The Road to Emmaus: 15 Tips for Effective Witnessing

Don Mackintosh, Director of AFCOE In Luke 24, we find a wonderful example of Christ’s witnessing manner and method in a powerful post-resurrection story. In this article, we’ll uncover 15 witnessing tips that can be gleaned from this one Bible passage, which can help you become a more effective and confident witness!
Let’s pick up the story in verses 13–15:
Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them (NKJV).

Witnessing Tip #1: Draw Near

Christ was not aloof. He went to where people gathered. He “drew near and went with them.” The root meaning of the phrase “drew near” is to come near in time and place. Christ sought out the hurting.
While much of the gospel work can be accomplished from afar, ultimately, most people need a personal, real-time connection. They need someone who will reach them where they are and become acquainted with them. They need someone who will sympathetically apply Scripture to their specific situations.
But before we go too far, notice the next verse …

Their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him
(v. 16 NKJV).

What an interesting concept! Here Scripture indicates that the eyes of these two men were restrained and they did not know that it was Jesus. The Lord wanted them to be able to focus on what He was saying rather than who He was.
Drawing near to people and witnessing to them does not necessarily require that the first thing we do is adopt an in-your-face, full-disclosure approach; sometimes much more can be accomplished if we remain “undercover” and reveal things as souls are able to digest them. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now” (John 16:12 NKJV).

Witnessing Tip #2: Measure Your Approach

So don’t always make your purpose known unless the situation warrants it.
Of course, there are times when you must let people know who you are to avoid being counterproductive. For instance, if you knock on someone’s door, they have the right to know right away who you are and why you are there.
However, in other venues, for instance, when you are traveling, you have the luxury of letting things play out, which can provide big advantages for effective witness.
But for this to occur, we need to be aware of the “conversation” and “reasoning” that we hear people using.
The word “conversation” in verse 15 comes from the Greek root for logos or “word.” The word “reason” comes from the Greek root logismos, where we get the word “logic.”
We could take this to mean that instead of making Himself known right away, Christ chose to listen to and learn about those He was trying to reach.

Witnessing Tip #3: Listen to Them

Listen to the words people are using, listen to their logic, when you are witnessing to them. You can learn much about who they are and what their needs are. This can provide a foundation and direction for what you later share when it is time to make yourself and your purpose better known. It is easier to tailor your teaching to their specific needs if you listen to their concerns and take them to heart.
What did Jesus do to gather more needed information?

He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?” (v. 17 NKJV).

We can find at least two more fruitful witnessing tips in this short verse.

Witnessing Tip #4: Explore Their Hearts

Ask open-ended questions to better know your new friends and get additional background. It is simply amazing the amount of information people will volunteer once they begin talking. When you ask open-ended questions, people often don’t feel pressured and will share what’s in their hearts. They also feel valued because they are being listened to, rather than “witnessed to” or “preached at.”
But did you notice the other element in Christ’s question? He not only asked about their conversation, He also noted and asked about what their facial expressions and body language were communicating.

Witnessing Tip #5: Be Aware of Everything

Ask the Spirit to give you Christ-like awareness and discernment. Jesus saw that these two men were sad (literally gloomy or of mournful appearance), and He specifically asked them why they were so!
Facial expressions matter, and they can tell a lot about what’s going on in someone’s head. It’s never safe to assume anything based on just a facial expression, but it certainly does not hurt to ask.
Jesus’ question and observation drew a revealing response from one of His travel companions.

Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?” And He said to them, “What things?” (vs. 18, 19 NKJV).

As you “listen” to Cleopas, can you sense his sadness? Perhaps he sounds a little bit angry too. Interestingly, this is in keeping with the actual meaning of the word translated as “sad,” which can include the idea that the person is also experiencing anger.
But Christ, the master communicator, recognizes that it’s still not quite time to speak. He hears within Cleopas’ question the desire to share even more information, so He beckons Cleopas to continue by asking, “What things?”
As you read Cleopas’ answer, see if you can identify and diagnose the cause for his sad anger:

The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see (vs. 19–24 NKJV).

Did you see the reason for Cleopas’ anger? He offered it! So what was the problem? These two were despondent and their conversation with one another was not helping one bit; it was only further depressing them.
Bottom line, they had lost hope and were in a very vulnerable and discouraged state of mind.

