What the Bible says about Spirit in Man as Record of One's Life
(From Forerunner Commentary)
The church of God does not accept the Doctrine of the Immortality of the Soul, instead believing God's Word, which says indisputably, “The soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4, 20). One of the very first things God taught Adam in the Garden of Eden was the consequence of sin: “you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17), a truth the serpent hastened to contradict (Genesis 3:4).
In the New Testament, Jesus teaches in Matthew 10:28: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell [Gehenna, a symbol of the Lake of Fire (see Revelation 20:11-15)].” Paul writes, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Humans are mortal, and God must give eternal life; we do not have it inherently (see Romans 2:7; I Corinthians 15:53-54; I Timothy 6:16).
We believe that man indeed has a spirit (Job 32:8), “the breath of the Almighty [that] gives him understanding,” but that it is not his soul. When combined with a human brain, the human spirit allows a person to have the powers of mind. When he dies, the body returns to the dust, but his spirit returns to God (Ecclesiastes 12:7), who safeguards it as a record of his life.
Solomon also informs us that “the dead know nothing” (Ecclesiastes 9:5), and “there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave” (verse 10), meaning that there is no consciousness in death. The person knows nothing, learns nothing, communicates nothing, does nothing—until the resurrection from the dead when God will unite that spirit with a new body, either a spiritual body or another physical body, depending on the resurrection (see Ezekiel 37:1-14; John 5:24-29; I Corinthians 15; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 20).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
What Happened at En Dor?Related Topics: Breath of the Almighty | Consequences of sin | Doctrine of 'Immortality' of the Soul | Enoch's Translation | Gehenna | Immortal Soul | Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man | Resurrection | Soul that Sins Shall Die | Spirit in Man | Spirit in Man as Record of One's Life | Transfiguration | Wages of Sin as Death | Wages of Sin is Death
The time of the new heaven and the new earth is one in which "there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away" (Revelation 21:4). The "former things" are the sins and their consequences that caused so much death, sorrow, crying, and pain on earth!
Jesus Christ suggests that behavior and character matter when He says in verse 7, "He who overcomes shall inherit all things." What does a Christian overcome but his own sin, this present evil world, and the Archenemy, Satan the Devil!
Who will be there and who will not? These two chapters make it quite plain: "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city [of New Jerusalem]. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie" (Revelation 22:14-15; cf. 21:8). It is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to deny that God says those who live upright lives will enter His Kingdom and those who live sinful lives will not. Righteous behavior and character certainly do matter to God!
We can go to no higher source to receive the answer to "Does our behavior have eternal value?" than to Jesus Christ Himself. A man came to Him and asked him this very question: "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" His answer is unambiguous: "If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments" (Matthew 19:17). The commandments are a code of behavior that builds godly character in those who keep them, and God wants only those with godly character—character like His Son's—in His Kingdom.
Behavior matters. Character matters. The Ten Commandments matter. They will not "pay our way" into God's Kingdom, since God's salvation is a free gift, and it is humanly impossible to purchase or earn it (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8). Nonetheless, when God judges us "according to [our] deeds" (Romans 2:5-11; cf. I John 2:28-29), the record of our behavior will make the difference between eternal life and eternal death.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Behavior MattersRelated Topics: Behavior | Behavior Matters | Character | Commandment Keeping | Developing Godly Character | Doing Works is a Witness before the World | Doing Works Provides Practice in God's Way of Life | Good Works Necessary for Sanctification | Judged by the Law | Overcoming | Spirit in Man as Record of One's Life | Standards of Righteous Behavior