Believers Can Face Death Without Fear
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
1 Corinthians 15:54-57Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:Death is swallowed up in victory.O death, where is your victory?O death, where is your sting?For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Comforting Bible Verses For Death
When facing difficult times, the best feeling we can receive is comfort. We hope that the following passages comfort you in your difficult time of grief. Many of these Bible verses can help you feel more strength and know that it does get better even though it always feels hard. And if youre looking for additional comforting words, please visit our resource on sympathy quotes and messages.
- Revelation 21:4He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
- Psalm 34:18
- Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Heaven Will Be Far Better Than Earth For Believers
Philippians 1:21“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Revelation 14:13“And I heard a voice from heaven saying, Write this down: Blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit, they are blessed indeed, for they will rest from their hard work for their good deeds follow them!
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Other Views Within Christianity
Though most Christians agree on the basic beliefs about the afterlife described above, there are some differing views on aspects of life after death.
Catholicism. The Catholic church teaches the doctrine of Purgatory, that Protestant Christians do not usually accept. According to the official teachings of the Catholic church, called The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Purgatory is a final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned.
Pope John Paul II said Purgatory does not indicate a place, but a condition of existence.
Catholicism teaches that those who have a relationship with God but are not fully purified will have eternal salvation but still need further purification after death. After purification in Purgatory, they achieve the perfect holiness required to be in the presence of a perfectly Holy God.
The Catholic Church partially bases the doctrine of Purgatory on Scripture passages referring to a cleansing fire. It also draws this concept from a passage where Jesus said that those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come. The Catechism of the Catholic Church further states, From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.
Most Protestants believe that Jesus sacrifice fully paid for all of our sins and fully purified all who believe in Him, so there is no need for further purification after death.
Bible Verses About Life After Death
There were many people who saw Jesus after His death and in the same way He was resurrected Christians will be resurrected as well. Christians can rest assure that when we die we will live in paradise with the Lord where there will be no more crying, pain, and stress.
Heaven will be more than you ever dreamed of. If you dont repent and put your trust in Christ hell is waiting for you. Gods just wrath is poured out in hell.
There is no escaping hell. Unbelievers and many who profess to be Christian will be in real pain and torment forever. I encourage you today to evangelize to unbelievers to save others from going to hell.
Christian quotes
My home is in Heaven. Im just traveling through this world. Billy Graham
The difference between Gods side and the devils is the difference between heaven and hell. Billy Sunday
If there were no hell, the loss of heaven would be hell. Charles Spurgeon
No purgatory, no reincarnation, only Heaven, or hell.
1. Hebrews 9:27 And just as it is appointed for people to die onceand after this, judgment.
2. Matthew 25:46 These people will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.
3. Luke 16:22-23 One day the beggar died, and the angels carried him to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. He went to hell, where he was constantly tortured. As he looked up, in the distance he saw Abraham and Lazarus.
Christians never die.
Live forever by trusting Christ.
We are citizens of Heaven.
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Cremation & The Catholic Church
Its understandable that many people are confused about the Catholic Churchs views on cremation.
Anyone familiar with the religion knows it has changed its policies on a number of principles over the years, including cremation.
As mentioned, the church did not believe in the cremation procedure because they associated it to the Romans and Greeks who they considered to be Pagans.
These two cultures did not believe in the afterlife and used cremation when disposing of their dead.
Cremation Verses & References
As you may have noticed in the verses referenced here, some are auspicious, but others seem unfavorable toward cremation.
Scriptures of the Old Testament, such as 2 Kings 23: 16-20 spoke of the desecration of an altar after human bones were burned there however, nowhere in the Old Testament does it command against the burning of a human body.
On the other hand, cremation was not a common practice by New Testament believers. The Bible places emphasis on burial in caves, tombs, or under the earth as the most common method of disposition as in Genesis 23:1935:4 2, Chronicles 16:14, and Matthew 27:60-66. But again, it does not command that burial should be the only method.
The best conclusion for Christians when searching for answers is to ask God for guidance. James 5:16The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Most Christians believe that God lives within us all. Its possible that He did not give us specific instruction on this matter for a reason and trusts us to search within ourselves for the answers to our own individual choices.
This final bible verse below is a powerful message to read and contemplate:
4.15
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For The Christian Death Is Not A Problem Because We Know That 2 Corinthians : 1
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. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdenednot that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord and We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
That is where youll be one second after you diethat is if you are born again. A person thats born twice will never die but a person who is born only once will die twice once in their mortal body and then in the lake of fire . I pray you choose the former.
Do Christians Go To Heaven When They Die
No, the Bible likens death to sleep for all people. That means that even Christians do not go anywhere upon death. Scripture does, however, reveal that Gods people will be resurrected at the return of Jesus Christ and will reign with Him on the earth.
This article will discuss the following topics:
What happens when we die? Nearly all Christian denominations teach a heaven or hell afterlife. Essentially, they believe that every human being has an immortal soul that will go straight to heaven or hell after the physical body dies.