Witnessing Tip #6: Be Patient

If you patiently wait long enough, people will often tell you their problems and give you a chance to offer a solution.
What Christ said next would be of vital importance to them physically, mentally, and spiritually. It could very well be the difference between life and death for them.
So what did He say?

He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” (v. 25 NKJV).

While at first it could appear that Christ’s choice of words might seem ill advised, they are actually saturated with meaning.
First, Jesus says, “Oh foolish ones.” Should a fool know better? Is a fool unintelligent or merely unwise? What exactly is a fool anyway? Well, according to one Scripture, a fool is one who says “in his heart, There is no God” (Psalm 14:1).
So what we have now is a picture of two individuals who had walked and talked with Christ for three years but were in danger of walking with God no more. They were about to give up completely, even questioning their faith and trust in God.
Let’s go to the next phrase: “slow of heart.” Slowness of heart in the Greek is bradeis cardia, and it’s where we get the word “bradycardia,” which is a term used in medicine today to describe a dangerously low heart rhythm. In other words, their spiritual foolishness had caused them to lose heart.
What was the cause of this life-threatening condition? Because they had not “believed all the prophets had spoken.” And because of this selective and faulty reasoning, what was actually a magnificent blessing was something they thought was the worst possible curse; what was depressing them was supposed to be seen as a glorious fulfillment of Bible prophecy. “Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things to enter into his glory?”
Here the entire tone of this witnessing experience changes. Christ moves from being an active listener to being an active presenter of heart-saving Bible truth!
But before we look closer at His presentation, let’s remind ourselves of several vital witnessing tips that we’ve just seen.

Witnessing Tip #7: Be Complete

Jesus continued to ask open-ended questions until He and those He was witnessing to had shared enough information to have a complete picture of the diagnosis and the solution.

Witnessing Tip #8: Be Direct

Once Jesus knew the problem and its seriousness, He wasted no time in directly, but tactfully, sharing not only His diagnosis of the problem but also the solution: believing all the prophets have spoken.

Witnessing Tip #9: Offer the Solution First

To be sure that those listening to Him were not devastated by His forthright diagnosis, He shared the conclusion—the hopeful prognosis—they needed to hear before He set out to prove it.
In essence, He said, “Look, I know your pain. I understand it from your perspective, but I’ve got good news for you. You are wrong! What you think is the worst thing in the world is actually the best!”
Of course, He doesn’t just leave them with the conclusion. Notice what He does next!

Beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself (v. 27 NKJV).

Witnessing Tip #10: Be Prepared to Have an Answer

Christ doesn’t just tell them that they are thinking things wrong. He also shows them how to think right through a powerful explanation of Scripture! Jesus knew they were desperate for answers. You could say that He positively reproves them, offering them the correct view of the situation on the basis of Scripture.
Of course, a systematic topical Bible study—that is, looking at everything the Bible has to say about a subject—can have a powerful effect. This is in fact what an evangelist does in every presentation. It’s what we train our AFCOE students to do: to prove and reprove all things from the Word.

Witnessing Tip #11: Make It Personal

As Jesus explains this revelation, He does it in the context of His own personal pain experience and God-glorifying testimony—“the things concerning Himself.”
The most powerful form of witness is often just a simple personal testimony. You must learn to share your testimony whenever it is most useful to do so.
Be careful, however, to not overdo it. Christ actually gauged the continued interest of those who were listening to Him. He did this by indicating that He had to continue on His journey as the other two neared their destination.

Witnessing Tip #12: Gauge Continued Interest

Always monitor whether or not you are getting through to someone or to gauge the interest level of those listening and then tie off your time while interest is still at a peak. You don’t have to share everything at once. You can feed a person too much of even the best food and give them indigestion!
Notice the response of the two men when Christ said He was leaving them …

But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them (v. 29 NKJV).

Now, isn’t this the way you’d like people to act at the end of your Bible study? Constraining, begging you, imploring you to stay and show them more?
Of course, the best part of this wonderful passage is found in the next several verses. See if you can spot the results of effective witnessing.

Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” (vs. 30–32 NKJV).

Did you see the results?
Effective Bible study helps people literally see Jesus. The Word is so filled with Spirit that it can take broken, helpless, “slow” of heart, sin-sick souls and bring them new life and energy. The slow of heart are instead filled with heavenly heartburn!

Witnessing Tip #13: Give the Glory to God

Remember, true witness will lead to the worship of the living Christ, not the preacher or teacher! Keep God as your focus, just as Christ always did.

