For which cause we faint not; but
though our outward man perish, yet the inward man
is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is
but for a moment, worketh for us a far more
exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things
which are seen, but at the things which are not
seen: for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal. 2 Cor 4:16-18
Here we have yet another passage where the dualists see
'soul' where there is none. Dualists see an
'immortal soul' in both the 'inner man' and
'the things which are not seen' which are eternal.
We have considered 2 Corinthians 4 briefly, earlier in this
chapter. We have already seen that the inward man is not
the soul. Consider again the entire context of this passage:
But we have this treasure in earthen
vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God,
and not of us.
We are troubled on every side, yet not
distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down,
but not destroyed;
Always bearing about in the body the
dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might
be made manifest in our body.
For we which live are alway delivered unto
death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might
be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
So then death worketh in us, but life in
you.
We having the same spirit of faith,
according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I
spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
Knowing that he which raised up the Lord
Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us
with you.
For all things are for your sakes, that the
abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound
to the glory of God.
For which cause we faint not; but though
our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day
by day.
For our light affliction, which is but for
a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory;
While we look not at the things which are
seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things
which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not
seen are eternal.
2 Cor 4:7-18
The table on the following page helps to illustrate, by a
series of contrasts, what Paul is talking about. Note the
language used in this passage as well as others in which Paul
uses similar language. See if you can spot an 'immortal
soul' or even a 'soul' anywhere:
Verse
|
Inner Man
|
Outer Man
|
2 Cor 4:7 |
..this treasure
|
in earthen vessels |
2 Cor 4:10 |
..the life also of Jesus might be made
manifest
|
..in our body |
2 Cor 4:11 |
..the life of Jesus might also be made
manifest.. |
...in our mortal
flesh
|
2 Cor 4:16 |
..inward man is renewed
|
...outward man
perish
|
2 Cor 4:17 |
..exceeding and eternal weight of
glory
|
...our light affliction
which is but for a moment
|
2 Cor 4:18 |
..things which are not seen
|
...things which are
seen.. |
2 Cor 4:18 |
...eternal
|
...temporal
|
Rom 7:22,23 |
For I delight in the law of God after
the inward man.. |
But I see another law
in my members, warring against the law of my mind. |
Rom 7:25 |
With the mind I myself serve the law
of God; |
But with the flesh the
law of sin. |
1Cor 2:14,15 |
He that is spiritual judgeth all
things.. |
But the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God |
Eph 4:22,24 |
Put on the new man which after God is
created in righteousness and true holiness. |
..put off concerning
the former conversation of the old man which is
corrupt
|
We simply can't make it much clearer than this. The
'inner' man is clearly not the soul, but the new
nature which dwells inside the believer. This is a far cry from
an 'immortal soul'. We are told to 'put on'
the 'new man'. How do you put on something you would
have already had? Paul calls the new nature, 'the mind
with which I serve the law of God'.
Failure to discern this simple truth has led to so much
confusion. No man, except the child of God, has this 'new
nature', and even then, should he die, it does not continue
conscious existence, but is held in trust by God, in Christ. (Col
3:2-4)
In this life, the 'new nature', the 'new
man', the 'inner man', etc. can only manifest
itself in our mind, our will, our emotions, our desires, etc. It
is at war with the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life
etc. But for now, that is the only dwelling place it has, even
though the war it causes with the natural flesh causes us to
groan, earnestly desiring our 'house from heaven'. Paul
reasons that even though our physical flesh is perishing, the
'inner man' is renewed because it is the life of
Christ, the mind of Christ, the desires of Christ, etc., which we
see develop more and more.
There are only two ways the 'new creature' can have
existence. Either in this body, where it is at war with the
flesh, or in the resurrection body where it is consummated and
made perfect. If the fleshly body should perish, it must
'sleep', until its life, which is hid with God in
Christ appears on the resurrection morning.
These are simple facts, which any careful reader should be
able to ascertain by comparing scripture with scripture. They
establish the fact of the resurrection as an absolute
necessity. Read carefully the words of Paul again:
For if the dead rise not, then is not
Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is
vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in
Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in
Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and
become the firstfruits of them that slept. 1Cor 15:16-20
It is obvious, that to Paul's way of thinking, he must
establish the resurrection as an absolute necessity. If
man has an immortal soul, then why is the emphasis always laid
squarely on the absolute necessity of a resurrection as our hope?
Why couldn't Christ just have suffered and died for our sins, and
then returned to heaven as an immortal soul? Why did he have
to rise from the dead? If those who die now are in a blissful
state with Christ in heaven, then why the absolute necessity for
the resurrection?
