Bible verse and the Spirit of Prophecy insight
John 11:11-14
11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. 12 Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. 13 Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. 14 Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.
“The theory of the immortality of the soul was one of those false doctrines that Rome, borrowing from paganism, incorporated into the religion of Christendom. Martin Luther classed it with the “monstrous fables that form part of the Roman dunghill of decretals.” Commenting on the words of Solomon in Ecclesiastes, that the dead know not anything, the Reformer says: “… Solomon judgeth that the dead are asleep, and feel nothing at all. For the dead lie there, accounting neither days nor years, but when they are awakened, they shall seem to have slept scarce one minute.””
Ellen G. White – The Great Controversy p.549.3
Present day application
The world seems to be steeped in spiritualism these days. Ever since the first zombie and vampire movies came out back in the days of black and white cinema, the media picked up the smell of profit and kept exploiting the human’s unhealthy fascination with the idea of the ‘living dead’. USA seems to be the main propagator of this trend, especially through its ever-growing Halloween celebration craze. This current state of affairs regarding the ‘state of the dead’ is a complete reversal if compared to the time of American religious reformation movements in the 1800s.
Annie R. Smith, aged 27 years, died in Wilton, New Hampshire, July 26th, 1855, of consumption. She was one of the pioneers of the Adventist movement. The following lines which she composed the day but one before her death, show with what feelings and hopes she fell asleep in Jesus, to wait the glad morning of the resurrection.
"O, shed not a tear o'er the spot where I sleep, For the living and not for the dead ye may weep; Why mourn for the weary who sweetly repose, Free in the grave from life's burden of woes? I long now to rest in the lone, quiet tomb, for the footsteps of Jesus have lightened its gloom; I die in the hope of soon meeting again The friends that I love, with Him ever to reign."
The proper understanding of the ‘state of the dead’ has got a major impact on how one lives. It eliminates the fear of death as well as the fascination of the topic of death itself. Spoiler alert – once you fully understand and accept this biblical view, the horror movies will no longer attract your attention.
The very idea that a human soul (or body) continues to ‘live’ after death has been introduced to the human race by the father of lies back in the garden of Eden. In a conversation with Eve, Lucifer said: “Ye shall not surely die”. This became the very first lie uttered on this planet, and till this day it remains the major point of Satans deception.
Ironically, anyone who believes this lie should consider oneself a zombie. Yes! You got me right, it is not a typo, if you have not been ‘born of the spirit’ you are a ‘walking dead’. On the other hand, if you believe in the redeeming power of Jesus, you have ‘passed from death unto life’!
Out of the city Blog 