After Church
- The Question:
“What happens when a Christian dies? Do we instantly go to heaven? Do we fall just fall asleep until the resurrection at Christ’s return?”
- The Frame:
One of the fun parts of being a pastor is the random questions you get after service, in the hallway, or during the week through text messages or social media. I recently had the thought, what if instead of just responding to the individual, I recorded my answer to the question and shared it with others.
This week, on After Church, we’ll answer the question, “What happens when a Christian dies?” This question came from an old friend through social media. They saw a video in on the subject in which someone argued that when a Christian dies they just go to sleep until the general resurrection of the dead at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The presenter in the video ended up arguing that Jesus’ promise to the thief, “Today you will be with me in paradise,” was actually a promise that the thief would wake up from death in the new heavens and earth. Confusing. I know.
Let’s see if we can bring some clarity.
- The Question Behind the Question
I receive some form of this question multiple times every year. When you’re faithful to a local church you see deaths and attend funerals on a regular basis, so it’s natural for us to look at a casket or an urn and ask ourselves, “But where is the soul of this person that I love?”
- The Honest Tension
When we start reading the Bible we notice a number of terms, metaphors, and illustrations about death and the afterlife. Old Testament passages, especially in the Psalms, refers to the dead going into the “grave” or Sheol. Jesus spoke to the thief on the cross about paradise. The Apostle Paul says he desires “to depart and to be with Christ,” (Phil 1:23) and tells the Corinthians, “We would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” (2 Cor 6:8)
How to we put all that together?
- The Answer
First, the Bible teaches that natural death is the death of the body. Remember, human beings are both body and soul. This is why Jesus, in Matt. 10:28 says we are not to fear those who can kill the body, but God who can destroy even the soul. So, physical death is the end of the physical life of the body and the separation of the body from the soul. Ecclesiastes 12:7 says that the body returns to the dust from which it is made and the soul returns to God who gave it. So, when people physically die, they do not cease to exist. Rather, the soul is severed from the body. Life and death are not opposites. They are different modes of existence.
Now, let’s talk about what happens when a Christian goes through physical death right now, and I find the 31st chapter of the Second London Confession to be a helpful summary of what the Bible teaches:
The bodies of those who have died return to dust and undergo destruction. But their souls neither die nor sleep, because they have an immortal character, and immediately return to God who gave them.
That’s a summary of what we just said. Now listen to what the confession says concerning the righteous dead—those who die having put their faith in Christ.
The souls of the righteous are then made perfect in holiness and are received into paradise. There they are with Christ and behold the face of God in light and glory while they wait for the full redemption of their bodies.
Many verses in the New Testament ground this summary:
2 Corinthians 5:1 says, “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” The straightforward meaning is that when our place of physical dwelling, our body, dies, God has prepared a heavenly dwelling for us. We go to dwell in the presence of God immediately.
Hebrews 12:23 says that the spirits of those who die in Christ are “enrolled in heaven” and “made perfect.” In other words, when a Christian dies, their soul goes to its eternal home in the immediate presence of God, and when that happens, they are perfected! They are glorified, even as they await the eventual resurrection and glorification of the body on the last day.
So, death is not a loss of consciousness. When we die, our souls do not sleep, only to be woken at the return of Christ. So, why do both Jesus and Paul refer to death like sleep?
Remember in Luke 8 when Jesus said the little girl was “not dead but sleeping”; or when Paul says, “we shall not all sleep” referring to the death of Christians? What does that mean?
It’s metaphorical language. For the Christian, death is not a conqueror. Our physical death is not final. Christ’s resurrection, and the promise of our future bodily resurrection means that the body sleeps, as it were, and one day will wake, and rise, refreshed and reinvigorated; transformed by the glorious appearing of our Savior.
Consider the comforting words of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonian Christians who were terrified of death:
For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
When Christ returns, he will bring those who have fallen asleep with him. Where have they been the whole time? With Christ, in his presence, enjoying communion with the Father and the Spirit in heaven.
- What Changes if this is True?
The Anglican Poet, George Herbert, wrote a poem called “Time,” which describes how Christ’s own resurrection has changed the way we think about death.
Before Christ was raised, death was seen as a hatchet, but now it’s just a pruning knife. “Christ’s coming hath made man thy debter, since by thy cutting he grows better.”
Before Christ, death was an executioner. Now, “Thou art a gardener, an usher to convey our souls beyond the utmost stares and poles.”
So, the next time you’re at the funeral of a Christian remember, only their body is asleep. Their soul is alive and present with Christ. They have joined the company of those enrolled in heaven. Their spirit has been made perfect. And we all await the day when Christ returns, raises them and us to everlasting life both in body and soul.
- The Close
I hope this helps answer your question. If there’s a question you’d like me to address, send it my way. You can find me on Facebook and X. Just search for Jonathan Homesley on Facebook, or jonmarkhomesley on X.
Lastly, I would be honored if you shared this episode anywhere you think it might be helpful for others. Thanks for listening to this episode of After Church