Featured John Calvin's views on "soul sleep"

"The phrase soul sleep appears to have been popularised by John Calvin in the subtitle to his Latin tract Psychopannychia .... so Psychopannychia, originally, represents Calvin's view; that the soul was conscious, active." (ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_mortalism#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEde_Greef2008152-2_34-0)

 

Calvin rejected "soul sleep". What is "soul sleep"? It it the belief that upon death the body dies and returns to dust, but the soul continues on in an unconscious state.

Did Jesus teach "soul sleep"?

Let's find out.

John 11:1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. 3 Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.”

4 When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. 7 Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”

8 The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?”

9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” 11 These things He said, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.”

12 Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” 13 However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep.

14 Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. 15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him.”

 

According to the above texts the soul doesn't sleep an unconscious death. Here Calvin is right.
Why then did Jesus use "sleep" to describe Lazarus' death?

Answer: The believer has been delivered from the 2nd death (see Gal 3:13/4:4,5 & Rev 21:8), which is goodbye to life forever with no hope of a resurrection. Since the believer will be resurrected at the second coming of Christ (see 1 Cor 15:22-24/51-54) to him it is a sleep because he will be awakened by the alarm clock of God's Trumpet (see 1 Cor 15:52) to everlasting life. So "sleep" is a metaphor used to describe a death with is only temporary due to the resurrection of the just.

Conclusion: Upon death the believer dies, body, soul and spirit. His only hope is the resurrection where he puts on immortality.

Calvin stated that "the soul was conscious, active" after the death of the believer. Here Calvin is wrong....

 

1 Cor 15:50 (NKJV) Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood (Greek Sarx) cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.

51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep (i.e, remain dead), but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Conclusion: "Flesh & blood" is what we inherited from Adam. We have been corrupted by the fall and are therefore mortal. Only at the second coming are we changed and restored to the image of Christ (like Adam before the fall of mankind). Right now we are righteous by faith, but then we shall be righteous in reality.

 

Do you have a better idea?

 

"Protestants generally believe in the soul's existence, but fall into two major camps about what this means in terms of an afterlife. Some, following Calvin,[56] believe in the immortality of the soul and conscious existence after death, while others, following Luther,[57] believe in the mortality of the soul and unconscious "sleep" until the resurrection of the dead." Wikipedia

 

BTW, "The Roman Catholic Church has called "soul mortality" a serious heresy." Wikipedia

Well, I'm a heretic.

 

Well, I would like others to chime in on the conversations, but folks like yourself, who have no answers, chose to take cheap shots.....

 

That assumes you have something to teach me, right? Your reply means that you, and those who think like you, view yourselves as the arbitrators of truth and that your views are infallible.

 

Both Calvin's and Luther's view on "the immortality of the soul" contradict the gospel.

How so? We have nothing in us that can merit an entrance into heaven, right? We are 100% sinners saved by grace, not 66% sinners, right? Keep in mind that sin brought in mortality (death). The fact we are dying proves we are sinful. If my soul is immortal then my soul is holy and blameless. Besides, "only God has immortality" (1 Tim 6:16).

Now here's my question:

What is good & holy in the believer, that transcends death, and goes directly to heaven upon the believer's death without a need of the resurrection?

 

And what have you learned from me that you didn't know before?

You said: "...you have an unteachable spirit so we know we would be wasting our time"....

That means truth must come from you, not me. Since you have decided I will not listen you've decided you are wasting your time. Your words.

 

Well, instead of second guessing, why not leave judging to God's Spirit because as far as I know you can't read hearts and minds.

Anyway, I came here to debate, not take jabs....

I too can always learn, but I can't if you and other refuse to prove my position wrong. I've been wrong before....How about you?