The Biblical teaching on what it means to be a human is very clear on the extent of our existence. It teaches that every human is an eternal being. Ultimately our bodies and souls exist forever. Our individual selves and self-consciousness are eternal. The Scriptures are absolutely emphatic about this. Our life here on earth is short, but we continue to exist forever.
Here are a few Biblical statements in support of this idea.
Heb. 9:27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
John 5:28 – 29 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.
Rev. 20:12 - 15 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
One of the worst conclusions of human wisdom is that death ends it all. Evolution teaches that all that we know happened by blind chance and has no goal or purpose. It teaches that humans have evolved accidentally from stardust, and when we die we simple cease to exist and return to dust. There is evidence for this. Everyone does die and return to the dust. They seem to cease to exist. If it were not for God’s verbal revelation we would not know otherwise. But God has spoken. His Word teaches us that the intense yearning in our hearts for permanence, significance, and love, is not an unfortunate phantom desire, it is, in fact, an actual echo of our true nature! We are designed to exist forever, and in fact we all do! It is absolutely a temporary solution to stop your body from its physical functioning. It does not accomplish what is often thought. When one dies he does not cease to exist. He immediately is ushered into eternity. His body will one day be resurrected as well. All humans will exit forever as body and soul in a specific location being fully self-conscious. This is one of the greatest tragedies of suicide. The person seems to think they are escaping the trouble they are experiencing; instead they are moving to a much worse situation from which there is no escape.
The mantra is: “Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.” However the truth is, suicide is a temporary solution that is no solution at all. Suicide is not permanent in any sense. The individual does not cease to exist, and his body will be raised. The last part of this mantra is misleading as well. The “temporary problem” is more intense than the author of this mantra realizes. The “temporary problem” is very big and one hundred percent pervasive. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. The problem is so big, God himself can only solve it. The good news is that repentance, redemption, and reconciliation are possible while we live on this earth.
We were made in God’s image and were made to fellowship with God himself. Sin and God’s curse have separated us from God, but God has provided the way for our reconciliation. Christ has made peace for all who believe. Our long-term problem is that we are in rebellion against our Creator. Sin has many, many, negative results. Certainly discouragement and depression are results of our extreme fall from what we were made to be. But God, being rich in mercy, has provided the way for salvation for all who believe!
Acts 16:31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”