Does the Soul Actually Sleep After Death?

Hello, and welcome to Through the Bible with Les Feldick, an Oklahoma rancher and farmer. Les Feldick has been teaching homestyle Bible classes for over 20 years in Iowa, Oklahoma, and Texas. Les Feldick's unique style of Bible teaching has made the books of the Bible come to life. When Les is teaching, it's so interesting that people say time just seems to fly by. And now, here is Les Feldick. Okay, good to have everybody back. I guess you've all had your cup of coffee and, you know, we've had some people already complain, what happened to the tables? Well, you know, I always have to explain everything on this program. We moved to this facility and the room just isn't as big as the old one was, but they're still promising us a new studio, so somewhere down the road hopefully we'll have our tables back and our coffee cups and the informality of it all anyway. So those of you watching us on television, if you've never caught our program before, we're just an informal Bible study. We're not associated with any particular group, nobody underwrites us, and I'm constantly being upgraded that I don't make it strong enough that we have to have financial help to stay on the air. So we do, we have to pay our TV bills, and TV time is not cheap, and every time we take on a new station it's just more demands on our budget. So if you enjoy the program and you're being fed by it and the Lord leads, we just appreciate so much your financial help, as well as your letters. My, how we enjoy the mail! I've always said that, and it's getting to the place now where it takes more and more time just to read the mail. But don't let that stop you from writing to us, because we do appreciate so much. In fact, I brought a letter along today for some of the people to read from a lady down in Atlanta, Georgia, and letters like that just thrill us to death. So don't refrain from writing to us, because we do appreciate it so much. Okay, I guess I should also make mention, as I usually do, that all the past programs, all the way from Genesis on up, are available either in video, or the audio tape, or the little printed books as you see them on the screen. And they're all simply word for word from this TV production, and whatever you hear on the program, you're going to see on the videos, or you hear on the audio, and you will see word for word on the little printed page. Okay, I think that's all for now. Let's get right back, for starters anyway, back to Ephesians chapter 2, chapter 1 for just a moment. And that last half hour went so fast, I didn't quite get it finished the way I wanted to. But anyhow, chapter 2 of Ephesians, verse 1, Paul says of us believers that we were, past tense, dead in trespasses and sins. And so we went back, if you remember, and reconstructed as Adam was created, and he was given a perfect body with no seeds of death. He could have lived forever. God gave him a personality of mind, will, and emotion that was patterned after the very personality of God Himself, and then gave Adam a third part, the Spirit, with which he could fellowship with God, and which in turn had an influence on his personality, and it in turn had an influence on the body. So Adam was under a perfect set of circumstances, in a perfect body, and with a perfect soul and spirit. But then we went and looked how that he ate, and immediately then the body began to die, even though he lived 939 years, yet death caught up with him, and he died. Physical death. His soul was separated from his physical body. Then we pointed out in our last lesson how that Adam now immediately became a sin nature. Now the reason I'm using that word is because so often Paul uses that we are sin natured, and the things that we do naturally are not godly, they're ungodly. That's just the bent of the old Adamic nature. But remember the Spirit part died and completely became inoperative, and so every child born from Adam and Eve on are only now a two part being of physical body with a soul, mind, will, and emotion, but it is a sin natured creature. Now we're going to pursue the lost person a little further because that's the format of Scripture. The natural first, and then the spiritual. So we're going to look at the natural for a little bit yet. The person who is living, but he is spiritually dead, and what is his future if he does not come into God's saving grace. Let's go back to John's Gospel chapter 5. And this is Jesus speaking of course during his earthly ministry. And of course they're asking him a lot of questions, but here again Jesus doesn't give us any background doctrinally how all of this was brought about. He leaves that for Paul to reveal, but he does tell us the end result of a man, or woman, or boy, or girl, who is nothing more than body and soul. John's Gospel chapter 5, and Jesus says, "...Marvel not at this, for the hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice." That is the voice of God to come forth. And they shall come forth. Nobody is going to not hear that call to come forth from the grave, whether they're lost or saved. And they shall come forth, they