Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The First Great Deception,”
pp. 531–550; “Can Our Dead Speak to Us?” pp. 551–562, in The Great
Controversy.
“Upon the fundamental error of natural immortality rests the doctrine
of consciousness in death—a doctrine, like eternal torment, opposed to
the teachings of the Scriptures, to the dictates of reason, and to our feel-
ings of humanity. According to the popular belief, the redeemed in heaven
are acquainted with all that takes place on the earth and especially with
the lives of the friends whom they have left behind. But how could it
be a source of happiness to the dead to know the troubles of the living,
to witness the sins committed by their own loved ones, and to see them
enduring all the sorrows, disappointments, and anguish of life? How much
of heaven’s bliss would be enjoyed by those who were hovering over their
friends on earth? And how utterly revolting is the belief that as soon as the
breath leaves the body the soul of the impenitent is consigned to the flames
of hell! To what depths of anguish must those be plunged who see their
friends passing to the grave unprepared, to enter upon an eternity of woe
and sin!”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 545.
Discussion Questions:
Ê Those who have talked to other Christians about the state of the
dead and the nature of hell have, most likely, discovered just how ada-
mant and firm people are in their belief, not only in the idea that the
saved immediately go to heaven but also that the lost are in the eternal
torment of hell. Why do you think that is? It’s one thing, understand-
able somewhat, for them to want to believe that their deceased loved
ones are “with the Lord” (though, as we have seen, there’s still the
question of how upsetting it would be for them to see the mess of things
down here). But why is there such a strong attachment to the horrific
idea that the lost are being eternally tormented in hell? What does this
fact teach us about just how powerful tradition can be? Discuss this in
class.
Ë Most Christian denominations are proclaiming the unbiblical
theory of the natural immortality of the soul with all its correlated
theories. What else should we do as a church (in addition to what
we are already doing) to proclaim to the world the biblical view of
death and the afterlife?
Ì Though Dante’s poem The Divine Comedy was mere fiction, it
became very influential in helping cement in people’s minds false
teachings about what happens to the “soul” after death. What lessons
can we learn from how easily Christian theology can be influenced by
outside teachings? What other non-Christian ideas influence Christian
thought even today, and how can we protect ourselves from them?