The answers are clear once we can establish firmly in our
minds that man is not immortal in any sense. Christ came
as the long awaited promise. Jesus said 'I am the
resurrection and the life'. Whatever hopes were held out to
mankind of a future life beyond the grave were embodied in
Christ. Paul knew this, and reasons that if Christ is not raised,
then those who are 'fallen asleep in Christ are
perished'. That is, they're gone.. no hope, no life,
no remedy, no return. In dying to the flesh, whatever life these
people had was hidden in Christ, but if Christ is not raised,
then all the faith, all the labor, the toil, the preaching, is
all in vain. But Paul continues by saying that 'if in this
life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most
miserable.' Now please consider very carefully. What is Paul
saying here? That if Christ is not raised, then we are the most
miserable of all men, because we have no hope for a future
life. The pagans at least had their teaching of an immortal
soul, but if Christ, who is our life, who embodies all our hopes
for a future life beyond the grave is still in the tomb, then we
are utterly hopeless. The force and beauty of this passage simply
can not be understood once you force an 'immortal soul'
into the text.
The teaching that would make the 'new creature' and
the 'inner man' into an 'immortal soul' is a
fallacy. Every time we find the apostle talking about the
hope for the dead, we find the resurrection in the same context.
But dualists like Morey insist:
'The New Testament authors clearly
believed that man had a dual nature. They refer to the body
as 'the outer man' and the soul/spirit as the
'inner man' in such places as Rom.7:22 and
Eph. 3:16. The contrast is so clearly embedded in the mind of
the Apostle Paul that he even described 'the outer
man' as decaying while the 'inner man'
or soul was being renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16).'
If ever it should be obvious to the reader that the teaching
of an 'immortal soul' has to be read into the text where it
doesn't exist, it should be here. Where in Romans 7:22 and Ephesians 3:16 does
Paul make any mention of the 'soul/spirit'? Where in 2 Corinthians 4:16 does
Paul call the inner man the 'soul'? The fact the Morey refers to the 'inner man'
as the 'soul/spirit' betrays his own confusion of these two terms and how they
are used. This absolute failure to discern truth from the immediate context in
order to force a predetermined theology into a passage, to me, is quite
shocking; but it serves to show the iron grasp this teaching has over people who
will defend it at all costs
THEM
ALSO WHICH SLEEP IN JESUS WILL GOD BRING WITH HIM
But I would not have you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that
ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God
bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord,
that we which are alive and remain unto the
coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which
are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven
with a shout, with the voice of the archangel,
and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds, to
meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be
with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 1 Thes 4:13-18
In this verse, the dualists come full circle and complete
their theology concerning the soul and the resurrection. Once
again, in a passage where they should see the resurrection as the
only hope and comfort for the dead, they see an 'immortal
soul' where none appears in the passage.
Before commenting on the text, let's look at how the dualists
read this verse in conjunction with the last four we have
studied.
Paul said he couldn't tell whether he was 'out of
his body' or not in order to get a vision, and he
has an 'inner man' which doesn't perish.
From the above, they believe to have established, beyond any
reasonable question, that Paul believed he had an immortal soul
Further, he says, 'To be absent from the body is
to be present with the Lord' (as it is commonly
misquoted), 'To die is personal gain'
(as it is thus interpreted), and he 'has a desire to depart and to be
with Christ which is far better (as it is commonly translated).'
Here they believe to have established that to Paul, death is desirable.
He must go immediately to the presence of Christ, because
there would be no point in wishing for the grave. Here they
unwittingly answer their argument; Paul doesn't wish to die, but
they continue to have a 'death wish' for him anyway.
Because of the above, they reason that since souls are in
heaven before the resurrection, then all passages
pertaining to the resurrection of the dead, those that die, and
those that 'sleep', must refer to the body only.
Finally, Since the dead are said to 'rise first',
then the souls which are in heaven must descend with
Christ to reunite with their bodies which are coming up
from the ground. This is what they see in the phrase 'even so them also which
sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.'
Thus with confidence they firmly believe they have established
from the scriptures the first lie ever told; 'And the
serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die',
creating a myriad of contradictions all along the way. Please
consider carefully the following table:
'Immortal Soul'
Affirmation
|
Common Proof-Text
|
Created Contradiction
|
Man has an immortal soul which
survives the death of the body. |
'Whether in the body, or out of
the body, I cannot tell, God knoweth' 'though our
outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.'
|
'If the dead rise not…Then
they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.'