who have done good. Now I always have to stop there and remember there's only one way we can please God, and that's by faith. That's what's implied, even though Jesus doesn't say it. There's only one way of doing good in God's eyes, and that is to exercise faith. So they who are of faith, in other words, will come forth unto the resurrection of life. Now of course the word eternal isn't in there, but it's certainly implied. Because what does John 3.16 say? "...for whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." And so that's always implied, that the believer is looking forward to an eternal life situation. Now the next part of the verse says, "...but they who have done evil." Well now what's the opposite of doing good? No faith. And I could stand here the rest of the afternoon and give you scriptural instances of lost people who were lost only because they would not believe what God said. I can start with Cain. How many times when I've taught back in Genesis, I wouldn't doubt a bit that Cain was a nicer man than Abel. He was probably the kind of a guy that everybody would just say, isn't he a swell guy? But what was his problem? No faith. Didn't believe a word God said, and so he's lost. Alright, the next perfect example of that was Esau. Jacob and Esau, twins, same parents, same environment. And again I wouldn't doubt that Esau was probably a more likable fellow than Jacob. In fact I know from a man's point of view, he was. Because which one of the two did Isaac prefer? Esau, nice guy, good fellow. But what was his problem? No faith. No faith. Whatever God said didn't mean a thing to him, and that's why he was willing to sell his birthright for what? A bowl of bean soup. See, Oklahoma people know that better than Texas, I guess. They like that bean soup. And Esau gave it all up for a bowl of soup. Why? No faith. And he's lost for all eternity, simply because he had no faith. And so all the way up through Scripture you have this, that they may have been better people, they may have been more moral, but they were destitute of faith, and so God calls them evil, ungodly, and wicked. So they who have done evil, and again I'm going to put the verb back in there, will come to the resurrection of damnation, or the better word is condemnation. In other words, every lost person from Cain who left this life when their body died, their soul continued to live. Now I was just telling somebody at break time, maybe this is a good time to explain it here. So many times Paul uses the word sleep, when he refers to those who have died. In fact, let's look at the Scripture so you know what I'm talking about. We're through in John, go ahead and turn with me to 1 Corinthians 15, where he uses the word sleep. I just need one, I guess. He also used it in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. But 1 Corinthians 15, dropping down to verse 51. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 51, where he says, I show you a mystery, we shall not all sleep. Well what's he talking about? Die physically, in fact that's the way I usually read it. We shall not all die physically, but he uses the word sleep. Now if you've got time, let's take it. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 13. Now I'm going to wait until you all get it, because people in their living room are doing the same thing you are, hopefully. I would not, he writes, have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them who are asleep. What's he talking about? Believers who have died, that's all. Now some cults particularly have taken that to mean that when a believer dies, he goes into an unconscious state. I think one that I read about, even feel that the soul stays with that body that goes to the grave, and it is merely asleep. Listen, the soul never sleeps. The soul of the lost person, as we're going to see here in a minute, goes immediately to hell. Now people don't like to hear that anymore, but see I'm not afraid of that. I've always said if they don't like the way I teach, they can push the off button, and if the money stops, then I quit coming up here, and I've said over and over again, then I'll spend more time with the cattle. Now I'm sure the Lord doesn't want it that way, but I've got that option. So it doesn't scare me that I'm going to lose a retirement or anything like that if I can't keep doing what I'm doing. So I'm going to teach it the way the Bible puts it. People don't like it, that's tough. The lost person is going to go to hell. Alright, but the soul never sleeps. But what about the body? We can refer to it as being asleep because what's going to happen one day? It's going to be resurrected. It's going to be woke up. You know I told Iris, I guess the best example I ever had of that, it's only happened once in my life. I came in one noon hour, and I was so exhausted. I don't know what I'd been doing, but I was exhausted. But yet I had a lot of work to do that afternoon, and I said, Honey, I'm going to take a 30 minute nap, and then I've got to get going again. She says, Okay, I'll call you. And you know, from the time that I hit the pillow until she