IS IT A SCRIPTURAL DOCTRINE?
The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is one of the oldest and one of the most widespread in the world. It was preached before faith in Yeshua the Messiah was ever preached.
FIRST RECORDED LIE
The first lie recorded in the Scriptures was when the Serpent (the Adversary) approached Hawwah (Eve) and asked her about the command of the Eternal forbidding to eat from the tree of knowing good and evil:
Genesis 3:1-4 [Hebrew Roots Bible - HBB]
1 And the serpent was cunning above every beast of the field which YAHWEH Elohim had made. And he said to the woman, Is it so that Elohim has said, You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said to the serpent, of the fruit of the trees of the garden, We may eat,
3 but of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, Elohim has said, You shall not eat of it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.
4 And the serpent said to the woman, surely, you shall not die,
From then on, that doctrine has been believed more generally by the children of men than has the truth of the Eternal. Indeed, in our day the doctrine of the immortality of the soul has gained such favour among even those who profess the word of Yahweh as their standard of belief, that to deny it is considered by the majority of them as equivalent to a denial of the Bible itself.
The first time that doctrine was ever uttered, it was in direct contradiction of the express word of Yahweh Himself. The Lord said, in the event of man’s disobedience, . . . you shall certainly die. (Genesis 2:17); and the devil said, You shall certainly not die . . . (Genesis 3:4; Revelation 20:2.)
The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is that the body properly has no life, that it is not the real man, but that the soul is the real, living, sentient man, that it is that about man which alone possesses real life. In other words, the body is only the house in which the real man lives. Death breaks down the house, and lets the occupant free. According to this doctrine, there is no such thing as death, because the body properly has no life, consequently it does not die, and the soul—the real man—is immortal, and it cannot die;
THE SOUL (See THE SOUL)
Webster definition of the soul
The soul is ‘an entity conceived as the essence, substance, or actual cause of individual existence, separate in nature from the body and usually held to be separable in existence.”
It continues
‘The Egyptian distinction of soul and spirit dates from the earliest times, and the …Egyptian conception of the divine origin of the soul . . . and of its future state … outlines also the main belief of all Western peoples. The Christian conception of the soul is derived from the Greek as well as from the Bible.’
ORIGIN OF THE ‘IMMORTAL SOUL DOCTRINE’
It did not come from the Scriptures or the early Church which was guided by the teachings of the Messiah. It came nearly two centuries later into an apostate Christianity from the pagan Greeks! The Greeks obtained it from the Egyptians, who taught it soon after the tower of Babel.
The famous Greek historian, Herodotus, who lived in the fifth century before Yeshua, wrote:
“The Egyptians were also the first that asserted that the soul of man is immortal. . . This opinion some among the Greeks have at different periods of time adopted as their own”
(Euterpe, chap. 123).
Socrates, the perverted Greek philosopher, travelled into Egypt and consulted the Egyptians on this very teaching. After his return he imparted the error to Plato, his most famous pupil.
Plato wrote in his book, the Phaedo:
“The soul whose inseparable attribute is life will never admit of life’s opposite, death. Thus the soul is shown to be immortal, and since immortal, indestructible . . .
THE CURRENT CHRISTIAN CONCEPTION OF THE SOUL IS A MIXTURE OF EGYPTIAN, GREEK AND BIBLE CONCEPTS
THE SOUL IN THE SCRIPTURES
A Dictionary of the Bible by James Hastings – indicates the soul is material made of matter-and applies to animals as well as men.
The Bible Dictionary:
‘The Soul’ is throughout a great part of the Bible simply the equivalent of ‘life’ embodied in living creatures. In the earlier usage of the Old Testament it has no reference to the later philosophical meaning – the animating principle, still less to the idea of an ‘immaterial.
A living soul’ in Genesis and other records is simply an ‘animated being,’ and the word is applied equally to the lower animals and to man.”
THE RESURRECTION
There is no truth more plainly taught nor more diligently insisted upon in the Scriptures than this: That the future existence of men depends absolutely upon either a resurrection of the dead.
Shaul (Paul) expresses his hope of future life. Shaul is not the only one of the writers of the Scriptures who teaches the same thing. The resurrection of the dead is that to which Job looked for the consummation of his hope. (Job 14:14, 15; 17:13-15; 19:23-27. David mentions it in Psalms 71:20 and 17:15. The resurrection is mentioned in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, and Micah, and all the prophets apostles, and of our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yeshua declared that it was the resurrection of the dead of which the Eternal spoke when he said, I am the Elohim of Abraham, and the Elohim of Isaac, and the Elohim of Jacob.
