by
Rev. Robert S. Jungé
It will be right away
"And Jesus said (to the thief on the cross) ‘Verily
I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." (Luke
23:43)
Angels are in human form
When the angels appeared to Abraham, "And he lift up
his eyes and looked and lo, three men stood by him;" (Gen 18:2) and
he stood by them under the tree as they ate.
"And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat under
an oak which was in Ophrah…And the angel of the Lord appeared unto
(Gideon), and said unto him, The Lord is with thee….And Gideon went in,
and made ready a kid and unleavened cakes…And the angel of God said unto
him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock…Then
the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand…."
(Judges 6:11,19,20,21)
Jesus Himself set the example by appearing in complete
human form after He was risen from death even when "the doors were
shut." (John 20:19)
Mary thought He was a gardener. The disciples on the road
to Emmaus thought He was another man, but they knew Him when "their
eyes were opened." (Luke 24:31)
Angels lived before as men
"And I John saw these things, and heard them. And
when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the
angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it
not for I am they fellow servant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of
them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God." (Revelation
22:8,9)
Heaven and Hell are clearly
separated
In the Lord’s parable of the rich man and Lazarus we
read, "But Abraham said,…and beside all this, between us and you
there is a great gulf fixed; so that they which would pass from hence to
you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from
thence." (Also notice Abraham was there, very much alive) (Luke
16:19ff)
People who lived in this world are
living now
"Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at
the bush, when he called the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the
living: for all live unto him." (Luke 20;37-38)
No return to this body
When David’s son was dying David prayed for his life.
After his death he said, "While the child was yet alive, I fasted and
wept; for I said, Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that
the child may live: But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast: can I
bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to
me." (2 Samuel 12:22-23)
We rise with spiritual bodies
"Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the
dead, how say some among you there is no resurrection of the dead: But if
there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen…So also
is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in
incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory; it is sown
in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is
raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual
body." (I Corinthians 15:12,13,42-44)
We note these passages to indicate that an immediate
entrance into eternal life with a spiritual body is a possible
interpretation of Scripture. We are aware that other interpretations of
Scripture are possible. The question is, which interpretation fits with a
loving God and the life according to the Commandments that is so clearly
taught in Scripture?
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