So far we have reviewed nine common (not unanimous) experiences that were discovered through extensive interviews and are reported in the book Evidence of the Afterlife by Dr. Jeffrey Long. To this point none are surprising given the information and experiences shared in the Bible. That takes us to the last three.
Encountering or Learning Special Knowledge. As with the others, not everybody indicated that this was their experience. The experience itself would provide special knowledge, but the question that yielded this response was driving at whether information was specifically given to the person. The Apostle Paul shares this about his experience, which may have been an NDE:
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— 4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.
2 Corinthians 12:2-4
Paul saw and heard things that he was not permitted to tell to others. He does not share whether some of what he does write about came from this experience. I would assume that it did.
The study did not compare the information, but I have noted some inconsistencies from accounts reported in various books. That greatest was a report of universal salvation versus people who experienced what they called Hell. The universal salvation report would also clash with Scripture. Jesus says,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one come to the Father except through me.”
John 14:6
The exclusivity of salvation through Jesus makes sense if indeed there is a problem of sin between man and God. Is forgiveness just something God does because He can? If so, why would Jesus be required to go to the cross to atone for sin? The same can be asked about other religions and methods of “earning” Heaven. If that can be done, why would Jesus need to do what He did?
Reports of salvation without Jesus raise suspicion. Are the claims of universal love and acceptance a deception? If so, into whose hands can we fall when we experience a Near Death Experience? There is an assumption that the contents of the experience are necessarily truth. That may be misguided.
Encountering a Boundary or Barrier. There are very few descriptions in the Bible about a trip to Heaven. Those that exist are all focused on the throne room of God. There is also reason to conclude that these were visions. They definitely were not bodily trips to Heaven, nor are NDEs. A vision is not even a movement of the soul to Heaven. It is information about Heaven delivered to the soul. Would the throne room of God count as a place of no return with the only way to experience it is via a vision?
Of people experiencing an NDE, 31% reported that they encountered a point which they could not pass. The reason, or what was beyond, is not laid out. The only thing like it in Scripture is not in Heaven but rather in Sheol. In the account of Lazarus and the Rich Man , the rich man can speak to Abraham but he cannot go to Abraham neither can Abraham go to him.
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’
Luke 16:25-26
A Return to the Body, Either Voluntary or Involuntary Isaiah, Daniel, Paul and John all have their vision or NDE come to an end. All would seem to prefer to stay . The same can be said for those who experience an NDE.
All we know is this life. There is something within us that clings to this life as long as we can. When people die, we often speak as if life is the prize and Heaven is the consolation prize. This is not the case. In Revelation 7 a picture of people in Heaven is given to us. John is asked if he knows who are these people. He defers to his questioner who tells him, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation…” While “great tribulation” may refer to an event or period of human history, a more likely understanding is that is how this life is referred to in Heaven. It is certainly not an endorsement. The good news is that something truly better does exist for those who are connected to Christ. We just fail to understand how much better.
afterdeathsite 