He emphasised that the Eternal is not the Elohim of the dead – Matthew 22:31-32
Furthermore, Yeshua pointed his disciples to the resurrection of the dead, in:
John 5:28-29; John 6:39-54; John 11:25-26; Luke 14:14; Matthew 22/ Mark 12/ Luke 20; Matthew 12:41-4
If the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is true, then the doctrine of the resurrection is indeed of no consequence. If that doctrine is true, then all need of laying stress upon the gospel doctrine of the resurrection of the dead is destroyed.
And although “the apostles were continually insisting on” the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, the preachers of the present day seldom mention it.
The immortality of the soul is completely opposed to the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, which is a doctrine in the Scriptures, and is the very truth of the Eternal. The doctrine of the immortality of the soul is opposed to the truth of the Eternal, and is therefore false, deceptive, and destructive.
THE SECOND COMING OF MESSIAH
There is another doctrine in the Scriptures which is just as important as the doctrine of the resurrection: the second coming of the Messiah. This doctrine is likewise opposed to the belief in the doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul. Without the second coming of Messiah there would be no resurrection.
Scripture shows that the resurrection of the dead depends entirely on the second coming of the Messiah. The righteous are rewarded only at the resurrection:
Luke 14:13-14
13 “But when you give a feast, invite poor ones, crippled ones, lame ones, blind ones,
14 and you shall be blessed, because they do not have to repay you. For you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
And of his own coming, Yeshua says:
Revelation 22:12 [TS]
“And see, I am coming speedily, and My reward is with Me, to give to each according to his work
The coming of the Messiah, and the resurrection of the righteous dead, are directly connected and are not possible if the resurrection of the dead is true.
Shaul (Paul) writes:
1 Thessalonians 4:16 [TS]
Because the Master (Yeshua) Himself shall come down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of a chief messenger, and with the trumpet of Elohim, and the dead in Messiah shall rise first.
Again Shaul writes:
1 Corinthians 15:53 [TS]
For this corruptible has to put on incorruption, and this mortal to put on immortality.
The coming of the Messiah is the Believer’s hope, and the doctrine of the immortality of the soul takes the place of this hope. The doctrine of the immortality of the soul puts men into heaven or into hell before the end of the Age, before the time when the Messiah shall descend from heaven.
THE DOCTRINE OF THE IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL:
● DIRECTLY OPPOSES THE WORDS OF THE MESSIAH,
● CONTRADICTS THE THE SECOND COMING OF THE MESSIAH
● AND DEFIES THE TRUTH OF THE ETERNAL
HEAVEN
There is no element of truth, in any form, in the idea of people going to heaven when they die. The prevailing belief in current Christianity is that when people die, the righteous go to eternal happiness in heaven and the sinful go to hell for eternal agony. This contradicts Scripture.
Yeshua said:
John 13:33 [TS] . . . Where I am going, you are unable to come . . .
And later on:
John 14:3 [TS] I shall come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, you might be too
ETERNAL TORMENT
The very meaning of the word immortal is ‘not subject to death’. It follows that if the soul is immortal, it must live eternally, whatever its condition may be. Those who hold the belief that the soul is immortal, believe that sin is eternal. This is shown in the doctrine of the eternal torment of the wicked. In fact, the belief in the eternal torment of the wicked is the necessary consequence of the belief in the immortality of the soul.
The Scriptures tell us:
Romans 6:23 – the wages of sin is death [TS]
Ezekiel 18:4 – The soul that sins, it shall die [HRB]
These verses can never be fulfilled if the doctrine of eternal suffering is true, or, in other words.
Again, we read:
Revelation 21:4 [TS]
. . . and there shall be no more death, nor mourning, nor crying. And there shall be no more pain, for the former matters have passed away.”
If the doctrine of eternal suffering is true, it is literally impossible that there can ever come a time when there shall be <no more pain>.
The doctrine of the immortality of the soul, in making sin eternal, and in immortalizing the works of the devil, frustrates the purpose of the Eternal and subverts the mission of the Messiah.(See YESHUA’S MISSION)
THE JUDGEMENT
The judgement is one of the certainties of Scriptural doctrine. Time and again, Yeshua sets before us the awful scenes and the all-important decisions of the judgment.
