- What is a soul, according to the Bible?
“And 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)
Answer: According to the text, the Lord formed man’s body out of dust and breathed life into him. It was then that he became a living soul, or being. A soul, then, is not what you have. A soul is what you are. In other words,
Body (Dust) + Breath = Soul
- Is man the dust or the breath?
“In the sweat of thy face shalt thou [Adam] eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” (Genesis 3:19)
“And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2)
Answer: The Lord Himself said that man was the dust of the ground, not the breath. From the beginning of Creation, God’s people knew this to be the truth.
Further reading: Gen. 18:27; Job 34:15; Psalms 103:14
- Doesn’t the Bible say we have immortal souls?
“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:17)
“And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever…he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:22,24)
Answer: No. As long as Adam and Eve obeyed God, they could not die. They were immortal. But when they disobeyed His command, they became subject to death (mortal). Adam and Eve could not transmit immortality to their descendants if they themselves were not immortal.
Further reading: Ezekiel 18:4, 20; Romans 6:12
- If the Bible says we don’t have immortal souls, why do so many churches teach otherwise?
“Plato was definitely influenced by the Orphic Mysteries and Pythagorean and Zoroastrian concepts. These all met, and were fused into his complex doctrine of the immortality of the soul, the distinction of soul and body, and the identification of soul with mind.”
“The concept of the Innate Immortality of the soul as a “Christian” doctrine did not appear in patristic literature until toward the close of the second century…The pathfinder on this revolutionary road was Athenagoras—apparently the first ecclesiastic to embrace the Immortal-Soul postulate publicly, and to advocate it on a purely Platonic basis.”
“Then finally came Augustine of Hippo (d. A.D. 430), whose great influence brought about the general acceptance by the church at large of the belief in the deathlessness of all souls, and also its fiery corollary of the endless existence and Eternal Torment of the reprobate.”
Answer: The Greek philosopher Plato, influenced by pagan teachings, developed the doctrine of the immortal soul. It was later accepted and promoted by influential figures in the church and as a result, it is the prevalent view of the church today.
Source: Froom, L.E., The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 1, 562.1, 928.3, 929.1
- So what does the Bible teach us about immortality?
Answer: There are only six references in the Bible that refer to the words “immortal” and “immortality” (immortal appearing once and immortality, five times). From these references, we know the following four facts:
- God is immortal and He alone has immortality.
“Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God…Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:17, 6:16) - Jesus brought light and immortality to man through the Gospel.
“But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:” (2 Timothy 1:10) - Christians are seeking immortality.
“To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:” (Romans 2:7) - They will receive immortality only when Jesus returns.
“In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15:52-54)
- How can we receive immortality?
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
“And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Matthew 19:16-19)
Answer: We must accept Jesus Christ as our Saviour, God’s sacrifice for our sins. We must also receive Him as our Lord. Obeying Him and keeping His Ten Commandments by faith is how we express our love for Him. If we do this, we will receive eternal life when He returns.
Further reading: John 14:15; Romans 3:31; Revelation 12:17.
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