Witnessing Tip #14: Leave Their Focus on Scripture

Effective witnessing will also lead you to leave while the focus of those you’ve been studying with is firmly focused on the life-changing truth of Scripture.
And what was the ultimate result of Christ’s witness that day?

So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread (vs. 33−35 NKJV).

Witnessing Tip #15: Make Disciples

True witness will lead and inspire those who have learned the truth to share what they’ve learned with the same boldness and clarity.
What a wonderful and practical picture of effective Word-based witnessing! What a wonderful example of simple techniques that not only the disciples but you and I can use in reaching out to others for the King!
Remember, it was this one simple Bible study, given during a short seven-mile walk, that was used by the Spirit to turn the world upside down! They heard the study and were gripped and equipped by it. Their hearts were set on fire, and they couldn’t help but share it with others. And now you’ve heard it and can go share it with others too!

Setting Dates for Christ’s Return

 

By Pastor Doug Batchelor

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.”
—Proverbs 13:12 (NKJV)

Few things cause more sadness than failed expectations. Over time, many believers have been discouraged by failed predictions of Jesus’ coming.
Jesus cautions in Matthew 24:11, “Many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” It’s a straightforward warning that He repeats a little later in verse 24. He says, “If any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not” (v. 23).
The subject of this article is extremely important: dealing with the danger of setting or embracing particular dates for Jesus’ return. Christians need to be reminded periodically what the Bible plainly says about this perilous practice, even now, when it seems like His return could come at any moment.
When anyone starts predicting the day and hour of the second coming, in light of everything Jesus said about what we can know and what we can’t know, it’s reckless.
Still, we’ve all been exposed to these false predictions, and it’s not going to stop. Probably one of the most well-known episodes in recent times was when Harold Camping, president of Family Radio, predicted that Christ would return May 21, 2011. When that date passed, he said it would be October 21, 2011—and obviously, if you’re reading this article, we’re still here. His adherents were so convinced that judgment day would occur that many sold everything they had to announce this prediction all across America.
Sadly, Camping had already once predicted that Jesus would come in September 1994. His followers did not learn from his first mistake, but had they known their Bibles, they would have seen the Word is very clear on the matter of date setting. That’s why it’s so important for you and I to be clear about it too.

A Brief History of Date Setting
History is replete with those who have set a date or two for Christ to return—and then watched those dates come and go. There isn’t enough space here to cover all of the false prognostications, but it would be good to cover a few high points.
But first, let me clarify that some of these date setters were well meaning, so I’m not judging their love for the Lord. Some of them just misapplied Bible verses and overzealously proclaimed it on a grand scale ...

• William Miller, a well-intentioned and godly man, said the Lord was coming October 22, 1844. He took Bible prophecies that talked about the sanctuary and misapplied them to the second coming. I believe he had an accurate date but the wrong event.
• Hal Lindsey wrote the bestselling book The Late Great Planet Earth, in which he predicted Jesus would come in 1988. Thousands got excited, but none of it happened. Today, Lindsey still has a TV program where he explains prophecy.
• Edgar C. Whisenant sold 4.5 million copies of his book 88 Reasons Why the Lord Is Going to Come by 1988. Trinity Broadcasting Network interrupted their programming to tell people how to get ready for the rapture. The next day, their normal programming simply resumed.

Non-Christians Aren’t Immune
It’s not just Christians who are interested in apocalyptic date setting. Remember Y2K? And once again a troubled world is asking questions about the end. You’ve likely heard about the Mayan calendar, which some say declares the last day on December 21, 2012. However …

Authors disagree about what humankind should expect. … Sandra Noble, executive director of the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, says, “For the ancient Maya, it was a huge celebration to mark the end of the whole cycle; to render December 21st, 2012 as a doomsday ... is a complete fabrication and a chance for a lot of people to cash in” (USA Today, 3/27/2007, emphasis added).

Did you catch that? It’s not only televangelists trying to “cash in” on date setting. It’s also people trying to sell books or tickets to a movie.
My wife Karen and I were in Belize recently and explored the Mayan ruins. At one point, I was sitting in a van with a driver who was Mayan and asked him about it. He just laughed and said, “It doesn’t mean anything.” So why do we get so excited about these things?

