My Journey to Life - Daily Study Guide

Q12. Why does the biblical teaching on what happens when we die matter?

Picture: Q12. Why does the biblical teaching on what happens when we die matter? JTLD 104.1

Many people have been comforted by the thought that their dead loved ones are now in a “better place,” that is, they are in heaven. But this unbiblical teaching is actually a deceptive device used by Satan through which he will try to convince people that Jesus’ Ten- Commandment law has been abolished. JTLD 104.2

Imagine your aunt dies. One night a ghost appears to you looking like your aunt. She recounts details only you and her know. She tells you that since her death she has been living in heaven where God now observes Sunday rather than the old Jewish seventh-day Sabbath. She also relates how God says that worshipping on Sunday will unite the world and bring global peace. JTLD 104.3

Though your aunt’s alleged testimony sounds plausible, its authenticity assumes that the dead can communicate with the living, a notion the Bible denies. Despite the clear biblical testimony concerning the state of the dead, various individuals, and even demons, will impersonate Christ and His apostles, perform supernatural acts of healing, and claim to have messages from heaven that are not in harmony with the Word of God. But those who have fortified their minds with the truths of Scripture will recognize the deception. In this time “such as never was,” Daniel 12:1, the Scriptures must be the anchor for the people of God. JTLD 104.4

• Bible Discovery: Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6; Isaiah 25:9; Isaiah 65:17; Matthew 24:3-5; 1 Corinthians 2:9; 1 Corinthians 15:55
• Further Reading: Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 557.1; 562; 651