Ten reasons to believe in life after death
Ten reasons to believe in life after death
10 April 2020
'Our Daily Bread Ministries' considers the evidence that we don't have to face death with fear and uncertainty.
Easter is the foundation of a Christian’s faith; the resurrection of Jesus the pivotal moment in history when death was conquered once and for all. The apostle Paul emphasised the critical importance of Christ being raised from the dead, and by association opening the way to eternal life for all those who believe in him, when he wrote: “But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith ... If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:12-14; 19).
So, can we believe the promises of the Bible that there is life after death – and that it lasts forever? The greatest fears of life are often connected to the unknown, and for many people the greatest unknown is what happens one second after death. Here, however, we consider the evidence that we don’t have to face death with fear and uncertainty.
1. The injustices of life
It would be difficult to believe that life is good if we knew there was nothing beyond the grave to compensate for problems of inequality and unfairness. While some people seem destined for happiness, others are born into terrible relationships and circumstances. If we could be sure there was nothing to offset unequal distribution of suffering, many would have reason to curse the day of their birth for the way life has treated them (Job 3:1-3). We could agree with King Solomon who at a low point in his life said: “I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed – and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors – and they have no comforter. And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive. But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 4:1-3).
2. Beauty and balance
There is much about life that doesn’t seem to correspond with personal problems of unfairness and hardship. But for all that is hurtful and unequal, there is beauty and balance. For moments of horror and violence, there are times of harmony and peace. As age-worn bodies succumb to pain and weakness, children and young animals play with carefree joy. Human art, in all of its glory, corresponds to birds in playful flight and morning song. Each sunset and dawn provides an answer to nature’s need for rest and renewal. Dark nights and cold winters come with the awareness that “this too shall pass”. If there is nothing beyond the grave, the pattern of nature is stunningly incomplete.
3. Near-death experiences
The clinical evidence for life after death is subjective and arguable. It’s often hard to assess the significance of “out-of-body experiences”, encounters with bright lights, long tunnels, or angelic guides. It’s difficult to know how to respond to those who speak of temporary near-death visions into heaven or hell. What we do know is that there are enough of these kinds of experiences to create a sizable library on the subject. Taken as a whole, this body of evidence shows that as people approach death, many sense they are coming not to the end of existence but to the beginning of another journey.
4. A place in the heart
The human heart hungers for more than this life offers. Each of us experiences what King Solomon called “eternity in [our] hearts” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). While it is difficult to know what Solomon meant, it is apparent that he was referring to an inescapable longing for something this world cannot satisfy. It was an emptiness of soul that Solomon could not escape. For a while, he tried to fill this inner void with work, alcohol, and laughter. He tried to satisfy his longings with philosophy, music, and sexual relationships. But his disillusionment grew. Only when he returned to his confidence in a final judgment and afterlife could he find something large enough to satisfy his longing for significance (Ecclesiastes 12:14).
5. Universal beliefs
While some believe it’s impossible to know whether there is life after death, belief in immortality is a timeless phenomenon. From the pyramids of the Egyptians to the reincarnation of New Age thinking, people of all times and places in history have believed that the human soul survives death. If there is no consciousness or laughter or regret beyond the grave, then life has fooled almost everyone from the Pharaohs of Egypt to Jesus of Nazareth.
6. An eternal God
The Bible names God as the source of immortality. It describes his nature as eternal. The same Scriptures tell us that God created us in his likeness and that his plan is to welcome his children eventually into his eternal home. The Scriptures also teach that God introduced death into human experience when our first ancestors trespassed into the darkness of forbidden territory (Genesis 3:1-19). The implication is that if God allowed the human race to live forever in a rebellious condition, we would have unending opportunity to develop into proud, self-centred creatures. Instead, God began to unfold a plan that would ultimately result in the eternal homecoming of all who chose to be at peace with him (Psalm 90:1; John 14:1-3).
7. Old Testament predictions
Some have argued that immortality is a New Testament idea. But the Old Testament prophet Daniel spoke of a day when those who sleep in the dust of the earth will be resurrected, some to life and some to everlasting shame (Daniel 12:1-3). An author of the Psalms also spoke of the afterlife. In the 73rd Psalm, a man named Asaph described how he almost lost his faith in God when he considered how evil people prospered and the godly suffered. But then he said he went into the sanctuary of God. From the perspective of worship, he suddenly saw evil men standing on the slippery ground of their mortality. With new insight, he confessed: “You guide me with your counsel, and afterwards you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:24-26).