said, Les, it's time for you to get going, it just seemed to me like it was a split second. You ever had that happen? Yeah. Now that's exactly what physical death is. The old body is put in the grave, and it's really asleep. But before it knows that time has even gone by, what's going to happen? The Lord's going to call, and the trumpet of God's going to sound, and that body is going to be raised from the dead. It's going to be awake in a split second. But always remember, the soul never sleeps. Alright, but we're going to deal with the lost person first, and then we'll come back and look at the believer. So the lost person, his body dies, his old sin nature, which has never gotten right with God, goes out into eternity, not to be stopped or in, but he goes consciously to Hell, to the place that is awaiting for the resurrection then of the lost person. Now let me take you back to Matthew chapter 7. No, before you go to Matthew 7, let's go back to Ephesians 2, just a second, and then we're going to go to Matthew 7. So if you've already got it, honey, hang on to it. Let's go back to Ephesians 2 for just a minute. Verses 2 and 3, and then we're going to make some comment. Ephesians 2 again, verses 2 and 3. Wherein, that is dead in trespasses and sins, wherein, Paul says, in times past, you, speaking of you and I as believers, we walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, Satan, under his control, the spirit, small s, so it's not the Holy Spirit, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience, among whom also we, including himself. We walked, or all had our manner of living, conversation in times past, in the desires of our flesh, fulfilling the desires in the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. All right, now turn with me to Matthew chapter 7. I hope that's where it's at. Matthew 7, verses 13 and 14. Verses that you don't hear much anymore. When I was young I used to hear it quite often, but I haven't heard them now in a long time, but they're still in the Bible, and this is what the Lord said Himself. Matthew 7, verse 13. Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to what? Destruction, not eternal life, but eternal condemnation. And so why broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be that go in thereat. Verse 14. Why do the many take the broad way? Because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life. And again, like I said a moment ago, what's implied? Eternal life. Narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Years ago, and I made reference to Him a long time ago, because we had a lot of business dealings together. I had a fellow who did a lot of buying from me and so forth, but he was a member of one of the largest religious systems in the world, and he was trying to implore me to become a part of his religious system. And I said, now wait a minute. My Bible tells me that based on numbers alone, you're going in the wrong direction, and I don't want to be part of it. He said, what do you mean? Have you ever heard of the verse in the Bible that says, "...broad is the way, and many go in thereat, but narrow is the way, that leadeth to eternal life, and few there be that find it." I said, tell me something, does your particular religion qualify for many or few? Boy, I had him. Well, he says, we're many. I said, then according to that, where are you? He's on the way to destruction, as you named it. That's true, because all through Scripture has God ever had the many? Never! There's a doctrine that you can follow all the way from Genesis through to Revelation, and I call it the doctrine of the remnant. Now those of you women especially who go to the fabric shops, what do you like to find? A remnant, because it's just a little bit left of the whole bolt. Well, let's see, that's what God has kept all through human history is that little remnant. Once in a while it got so small you could hardly see it, like at the end of the first 1600 years of human history, we had the flood. How many were saved from the flood? Eight out of probably four billion. Then to come to the next most graphic description is when Elijah was confronting the prophets of Baal up there on Mount Carmel, and then he ran scared clear down to the south end of the Sinai peninsula, hid under a juniper tree, and what was his graphic statement? Lord, I'm the only one left. But what did God say? Elijah, I have 7,000 who have not bowed their knee to Baal. In other words, they were still believing. Now that sounds pretty good, but you see Israel has always had a population running between 7 and 10 million. All right, now to make sure I didn't goof, I put it on my calculator just before we left. Do you know what the percentage is of 7,000 out of 7 million? It's .01, not .1 like I had said once before. I thought it was one-tenth of one percent. It's one one-hundredth of one percent. That's what 7,000 out of 7 or 8 million amounts to. Pretty small remnant, isn't it? And it's always been that way, and it's that way today. We're getting down to a smaller and smaller percentage every day. But is God surprised? No. It's always been