What Really Is Hell?
WHATEVER image the word "hell" brings to your mind, hell is generally thought of as a place of punishment for sin. Concerning sin and its effect, the Bible says: "Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned." (Romans 5:12) The Scriptures also state: "The wages sin pays is death." (Romans 6:23) Since the punishment for sin is death, the fundamental question in determining the true nature of hell is: What happens to us when we die?
Does life of some kind, in some form, continue after death? What is hell, and what kind of people go there? Is there any hope for those in hell? The Bible gives truthful and satisfying answers to these questions.
Does something inside us, like a soul or a spirit, survive the death of the body? Consider how the first man, Adam, came to have life. The Bible states: "Jehovah God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life." (Genesis 2:7) Though breathing sustained his life, putting "the breath of life" into his nostrils involved much more than simply blowing air into his lungs. It meant that God put into Adam's lifeless body the spark of life—"the force of life," which is active in all earthly creatures. (Genesis 6:17; 7:22) The Bible refers to this animating force as "spirit." (James 2:26) That spirit can be compared to the electric current that activates a machine or an appliance and enables it to perform its function. Just as the current never takes on the features of the equipment it activates, the life-force does not take on any of the characteristics of the creatures it animates. It has no personality and no thinking ability.
What happens to the spirit when a person dies? Psalm 146:4 says: "His spirit goes out, he goes back to his ground; in that day his thoughts do perish." When a person dies, his impersonal spirit does not go on existing in another realm as a spirit creature. It "returns to the true God who gave it." (Ecclesiastes 12:7) This means that any hope of future life for that person now rests entirely with God.
What, then, is the condition of the dead? When pronouncing sentence upon Adam, Jehovah stated: "Dust you are and to dust you will return." (Genesis 3:19) Where was Adam before God formed him from the dust of the ground and gave him life? Why, he simply did not exist! When he died, Adam returned to that state of complete absence of life. The condition of the dead is made clear at Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10, where we read: "The dead know nothing . . . In the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom." Scripturally, death is a state of nonexistence. The dead have no awareness, no feelings, no thoughts.
The psalmist wrote that when a person dies, "his spirit goes out, he goes back to his ground; in that day his thoughts do perish."—Psalm 146:4.
Clearly, the dead do not exist. They cannot know anything. They cannot see you, hear you, or talk to you. They can neither help you nor harm you. You certainly need not fear the dead.
2006-12-17 21:21:24
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answer #1
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answered by Alex 5
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spiritualists believe that the veil between this world and the next is simply like taking another step .... it is not so far from us
so we say the other side quite often ... rather that using a term that would suggest somewhere out of reach
i am told it isnt so unlike here , in that we are quite physical
we have jobs , hobbies , interests
there are music halls , libraries etc
more vibrant colour , sound , smell etc
like this world but more heightened , more beautiful... and many levels to progress through , one more beautiful that the last
2006-12-18 04:44:08
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answer #2
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answered by Peace 7
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Other side is heaven or hell.Your examination days are finished in world and you are moving as a soul to the other side.After you left your body there is no way to turn back but live as a soul continue in other side.Suppose you are a Muslim you will enter to heaven otherwise to hell
and it makes no different what other belief you have.
2006-12-18 07:16:49
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answer #3
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answered by nezih batgun 3
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The "other side" is a spiritual dimension where departed souls go awaiting the day of judgement.
2006-12-18 04:48:48
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answer #4
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answered by Gre2000 3
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