8 Quotes of Christ
Few would accuse Jesus of being an evil man or a false teacher. Even atheists and people belonging to non-Christian religions usually refer to Jesus with deference and respect. But Jesus wasn’t vague or indefinite about the reality of a continuing personal existence after death. He said: “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” (Matthew 10:28). Jesus promised Paradise to the repentant thief who was dying at his side, but he also used the Valley of Hinnom – a foul garbage dump outside of Jerusalem – as a symbol of what awaits those who insist on risking the judgment of God. According to Jesus, facing the reality of life after death is the most significant issue of life. He said, for example, that if an eye keeps you from God, you have reason to get rid of that eye. “It is better for you to enter the Kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell” (Mark 9:47).
9 The resurrection of Christ
There is no greater evidence for the existence of life after death than the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Old Testament predicted a Messiah who would overcome sin and death for his people (Isaiah 53; Daniel 9:26). The testimony of Jesus’ followers is that he did just that. He voluntarily died at the hands of executioners, was buried in a borrowed tomb, and then three days later left that tomb empty. Witnesses said that they had seen not only an empty tomb but a resurrected Christ who appeared to hundreds of people over a period of 40 days before ascending to heaven (Acts 1:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8).
10 Practical effects
Belief in life after death is a source of personal security, optimism, and spiritual betterment (1 John 3:2). Nothing offers more courage than the confidence that there is a better life for those who use the present to prepare for eternity. Belief in the unlimited opportunities of eternity has enabled many to make the ultimate sacrifice of their own life in behalf of those they love. It was his belief in life after death that enabled Jesus to say: “What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” (Matthew 16:26). It is the same truth that prompted Christian martyr Jim Elliot, who was killed in 1956 by the Auca Indians, to say: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.”
Article reproduced with permission from Our Daily Bread Ministries. For more information please go to ourdailybread.org
Comments
I believe there is a life after death. It wouldn’t make any sense if there wasn’t. There’s so many more reasons to believe there is a life after death then to not. I mean just the fact that life even exists is magical, how humans exist, cats, dogs, so on and so forth. I believe we were created by someone or something. It’s just crazy how we evolved over all these years, what were capable of and the abilities we have, to go from being cave men like in the beginning to creating and inventing cars, planes, buildings and everything. It’s a different kind of magic. Say If there wasn’t anything afterwards, what about baby’s and kids who die... people who live on the streets and have nothing in life. People in poverty etc. Do they not get a shot at any other life. It just wouldn’t make sense to me what so ever. Some scientists believe it all started with the Big Bang. If so, something would’ve started and triggered that and the list just goes on. It’s beyond our imagination. And just how every connects the dots such as the sun being in a perfect alignment, breathing oxygen from trees and the fact that we were even put on this planet that were able to live on unlike the others, you know. It’s beyond us, we’ll never know and we’re clearly not supposed to otherwise that would change everything.
These are your reasons why it feels better to believe but not one of them is logical. And I get it- the entire idea is absolutely nonsensical so why would you have ten valid reasons, right? But you are saying there is an after life because humans long for one? How in the world does that make it exist? I long for many things that I will never get.
There is an after life, you say, because “injustices of life!?” Yes that’s exactly why man made up He’ll. What good god would create people in its image and then ounish them in all sorts of heinous ways for being just that? And why not just snap his fingers and have them not exist? Why does a Good God need to torment mere human beings for being as flawed as he made them!? Try again. But wanting this to be true- beefing this punitive retribution is sick. I tell u what- I would rather live a life where god protected me than one where he lets all kinds crap happen to me and then he gets the people who hurt me... later... after they are done enjoying their lives.
Quotes of Christ, the resurrection? The Old Testament? Why not just say “because the Bible said so?” Why pretend like you were going to offer fair and balanced points.
I could go on and on. This article is just... pathetic.
While I don't agree with any of the ten reasons stated I do believe that an afterlife can be reasoned to exist.
Wow! What you have said is heavy. I’ve read what you just said and wondered the same things. If scientists say the Big Bang created everything how could the Big Bang have been created? Certainly makes you wonder?
While I generally believe that we were created by something I find the design to be less “intelligent” than it’s made out to be. There are many flaws in it from the get go, and no not all of them are from the fall. Furthermore, I feel as sorry for the poor and sick as you do, but I acknowledge most things in life are unjust by nature. We’ve routinely come up with afterlife stories to make ourselves feel better about the world’s ills, and one may be true, but some seem to be standing in an inability to accept something as final as death.
turtles are food which means god is fake
There is a theory that two universes smashed into each other which created this one we live in and it happened for an infinite amount of times till the conditions for life were perfect. I personally believe in reincarnation and that might make life seem unimportant but every lifetime is special . And that reincarnation is heavily connected to the multiverse, for instance a person might know their sibling but they died in this reality long ago they describe their sibling's house differently to how it is but its only because they remember it in their past live in a different universe. People's pasts stories only don't make sense because its different in this reality.
