The Body May Die ... But The Spirit Never Dies

Common Sense Commentary: The first time I heard that someone who had died, and was resuscitated, who then told of an after death experience, I was skeptical. But after years of such testimony, given of similar experiences, I changed my attitude to one of ..... "There is nothing in the scripture which refutes the possibility of such experiences", especially when a person who died, then awakes to immediately tell of what they saw and heard.  My years of experience, as a pastor, dealing with people who were sick unto death convinced me that people seldom lie when they are dying or reviving from near death. The reality of death and then the idea of answering to God, sobers, humbles and encourages honesty. I am convinced, as the Bible indicates, that though the body may die, the spirit of the dead person lives on for eternity. God "formed" or molded man out of dirt, in His own image, but then "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life". "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Gen. 2:7.  
The breath of God is eternal and the spirits of those created in his image are also eternal and live on after the body is completely lifeless. So if that body is in the process of passing from life to death, it is not unreasonable that the spirit is also in process of leaving the body and possibly hovering near-by til the body is totally dead, at which time the spirit departs the scene and arrives  at its eternal destiny in a split second. That is the only way I can understand the possible credibility of such experiences in the light of  2 Cor.5:6-8 "Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:  (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)  We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord."  
And then there is the first and second resurrection of dead bodies... but that's another subject. RB

Life after death? Largest-ever study provides evidence that 'out of body' and 'near-death' experiences may be real

Adam Withnall in The Independent



There is scientific evidence to suggest that life can continue after death, according to the largest ever medical study carried out on the subject.

A team based in the UK has spent the last four years seeking out cardiac arrest patients to analyse their experiences, and found that almost 40 per cent of survivors described having some form of “awareness” at a time when they were declared clinically dead.

Experts currently believe that the brain shuts down within 20 to 30 seconds of the heart stopping beating – and that it is not possible to be aware of anything at all once that has happened.

But scientists in the new study said they heard compelling evidence that patients experienced real events for up to three minutes after this had happened – and could recall them accurately once they had been resuscitated.

Dr Sam Parnia, an assistant professor at the State University of New York and a former research fellow at the University of Southampton who led the research, said that he previously believed that patients who described near-death experiences were only relating hallucinatory events.


One man, however, gave a “very credible” account of what was going on while doctors and nurses tried to bring him back to life – and says that he felt he was observing his resuscitation from the corner of the room.

Speaking to The Telegraph about the evidence provided by a 57-year-old social worker in Southampton, Dr Parnia said: “We know the brain can’t function when the heart has stopped beating.

“But in this case, conscious awareness appears to have continued for up to three minutes.

“The man described everything that had happened in the room, but importantly, he heard two bleeps from a machine that makes a noise at three minute intervals. So we could time how long the experienced lasted for.

“He seemed very credible and everything that he said had happened to him had actually happened.”

Dr Parnia’s study involved 2,060 patients from 15 hospitals in the UK, US and Austria, and has been published in the journal Resuscitation.

Of those who survived, 46 per cent experienced a broad range of mental recollections, nine per cent had experiences compatible with traditional definitions of a near-death experience and two per cent exhibited full awareness with explicit recall of “seeing” and “hearing” events – or out-of-body experiences.

Dr Parnia said that the findings of the study as a whole suggested that “the recalled experience surrounding death now merits further genuine investigation without prejudice”.

Dr Jerry Nolan, editor-in-chief of the journal which published the research, said: “The researchers are to be congratulated on the completion of a fascinating study that will open the door to more extensive research into what happens when we die.”