'If in this
life only we have hope in Christ, we are or all men most miserable'
'seek for
glory and honor an immortality'
'the king of
kings and lord of lords, who only hath immortality'
'the soul that sinneth,
it shall die'
'for dust thou
art, and unto dust shalt thou return'
|
Death is a friend, and a blessing |
'To die is gain'
'Having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better' |
'that through death he might
destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.'
'The last
enemy that shall be destroyed is death'
'For indeed he
was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only,
but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow'
'we groan, not
that we would be unclothed'
'that we shall
not be found naked'
|
Immediately in Christ's presence at
death |
'Absent from
the body, and to be present with the Lord'
'Desire to depart and to be with Christ' |
'When Christ who is our life
shall appear, then shall we also appear with him in glory'
'The dead in
Christ shall 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 shall we ever be with the Lord'
'No man hath
ascended up to heaven'
'David is not
ascended into the heavens.'
|
The list of contradictory verses is by no means exhaustive,
but should serve to impress upon the mind of the reader the type
of careless exposition which is used when presenting these verses
as proof texts for an 'immortal soul'.
Of course, as we have shown, there are no problems at all,
except for the ones which are created by reading 'immortal
soul' where it doesn't exist.
Paul never said his soul left his body at any time, he
never called the 'inward man' an 'immortal
soul', he was clear that death wasn't personal gain,
he longed for the return (Gk. analusai) of Christ,
not to depart, and he never said that to be absent from
the body was to be immediately in God's presence.
On the contrary, he did say that with no resurrection we have
hope only in this life, that immortality was something to
be sought, that death was the power of the devil,
that death is an enemy, that God had mercy on Epaphroditus
by not letting him die, that he didn't want to lose
his 'earthly house', that we appear with Christ when
he appears, and that it is by the resurrection that we get
to 'ever be with the Lord'.
It is the clear teaching of scripture versus the out of
context proof-texts and inferences of those who wish to cling to
the 'immortal soul'.
Let's now return to our 'proof-text'.
But I would not have you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow
not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose
again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring
with him.
Does this mean that Jesus is bringing the souls of those that
'slept' back with him for their bodies? Perhaps a very
casual reading of the verse might give that impression, unless we
inquire further.
First, why is it said that 'God' brings them with
Jesus. If Jesus is the one descending, and God the Father is
still in heaven, he wouldn't be 'bringing' but
'sending' them with Jesus.
Second is the question of whether the sleeping ones are
brought down to earth, or up to heaven. Paul is making a comparison with Jesus'
own resurrection. Because Jesus arose and ascended into heaven, so God will take
the risen ones to heaven with him. Paul recognizes that the Father didn't bring
resurrected ones at the time of Christ's resurrection, and thus he uses the
future tense: 'them also which sleep… will God bring' He can be said to
bring them at a later time.
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and
become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came
also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ
shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the
firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. 1 Cor 15:20-23
Also, the word 'in' which stands in the Greek text
between 'sleep' and 'Jesus' is in the
genitive case, and is more accurately rendered as
'through'. Because there is no punctuation in the Greek
text, it needs to be determined which of the words,
'sleep', or 'Jesus', 'through'
properly belongs to.
The evidence would seem to favor the latter. Nowhere else in
the New Testament do we find the phrase 'sleep in
Jesus', but many times we find 'through Jesus'.
Therefore being justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
Rom 5:1
And not only so, but we also joy in God through
our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the
atonement.
Rom 5:11
Nay, in all these things we are more than
conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:37
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the
victory through our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Cor 15:57
Taking these two thoughts together, the verse would more
properly be rendered:
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose
again, even so them also which sleep, God will, through Jesus,
bring with him .
Once again we see nothing in the text that requires an
immortal soul. Paul is comforting the Thessalonians concerning
those who had died, so they are not as others who 'have no
hope'. The answer to what gives hope, is the resurrection
(which is always the case), not that the 'souls' have
gone into heaven. If this is really what Paul meant, this would
have been the ideal place to state the matter explicitly, but
that is not the case.
He continues that we which are alive and remain until the Lord
comes, shall not precede those that have fallen asleep. Why?
Because they're already in heaven? This would be the perfect place for Paul to
say so, but does he? No, we will not preceed the sleeping ones because 'the dead in
Christ shall rise first.', then 'we which are alive and
remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in
the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord'
Notice also, we are caught up 'together with them to meet
the Lord'. The living meet the Lord the same time the dead
meet the Lord; we meet Him 'together'.
Lastly, the words 'and so' in the Greek text are kai
houto which literally means 'in this manner', with
reference to what precedes it. So we see that Paul is teaching
that it is by the resurrection that the living and the
dead both get to ever be with the Lord, which would not be true
if Jesus was receiving each one individually as they died.
