Title: Four Kinds of Death
Bible Book: Ephesians 2 : 1-5
Author: James McCullen
Subject: Death; Judgment; Eternity; Salvation
Objective:
Introduction
Ephesians 2:1-5 and Many Others
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), (NAS)
A lady died and went to heaven. She was met at the pearly gates by St. Peter and ask I get to go in don't I. He said "you must first spell a word". She said "what word". Simon said "LOVE".
This good lady said "L O V E". Simon said "come on in". But then the phone rang and Simon said "I must go to the Father for a few minutes will you watch the gate". She said "I have only been here a few minutes what will I do". He said "just have every body spell a word".
She turned around and here comes her husband. She said "honey what happened to you "he said well I am so ashamed I don't think I can get into heaven". She said "of course you can all you have to do is spell a word". But she said "tell me what happened to you". He dropped his head and said I was in a motel with another women and I had a heart attack".
His wife said "spell Czechoslovakia.
There are 4 kinds of death mentioned in the Bible. I want to look at each of them today.
1. The First Death Is . . Physical Death.
Gen 3:19
19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." (NAS)
Gen 5:5
5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years, and he died. (NAS)
Job 14:5
5 "Since his days are determined, the number of his months is with Thee, and his limits Thou hast set so that he cannot pass. (NAS) (The limits JAMc )
Rom 5:12
12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned-- (NAS)
Heb 9:27
27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this {comes} judgment, (NAS)
Illustration
Life Expectancy Quiz
Do you know what your life expectancy is? Check it out on the Internet At http://www.lexmed.com/html/life_expectancy_quiz.html
Are you . . . Male ____ Female ____ Is the area you live in. . . Urban ____ Rural ____
Have 2-4 of your grandparents lived to be 75 or older? Yes ____ No ____
Have you had a parent die of stroke? Yes _____ No ____
Do you have a parent or sibling with diabetes? Yes ____ No ____
Is money an important motivator for you? Yes ____ No _____
Have you completed . . . College ____ Grad School _____
Are you married? Yes ____ No _____
Do you work . . . Behind a Desk ____ In a physically taxing job _____
Do you exercise . . . More than four times a week _____ Two or three times a week ____
Less than two times a week ___
Do you sleep ten or more hours a day? Yes ____ No ____
Are you . . . Tense ____ About average ____ Easy going ____
Are you a . . . Happy person ____ Unhappy person ____ Average _____
Have you ever received a speeding ticket? Yes ____ No ____
Do you smoke . . .
2 or more packs a day ____ 1-2 packs a day _____ ½ a pack a day ____ not at all ______
Do you drink . . .
11/2 or more alcoholic drinks a day ____ up to 11/2 alcoholic drinks a day ____ none ____
Do you see the doctor at least once a year? es ____ No ____
Application
I am 62 but this test results say I will live 13 more years. How many of you think that is a guarantee? None of you. What your saying is that death is uncertain.
"Because I could not stop for death
He kindly stopped for me;
The carriage held but just ourselves
And immortality." Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (1830-1886)
Coffin: a container small enough for bums, large enough for presidents.
2. The Second Death Is . . Spiritual Death.
Eph 2:1-5
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), (NAS)
Eph 4:18
18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; (NAS)
1 Tim 5:6
6 But she who gives herself to wanton pleasure is dead even while she lives. (NAS)
Illustration: SUICIDE PREVENTION: FACT OR MYTH
People who talk about suicide don't do it --suicide happens without warning.
Talking about suicide may give someone the idea.
There are more suicides than homicides.
Suicide rates are higher for people of low income.
More men commit suicide than women.
Most suicidal people are undecided about living or dying, and they gamble with death, leaving it to others to save them.
Once a person is suicidal, he/she is suicidal forever.
If a person really wants to kill him/herself, no one has the right to stop him/her.
Most suicides are caused by a single dramatic and traumatic event.
There is no genetic predisposition to suicide.
Improvement following a serious personal crisis or serious depression means that the risk of suicide is over.
It's unhelpful to talk about suicide to a person who is depressed.
People who commit suicide have not sought medical help prior to their attempt. (ANSWERS AT http://www.sfsuicide.org/html/quiz.html)
Application
Why that quiz here? If your dead Spiritual it's because of suicide. Don't blame someone else it is your fault if you are spiritually Dead.
