Where are those that have already died?

[Katzpur]

so they are in purgatory? well thats pleasant.

James never said they were in Purgatory. James doesn't even believe in Purgatory. And you, as a non-Christian, have no business throwing in your two cents worth on this forum. It's not a debate forum.

 

[userque]

Where are Christian people that have already died? Are they still "sleeping" or are they in heaven? Please site any bible verses too. Thanks.

Since I can't post links per this site's rules (I am new here and have made fewer than ~15 posts) I quote the following "Tomorrow's World" article. I am not affiliated with them other than I believe their teachings (the whole article is 16k characters; I had to cut it to fit within the 10k character limit-rather than making two posts):

Is There Life After Death?
Article: Richard F. Ames

What happens to us after we die? Some religions teach that we will go to heaven or hell. Others assert that all awareness ceases forever at death. But the Bible reveals our true hope through Jesus Christ, and gives the full answer about the resurrection and the promise of a glorious future in Tomorrow's World.

One of life's greatest mysteries is the question of what happens to a person after death. Does a dead person's soul go to Heaven or Hell immediately upon dying? What does the Bible say about life after death?

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As physical human beings with a physiochemical existence, we will all die. But after we die, will we live again? The Bible tells us plainly that: "…it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).

Regular readers of this magazine know that there is an awesome purpose for each individual's life, and an awesome future ahead. But what exactly does the Bible say about Christians who die? Do they go to Heaven immediately when they die?

Heaven or Sleep?

The Apostle Paul wanted his readers to know the truth about the resurrection. "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep" (1 Thessalonians 4:13–15).

The Apostle Paul refers to death as a sleep. He does not describe the dead as being active or alive in Heaven. They are asleep or dead until the coming of Christ—His Second Coming. We read: "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 will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words" (1 Thessalonians 4:16–18).

Notice that this resurrection takes place at Christ's Second Coming "with the trumpet of God." That is the last trumpet, the seventh trumpet described in the book of Revelation. Scripture reveals that the dead in Christ will then rise. True Christians who have died are not resurrected until Christ returns! Those of us who are alive when Christ returns will join those who have long been dead, all resurrected to receive the promised gift of eternal life! That resurrection is the hope that all genuine Christians look forward to.

On one occasion when the Apostle Paul was being examined by the Jewish Sanhedrin, he talked of the resurrection. He spoke to the assembly of both Pharisees and Sadducees: "But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, 'Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!'" (Acts 23:6).

Was Paul saying that he would go to Heaven when he died? Absolutely not! Paul was looking forward to the resurrection from the dead at the return of Christ! In the book of Philippians, the Apostle Paul spoke of his faith in Christ and his future goal of the resurrection. "…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3:10–11).

As shocking as this may seem, the Bible teaches that when we die, we remain dead until the resurrection. The Apostle Paul never speaks of the dead as being alive in Heaven or Hell! He refers to deceased Christians as those who sleep in Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:14). Sleep is used here as a metaphor for death.

The Example of Lazarus

Jesus Himself also used the metaphor of sleep. Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha of the town of Bethany, was ill, and died before Jesus arrived. Jesus told His disciples: "'Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.' Then His disciples said, 'Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.' However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, 'Lazarus is dead'" (John 11:11–14).

Lazarus had died from a sickness. Did he go to Heaven at the moment of death? If he did, Jesus would have had to command Lazarus to give up his new spiritual glory and come back to a mundane physical life. That makes no sense! Lazarus did not go to Heaven. Neither did he go to the mythical ever-burning Hell! Lazarus was dead. Jesus said so.

Lazarus had been in the grave four days, placed in a tomb with a large stone covering the entrance. We read: "Jesus said, 'Take away the stone.' Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, 'Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.' Jesus said to her, 'Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?'" (John 11:39–40).

Jesus, the Son of God, was about to demonstrate the power of the resurrection. In this case, it was a resurrection to physical life, not the resurrection to glory and immortality. Jesus told Martha, "'Your brother will rise again.' Martha said to Him, 'I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day'" (John 11:23–24).

Martha knew about the resurrection—the same resurrection the Apostle Paul later wrote about. "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die'" (John 11:25–26). Notice that Jesus said, "Though he may die, he shall live." Once the great resurrection takes place, the glorified, resurrected saints will never die! That is the promise of eternal life! But it requires faith in the Savior of the world—the One who is the "resurrection and the life."

After the stone was removed from the entrance to the tomb, Jesus called out to the dead Lazarus. "He cried with a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come forth!' And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, 'Loose him, and let him go.' Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him" (John 11:43–45).

Lazarus was resurrected to live out the remainder of his natural life...

Dead Until The Resurrection

We have seen that the Bible teaches that a dead person remains dead until the resurrection. Both the Apostle Paul and Jesus referred to death as a sleep, and one who is dead has no consciousness—remaining in the grave until the resurrection. Note what Jesus said in John 5:28, "Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth; those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" (John 5:28–29). Other translations use the word "judgment" instead of "condemnation." Yes, the hope for all of us is the resurrection. Faithful Christians are resurrected to immortality at the Second Coming of Christ!

Scripture shows that immortality is a gift from God! "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life t h r o u g h Jesus Christ our Lord" ( R o m a n s 6:23, KJV). Notice that the scripture does not state "the wages of sin is immortal life in Hell-fire." The wages of sin is death, the absence of life. If you already had an immortal soul—if you already had eternal life— then you would not need it as a gift from God. Eternal life is a wonderful gift through our living Savior, Jesus Christ!

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Yes, there will be victory over death at the last trumpet. And in the same verse we see that "this mortal must put on immortality." But why should there be a need for immortality if we humans already have an immortal soul? The Bible reveals that souls are not immortal. A soul can die! For instance, the prophet Ezekiel tells us, "The soul who sins shall die" (Ezekiel 18:4). The Hebrew word for "soul" is nephesh, which means physical or natural life. The same word nephesh also refers to animal life in Genesis 1:21.

These Old Testament verses are clear. But what does the New Testament tell us about souls? In Christ's own words: "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell [Gehenna fire]" (Matthew 10:28). Yes, God is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna fire. Many other scriptures also demonstrate that human beings do not have an immortal soul. As God inspired the prophet Ezekiel to state, "The soul who sins shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20).

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How Many Resurrections?

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The comforting news is that no human being who has ever lived and died is now suffering. Death is the absence of life. "For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing…" (Ecclesiastes 9:5). The dead experience no conscious passing of time, they know nothing. So, in the next split-second of their consciousness, they will awaken in the resurrection.
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