that way, and this is what He meant. That wide is the gate that goeth to destruction, and that's where most people are headed. Because you see, they're going out into eternity with nothing more than that physical body that's now been laid in the grave. It's asleep, waiting for the resurrection that Jesus talked about in chapter 5. And they went out with a rebellious, sin -natured soul that is going to now be called up to the Great White Throne. All right, we've got a few minutes left. Let's come back to Revelation. Let's follow these lost people. Now if you doubt me that lost people go to hell consciously, and I mean with all consciousness of their existence, we won't take time in this half hour, but you all know the account of Abraham and Lazarus in his bosom. And the Scripture gives us just one little window, as we like to say lately, one little window of opportunity for information. It's the only time that we have any account of it in Scripture, but again the Lord referred to it Himself. And through that little window of information we found Abraham conversing with the rich man in hell, in torment. And the rich man was conscious, even though he wasn't there in body, he was only there in the soul, mind, will and emotion. Yet the consciousness was so real, that what did he ask Abraham to do? Somehow dip his finger in water and cool his tongue, because he was in torment in the flames. Now the Lord Jesus Himself used that. That didn't come from some storyteller, that was the Lord Himself. So we know that the lost are in a torment situation, but that's not the end. They're going to be resurrected out. Jesus said they would. And they're going to be again given a body not fit for glory, but a body fit for their next abode, which is what? Revelation chapter 20. And we'll have to do this kind of quickly too, time's almost gone. Verse 4, Revelation 20. And when the thousand year kingdom has come to an end, and Satan is released, and all that. Then verse 4, John says, I saw thrones, and they that sat upon them, and judgment or rule was given unto them. And I saw the souls of them who were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and who had not worshiped the beast nor his image. In other words, this includes I think the believers of all the ages, as well as the believers who will have been martyred. And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But now verse 5. But, now we look at the other side of the coin. But the rest of the dead. Well if you've got all the believers involved up here in verse 4, then naturally follows who's the rest of the dead. Lost people. The lost from Cain and Esau and all the way on up through, until the end of the time of opportunity. All right, the rest of the dead live not again, but what's the next word? Until. So there's coming a day they're going to be brought back on the sea. See, it's not the end when they go to hell. No, they're going to be resurrected out. All right, the rest of the dead live not again until the thousand years were finished. Now this is kind of confusing. This is the first resurrection. It's not talking about the rest of the dead. It's talking about which ones? The ones up in verse 4. They were in the first resurrection, which was the resurrection under what? Life. But the rest of the dead are going to have to wait. Now we pick the rest of the dead. Well let's read verse 6. Verse 6. "...blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection." Those are the believers. "...on such the second death, or the second separation from God, has no power." Then you come on down to verse 11. Verse 11. "...and I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, which of course will be Christ, from whose face the earth and the heavens fled away, there was found no place. And I saw the dead, the lost, who have been down in hell and torment ever since they died. And I saw the dead, small and great, but now where are they? Standing before God. And the books were opened, and another book, which is the Book of Life. And the dead, those spiritually dead, who never entered into salvation, they have now spent all these ages, however long, in hell and torment. And now they've been resurrected out, and they're standing before Christ at the great white throne." And then it says in verse 14. "...and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire." This is the second death. A believer will never face second death, because we experienced our second death when we identified with Christ, and we died on the cross. But these unbelievers have been designated to hell, where they're conscious, they're resurrected out, given a body, fit for their next abode, which is the lake of fire. And so death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, and whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. Horrible, isn't it? That's what the book says. You better believe it. KENTA, OKLAHOMA 74552. That's Route 1, Box 760, KENTA, OKLAHOMA 74552. Through the Bible with Les Feldick, is viewer supported, and your gift is appreciated. Thank you, and be sure to tune in next time for Through the Bible with Les Feldick.