“We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13)
Have you ever heard of “soul sleep”?
There are more than a few Christians who believe that when a person dies, his or her soul doesn’t immediately go to heaven or hell. They believe that the soul “sleeps” in the grave awaiting the resurrection and frequently point to the above verse to prove their point. “If it isn’t true,” they argue, “then why is it in the Bible?
The word “asleep” as used in that verse comes from the Greek word, “keimai”, which means to lie outstretched. So you see, Paul wasn’t saying that our souls sleep until Jesus returns. He was saying that when Jesus returns for us, those who lie in graves will also rise to meet him in the sky. In fact, just three verses later he wrote, “And the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
Paul didn’t believe in soul sleep. He constantly taught that when we die, we would immediately be with Christ. That’s why he said, ‘We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.’ (2 Corinthians 5:8)
What Paul did understand was that our bodies have three parts. In 2 Corinthians 4:16, he tells us, “Though outwardly we are wasting away…inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” In other words, while there is an outer part of us that is dying, each of us has a soul and a spirit, an inner part that never dies. That’s exactly why he once said, “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
James told us that death occurs when the body and the spirit separate. (James 2:26) Paul agreed and added that when death comes, the inner man (soul and spirit) goes immediately to heaven or hell, while the body (the outer man) “sleeps” until the resurrection promised at 1 Thessalonians 4:16.
So there is no biblical support that our souls sleep until the resurrection. Simply stated, it’s false doctrine and the Bible warns us about those who teach false doctrines, like soul sleep: “If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing.” (1 Timothy 6:3-4)
That reminds me. Do you remember what Jesus said to the thief at Calvary? He knew that Jesus was Lord and asked him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Jesus didn’t tell the thief that he’d have to sleep on it. “I tell you the truth,” he said, “today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:42-43)
Now if that isn’t sound instruction from our Lord, then I don’t know what is!
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