What The Bible Says.

Fortnightly bible study.

Episode 103 - 19/06/26

Led by Tim Clark

What happens when a Christian dies? In this third part of our study on life after death, we continue exploring the hope given to believers through the words of Jesus, the teaching of Paul, and the wider witness of Scripture.

Beginning with the thief on the cross, we consider Jesus’ promise: “Today you will be with Me in Paradise.” This remarkable moment shows us that salvation is not earned by religious achievement, knowledge, or lifelong works, but received by faith in Christ alone. The dying thief had no time to build a religious reputation, yet he recognised Jesus, confessed his own guilt, and looked to the King for mercy.

We also look at the nature of Christian hope. Biblical hope is not wishful thinking, like hoping for good weather or hoping a team will win. It is assurance, expectation, and certainty because it rests on the promise of God. The Christian can face death knowing that Christ has prepared a place for His people and that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

This study also considers the judgment seat of Christ and the difference between being judged for salvation and having our works tested. Salvation rests entirely on the finished work of Jesus, yet Scripture teaches that believers’ lives, motives, and service will be examined. What is built on Christ will endure; what is merely self-centred or worldly will be burned away.

We reflect on how the certainty of resurrection should shape the way we live now. If Christ has not been raised, Paul says our faith is useless — but Christ has indeed been raised from the dead. Because of that, death has lost its final victory, and the believer’s future is secure in Him.

The discussion also touches on grief, funerals, the death of loved ones, and the difference between grieving with hope and grieving without hope. Christians do sorrow, but not as those who have no hope. The death of a believer is painful for those left behind, but it is not the end; it is a temporary separation until we are gathered together with the Lord.

Finally, we consider the Lord’s Supper as both remembrance and anticipation. Each time believers share the bread and cup, we remember the death of Christ, but we also look forward to His return and to the day when all who belong to Him will share in His kingdom together. For the Christian, death is not the end of the story — because Jesus is risen, and those who are His will live with Him forever.

What The Bible Says.

Fortnightly bible study.

Episode 102 - 05/06/26

Led by Tim Clark

In this second part of What the Bible Says About Life After Death, we continue exploring what Scripture teaches about death, resurrection, judgement, and eternity. This study focuses especially on the different “locations” the Bible speaks about in relation to what happens after we die.

We begin with the body: from dust we came, and to dust we return. Genesis, Ecclesiastes, the Psalms, and Daniel all help us see that the physical body goes to the grave, the tomb, the dust, or the place of burial. But the Bible also teaches that death is not the end of the person.

From there, we look at Sheol in the Old Testament and Hades in the New Testament — the realm of the dead. We consider how Scripture speaks of consciousness after death, communication, waiting, torment, comfort, and the great divide seen in Jesus’ account of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16.

We then consider Abraham’s bosom, Paradise, and what happened before the resurrection of Christ. The faithful dead were gathered to their people and kept in a place of comfort and rest, while the wicked were held in torment. Jesus’ words to the thief on the cross — “Today you shall be with Me in Paradise” — become especially important in understanding this.

The study then turns to what changed through the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. We look at passages such as Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 3–4, considering Christ’s descent, His proclamation to the spirits in prison, and His leading of captives in His train. We also ask whether Abraham’s bosom is now empty, and where believers go when they die today.

We also explore the Christian hope of resurrection. Passages such as 2 Corinthians 5, 1 Thessalonians 4, 1 Corinthians 15, and Revelation 6 show that believers who die are present with the Lord, awaiting the resurrection body. Death is not victory over the believer; in Christ, death has been swallowed up in victory.

Finally, we look ahead to the final judgement, the lake of fire, the second death, and the New Jerusalem. The Bible ends not with vague ideas of clouds and harps, but with resurrection, renewed creation, perfect bodies, the dwelling place of God with His people, and eternal life with the Lord Jesus Christ.

What The Bible Says.

Fortnightly bible study.

Episode 100 - 22/05/25

Led by Akin George

What does the Bible actually say about life after death?

In this first part of our study, we look honestly at the subject many people avoid: death. For the Christian, death is not the end, nor is it meant to be faced without hope. Scripture teaches that death entered through sin, but through Jesus Christ we have the promise of resurrection, eternal life, and being with the Lord.

Beginning in Genesis, we trace the origin of death and the separation caused by sin, before considering the hope given to believers through Christ. We discuss passages including Hebrews 9, 1 Thessalonians 4, John 11, Luke 23, John 14, and 2 Corinthians 4, exploring questions such as:

- What happens when a Christian dies?

- Is death really described as sleep in the Bible?

- Is there such a thing as reincarnation or a second chance after death?

- What did Jesus mean when He told the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with Me in Paradise”?

- How should the hope of resurrection shape the way we live now?

This study is both comforting and challenging. Comforting, because those who belong to Christ have a certain hope beyond the grave. Challenging, because Scripture reminds us that “it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

For the believer, death is not defeat. Because Jesus died and rose again, those who trust in Him will live, even though they die.

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