It’s interesting and surprising but revealing. It’s far from what one would expect. The apparition or ghost, whatever we call it, said something unexpected. It revealed what can only be fully realized after death. If we can grasp it on this side of the grave, it will make a big difference.
Job 4:16 It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying, 17 Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker? 18 Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly: 19 How much less in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth? 20 They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it. 21 Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom. 5:1 Call now, if there be any that will answer thee; and to which of the saints wilt thou turn?
The Bible lets us know from several encounters down through the years that things like this can happen. Traditions and tales cause lots of confusion as to what is outside the natural. Sift through the fairy tales, mystery and folly and consider what the Word of God says.
The spiritual world does exist. God, our Savior, and angels under the direction of God exist. The Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost exists. Satan, evil spirits, and fallen angels exist. There is a whole co-existence of good and evil in the spiritual world. We can’t see it, but that doesn’t mean it’s not there. We know it is. We know God is there. We know the devil is there.
We know there is no coming back for the souls in hell. I don’t really know about souls in heaven. Samuel appeared to Saul after his death. Moses and Elijah were with Jesus on earth on top of the Mount of Transfiguration. On the day Jesus rose from the dead, many saints resurrected with him. Much of what we know we just don’t understand. It’s supernatural. God doesn’t want us to know it all, but he doesn’t want us to ignore it. When one dabbles in the occult and religions that use the supernatural as their base, a trap is set to condemn the soul. In the Law the Jews were told not to let a witch live or any who practice such activities. That all went back to Baal worship. When we sift through this, we see a visitation—real or not—we don’t know, but the message is straight down the line.
Coming from heaven one would expect the message to be all about good and rejoicing. The somber tone and disturbing message are what is discovered after one crosses over. We never really die; only the body goes to the grave. The soul continues on living in either heaven or hell and from either place they share the same discovery about their past life. It’s a gift. It’s a prime mistake to credit ourselves with any part of it.
The first mistake is to believe ourselves better than God. Giving oneself the credit for accomplishments is wrong. “Look what I’ve done all on my own….” We are not the authors and maintainers of our life. It is ours, but it’s a gift from God. When we credit ourselves more than God, we are saying we are more just and holy than he is. The religious movements of today teach this mindset. They think they have a handle on things, but people are vulnerable because it can all change in just a moment. It’s so foolish to think otherwise.
The second truth is about God’s feeling toward man that he created. He cannot trust us to handle our own lives. We don’t always have our ducks in a row. We get careless. We waste life by being irresponsible. Just how far could you go without the help of the Lord? God charged guardian angels to watch over us. Psalms tells us this too. They must get so frustrated at our folly. We won’t listen when the Holy Spirit speaks to us. We say we’re in charge of things ourselves. This ghost tried to get Eliphaz to realize how little he was in control. If we ever needed God we do now. We’re more advanced than ever but more barbaric. We’ve moved farther and farther from the truth. We cannot manage our gift of life.
In verse 19 we see that the reality of a person is far less that we think. We are not the center of the universe. If we don’t get our way we pout and blame God. This ghost was telling Eliphaz that this is how he saw it when he was alive. We feel safe physically, but the body is breaking down every day. We are nothing but houses of clay; we are dust. An ornate grave and expensive clothes still only reveal dust. Life can’t exist in this world; we’re just passing through. Use the time wisely because we pass on quickly.
We can learn a lot from verses 20 and 21. “They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it. Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.” All that is not eternal is gone without regard. What verse 20 is saying is each day is the day of death for someone. I’ve never seen page 2 of the Bristol Herald Courier empty. Today is someone’s last day. It’s Sunday until midnight, so it could still be our last day. It’s foolish to believe it won’t happen to us. Of those who died yesterday, many probably didn’t think it would be their last. Believe it. It will someday be our day.
All the achievements of life are gone in a moment. The only thing we can do is be ready. I don’t know if this was a ghost or not, but he was telling the truth. God help us to grasp the value of this. “Call now, if there be any that will answer thee; and to which of the saints wilt thou turn.” Who will you believe? Who can you turn to? We can trust what one who was dead says. He knows the whole story. The living does not. Jesus died and arose to be Lord of the dead and the living. When I come down to the end someone, our Savior, will be there with me through the shadow of death.
So, here is a sermon from a ghost—or whatever he was, objectively told to us in God’s Word of Truth. Can we trust a ghost’s advice, one who now sees both sides of the coin of existence?
What will you do with it?
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 