After Life for
the Righteous:
What?
1. Kingdom of Heaven
2. Heaven (Paradise)
3. New Heavens, New
Earth
After Life for
the
Unrighteous:
What?
4. Life before Death:
Sin Wrath Judgment
5-6 Life after Death
Judgment Seat
Lake of Fire
After Life for
the
Unrighteous:
What?
7. Life after Death 3
Saved after Death?
Condemnation
Directly: Hearing the Gospel preached
and rejecting it
John 12: 48 48 There is a judge for the one who
rejects me and does not accept my words; that
very word which I spoke will condemn him at the
last day.
Indirectly: Deliberately choosing evil
(violating the conscience within you – image of
God) - Willful backsliders fit into this category
Romans 1:18–20 18 But God shows his anger
from heaven against all sinful, wicked
people who suppress the truth by their
wickedness. 19 They know the truth about
God because he has made it obvious to
them. 20 For ever since the world was
created, people have seen the earth and
sky. Through everything God made, they
can clearly see his invisible qualities—his
eternal power and divine nature. So they
have no excuse for not knowing God.
Romans 2:14–15 (NIV)
14 (Indeed,
when Gentiles, who do not have
the law, do by nature things required by
the law, they are a law for themselves,
even though they do not have the law, 15
since they show that the requirements of
the law are written on their hearts, their
consciences also bearing witness, and their
thoughts now accusing, now even
defending them.)
Life after Death: Can a
person be saved after
death?
1. Various Viewpoints
a. Universalism
At the heart of this perspective is the
belief that, given enough time,
everybody will turn to God and find
themselves in the joy and peace of
God’s presence. The love of God will
melt every hard heart, and even the
most “depraved sinners” will
eventually give up their resistance
and turn to God.
(Bell, 2011, 107)
b. Purgatory
Sanctification (holiness) is by
cooperating with the Holy Spirit in
this life.
Christians go through the refining
process in this life.
c. Good Works
Titus 3:4–7 (NIV)
4 But
when the kindness and love of
God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved
us, not because of righteous things
we had done, but because of his
mercy.
2 Timothy 1:9–10 (NIV)
9 who
has saved us and called us to a holy
life—not because of anything we have
done but because of his own purpose and
grace. This grace was given us in Christ
Jesus before the beginning of time, 10 but it
has now been revealed through the
appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who
has destroyed death and has brought life
and immortality to light through the
gospel.
d. Conclusion
Scripture never answers this issue
directly; therefore there can be no
definitive answer to the question.
However …
2. Principles &
Precedents
a. Principle of
Righteousness, Justice,
& Mercy
Genesis 18:25 (NIV)
25 Far
be it from you to do such a
thing—to kill the righteous with the
wicked, treating the righteous and
the wicked alike. Far be it from you!
Will not the Judge of all the earth do
right?”
“The final judgment … will be, and will be
seen to be, perfectly right, utterly just,
unequivocally proper, and receptive of the
fullest approval of every conscience. No
single human person will be dealt with in a
manner that is even fractionally [less] or in
excess of what, in God’s loving and holy
presence, will be seen to be just. If one may
so put it, not one individual will spend one
millisecond longer in hell than is their just
desert.” (Milne, The Message of Heaven and
Hell: Grace and Destiny 2002, p. 157)
“God is morally justified in destroying
the wicked because he respects their
human choices [and] He will not save
them if they do not want to be
saved”
(Walvoord, Crockett, Hayes, &
Pinnock, 1996, p. 151).
Romans 10:11–21 (NIV)
11 As
the Scripture says, “Anyone who
trusts in him will never be put to
shame.” 12 For there is no difference
between Jew and Gentile—the same
Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses
all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone
who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved.”
14 How,
then, can they call on the one
they have not believed in? And how
can they believe in the one of whom
they have not heard? And how can
they hear without someone
preaching to them? 15 And how can
they preach unless they are sent? As
it is written, “How beautiful are the
feet of those who bring good news!”
16 But
not all the Israelites accepted the
good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has
believed our message?” 17 Consequently,
faith comes from hearing the message, and
the message is heard through the word of
Christ. 18 But I ask: Did they not hear? Of
course they did:
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.”
19 Again
I ask: Did Israel not understand?
First, Moses says,
“I will make you envious by those who are
not a nation; I will make you angry by a
nation that has no understanding.”
20 And
Isaiah boldly says,
“I was found by those who did not seek
me; I revealed myself to those who did not
ask for me.”
21 But
concerning Israel he says, “All day
long I have held out my hands to a
disobedient and obstinate people.”
Isaiah 59:1 (NIV)
Surely the arm of the LORD is not too
short to save, nor his ear too dull to
hear.
b. Precedent:
Those who died before
Christ’s Resurrection
heard the Gospel
John 5:24–30 (NRSV)
24 Very
truly, I tell you, anyone who hears
my word and believes him who sent me
has eternal life, and does not come under
judgment, but has passed from death to
life. 25 “Very truly, I tell you, the hour is
coming, and is now here, when the dead
will hear the voice of the Son of God, and
those who hear will live. 26 For just as the
Father has life in himself, so he has granted
the Son also to have life in himself;
27 and
he has given him authority to execute
judgment, because he is the Son of Man.
