abode of the dead in the New Testa ment. They are hades, gehenna, and tartarus. The latter is found only once. The counterpart in the Old Testament for hades is sheoL It simply means the abode of the dead. Gehenna refers to the lake of fire which is a future condition. This is where Satan, the anti-christ, the false prophet and all unbelievers have their final destiny. Hades, how ever, from all indications, was divid ed into two parts: the abode of the unrighteous dead and the abode of the righteous dead. The latter also was called Paradise, as in the case here, or Abraham’s bosom (Luke 16: 19-31). In your question, Jesus was telling the thief, “Today you and I are going down into the abode of the righteous dead.” When the Saviour rose from the dead, ascending into Heaven, He emptied Paradise and took those souls to be with Him in heaven (Eph. 4:8, 9). Today, Para dise is empty, for now, when a be liever dies, “absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.” The abode of the wicked dead is still in habited, and those so incarcerated are awaiting the Great White Throne Judgment which is described in Rev elation 20. They will go from here, without exception, into Hell, or Ge henna, which is the Greek word for the lake of fire. Q. Santa Susanna, Calif. — “I ’m very confused as to the resurrection of our bodies. My church teaches that we go to be with the Lord at death. But in sections of the New Testa ment, I get confused. Can you give me further help?” A. Perhaps it will help to say that in I Corinthians 15 and I Thessa- lonians 4, the clear indication is that bodies of believers may go to the grave, but their spirits go to be with the Lord. There is no such thing as soul-sleeping. It’s the body that lies dormant in the tomb. In 18
death there’s a severance of the ma terial from the immaterial part of man. The soul and the spirit go one way while the body goes another. II Corinthians 5 shows this factor most convincingly. The body is just the house while the real person is the spirit. Body and spirit are unit ed at the resurrection when Jesus comes. Did you know that you can read the entire Bible through in a year, by read ing less than twelve minutes a day? Why not begin right now? Before the earth received its frame, God loved me—blessed be His name! Life is a gift to be used every day, not to be smothered and hidden away. How thou canst love me as Thou dost, And be the God Thou art, Is darkness to my intellect, But sunshine to my heart. Love never asks, "How much MUST I do?” but "How much CAN I do?”
At a Talbot Seminary Awards ChapelDr. Charles L. Felnberg,dean, gives recognition to student Jerry Johnson.
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs