State of the Dead

When teachers of Biblical wholeness speak of the importance of the doctrine, they usually make one of a few arguments. Certainly there are more, but these are the most common reasons given by them that the doctrine is important.

1) Opens us up for demonic deception

This is perhaps the most common objection is that if we do not hold to this doctrine that the nature of humanity is not a soul that lives in a shell, then demonic agencies can take on the personalities of dead loved ones and deceive us into believing a lie.

Read the Rest Here

The Bible provides a peek into understanding the state of those who die and wait for the resurrection at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ. The Psalmist tells us that our thoughts perish at death in Psalms 146:4. In addition, the dead do not praise the Lord in Psalms 115:17. Certainly if one were to live in the state between death and resurrection, that one would praise God and have cognitive function.

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Here is a link to Oscar Cullmann's important work on the resurrection of the dead in contrast to the doctrine of the natural immortality of humanity.