The first friend to embrace is the fear of death.
I do not believe in life after death, I think its just wishful thinking and hope that this is not "all there is". The system uses the belief to control the masses, if there were no Hell how could you control billions of people, it would be impossible to do with out imprisoning millions or killing millions. No its a good clean way of control. Give the masses hope of everlasting life in heaven if they behave, work, pay their taxes, buy the products they sell, obey the rules ( that they set) and the threat that if they don't there will be eternal damnation.
I believe it is necessary to control the masses or there would just be mayhem, and I think that this is the most humane way to do it. I take my hat off to those who thought it out. Well done!!
Then how does god exist? He doesn’t.
I agree with Jesse. I never had researched the afterlife before I lost my beautiful daughter last year on August 10,2020. In order to survive I had to research day and night the afterlife, near death experiences, the consciousness and the ability for the consciousness to survive the death of the body. There are so many very intelligent people who believe in this like we do. So many doctors have seen patients flatline, be pronounced dead, yet they come back and report the same miraculous experience and rise above their bodies and even hear the conversations in the operating room beneath them . While they were away they make that connection to the unknown that feels more comforting than our own existence. All around the world people who have had these experiences report the light, the unconditional love, the peace , the life review, the reconnection with those who have passed, the timeless existence, and infinite happiness. Many come back and bring a message and feel a sense of purpose here on earth like never before . Top physicists confirm that the consciousness exists beyond the death of the body. The renowned physicist, Sir Roger Penrose, who is considered a true genius by his peers, describes how the consciousness lives on a quantum level after the death of the body . I now have no doubt that my daughter still exists and is in a different realm or dimension and it’s a better place than this earth I am sure. I’ve even researched mediums and watched the series on Netflix called Surviving Death, which is very interesting. Mediums, true mediums say that all of us are capable of communicating with our loved ones. You don’t have to be a medium to communicate with someone who has left their body and lives in the other realm. I know it sounds strange and far fetched, but I do believe it’s possible, but your belief level must be high. It’s almost like tuning into a radio station deep inside your soul , until you find that right frequency and then it can and will happen if you believe and love. Yes, I think love has a lot to do with it and when you love someone very deeply who has left this earth, I believe now, that love can move mountains and is infinite and enables the communication on this level. It’s very difficult to describe or explain, you have to experience it for yourself. I will tell you that it brings you peace and comfort and even happiness. I am like a baby learning to crawl in this new world that I am researching. I believe that we are all on an infinite journey and this world is only a small part of that journey .
Agreed life is infathamable to comprehend and conceive as even an idea. In the here and now is all I know yet still a mystery. As I question where do i go after death another question begs an answer. Where was "I" before I was born?
Jesse, I think the exact same as you about all of this! If there's no afterlife what would even be the point in all of this? Why wouldn't we just be worms or everything just all be the same? God had to create us and he made us all different, and this earth is just so magnificent! I just can't even imagine when we die that's it there's nothing else. I guess unless it's to pass everything we've learned to the next generation, but I really hope there's more to all of this!
We have the perfect body to survive on a planet which supplies all the right combination of chemicals/temp/resources/atm/pressure... .This planet on which we were created produces the proper mix of oxygen/nitrogen and contains the hydrological/ecological ... cycles since the beginning of human beings(although man is slowly destroying nature’s miracles).A miracle of its own can only forecast that which lies ahead is not the end of existence for individual life as well as mankind as a whole.
Thank you.
@Jesse:
@Jesse:
Thanks you for writing this comment, it made me believe in some way there may be something after life, I’m so scared for death I’m scared what happens after death, but I have to hope and believe there is something good after death, a new life. I don’t know.
Funtastic
So true
So true
I have reasons not to believe that the dead sleep after death. I was out of my body fully conscious and found myself lying in bed. I thought, if I'm seeing myself sleeping, then I'm seeing with the eyes of my soul and I'm not that body. The same thing happened with Paul, he was in person in the spiritual world and received teachings so different from what he believed, that he thought it better to remain silent. However, Paul recognized afterward that "if we have a fleshly body it is because we have a spiritual one". Today I am more open to research and less attached to biblical traditions, and I am grateful to Christ Jesus for that. Amen?
Wordsworth and many others said that life's worth is far too great to come to a final end in the grave. All the wonders of the earth cannot be discovered in such a vapor of life. The longing of the soul to discover and experience what we deeply yearn for must be met at some time whether here or in the hereafter.
glory to God in the Highest the master over death, sin and sickness.