THE COMING OF JESUS
WITH HIS SAINTS
And the Lord make you to increase and abound in
love one toward another, and toward all men, even
as we do toward you: To the end he may stablish your hearts
unblameable in holiness before God, even our
Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
with all his saints. 1 Thes 3:12-13
Some people (very few actually) attempt to attach this verse
with the previous text, and make these saints into those coming
back for their bodies.
The Greek word for saints here is hagios which means
'holy ones'. It can be used of either angels, or holy
men. By comparing this verse with a couple others, we can arrive
at the correct interpretation.
When the Son of man shall come in his
glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit
upon the throne of his glory: Matt
25:31
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam,
prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten
thousands of his saints, Jude 14
In both of these passages, the myriads of holy ones coming
with Jesus are angels, and that probably also the proper understanding
of 1 Thes 3:13.
However, it must be noted that it makes no difference whether
this verse refers to men or angels because the first resurrection must precede
the second coming. The resurrection of the just occurs at the last or
seventh trumpet of Revelation, which clearly precedes the second coming in
Revelation 19. Therefore it ios entirely possible that the 'saints' of 1
Thes 3:13 refers to men, although resurrected men.
In either case, the verse in no way helps to prove the
immortality of the soul.
THE TIME OF MY DEPARTURE
IS AT HAND
For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of
my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my
course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me
only, but unto all them also that love his
appearing.
2 Tim 4:6-8
At this point in Paul's life he knows he is going to
die. We no longer see the indifference he displays in Philippians
1:23 where he was pressed between life and death, not knowing
which to choose. The words here which are translated 'For I
am now ready to be offered' are literally 'I am already being poured out'
As we would expect, some see an 'immortal soul' in
verse 6 where Paul says that his 'departure is at
hand'. Once again, there is no departing 'soul' or
'spirit' in the passage, and no mention is made of
going to heaven. We need not read anymore into the text than what
it simply states; Paul is dying, and he knows he is departing from
this life.
As is the case every time Paul discusses hope for life
beyond the grave, he once again points us here toward the
resurrection:
'Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall
give me at that day: and not to me only, but
unto all them also that love his appearing'
This simply confirms everything we have learned. Paul did not
expect to go immediately to be with Christ at his death. The fact
that he mentions the hope of the resurrection here, at the time
when his death is imminent, and nothing about immediately
going to be with Christ should settle once and for all his
expectations regarding death, and his hopes for future life.
This verse also helps us to check our conclusions by comparing
it to another verse which we studied earlier; Philippians 1:23:
having a desire to depart, and to be with
Christ; which is far better
We reasoned that the standard interpretation here was not
correct; that what Paul desired, was not his death, but some
event whereby he could be with Christ, namely 'the
return' (Gk. analusai).
The verse currently under consideration, shows that our
conclusions were valid, and sound. If at this time, when Paul's
death is imminent, he is about to go immediately to be the Lord
which is 'far better'; indeed, if he were about to
really see the fulfillment of the event he so greatly longed for
in Philippians 1:23, then surely he would have made mention of it
here, but that is simply not the case. Instead he
looks once again toward the resurrection, and a day in which he
will be with his Lord; the event, which in every case without
exception, he so greatly desired.
CONCLUSIONS
Having examined some of the most common proof-texts so
vigorously brought forth to teach man's inherent immortality, it
is my hope that the reader has emerged from this study a bit
wiser.
I hope to have established, beyond any reasonable doubt, that
the apostle never penned these words with the intent with which
they are usually cited. I would also hope, that those who still
wish to use these as sure proof that Paul taught the
immortality of the soul will feel the need to study deeper in
order to solve the severe contradictions and problems inherent in
such a belief.
Most of all, I hope to have established in the mind of the
reader, just how important the resurrection was to Paul, and what
a prominent place it held in his theology. The importance of the
resurrection has been lost in most of modern Christendom, having
been replaced by a 'heaven now' mentality. The battle
cry to the lost world; 'If you died today are you 100% sure
you'd go to heaven', is utterly foreign to New Testament
language. The question would more appropriately be 'If you died today, are you
100% sure you'll have any future life at all.'
On Easter Sunday, when our churches are full, we are told how
our Savior was raised from the dead, and how our entire faith
hinges on this fact, but we are scarcely told why. We are almost
never reminded just how very important the resurrection is to us
as believers as our only hope.
We have shown in every one of the above passages, without
exception, that Paul's great hope and longing, was not for death
and heaven, but for the resurrection. In light of this, it would
behoove each of to examine our own beliefs to see if it occupies
such an important place in our own lives.
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