Lesson Seven
Death 

I.	Definition of Death
•	Physical death is the separation of soul and spirit from the body
•	It introduces man to ETERNITY and the unseen world

II.	Descriptions of Death
•	The Bible speaks of death in the following terms:
•	Sleep - Deuteronomy 31:16; John 11:11; I Corinthians 15:6; I Corinthians 15:51; and I Thessalonians 4:13-14
•	Earthly house being dissolved - II Corinthians 5:1
•	Putting off this tabernacle - II Peter 1:14
•	God requiring the soul - Luke 12:20
•	Going the way whence there is no return - Job 16:22
•	Being gathered to one's people - Genesis 49:3 3
•	Yielding up the ghost - Genesis 49:33; Acts 5:10
•	Going down into silence - Psalm 115:17
•	Returning to the dust - Genesis 3:19
•	Being cut down - Job 14:2
•	Departing - Philippians 1:23

III.	Physical Death Is Certain To Every Man
•	Hebrews 9:27
•	The only persons who will escape physical death are those living saints at the time of the Coming of Jesus

IV.	Death Has Been Conquered
•	I Corinthians 15:26
•	Romans 5:12-21
•	II Timothy 1:10
•	Death was the first outward and visible effect of sin and it will be the last effect of sin from which we shall be saved
•	Jesus has abolished death, and in Him we may have eternal life and immortality

E.  After Death What?
•	The Intermediate 
•	The righteous do not enter into their final reward or the wicked into their final punishment until after their respective resurrections
•	The righteous is in conscious rest in Paradise but the unrighteous are in conscious unrest and torment in Hades
•	The Resurrection
•	At the resurrection the soul and spirit of the dead are united with the resurrected body
•	The Judgements
•	Just as there is no escaping death there is no escaping the judgment which follows (Hebrews 9:27)
•	The righteous receive their rewards and the unrighteous receive their punishment
•	Eternity
•	There are only two final destinies for man: a heaven to gain, and a hell to shun

F. The Location of Paradise and Hades
•	Before the resurrection of Jesus Christ these two places were separate compartments of Sheol
•	They were located adjacent to one another with a gulf fixed between them (Luke 16:26)
•	Because of this when Jesus died He visited both places (Luke 23:43; Acts 2:31)
•	When Jesus arose He emptied one compartment and changed the location of Paradise to the third heaven (II Corinthians 12:2)
•	Hades no longer have adjacent locations in Sheol. Jesus led captivity captive (Ephesians 4:8)

G. False Teachings  1. Purgatory
•	This teaches that even the faithful need a process of purification before becoming fit to enter God's presence
•	Scripture teaches the immediate happiness of the dead in Christ
•	There are only the saved and the unsaved, and the destiny of each is determined in this life
•	Death closes the period of probation and then judgment follows
•	References: Luke 16:22; Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 5:6-10 and Hebrews 9:27
2.   Spiritism
•	This teaches that we may communicate with a departed spirit through a “medium”
•	The Bible expressly forbids consulting such spiritist, the very prohibition indicating that there is evil and danger in the practice
•	In Luke 16 the account of the rich man and Lazarus proves that the departed are not permitted to communicate with the living
•	References: Leviticus 19:31, Isaiah 8:19
3.   Soul Sleeping
•	This teaches that the soul is unconscious until the resurrection
•	Scripture teaches that there is an immediate conscious rest in Paradise for the saved and a conscious torment in Hades for the lost 
•	Lazarus and the rich man were both conscious
•	Why did Jesus visit Paradise and Hades if the souls were unconscious?
•	References: Isaiah 14:9-11; Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23; Psalm 16:10; II Corinthians 5:8 and Revelation 6:9-10
4.    Universalism 
•	This teaches that everybody will finally be saved that God, is too loving to exclude anyone from heaven
•	The Scriptures refute this error
•	It is in reality a mercy that God excludes the sinful from Heaven for it would be a hell to them, and their presence would soon make it a hell to the redeemed
•	References: Proverbs 29:1; Romans 6:23; John 3:36 and Luke 16:19-31
5.    Restorationism
•	This teaches that hell is not eternal but a temporary experience for the purpose of purifying the sinner to fit him for heaven
•	If this were the case then the fires of hell would have more power than the blood of Christ
•	Experience teaches that punishment in itself is not regenerative; it can restrain but not transform
•	Those who believe this error contend that the word "eternal" in the Greek means "age-long" and not endless duration
•	According to Matthew 25:41-46 if the punishment of the wicked man has an end so dies the bliss of the righteous
•	God will no more force a man to be saved in the future than He does in the present
6.    Annihilationism
•	This teaches that the wicked will be annihilated
•	Those who believe this error point to II Thessalonians 1:9 and other passages which state that the wicked will be destroyed
•	However, this does not mean annihilation but ruin
•	In this Scripture if it meant annihilation then the word "eternal" would be useless
•	They also point to death as the penalty for sin
•	This means separation from God and not the ceasing to exist
•	God's promise of life does not mean the promise of existence for all men have that - therefore the opposite is true, death as a penalty does not mean the mere loss of existence

Lesson Seven
Self Help Test

A. Place the correct word in the blank:
•	The last enemy to be destroyed is  	.
	 teaches that we may talk with a departed spirit.

•	At one time Paradise and 	 were adjacent in Sheol.
teaches that everybody will be saved.

•	 Death is the 	of soul and spirit from the body.
Hades, Death, Universalism, Separation, Spiritism.
B. Write a clear explanation why Jesus was able to visit both Paradise and Hades after He died (Luke 23:42 and Acts 2:31).
C. Where is the present location of Paradise and how do we know this?