Abraham's bosom, the place of rest where Lazarus is, Lazarus the poor man, not Lazarus who died, Lazarus who died and Jesus raised from the dead. And then you have a reference to paradise with the thief on the cross. You remember Jesus saying, surely today you will be with me in paradise in Luke chapter 23. Well, paradise is what Jesus is saying is the joyful presence of him, himself. And you will be with me. When? Today. And so for anyone wondering, you know, are we just gonna kind of go in the ground for a while or go into utter blackness, or we're like we're sort of in a coma type, or we're in deep soul sleep, or something like that. And then eventually we get to be with the Lord as a Christian? No. Jesus tells the thief on the cross, surely today you will be with me in paradise. So you have the absolute promise of God that you're gonna be, we are going to be as believers in the presence of God right after we die. Now there's another term, it's Gehenna, and it's used by Jesus to describe final hell. This is the lake of fire in Matthew chapter 10, verse 28. That is talking about the future, and we'll get to that when especially when we talk about hell in one of the future episodes. And I'll have a little bit of a preview in that before we end our time today. So, in summary, right now, believers are with Christ. Unbelievers are in Hades, they're in torment. The future is the dead in Christ will rise again, and then unbelievers will be thrown into Gehenna, the lake of fire, for eternal judgment and condemnation because they're not in Christ. Now, a common question: are unbelievers right now already in hell? Like when we say that someone died, they went to hell. Technically, biblically, not yet in final hell. Gehenna, I already mentioned that. But yes, they're in conscient, conscious torment. They're in Hades. And Revelation chapter 20 highlights the final judgment that comes after the resurrection. I want to turn there in my Bible. If you have your Bible, go ahead and turn over there as well. Or if you're listening to this, I'll just read it to you. But we touched on the book of Revelation a good bit in our eschatology or end times series just recently. And so we're going right back there. And you'll see this in Revelation chapter 20, verse 14. It's the end of the millennial kingdom. Christ ruling, reigning, and there's this one final rebellion. He squashes it completely, and now you have what's called the great white throne judgment. In verse 11, then I saw a great white throne in him who sat on it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, no place was found for them. I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, books are opened. And then quickly, moving to verse 13, the sea gave up the dead which were in it. The death and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them. Did you catch it? Verse 13, death and Hades. So where everyone's being held currently, still in conscious torment, but the sea, their bodies are resurrected. All the people who have died in the oceans. You have death and Hades giving up the dead which were in them, and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. And then verse 14, then death and Hades, okay, which we now understand is where presently unbelievers and rejectors of Christ are, were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. So that's your final hell. Gehenna is the word used. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. So right now, unbelievers are experiencing real torment in Hades. But the full and final judgment, hell forever, comes after the resurrection of all believers and unbelievers, before the new heavens and the new earth, at the great white throne judgment in Revelation chapter 20, and all of those who are not in Christ are sent into final, eternal damnation to be tormented forever. I want to move to another aspect now of our introductory episode here on what happens to us when we die and visit some common misconceptions. The first is everyone goes to a better place. The misconception is, you know, funerals often assume that heaven is universal regardless of faith. The speaker gets up, oh, they're in a better place, they're in a better place. The biblical corrective is that Jesus said, the way is narrow that leads to life, and few will find it. Salvation is only through Jesus Christ. John 14, 6 makes that so clear. So not everybody is in a better place. A lot of people are in a terrible place. Number two, you become an angel. Now, pop culture will portray the dead as gaining wings and they're floating in heaven, and they're my they're my guardian angel. They're not. Angels are distinct created beings in Hebrews 1, verse 14. And believers remain human, if you will, but glorified now in a glorified body, according to 1 Corinthians 15, verse 42. And that happens at the resurrection, but the spirit is in the presence of God. You are not floating around as an angel. A third misconception is that heaven is just endless leisure or a reunion. Like we're gonna play golf and baseball and hockey and hang out. Like we're we're gonna do endless, uh, you know, all-inclusive resort kind of vacations and pickleball tournaments in heaven. Heaven is often reduced to golf games and naps, like I'll sleep when I'm dead, and these family cookouts, we're hanging out, having barbecues at my house, so we're just all gonna be together. We do that as a coping mechanism. But biblically, heaven is centered on worship and the glory of Christ. Joy is real, but Christ, not recreation, is the focus. Does that mean we will not have fun in heaven? Absolutely not. We of course are gonna have immense joy and fun in heaven. Does that mean all we're gonna do is sit around and just be like, oh, you know, choir, just you know, instrumental praise? No, I have more for you in the what is heaven like episode, but we got to do away with this misconception that we're just partying up there all the time and Jesus is a footnote to it. Fourth, hell is a party with all your friends. Here's another huge misconception. If it's not heaven's a party, well then hell is. And