Do We Really Want to Know?
There’s a certain amount of insecurity we all feel about the future, knowing our lives are going to end. Perhaps some just want to know when their time is up so they can fit everything in on their bucket list before it’s too late.
Still, if you could know the day you were going to die, would you want to? What if I told you it was 100 years from now? Would you feel better about it? If it’s next week, would you want to know? Are you ready for it? For you, the jury might still be out.
What kind of attitude should you have about the second coming? Fortunately, the Bible tells us. Even in New Testament times, self-styled prophets were unsettling everybody by predicting dates for the end. Paul writes quite a bit about the second coming in 2 Thessalonians. He says, “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord ... we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter” (2:1, 2 NKJV).
It’s interesting that he says not to be troubled. Everything else we read in the Bible offers a sense of urgency—“I am coming quickly”—yet Paul says here, “Wait a second! Don’t be shaken.” Even if you have a dream, hear it spoken by a famous evangelist, read it in a bestselling book, or even if a spirit appears saying it has the exact date calculated—don’t be troubled! Why? Because we don’t base our conclusions on dreams. It’s got to go along with what the Word of God says.

What Does God Want Us to Know?
Does the Lord want you to calculate the day of His coming? In Mathew 24, Jesus says, regarding the temple in Jerusalem, that not one stone was going to be left upon another. His disciples surely thought, “Wow! That must be the end of the world!” So they asked Jesus when these things would be. But see how Jesus answers them in verse 36: “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.”
In Acts 1:6, we read, “They asked Him, saying, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ And He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.’” Notice that emphasis—the Father has it in His own authority.
Instead, Jesus takes them from their focus on when He’s coming back and places it elsewhere. “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me … to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8 NKJV). The reason Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit is not so we can untangle a mathematical secret and announce it in a book. No! He gives us the Holy Spirit so we can live godly lives and bring people to the cross.
“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them [food] in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing” (Matthew 24:45, 46). Jesus wants us to be feeding others the Word of God. He doesn’t want us to be running off to some wilderness hideout, holing up like hermits waiting for the end. You might have met people like this. They want to calculate a date because they want to know when to start liquidating their assets, running to the hills, storing up their ammo and dry goods. They want to know that they are ready for the end. Who are they thinking about? Themselves. They’re not thinking about helping the lost get ready to meet Jesus.
Christians ought to be as motivated to share the gospel now as His disciples were then. Christ has not withdrawn His commission simply because He’s closer to coming back than yesterday. Why do we need a date to stir us up? After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, our church had our best attendance in years. We had people spilling out of the sanctuary. They thought, “Maybe it’s the end; I’d better get back to church.” But Luke 12:40 says, “Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.”

You Might Not Know What You Think You Know
As a prophecy teacher, I’ve often been asked if the ongoing economic crisis is a sign that Jesus is coming. My answer is, “Yes and no.” (I’m not trying to hedge my bets, mind you.) Yes in that it shows we can’t put our trust in money. But no in that Jesus doesn’t say that after great economic stress He’ll come. He actually suggests otherwise: “As it was also in the days of Lot: they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded” (Luke 17:28). In the days of Lot, the citizens were out being industrious and investing their gold the same day the end came.
In a sense, the prophecies of Scripture are better understood looking back. For instance, we know Jesus prophesied His death to the apostles. How many times did He tell them plainly that He was going to be betrayed, crucified, and would rise again? How much good did it do for the disciples? In Luke 24:6–8, after the faithful women arrived at the tomb, the angels said,

He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered his words.

Typically, the truth of the future can be kind of fantastical—it goes in one ear and out the other because it’s beyond our understanding. Jesus says in John 13:19, “Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.” He’s saying He wants to reveal the future so that when those events happen, people will understand that Jesus is the point of all prophecy. Indeed, prophecy isn’t always about knowing exactly when this or that will happen.

What We Can Know Today
How can we be prepared if we don’t know the date? Jesus says,
When it is evening you say, “It will be fair weather, for the sky is red”; and in the morning, “It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.” … You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times (Matthew 16:2, 3 NKJV).
If you’re in the south and you see the barometric pressure dropping, you know it’s time to batten down the hatches. You might not know exactly when that storm will strike, but you do know to be prepared.
In the same way, when we look at the confluence of everything happening in our world, it’s significant. Wars and rumors of war are a daily headline. Political and religious tensions are growing. Monstrous natural disasters seem to strike every other month. Doesn’t it seem to you that if Christ doesn’t come soon, all flesh would die? But knowing this isn’t about a date or hour—it’s about something else altogether.