Pure nonsense
There's gotta be a life after death, our soul never dies, we can feel the energy rising when we meditate, there are TONS of NDE's. Doctors who confirm that they are not hallucinations. What would be the purpose of life if there was no spiritual world??
Reincarnation exists too, all the people who die unexpected get to reincarnate into another one, if not, explain why we have fears? why some "weird" dreams in which we have families or lives or people we have never seen.? They are a glimpse of our other lives....
Perhaps if we knew there was a better life after this people would be killing themselves to get there and maybe that's the reason we are only allowed to only use 10% of our brain. The older you get and the closer you get to dying it's worrisome and scary to think there is not life after death
@Jesse: Your words have helped me in reflecting about life after death. Today I suddenly went into a panic thinking about my own mortality and my fear of there being nothing after death, I opened my Bible, searched online, talked to friends all to try and find comfort but your words helped me to think instead of fear and I guess that in the end you're right, it's these little things such as a word from someone years ago being able to help someone in the future going through so much that makes me think that there must be a reason, It just wouldn't make sense for everything to be random, I mean, why would our cells even work to live if there was no reason to do so? Why would we even be compelled to keep living if there's nothing after waiting for us? It just wouldn't make sense.
Thank you for helping me in these troubling times.
It dosent matter if it is true or not. One day the sun will say stop. And the doom will come . None will survive and whopps everyone is dead forever
That makes sense like the pyramids no one can explain plus the signals we get
Makes sense to me have had signals as well
Hi,
I have been reading everyone's comments here.
I recently lost my father,he was 83.Iam looking at answers as to is there an afterlife??
Not until you have Lost some one close too you, that you really want to believe that life carries on after death.
Was seeing my mother in pieces at the hospice, shedding her tears over my dad,was dying of prostrate cancer.
Was seeing my father for final time,at the funeral laying in his coffin, was like this not my father anymore just a shell for a body.
Iam not practicing Christian, but I believe when we go,we just leave our bodies behind, our souls carry on
unfortunately, people are struck by grief and not reality, Everyone wants to think the best but the reality is the next generation and the next generation and that's it. You are dead and you will not come back at all. Wish it was different but nobody has come back to me to tell me any other story. Go to a stately home on your days out. See the generations in front of you . They existed many years ago, but all died.
Its hard to think we are only here for such a short time , but the reality says we are
Mark, Pull out your Bible and start reading. There is more proof of the legitimacy of the writing of Scripture than of any other historical book from antiquity. We just have to believe what the Bible says, and Heaven and Life Everlasting is promised. I am cynical too, and I asked an old woman what should convince me to believe, and she said: Look at the miracles that have already happened in your life. Keep watching for miracles, small and large. Have you experienced miracles? I am sure you have. Well, there is another miracle that will happen after your heart stops beating.
Ian, the resurrection of Christ is hard to believe, but there is a lot of evidence that this miracle happened. And, if so, we too can rise from the dead. Another person commented here about the miracle that we even exist at all on Earth. Divine Act of Creation. We are not here by random chance. We are too intricately designed, as is the Earth. Look at all the miracles, and trust in one more miracle that will happen after your heart stops beating.
As a medical provider I know there no life after death but why are you so afraid of that? God was invented by men to control the masses. And atheist do not believe in heaven or hell nor do they care what happens you die you turn into dust and get recycled.
I too have had some personal experiences that have erased my doubts . I asked God for a sign that my daughter's mom was ok -she was killed in an accident in 1993. I thought of 3 songs that reminded me of her and asked God to let me hear them on my Walkman as a sign while I was walking that day in July 2001 . Immediately I heard all 3 songs right in a row!!! I was absolutely AMAZED and to this day!!! I believe God heard my prayers and gave me a precious gift and I am so thankful! The bible says seek and ye shall find God ! What would the odds be for this to happen -almost non existent! But it did and just at a moment that I needed God's help bad!!!! God exists!!! PLEASE EVERYONE BELIEVE!!
Read the Quran ( last book from God ) ,It will answer ,our every questions . Moreover,when we will read Quran ,we will realise that most of things about which we came to know ,were already there in Quran ( Quran was revealed about 14000 years ago) .
May Allah give Hadiyat to all human beings .
@Nurse:
So just by being a nurse you think you can state categorically that there is no life after death. Please explain how you know this, just by being a nurse. I can assure you there are many nurses who do believe and have good reasons to. Tell us why you have good reason not to.
