Life after death-fact or fiction?

                                                                                     Photo: google 

By Jack Viljoen

Have you given much thought to what your future holds? There are so many possibilities but one thing is certain; death is inevitable. Many people have had near death experiences or come back from the dead. Is there life after death or do just simply vanish?

What happens?

Have you ever given any thought about what tomorrow holds, or as a matter of fact even today? Without meaning to be melodramatic it is possible that today may be your last day on this planet? Maybe the next hour may be your last. Your age has nothing to do with when it could happen.

 A run away truck, a drunken or careless driver, a freak electrical storm, sickness, the list of causes goes on and on. Sounds grim, but it is very factual. 

Think about it... is your life in your own hands? Call it what you want to, providence, lady luck, departure time, etc. The point is that at sometime your life is going to come to an end.

No matter which religion you follow you still have no guarantees as to how long you still might have. Lifestyle gives no guarantees. Smokers live to ripe old ages and abstainers from both tobacco and alcohol die young. Motor manufacturers have come a long way in building safer vehicles. Accidents happen. Still no guarantee.

The only thing that is guaranteed is that one day you will depart this life as we know it. What then? 

Knowing that death is inevitable what should we be considering? Surely it is the quality of life that we currently enjoy? Or perhaps it is how much good I can do for others? Maybe it is to try and be a better person? All of these are good motives but should our question not be:

"Where will I spend eternity?"

Most religions have some kind of belief in life after death.

There are various responses to the life after death issue. Besides the religious answers, some people say that they don't believe in a life after death and that when you die that's it... it's over. No more feelings or consciousness, you are just dead. Strangely enough though, these same people, when faced with death quickly change their minds.

I watched a documentary on National Geographic about an Airbus that ran out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean en route to Portugal. The picture of fear, panic and hopelessness on the faces of most passengers told its own story. When actually faced with death the true beliefs come out.

Why fear, when after you die there is nothing? Why panic when you believed that after death there was no feeling? Why hopelessness when you never hoped in anything anyway? The Airbus never crashed but landed safely on some island. Everyone survived. But what now? Will they continue in denial now that the panic is over, or will they reconsider?

The truth is that all these brazen responses to the issue of death are merely facades because most people don't really have any real answers. Deep down inside they know that there is more but they don't know what it is. They do not actually believe what they say.

I am sixty five years old and have had occasion to be at the bedside of a number of people during their last few hours on this earth. For some the fear, emotional agony and anxiety that manifested in the one breathing his last and also in family members, was quite upsetting.

For others, the absolute atmosphere of peace that pervaded the room was glorious. This included my own father. What made the difference?

The answer is:
YOUR INNER HEART CONVICTION CONCERNING LIFE AND DEATH.

Let us go back to what people believe concerning life after death. I am not going to enter into a lengthy debate on the various religions. Most beliefs are centered in one or other religion. Then there are those who do not believe in any form of afterlife. They have no belief system whatsoever, denying the existence of any form of higher being such as a supernatural being.

I have studied all of the main religious beliefs and can only come to one conclusion. There is only one that offers a definite answer... and that is Christianity. Many would differ with that statement and their disagreement is justified.
Christianity is very disjointed with all the thousands of different denominations and belief systems. The reason for this is very simple. They have a form of religion founded upon human principles which do not line up with the Truth. Each holds to a part of the truth and have then added rules and regulations according to their denominational stand.
True Christianity does not consist of rules, regulations, rites and rituals controlled by man. It is a relationship built on love and trust between an almighty God and mankind.

If one goes back to the root of "Christianity" you will find it in the heart of God. The God of all creation. The God of the Bible. A study of the word Christian will reveal that it was first used in Antioch in about 45 AD to describe the followers of Jesus Christ. It never had a capital letter C and was actually a derogatory term used to mock those who believed in Jesus as the Messiah. God never calls anyone a Christian. When used today it speaks of people who go to a "church"; another fallacy. For the purposes of this article God has made certain promises to "His church" concerning eternal life.

Back to your eternal destiny.

Numerous folk do not believe what is recorded in the Bible. This again comes from man's various interpretations of the Bible trying to make it justify his belief system. That is what has given rise to all the denominations, disagreements and misunderstanding etc. None of this nullifies the authority of the Bible as God's word to us. All through the years people have been trying to discredit God's word but it has stood the test of time and it's integrity still holds true. Written by many authors over many years yet all their writings blend into a beautiful love story. The infallible word of a loving God. A story of the unconditional, sacrificial love of God towards His creation.

My friend are you prepared to lay aside all of your prejudices, philosophies and preconceived ideas? Remember it is your eternal destiny we are talking about. Read on.

Now comes the most beautiful part of life's dilemma... Jesus.

Yes, Jesus Christ the Son of the living God. He, and only He, is the guarantee of a secure haven of peace for all eternity. Governments are passing laws forbidding the use of that Name. It is being removed from constitutions. They may be able to remove the Name, but the Person lives on for all eternity. A wise teacher and philosopher of old once said to a government trying to stop the use of the name of Jesus, "Let it be, because if this is from man it will soon die out, but if it is from God no one will be able to stop it."

And no one has. Think about that!

From His virgin birth to His death by crucifixion and subsequent resurrection many have tried to bring doubt into peoples' minds concerning the truth about Jesus Christ. A lot of people have been deceived into believing the lie but many have also believed the truth.

If you are one of those who have been deceived, remember this: a lie can be changed but truth is truth and endures forever. Are you prepared to go through life being deceived or are you going to exchange the lie for the truth? It is your choice. Should you choose Jesus Christ then you have also exchanged death for life.

With Him there is eternal life in which there is no longer any fear of death, for you will be with Him for all eternity. Each day can be lived to its fullest with no anxiety, fear or hopelessness. Jesus said,"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

Should you choose Jesus you are in for the most exciting journey of your life. I made the choice at age 35. Today at age 65 I can say that I have never looked back I have a hope and an eternal future, and his name is Jesus.

There is a cost involved. You will have to surrender control of your life to Him. Think of it this way. He created you, so who better to direct your life than the author of life. The long term benefits far outweigh the cost. Think about it, long and hard. It is not a decision to be taken lightly. Your choice will determine where you will spend eternity.

Once you have made your decision to trust in Jesus then you need to read the article [http://www.tcitfh.co.za] on Relationship with the Father. This will help you with what to do next. Should you decide that it is just too much for you to believe then you have sealed your own fate for now.

I say for now because God is patient and is waiting for you to have a change of heart. He does not want anyone to be left out of sharing in His wonderful promises. He has not written you off, because He loves you.

I am not part of any denomination. I am simply proclaiming the truth about a loving God, creator of the universe, and His plan for your life. It does not matter what you believe in now or your station in life and not even the lifestyle you are in at present. Forgiveness and acceptance are yours. God has no favourites.

Jesus reigns over all the earth. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Know that in your darkest hour you can always call out to Him. JESUS LOVES YOU.

With much love,

Jack Viljoen.

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