Matthew 12:36 [TS]
And I say to you that for every idle word men speak, they shall give an account of it in the day of judgment.
the judgement is also mentioned in:
Luke 11:31 – The queen of the south will be raised in the Judgment with the men of this generation [HRB]
Verse 32 – The men of Nineveh will rise up in the Judgment with this generation [HRB]
In the parable of the wheat and tares, in the parable of the marriage of the king’s son (Matthew 22 ;1-14)
In the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:14-30),
In Matthew 25:31-46, he sets before us a view of the very judgment itself.
The Tanakh (Old Testament) as well as the Nazarene Writings (New Testament) tell of the
judgment:
Solomon talks about it in – Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
Daniel 7:10 – The judgment was set and the books were opened
Isaiah, David, Job and other prophets speak of the judgement as well.
Jude 14-15 – Behold, YAHWEH comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all.
This is not a judgment that is constantly going on during men’s lives and completed at their death, so that then theirreward is given, whether for good or ill.
Hebrew 9:27 – And as it is reserved to men once to die, and after this, Judgment [HRB]
Acts 24:25 – And Paul having reasoned concerning righteousness and self control, and the Judgement that is about to be . . .
Acts 17:31; Romans 2:12, 16; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Jeremiah 17:10; Revelation 11:15; Rev 22:12;
2 Timothy 4:1, 2; 2 Peter 2:9.
From these and other verses it is plain:
(1) that there is a time “appointed” for the judgement;
(2) that this is after death;
(3) that it is the time of reward to all, for good or evil;
(4) that this is called the “day of judgment;”
(5) that it is at the appearing and kingdom of the Master Yeshua the Messiah;
(6) that then, and not till then, it is that the righteous receive their reward;
(7) and that the “unjust” are “reserved” until that time to be punished, and are not punished before that great day of judgment.
However plain all this may be, none of these propositions are compatible with the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. If, at death, righteous men enter immediately into their reward, and the unrighteous go immediately to the place of punishment, then where is there any possible room for the judgement.
THERE IS NO ROOM FOR THE JUDGEMENT
IN THE DOCTRINE OF THE IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL
Once more: The doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul makes the body only worthless clay, formed into a prison that binds, and fetters, and clogs the free action of the soul, while death is the friendly messenger that bursts the prison bars, and sets free the aspiring soul to seek its native sphere. Therefore when the doctrine of the immortality of the soul makes death the gate to endless joy, and the friendly messenger that releases men from this world, it supplants the Saviour of the world, and bestows upon Satan the honour that is due to the Messiah.
THE DOCTRINE OF THE IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL:
● FRUSTRATES THE PURPOSE OF THE ETERNAL
● NULLIFIES THE MISSION OF THE MESSIAH
● SUPPLANTS THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD
And if anything more is needed to show that between that doctrine and the truth of the Eternal there is a difference wide as eternity, it will be found in the following
The doctrine of the immortality of the soul, which gives to all men immortal life irrespective of Messiah, is held by the majority of professed Christians as a veritable article of Christian faith.
1 John 5:10-12 [HRB]
10 The one believing in the Son of YAHWEH has the testimony in himself. The one not believing YAHWEH has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony which YAHWEH has testified concerning His Son.
11 And this is the testimony: That YAHWEH gave us everlasting life, and this life is in His Son.
12 The one having the Son has life. The one not having the Son of YAHWEH does not have life
Now the doctrine of the immortality of the soul causes men not to believe that testimony. They who believe the doctrine of the immortality of the soul do not believe that they who have not the Son of the Eternal have not life. Therefore, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul “has made the Eternal a liar,” because it causes men to “believe not the testimony that the Eternal gave of his Son.
The doctrine of the immortality of the soul teaches that the devil told the truth, for that doctrine teaches that there is no death, and if there be no death, then every man has life, independent of belief in Messiah, which, makes the Eternal a liar., and exalts Satan as the one who tells the truth.
These evidences certainly show that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is opposed to the truth of The Eternal.
SUMMARY:
We have proved from the Scriptures:
● that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is subversive of the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead;
● that it is subversive of the doctrine of the coming of the Lord;
● that it is subversive of the doctrine of the judgement;
● that it is subversive of the mission of Messiah;
● that it supplants Messiah in the honor of opening the way from this world to another, and bestows that honor upon Satan;
● and finally, that it puts the Eternal aside as a liar, and exalts Satan to His place as the one who tells the truth.
KEY:
The immortality of the soul is the foundation of Spiritualism.
Sources:
Alonzo T Jones; Gabriel Manfredi; Herman Hoeh