There are many ideas about what heaven and hell are like, and about who will go to heaven and who will go to hell. But do the popular ideas about heaven and hell come from the Bible?
The Bible teaches very clearly that all human beings die: And as it is appointed for men to die once . Since death awaits us all, what happens after death is one of the most important questions we can askand answer!
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Where Do Bodies Go After Death
The redeemed are ushered into the eternal presence of the Lord, and those without an advocate are ushered into hell to await the New Heaven and New Earth.
The Bible teaches that the human spirit, upon departing the body, goes immediately into the presence of God for either His welcoming or His disapproval. Thus, our blessed Savior taught this truth when He gave the parable of the wicked in Hell crying out to Abraham for refreshment:
There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich mans table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abrahams side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame. But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish .
There is no more concise and thoroughly Biblical expression of faith about the soul going immediately to be with God until the resurrection than the 38th question in the Westminster Shorter Catechism:
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Spirits With God
Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it .
and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect .
Christ’s Presence
And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise’ .
Immediately Present
For we know that if our earthly house, this tent is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed, we shall not be found naked. . . We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord .
For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better .
Be With Jesus
Father, I desire that those also, whom You have given Me, may be with Me where I am, to see My glory, which You have given Me because you loved Me before the foundation of the world .
Stephen
And he , being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’. . . And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit’ .
Not Place Of Final RewardConsciousWith GodLive TogetherRest And BlessednessActivityHolinessEmphasis On Final StateSummary
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The Ultimate Question: Where Will You Go When You Die
Though views differ and questions remain about the afterlife, in the end each person must find for themselves the answer to the most important question: Where will you go when you die?
According to the Bible, every human being that dies will spend eternity either with God or separated from God. A natural response might be to wonder why there are two options.
Answering What Happens To My Soul When I Die
As a pastor and a teaching theologian, this is one of the most frequent questions I receive. However, the inquiry most often comes to me, not in the form of an abstract question, but in the context of crisis. Indeed, this is how the question was posed by Mrs. Henley: in a defining moment of her faith on trial.
I was a young pastor. I was on assignment as a pastoral care intern for a congregation not my own. I was a pastor on loan, one might say. My mission? I was dispatched by the church leadership to provide pastoral ministry to a family I didnt know. I was told that the Henley family was gathered at a nearby nursing home and that they had requested a pastoral presence. The elder who telephoned me gave instructions that I would find Mr. Henley, a long-time member, in room 201. Mrs. Gladys Henley, his wife of sixty-some-odd years would be there to greet me. Mr. Henleys forty-something-year-old son and his wife would also be there. They had flown in from the West Coast to be with the matriarch and patriarch in this difficult time.
I rehearsed the coming pastoral visit in my mind as I pulled into the covered parking garage. I guided my trusty old Buick sedan into that most appreciated of privileges clergy parking. I put her in park. I killed the engine. I drew in a breath of hope as I exhaled a prayer for help: Lord, guide me.
Notes:
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Verses For Passing Of A Loved One
Theres many reasons you may be looking for a Bible quote that specifically addresses the loss of a loved one. It may be an important step to your grieving process. It may be a sweet addition to your tribute. Or maybe youre searching for the right message to include in your celebration of life invitation wording. Whatever your reason, we hope the verses below are exactly what youre looking for.
How Is Death Like Sleep
Death is like sleep in that no conscious thought occurs when one has died. People who are dead are completely unconsciousunaware of the passage of time and without any feelings or awareness of themselves or their surroundings.
These Bible verses elaborate on how death is a state of unconsciousness:
- His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth in that very day his thoughts perish .
- For the living know that they will die but the dead know nothing .
- Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going .
But another reason death is analogous to sleep is because, as is stated by some of the above scriptures, death is temporary. When someone falls asleep, they will eventually wake up. When someone dies, they experience the sleep of death for a period of time, but will awaken in the future. The Bible calls this the resurrection of the dead.
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Verses For Moms Who Have Passed Away
Though we all will likely face our parents passing away at some point in time, it doesnt make it any easier. These Bible verses about losing a mother can help guide you through your grief and help you feel stronger. If youre looking to send a sympathy card to someone who recently lost their parent, these verses can also give you words of comfort to offer someone when you arent sure what to say yourself.
- Psalm 48:14For this God is our God for ever and ever he will be our guide even to the end.
- Isaiah 57:1-2The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart the devout are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace they find rest as they lie in death.
- Isaiah 41:10Fear not, for I am with you be not dismayed, for I am your God I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
- 2 Corinthians 1:3-4who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
- Genesis 24:67Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarahs tent, and he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her thus Isaac was comforted after his mothers death.
- Lamentations 3:31-32For the Lord will not reject forever, For if He causes grief, Then He will have compassion According to His abundant loving kindness.