WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF LIFE

(final)

Death is then to be compared with a deep sleep, a state of unconsciousness. One reason God gave us a temporary, physical life was so that, if we choose not to accept the terms, requirements and conditions of eternal life, our lives could be mercifully but permanently brought to an end. Many people, however, believe in a perpetual, ever-burning hellfire or a condition of physical torment in which evil people are tortured throughout eternity. But the Bible's simple teaching conveys nothing like this. Our God is a loving, merciful Father who would never consign anyone to such fate.

Paul tells us in Romans 6:23: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Remember, we are free to choose between two masters but we are not free to adjust the consequences of our choice.

Death from which there is no hope of a resurrection is reserved for those who reject God's offer of eternal life in the Kingdom of God. They do not continue on forever in torment. Rather, those who ultimately refuse to walk in God's ways and receive the gift of immortality will cease to exist. Those who have fulfilled the purpose of physical life will be resurrected in bodies composed of spirit to receive the gift of eternal life. Those who were never called will be brought up by a resurrection to a restored physical existence and judged, given their opportunity for eternal life. Those who reject the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and eternal life that comes through His sacrifice will cease to exist. They will have everlasting death.

Some might say that such a fate is cruel, but God is the Creator of life and He has the authority and power to eliminate the life of all who choose to reject the purpose for which He created them.

In simple words then, an in a nutshell, the spiritual aspect of human existence is nothing like the immortal soul concept. It is something distinctly different. The spirit in man is not animate of itself. It is not a spirit entity that 'lives on' after death. As Scriptures shows, the human spirit has no consciousness apart from the body, for man is mortal. When we die, we will have no awareness of anything at all.

"The spirit returns to God who gave it". (Ecclesiastes 12:7) - where it is retained until the future time when God places those individual spirits within new bodies at the resurrection, thereby bringing individuals back to life with their personality and memories preserved and intact. The human spirit is critical to our destiny, since God's Holy Spirit joining with it is what makes us God's children. And just as the human spirit gives us human understanding, so God's Spirit gives us higher, godly understanding. We are not born with the Holy Spirit but receive it from God following the acceptance of Jesus Christ' sacrifice.

The future God has planned for us is fantastic beyond belief. It is far superior to men's imagination. Take comfort in the truth of God. There is no need to fear death if you turn your life toward Him. After all, He wants you to live with Him in abundant joy forever and ever.

(End)