3. The Third Death Is . . A Death To Sin.
Rom 6:11
11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. (NAS)
Luke 23:40-43
40 But the other answered, and rebuking him said, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 "And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." 42 And he was saying, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" 43 And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise." (NAS)
Illustration Illust. sent to me over the internet. Saved.Int
In 1967 while taking a class in photography at the University of Cincinnati, I became acquainted with a young man named Charles Murray who also was a student at the school and training for the summer Olympics of 1968 as a high diver. Charles was very patient with me as I would speak to him for hours about Jesus Christ and how He had saved me. Charles was not raised in a home that attended any kind of church, so all that I had to tell him was a fascination to him. He even
began to ask questions about forgiveness of sin.
Finally the day came that I put a question to him. I asked if he realized his own need of a Redeemer and if he was ready to trust Christ as his own Savior. I saw his countenance fall and the guilt in his face. But his reply was a strong "no." In the days that followed he was quiet and often I felt that he was avoiding me, until I got a phone call and it was Charles. He wanted to know where to look in the New Testament for some verses that I had given him about salvation. I gave him the reference to several passages and asked if I could meet with him. He declined my offer and thanked me for the scripture. I could tell that he was greatly troubled, but I did not know where he was or how to help him.
Because he was training for the Olympic games, Charles had special privileges at the University pool facilities. Sometime between 10:30 and 11:00 that evening he decided to go swim and practice a few dives. It was a clear night in October and the moon was big and bright. The University pool was housed under a ceiling of glass panes, so the moon shone bright across the top of the wall in the pool area.
Charles climbed to the highest platform to take his first dive. At that moment the Spirit of God began to convict him of his sins. All the scripture he had read, all the occasions of witnessing to him about Christ flooded his mind. He stood on the platform backwards to make his dive, spread his arms to gather his balance, looked up to the wall and saw his own shadow caused by the light of the moon. It was the shape of a cross. He could bear the burden of his sin no longer. His heart broke and he sat down on the platform and asked God to forgive him and save him. He trusted Jesus Christ twenty some feet in the air.
Suddenly, the lights in the pool area came on. The attendant had come in to check the pool. As Charles looked down from his platform he saw an empty pool which had been drained for repairs. He had almost plummeted to his death, but the cross had stopped him from disaster.
"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God." 1 Cor. 1:18
Illustration: A little boy opened the big and old family Bible with fascination and looked at the old pages as he turned them. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible, and he picked it up and looked at it closely. It was an old leaf from a tree that had been pressed in between the pages. "Momma, look what I found," the boy called out. "What have you got there, dear?" his mother asked. With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered: "I think it's Adam's suit!"
Application
What are you trying to use to clothe your spiritual nakedness? Adam tried leaves but it did not work.
Fear not that your life shall come to an end, but rather fear that it shall never have a beginning. Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
Hope Needs a Foundation: A little over a month before he died, the famous atheist Jean-Paul Sartre declared that he so strongly resisted feelings of despair that he would say to himself, "I know I shall die in hope." Then in profound sadness, he would add, "But hope needs a foundation." Our Daily Bread, April 17, 1995
4. The Fourth Death Is the . . Second Death.
Rev 2:11
11 `He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.' (NAS)
Rev 20:6
6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. (NAS)
Rev 20:14 (NAS)
14 And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
Rev 21:8
8 "But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part {will be} in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." (NAS)
Illustration: A young man went off to college with a youthful Christian Zeal. He began to hear some of the professors mock Christianity, and he made friends with a fine student who said "Christianity is bunk, there is nothing to heaven or hell when you did your dead. This student did not turn his back on Christianity but temporarily lost some of his zeal. At break time he went home and on the way back he stayed at an Inn. During the night he heard someone crying out in agony "DEATH HELL I'M LOST, DEATH HELL I'M LOST, DEATH HELL I'M LOST." He got up to go tell the person about Christ but then remembered my friend said there is nothing to Christianity and he went back to bed. In the morning he discovered the man crying out was his college friend, and the friend died. You see this Christian had paid too much attention to the flack this friend put up without ever telling him of his convictions. This young man became a fine missionary.
Application
No man ever repented of being a Christian on his death bed.
Hannah More (1745-1833)
Yes there are 4 kinds of death mentioned in the Bible.
Physical Death.
Spiritual Death.
A Death To Sin.
The Second Death.