it's like jokes and music sometimes describe hell as freedom or fun, or you know, that's where I want to be, that's where the rebels are. May it never be. Jesus calls hell a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth in Matthew 13, verse 50. It is eternal conscious separation from God's goodness. It is torment, and you do not want to be there. Another final misconception is that you can pray people out of judgment or pray them out of purgatory. Huge misconception rooted in Roman Catholic doctrine that suggests souls can be purified post-death. And the biblical corrective is this the Bible says in Hebrews 9.27, it is appointed to a man once to die and then comes judgment. In other words, there are no second chances after death. There's no purgatory. You're not getting anybody out with your penance, your giving, the purchase of indulgences, or any such things. And so I want to leave you with this hope for believers. For those who are in Christ, who anchor themselves to Christ, who abide in Christ. Christ is in them, and they are in him. Death is not the end. Jesus said in John 11, 25, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, oh, he'll never die. Even if he physically dies, he's never gonna die. Meaning your spirit and your soul will go on to live eternally with God. And so our hope is not just that we float around in heaven forever, but that Christ will raise our bodies, renew creation, inaugurate a new heavens and a new earth, and we're gonna be with him in the new heavens and the new earth. It's gonna be perfect, it's gonna be glorified, it's gonna be beautiful, there's gonna be no sickness, sin, or death. Death is not the end now for us here. It becomes a doorway to life indeed, the Bible calls it. And we got to understand, everyone will face judgment, but if we're in Christ, death is actually gained. There's a joy in the end, not fear. His perfect love has cast out fear. And so we don't fear death, we can hope in it. Meaning when it happens, and we even see it happen with our loved ones, we can have hope in the midst of it. And even for you and I, when our days end, we can hope for that moment. Saying, like Paul, to live is Christ, and to die is gained. Lord, when you are done with me, bring me home. Whatever you have sovereignly numbered my days to be, use me up for your glory and then get me out of here to be with you forever. The goal is not to stay here, the goal is to be with him there. Also, you gotta remember, hell is not Satan's playground. It's God's judgment. He will judge the wicked in hell. Even God owns hell. You ever think about that? People often think, well, hell belongs to the devil. No, it doesn't. Hell is under God's domain and his rule. He appoints it. He is the administer of justice in it. And the one who's given Christ, the Son, all things. He has appointed him to judge. And Christ will do that. Nothing belongs to the devil. God has ordained all these things and he rules and reigns over them in eternity. Oh, yeah, he's still in charge even of Gehenna, final hell. And so, how should we live? Like today is the day of salvation, because after death comes judgment. There's no purgatory, there's no second chance. And so, if you're not a Christian, I would implore you, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. Give your life to Jesus Christ. Surrender to the truth that there is salvation in no other name but the name of Jesus Christ, that he died, that he was buried, and that he rose on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and believe that he died for you, and that his blood, shed in death, has been applied to you and washed away your sins. And now your works don't earn salvation, but the perfect work of Christ on the cross is what gives you the gift of salvation. This is why we preach. This is why I do this podcast, this is why we read the word of God, and this is why we call all men to bow the knee and look to the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. Because your day is coming and my day is coming as well when we will be here no more. There are two destinations the spirit or the soul will go on to either eternal joy in the presence of Christ or eternal condemnation and suffering and judgment in hell. I want you to be thinking about these things, not only for yourself, but for others, those you love deeply, and realize that you can have all the answers you need and that God has given. There are some mysteries, but overall, you can look forward to what heaven's like because you know what heaven is like. Because the word of God prepares us for death and life indeed after death. Thanks for listening, thanks for watching, thanks for sharing, and a special thank you to all of you who are supporting for the gospel monthly as a gospel patron. I'm sitting in one of our new spaces, our new podcast studio, because of your generosity. And so we just get to keep doing this, and I can keep producing more and more teaching content to serve you and support you and encourage you. If you're a part of our church, of course, I'm your shepherd, and so I get to shepherd you through another avenue through these, along with Sundays and discipleship and being with you in your lives alongside our other elders. But if you're somebody who's out there online and you're benefiting from this, or you're a pastor friend, I pray that this content is stirring your heart and encouraging you all the more wherever you're listening or watching from. Also, I want to remind you, if you have Spanish-speaking loved ones or friends, our content's being translated into Spanish now, overall, as a ministry, English and Spanish reaching over 6 million unique individuals a month through downloads, articles, views, and so be encouraged, but also be aware you've got some resources in Spanish you can share with our brothers and sisters in Christ. All the glory goes to God. My gratitude as well to you for your support and for you partnering with us to share these resources with souls who need to hear the truth. I'll be back next Monday with another episode. Keep on living for the gospel.