I would love to see my father again
I really like your opinion on the afterlife definitely make me feel a little better, being age 23 I got nothing to worry about yet but you know it’s hard knowing u might not ever see family ever again and we might be able to only enjoy a life on earth, we all know something to be created needed a creator, to think everything exists around us and we just this little dot in the universe is crazy, but you know we would be crazy to think of nothing existing after as we exist today why wouldn’t their be an existence in death
My mother passed away last week! I've gotten plenty signs, some with plenty witnesses, that there is something after death! That's all the curious here need to believe!
I don’t know what to believe whether there is an afterlife or not. It just makes sense that we lose consciousness and see nothing but at the same time I want there to be an afterlife so I can see my family again. I don’t mind either way though it would be like being where I was before I was alive just forever.
Hey all
I'm a Muslim I'm here to clear you all
Not to complicate thinking just think if science is everything then why science is taking inspiration from the things that are already created ??
I'm an AI engineer after studying neural networks and everything I completely understand how God is efficient to make humans.
God exists so afterlife there are reasons.
1) Why don't we believe that we will be create again ? Don't we think how we came to this life
2) Human dependency
Human are dependent no science can ever taken or stopped someone from dying.
3) We live where life only exists
4) emotions exists mechanism exists
Who have decided that a baby can grow in mother's tummy ?? Who has decided woman has to go through menstruations?
And don't come to me with useless feminism stuff I see my cat she has babies she loves them and care that's nature
5) why everything is so balanced right now???? And why one day earth will die sun will die ???
I think to say either way on whether or not there is an afterlife may be a limiting opinion. Maybe for some there is, maybe for some there isn't. What is the meaning of reincarnation? I feel I have book-ended my understanding of what this could possibly mean with the suggestions and possible experiences of others, from religious beliefs, and also from human generated cynicism and flippant thought on the subject that may have been inspired by a particular time or experience without giving it genuine thought from the 'sole' of consciousness. Rather than give a definitive answer on the subject, maybe an 'I don't know' is more appropriate. Because maybe each soul has its own journey, perhaps each consciousness requires its own experience to develop and clarify where it is uniquely at and what it has experienced. Perhaps we should have greater faith in our 'selves', and our ability to live life wholly and completely as a whole and realised entity. Perhaps we do soul work in an afterlife that we needed to, to venture forward on soul's journey, or maybe we need respite for a moment to digest a life experience before proceeding on to a new one. There is likely many more answers than one. Fear of the unknown may have tried to push us to try and find a definitive answer. But maybe it's giving the soul more credit in what it already knows, and trusting life and ourselves, and not being afraid to open ourselves up to ourselves and allowing ourselves to be. If there was a heaven we go to when we die, wouldn't it be a bit over crowded with no one wanting to leave? What would be the point to living if Nirvana only laid beyond it? Maybe an afterlife gives the soul a chance to work itself out. It seems such an elaborate waste though if life was lived only once. Questioning is good, as is being brave and trusting of life. Maybe we are our own creators, so maybe the best understanding is that which we have of ourselves.
Your deep and thoughtful exploration of heaven is a testament to your profound connection to the concept. Each post is a journey into the sublime, a masterclass in capturing the essence of paradise. Your words are like keys to unlock the gates of heaven, inviting us to step inside and experience its profound beauty and tranquility. Your blog is a treasure trove of celestial wisdom, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have discovered it.
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I'd just like to point something out to the people that have said in their comments that one day the sun will die and then the earth and everything on it will also die.
Well, I'd just like to point out that this is necessary the case. To understand why, you need to also understand a little bit about physics and in particular, nuclear physics. The Sun is powered by nuclear power. In order to achieve a nuclear reaction in the same manner as in the way that the Sun is powered we need to understand what is meant by 'a chain reaction'. This is basically a continuous cycle.
When an atom is split, it not only releases an enormous amount of energy, it also creates two 'new atoms'. When these 'new atoms' are split, they both create a further two 'new atoms' each. So now there are four 'new atoms'. This cycle of atoms splitting and creating new atoms continues indefinitely. So this is what is meant by a 'chain reaction'. So for this reason it is absolutely possible that the Sun could, in theory, continue to burn and release energy in the form of heat for an indefinite amount of time. It doesn't need a 'fuel source' as such to burn, as it creates it's own fuel source by it's continuous nuclear chain reaction.
Although this has nothing whatsoever to do with the subject of 'The afterlife', I just felt that I had to point it out to those who seem to believe that the Sun will simply burn out and then all life on Earth will cease to exist as a result, isn't necessarily the case. There is every possibility that the Sun will continue to burn and heat the Earth indefinitely by it's continuous nuclear chain reaction.