PROOF OF LIFE AFTER DEATH
Luke 16:19-31 (AMPC)
“There was a certain rich man who [habitually] clothed himself in purple and fine linen and reveled and feasted and made merry in splendor every day.
20 And at his gate there was [carelessly] dropped down and left a certain utterly destitute man named Lazarus, [reduced to begging alms and] covered with [ulcerated] sores.
21 He [eagerly] desired to be satisfied with what fell from the rich man's table; moreover, the dogs even came and licked his sores.
22 And it occurred that the man [reduced to] begging died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.
23 And in Hades (the realm of the dead), being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have pity and mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.
25 But Abraham said, child, remember that you in your lifetime fully received [what is due you in] comforts and delights, and Lazarus in like manner the discomforts and distresses; but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish.
26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who want to pass from this [place] to you may not be able, and no one may pass from there to us.
27 And [the man] said, then, father, I beseech you to send him to my father's house–
28 For I have five brothers–so that he may give [solemn] testimony and warn them, lest they too come into this place of torment.
29 But Abraham said, they have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear and listen to them.
30 But he answered, No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent (change their minds for the better and heartily amend their ways, with abhorrence of their past sins).
31 He said to him, If they do not hear and listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded and convinced and believe [even] if someone should rise from the dead.”
Dear people of God, today’s lead Holy Bible text above is a parable the Lord Jesus Christ told about a certain Rich man and a poor man Lazarus who both lived on earth, died and were both buried.
The Parable also shows that the two men including Abraham had an afterlife existence in another realm, the spirit realm. This Parable also showed that while Abraham and Lazarus were in a place of comfort, the rich man was in a place of torment.
The rich man made several appeals to Abraham including that Lazarus should be sent back from the dead into life here on earth to warn his (rich man’s) brothers against making the same mistake of ending in the place of torment, a request that was declined.
In this Parable, we see the Lord Jesus speak about life after death, heaven (place of comfort), hell (place of torment) and resurrection from the dead.
Now, there is a group of Christians who claim that there is no hell and there is no life after death. There are also Atheists, people who foolishly claim there is no God, who also believe there is no life after death.
I just got off a phone conversation with a friend who belongs to this group that believe there is no hell and no life after death and I mentioned to her that I was writing on the topic of life after death and I quoted the above Scripture as proof of a life after this one here on earth.
She responded to tell me that Jesus’ Parable was just an illustration and I asked her what Jesus’ objective of the Parable was, to which she could not provide a response.
I then reminded her about the Transfiguration event on the mount (Matthew 17:1-9) where the Lord Jesus Christ conversed with Elijah and Moses who had long died. I drew her attention to the fact that Peter was able to recognise the men by name even when he had never met them because they died long before he was born into this world.
My friend admitted the Transfiguration was a real event and she promised to research into it and revert to me. In her heart, she knows she has no response but I have told her the Truth with evidence from the Bible they read and I pray God opens her eyes along with members of her group to realize the Truth before it is too late.
Dear friend, one thing I want to draw your attention to is that just as in the Parable of the rich man and Lazarus where the rich man recognized and knew Lazarus by name at death in the spirit realm, so Peter was able to recognize and mention the names of Elijah and Moses on the mount where the Transfiguration took place because God made him see into the Spirit realm even while alive.
This is called an OPEN VISION.
What this means is that in the spirit realm, not only are you able to recognize and know by name people you never knew on earth, they are also able to recognize and know you by name.
This is proof that there is a life after this life.
Now, it is pertinent to note that the rich man did not go to hell because he was rich but because he did not know God. He instantly recognized that his brothers were also living like him on the earth and needed to be warned of the danger of hell so they could repent and amend their ways – Luke 16:30.
He was told that they have the Prophets to warn them so they should listen to them.
So it is with every human today being warned daily by prophets and men of God about the dangers of hell and the need to repent and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
However, just as it was then, even today, many people do not want to hear the Gospel and are outrightly rejecting the Gospel. Some atheists have even gone to the extent of claiming that Christians are bullying others to force the Gospel down the throats of non-Christians.
No, that is not what Christians are doing. What Christians are simply doing is obeying God’s Word in Mark 16:15-16.
Christians know by revelation given in God’s Word that it is ONLY those who have accepted Christ Jesus as their Lord and Saviour and are living in righteous obedience to God’s commandments that will enter heaven.
No other group of persons is qualified to enter heaven. It may sound harsh or arrogant but this is the Truth that is contained in God’s Word and nobody can wish it away or discountenance it or reject it without consequences.
Dear friend, please take time to reflect on what has been written here as you read because whatever decision you take thereafter would determine the eternal course of your life.
I urge you to choose Jesus Christ today and now, for tomorrow or later may be too late.
May the good Lord bless you as you heed His Word today, act on it and share with others in Jesus’ Merciful Name, Amen.
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