How You Can Be Ready Even When You Don’t Know
First Thessalonians 5:1–3 is an impressive warning for the people of God:

Concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.

The Lord is not coming at a time when people are looking for a fire escape. Rather, Jesus is going to come at a time when His people are serving Him because of their love for Him. Luke 21:34 says, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly” (NKJV). If we get caught up in the cares of the world, we won’t be preparing our hearts to meet Jesus.
If we’re living lives of consistent surrender and obedience and looking for opportunities to share our faith, we won’t need to worry about the date on the calendar because we’ll be ready every day for the Lord’s coming!

A Spiritual Rush and Depression
One of the major problems with date setting is that it’s like getting your vigor from eating a giant candy bar; sure, you’ll feel a surge of energy, but there will be lethargy afterward. Setting a date gives people an artificial spiritual high. When the date passes, there is a corresponding depression that follows.
The fallout for these false alarms can be an attitude of increasing doubt about the Word of God—like the boy who cried, “Wolf!” Read 2 Peter 3:4 and ask yourself how motivated you would be to live for Christ if you were to stop believing He’s really coming.

His Promise Is Sure
Thousands of date setters have failed, but that doesn’t mean the Lord has forgotten about us. He’s coming back; we might not know the day and the hour, but we know He is coming and the time is near. We just need to be ready for it.
Remember, the Lord doesn’t want us to get ready because we know the date. He wants us to be ready because we know Him. If you’re motivated to get ready because you know a date, you have the wrong motive. How would you live if you thought Jesus was coming in a week? I ask you to live like that now for the rest of your life. Just be the way He wants you to be because you love Him and know He is coming someday soon.
Maybe you haven’t truly accepted Jesus as your Savior, trying to wait until the eleventh hour to get ready. Don’t tempt fate. Wouldn’t you like to know that you’re ready now? God is coming to rescue us from the sin-stained world—that’s a promise.
My prayer is that the Lord will deliver all His people from our inclination to calculate and fix the date on our calendars. Instead, let’s invite Him into our hearts now so we can be ready at any moment.

Confusion in the Cemetery

By Pastor Doug Batchelor

An Amazing Fact: In 1876 a handful of mobsters botched a morbid plan to kidnap the body of Abraham Lincoln and hold it ransom. The hapless grave robbers were arrested just a few days later. Fearing another attempt, the government secretly hid the body of the sixteenth president in an unmarked grave for 25 years. Then in 1901, under the urging of Robert Lincoln, the president’s only surviving child, Lincoln’s body was dug up and placed inside a steel cage, lowered into a 10-foot-deep vault, and buried under tons of concrete. He’s still there today, in his tomb, on the grounds of Oak Ridge Cemetery. So do the dead care when their remains are disturbed? There’s no evidence that Abraham Lincoln ever complained about all the odd grave shuffling.

One of the most important subjects in life is to understand what happens when it’s over. Unfortunately, there is a lot of confusion about death, inside and outside the church, which makes it very difficult for the average person to understand such a vital subject.
Perhaps the greatest understatement ever would be to say that death is unpleasant. In our culture, when people die, we quickly cover them up and whisk them away. We don’t want to think about death, especially when it comes to those we love and ourselves. But the topic must be faced, not only for the practical reason that we’re all touched by it eventually, but because understanding the truth about death is actually good news if you have everlasting life.
It’s not hard to see why people are so confused about what happens when we die. Even the many and varied tombstones at graveyards reveal this state of confusion. For example, one tombstone might read, “Father is sleeping now in the arms of Jesus, waiting for the resurrection trumpet.” But a few tombstones over, one reads, “Mother is now singing on golden streets with the angels.”
So which is it? Are the dead sleeping, waiting for the resurrection, or are they alive somewhere? If so, what are they doing? There is a debate about the afterlife, even among good and honest Christians. This brief study on death will help you see what the most important document in human history —the Holy Bible —really says about the subject.

Life and the Human Soul
Before we can understand what happens at death, we need to understand the basics of how life happened. The Bible tells us that when God made Adam in the garden of Eden, the man became a living soul. “The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7).
Notice it doesn’t say that God “gave man a soul,” but rather, “man became a living soul.” The dust from the ground (the body), combined with the vital breath of life from God, produced a soul.
When someone dies, it is creation in reverse. “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). The spirit that returns to God at death is the energizing breath of life given by God in Genesis 2:7.
“All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils” (Job 27:3). Here Job is talking about “the breath of life” mentioned in Genesis 2:7. In fact, it’s the very same Hebrew word in both passages. At death, the body returns to dust, the breath of life returns to God, and the human soul ceases to exist.

