Terrified by a Ghost by T.

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Jun 3, 1913

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 40, No. 22.

Terrified by a Ghost

By T.

SOME of the very dignified Eastern papers are surrendering a good deal of space to accounts of a ghost that has been making its appearance in one of the seaport cities. There seems to be quite an excitement over the matter in the immediate locality where the apparition is said to be observed. The supposition is that it is the spirit of a dead girl who is not satisfied with some things that are going on, and hence the ghost. A desire for "just vengeance" is said to be the only motive assigned for the visit of this uncanny spiritual being.

Now if people would take time to study their Bibles upon the subject, they would know perfectly well that the spirit of a dead individual can never return to this earth. God has specifically said that "the living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything; neither have they any more reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun." "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." Eccl. 9: 5, 6, 10.

And again that Word declares: "Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish." Ps. 146: 3, 4.

The Scriptures speak of the dead as being asleep, but they speak of this sleep in such a way that we know that it means absolute unconsciousness, because all sleep is a state in which the individual knows nothing whatever of what is going on about him. These Scriptures also show that when they speak of man in death as being asleep, they wish to convey to us the idea that he is actually dead. One of these texts may be taken from the writings of Paul, and is as follows:

"I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." I Thess. 4: 13-18.

Note that the apostle desires to have us comfort one another with the thought that our reward is at the second coming of Christ. He points forward to His coming and to the resurrection, when we are to receive life and immortality. There is no promise in the Scriptures that we receive our reward before that time; neither is there any statement in the word of God anywhere that there is an immortal, undying part within the individual, that survives the death of the body. The foregoing scripture is perfectly plain in communicating to the mind of the reader that death is an unconscious sleep, and nothing short of the infinite power that is manifested in the voice of the Son of God at His second coming can awake these sleepers from that death.

To make it clear that we are fully warranted in saying that the Scriptures speak of those who are really dead as being asleep, we may read the following account of the raising of Lazarus:

"Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) Therefore his sisters sent unto Him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick. When Jesus heard that, He said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.

"Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When He had heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was. Then after that saith He to His disciples, Let us go into Judea again. His disciples say unto Him, Master, the Jews of late sought to stone Thee; and goest Thou thither again? Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him. These things said He: and after that He saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said His disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that He had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him." John 11: 1-15.

Following these verses is the account of Jesus' return to Bethany and of His raising Lazarus from the dead. It will be seen, from the mere reading of the verses, that at first He told His disciples that Lazarus was sleeping; and they, knowing that Lazarus was sick, believed that sleep would be good for him, and questioned the concern of the Master over Lazarus' taking rest in sleep. Then He plainly said to them, "Lazarus is dead." This is one among the conclusive scriptures which show that death is spoken of as a sleep; and the evident reason why it is spoken of in this manner is that it is a part of God's plan to raise every individual from the dead. The Word says:

"Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5: 28, 29.

And since it is a part of God's plan, that the dead shall live again in the resurrection, He speaks of them between death and the resurrection as being asleep. Then those who are not prepared for immortality at His coming are spoken of as being consigned to the second death; and the second death is not spoken of as a sleep, because that ends their existence eternally.

These things are clear in the Scriptures; but why is it that men and women who claim to believe the Bible, will nevertheless be led astray by the superstition that some mysterious thing within the individual survives the death of the body, and that it may come back to us in the form of ghosts and terrify us? There is absolutely no possibility of the dead returning. When an individual is dead, he is perfectly harmless. Even his ghost can not return. But there are fallen angels that, in the form of unseen beings, may be about us at any time; and they may impersonate the dead. But God has said that if you resist the devil, he will flee from you; and so the Christian has nothing to fear either from devils or from ghosts. T.