28 Do not be astonished at this; for the hour
is coming when all who are in their graves
will hear his voice 29 and will come out—
those who have done good, to the
resurrection of life, and those who have
done evil, to the resurrection of
condemnation. 30 “I can do nothing on my
own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is
just, because I seek to do not my own will
but the will of him who sent me.
Romans 3:21–26 (NLT)
21 But
now God has shown us a way to
be made right with him without
keeping the requirements of the law,
as was promised in the writings of
Moses and the prophets long ago.
22 We are made right with God by
placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And
this is true for everyone who
believes, no matter who we are.
23 For
everyone has sinned; we all fall
short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet
God, with undeserved kindness, declares
that we are righteous. He did this through
Christ Jesus when he freed us from the
penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented
Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are
made right with God when they believe
that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his
blood.
1 Peter 3:18–20 (NKJV)
18
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the
just for the unjust, that He might bring us
to God, being put to death in the flesh but
made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also
He went and preached to the spirits in
prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient,
when once the Divine longsuffering
waited in the days of Noah, while the ark
was being prepared, in which a few, that
is, eight souls, were saved through water.
1 Peter 4:5–6 (NKJV)
5
They will give an account to Him
who is ready to judge the living and
the dead. 6 For this reason the gospel
was preached also to those who are
dead, that they might be judged
according to men in the flesh, but live
according to God in the spirit.
1 Peter 4:5–6 (Paraphrase)
5 But
all will have to give an accounting to
Christ who is ready to judge both those
who are alive and those who have died.
6 For this is the reason the gospel was
proclaimed even to the dead, so that,
though they had been judged in the flesh
as everyone is judged (physically died),
they might live in the spirit (new creation)
as God does.
These are all the dead before the
resurrection of Christ. This would
connect this verse with 3:19, 20. The
dead heard the Gospel when it was
preached to the “spirits”; these
include both the righteous and the
unrighteous.
(Arichea & Nida, 1980)
Matthew 27:51–53 (NRSV)
51 At
that moment the curtain of the
temple was torn in two, from top to
bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks
were split. 52 The tombs also were opened,
and many bodies of the saints [holy ones]
who had fallen asleep were raised. 53 After
his resurrection they came out of the
tombs and entered the holy city and
appeared to many.
Romans 14:10–12 (NIV)
10 You,
then, why do you judge your
brother? Or why do you look down on your
brother? For we will all stand before God’s
judgment seat. 11 It is written:
“ ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every
knee will bow before me; every tongue will
confess to God.’ ”
12 So
then, each of us will give an account of
himself to God.
c. Judgment Seat:
Retributive and
Redemptive?
1 Corinthians 6:2a, 3 (NIV)
2 Do
you not know that the saints will
judge the world?
3 Do
you not know that we will judge
angels? How much more the things of
this life!
2 Corinthians 5:17–21
17 Therefore,
if anyone is in Christ, he is a
new creation; the old has gone, the new
has come! 18 All this is from God, who
reconciled us to himself through Christ
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
19 that God was reconciling the world to
himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins
against them. And he has committed to us
the message of reconciliation.
20 We
are therefore Christ’s
ambassadors, as though God were
making his appeal through us. We
implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be
reconciled to God. 21 God made him
who had no sin to be sin for us, so
that in him we might become the
righteousness of God.
Revelation 3:21 (NIV)
21 To
him who overcomes, I will give
the right to sit with me on my throne,
just as I overcame and sat down with
my Father on his throne.
The church is called to participate with the
Son and the Spirit in a potential
… ultimate reconciliation of all people, a
desired embrace of both the victims of
history and their oppressors.
… to join the Son and the Spirit on the Last
Day in effectively convincing wrongdoers
of their inhuman violence, in encouraging
them benevolently to undergo a free
conversion, and in voicing a spontaneous
request of pardon.
… to assist Christ and the Spirit in
vindicating and consoling the
wronged while gently urging the
wronged to accept the repentance of
their aggressors and to forgive them
freely. (Rosato, 2006, pp. 166-169)
John 20:21–23 (NKJV)
21
So Jesus said to them again, “Peace
to you! As the Father has sent Me, I
also send you.” 22 And when He had
said this, He breathed on them, and
said to them, “Receive the Holy
Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any,
they are forgiven them; if you retain
the sins of any, they are retained.”
James 2:12–13 (NIV)
12 Speak
and act as those who are
going to be judged by the law that
gives freedom, 13 because judgment
without mercy will be shown to
anyone who has not been merciful.
Mercy triumphs over judgment!
Zechariah 3:1–5 (NIV)
3
Then he showed me Joshua the high
priest standing before the angel of the
LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to
accuse him. 2 The LORD said to Satan, “The
LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has
chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this
man a burning stick snatched from the
fire?”
3 Now
Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes
as he stood before the angel.
4 The
angel said to those who were
standing before him, “Take off his filthy
clothes.”
Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken
away your sin, and I will put rich garments
on you.”
5 Then
I said, “Put a clean turban on his
head.” So they put a clean turban on his
head and clothed him, while the angel of
the LORD stood by.
Zechariah 12:10 (NIV)
10 “And
I will pour out on the house of
David and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem a spirit of grace and
supplication. They will look on me,
the one they have pierced, and they
will mourn for him as one mourns for
an only child, and grieve bitterly for
him as one grieves for a firstborn
son.
Next week:
8. Life after
Death: What?
Eternal
Torment or
Annihilation?