An Eternal Reward—the Afterlife
Nobody is suffering in hellfire today, and the vast majority of people who have died are not in heaven. This might shock you, but it’s exactly what the Bible teaches.
“Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be” (Revelation 22:12). Everyone gets his or her reward when Jesus returns. It’s important to understand this because Jesus hasn’t returned, has He? Judgment Day is still in the future.
“So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more” (Job 14:12 NKJV). The dead do “not rise” from the grave until the heavens are no more. When will the heavens be no more? “The day of the Lord will come … in which the heavens will pass away” (2 Peter 3:10 NKJV). The heavens pass away on the day of the Lord, when Jesus returns to the earth. Until then, the dead do “not rise” from the grave.

But aren’t there people in heaven now?
Yes. A few. They are the exceptions. The Gospels tell the story of the transfiguration, when Moses and Elijah appeared to Jesus on the mountaintop. They were real and in the flesh. Jesus spoke with them; the apostles saw them. They had come from heaven to offer encouragement to Jesus. But how did they get to heaven?
In 2 Kings 2:11, the Bible tells us that Elijah was caught up to heaven in a fiery chariot. Elijah went to heaven, even though he didn’t die. Moses died first, but the Lord raised him up and took him to heaven (Jude 9).
In Matthew 27, during the time when Christ died on the cross, there was a strong earthquake, and many of the graves around Jerusalem opened up. Many of the saints who had died—patriarchs and prophets who lived prior to the time of Christ—were raised in a special resurrection. It doesn’t name names, so we don’t know who they were. But the Bible says they came out of the graves after His resurrection and went into the holy city where they appeared to many.1 At the ascension of Christ, they ascended with Him.2 These resurrected humans were what the Bible calls the first fruits of Jesus’ successful mission.

Empty Cemeteries
When you go to the cemetery, does it ever make you feel creepy? Especially around sundown, are you afraid that some ghost is going to lunge out from the grave and grab your ankle? We’ve been trained in our culture to think that the dead aren’t really dead. But the Bible teaches the dead don’t come back. They can’t communicate. They certainly don’t haunt cemeteries!
Have you ever gone to bed and woken up, thinking you had only slept a short while, then you peek at the clock to discover it was hours longer than you thought? You have no awareness of time in sleep. That’s how the Bible describes the sleep of death. For the saved and the lost, it’s the same.
“Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death” (Psalms 13:3). Death is called “sleep” over and over again in the Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments. Jesus clearly referred to death as “sleep” when speaking about Lazarus. “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep” (John 11:11). The apostles took Jesus literally, so Jesus clarified for them that Lazarus was, indeed, dead.
It took Jesus four days to get to Lazarus’ tomb. Lazarus’ body was decomposing, turning back into dust. Martha was even afraid of the stench of an open tomb. They reluctantly rolled away the stone, and Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!” That’s what Lazarus did.
I believe Jesus allowed Lazarus to be in the grave for four days so there would be no doubt that Lazarus was very dead. Some skeptics suggest that other resurrections in the Bible were probably due to coma, arguing the people weren’t really dead yet. But Lazarus had been embalmed and wrapped up. If he had been alive, he would surely have suffocated to death! The stench of his decomposing body wafted out of the open tomb and gagged them. But Lazarus came out alive at Jesus’ command.
If that happened today, FoxNews and CNN would have called Lazarus for an interview. What do you think would have been their first questions?

• What happened?
• What did you see?
• What did you do?
• Who’d you meet?
• What was it like to be dead?

Despite the fact that this is one of the most public miracles of Jesus, and all the Gospel writers knew about it, we find nothing regarding Lazarus commenting on his experience.
Lazarus has the answer to the biggest question in history! But there’s no comment. Why? Jesus tells us Lazarus was asleep. Lazarus had a fever, he was sick, he lost consciousness, and eventually he died. He didn’t know anything until, all of a sudden, he woke up feeling great, wrapped up in something like perfumed first-aid bandages. He didn’t know what was going on. He was hearing Jesus call him. That’s all he knew. He stumbled to his feet and shuffled to the shiny entrance. To him it was like waking up from a nap.
Some believe that while the body might perish, the soul remains conscious. But the Bible tells us in Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.”

