Who I Am

Being in my early 70’s, I can’t help thinking about what happens to me when I die.

I’ll confess I’m the kind of person who isn’t satisfied with “when you die you go to heaven.” What is heaven? Where is it? What will I do there?

So many questions. Finding answers is difficult. But, I’m not the only one looking. Notice how many “I spent 15 minutes in Heaven” stories there are? It’s on people’s minds. But I’m not a fan of them. Heaven tourism stories are unreliable. At first, it seems there isn't much about the topic in the Bible, but if I read carefully, there’s more than I realize.

Afterlife is usually packaged as the “eternity” after this life. I live, I die, then eternity. Simple. Easy for a child to understand. Some think of it like crossing a river. But there’s more. My soul (and yours) was created to last forever. Earth life is just the beginning of that forever, in body number one. When body one dies, my soul moves on. To where? That depends. According to the creator, it depends on whether or not we acknowledge Him as the creator. It’s our choice. Long ago, it was clearly stated: “And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

It seems clear then, where we go after ending this life is a matter of choice. As far as this article is concerned, it rides on who “…has the Son.” Just to be clear.

Where do we go? To a place of waiting. Waiting for what? The resurrection. The New Earth. The return of Christ. There is more coming: New Earth, New Heaven, and a new body.

But wait. That still doesn’t tell the whole story. What about between the Earth body and that new body? Remember the saints in Revelation 6, crying out to God for justice? They aren’t on the old Earth. They aren’t on the new one either. They aren’t in their new bodies, but they are in a body. They aren’t sleeping souls in an unconscious coma. They’re not in a waiting room with a bunch of chairs and a TV going. They’re awake, dressed, speaking and active. Waiting. This implies a place to wait. Complete with body, and a functional environment. A place with easy access to Jesus. They cry to him. He answers. They see him. They are alive and thriving, in some form of body.

Jesus told the thief on the cross that he would be with him in Paradise. That day. Before sundown. That man’s soul went somewhere real, somewhere with Jesus. Since the resurrection has not occurred, and the New Earth is not yet here, all believers since that moment have gone somewhere. A place of waiting. Paradise. When the resurrection, the Day of the Lord, the return of Christ happens, we go to the New Earth, with a new body. Body number three.

Realizing this changes how I think about a lot of things.

Grieving. My father-in-law passed away recently. The question “where is he now?” is not a philosophical question. It matters. He is somewhere. Alive. In his case, I believe he is in the good place. Jesus gave the example of the rich man in torment, being allowed to look across at Lazarus resting in comfort. There are places the dead go before the resurrection. Unbelievers in torment, believers in comfort. Somewhere.

Suffering. Being aware that life on this Earth is not the whole story, affliction need not have the final word. Paul mentions it (2 Cor 4:17). For the Jesus follower, there’s no comparison between life on Earth and what comes next. He knew what came after was real and far better.

Unborn. This is a big one. Many babies die in the womb or not long out of it. Stillbirths. Miscarriages. Abortions. SIDS. I don’t pretend scripture speaks directly to that, but David alludes to it with the death of his newborn son (2 Sam 12:23). They are still souls. Same situation as mine. A soul is created and issued body number one. When that dies the soul goes somewhere else. They aren’t lost. They don’t cease to exist. They have a future. They are granted grace immediately. They are in the place of waiting, along with all other believers, until the Lord returns.

So, nearing the end of the life cycle for body number one, I look forward to being issued body number two. Waiting in a place of rest with other believers for the return of the King. Receiving the final, eternal, imperishable body number three, ready and equipped for life on the New Earth.

And, as you may have figured out, that’s the theme of this website. Exploring the adventure of a forever soul (after this life) and the challenge of a temporary body (in this life).

Books, Blogs and other content will aim generally at those two focal points.

If you can leave this site with something you didn’t have when you came, my mission is accomplished. If you have something to add, feel free to send a message, either through this site, or by email to tom@tcjohnson.com.