Talking to the Dead
Paul, to the Thessalonians, writes about death, “I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep” (4:13). Paul wants you to understand the truth about death because not understanding this opens you up to deception in the last days.
In fact, there are several prominent television programs that feature folks who allegedly talk to or “channel” the dead. Some of them reveal things only loved ones would know. According to the Bible, it’s not dead people. It is either trickery or Satan’s minions. They know a lot about us, even our secrets. They can use these bits of knowledge to trick you into thinking you’re talking to your dead loved one.
I miss my brother Falcon and would love to talk to him. But I can’t. He’s dead. If anyone appears to me with red hair and freckles claiming to be my brother, as much as I miss him, I know from the Bible it’s not my brother. Either my mind is playing tricks on me or it’s the devil.
There are hundreds of scriptures on the subject of death, so how can the church be so confused on this topic? How has the devil been able to bamboozle Christians? Why has he bothered to put so much energy into deceiving the church on this subject? Because he’s going to use it to his advantage before Jesus comes again! “In the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils” (1 Timothy 4:1).

Why the Truth About Death Is So Important
Of course, you’ve heard reports of near-death experiences, of people on the operating table who floated around the room. Yet researchers have shown that when people temporarily stop breathing, they will quickly build up too much carbon dioxide in their system and hallucinate. Some have interpreted these events as visions, but it’s dangerous to base your theology on an operating table dream or hallucination.
“He said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets” (1 Kings 22:22). There are going to be in the last days lying spirits in the mouths of false prophets. Revelation 16 says these unclean spirits go forth to the kings of the earth, working miracles to deceive. That will have a trickle-down effect and deceive people into thinking they should embrace a certain theology based on the testimony of demons posing to be the spirits of the dead.
“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders” (Matthew 24:24). The spiritualism infecting the church today is going to be used by the devil in the last days to deceive, similar to how he deceived Saul. Israel’s troubled king, in the desperation of his last days, went to see a witch. He saw a devilish apparition, not the dead prophet Samuel, that greatly discouraged him, and he committed suicide the next day.
How can we avoid being deceived in the last days? “They received the word of God with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11). The Word of God is our only sure foundation. “If they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). It doesn’t matter if it looks and sounds just like your departed grandma or Mary the mother of Jesus, and it knows all the intimate secrets only they would know. If someone dead appears to you, it’s of the devil or your brain is not functioning properly.

The Fate of the Righteous
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Jesus made it very clear that this resurrection is in the last days …

“Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life;” [the first resurrection] “and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” [the second resurrection, at the end of the thousand years] (John 5:28, 29).

“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40 NKJV, my emphasis). The words of Jesus could not be clearer! How many are raised when they die? None. The saved are raised up at the “last day.”
One more: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming” (1 Corinthians 15:22, 23 NKJV). The dead believers are raised at Jesus’ coming!
The Bible promises that one day, “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain” (Revelation 21:4). Unfortunately, death is a reality in our world today—and it does and should cause us sorrow. But, most important, you don’t need to be afraid of death. Jesus promises, “He who has the Son has life” (1 John 5:12 NKJV).
That life begins now because Christians don’t die permanently! You might experience a momentary dreamless sleep, but Jesus will awaken you on that great day. You don’t need to be afraid of death if you have Jesus. So I invite you today to accept the fullness of His Word and take His grace into your life.

 A Misunderstood Bible Passage Regarding Death
How do we explain what Jesus told the thief on the cross? “Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). It seems, at first glance, that Jesus is telling the thief that on that very day, both of them will be in heaven together. This is an unfortunate mistranslation. The original Greek had no punctuation, so translators had to guess about where to place a comma. They decided on the common rendering of the text.

But they got it wrong. It should read: “Verily I say unto thee today, shalt thou be with me in paradise.” Jesus is saying, even though right now I don’t look like a king, I’m telling you right now that because you called me Lord and King, you’re going to be with me in heaven.

We know it’s a misplaced comma because Jesus didn’t go to heaven that day! Three days after that promise, Mary saw Jesus after His resurrection and grabbed hold of His ankles. He said, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father” (John 20:17). He could not have been in heaven on Friday! The Bible makes it clear that the thief did not go to heaven with Jesus Friday afternoon.