What are your thoughts on soul—is it created at birth? Does it die after death? — P. C.
Most Christians, at least since the 2nd century, have considered the soul to be immortal, or at the very least to receive immortality at the time of the general resurrection. (Log in with your website credentials for the talk on The General Resurrection.) I believe this is due to the influence of Plato and other philosophers. Yet passages like 1 Timothy 6:16 insist that only God is immortal.
There we read, of "... God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see..." (1 Tim 6:15-16)
This has implications:
- Eternal life is a gift (Rom 6:23).
- If the wicked are punished in hell, they will eventually cease to exist. (Isn’t that only fair—that after sufficient punishment, it comes to an end?) See Matt 10:28 for more on this. I even wrote a short paper on the topic.
- It seems the soul is created sometime between conception and birth. Most Christians say at conception. Of course, this has big implications for the topic of abortion.
- I used to think the body was somehow less valuable than the soul. But that viewpoint is unbiblical. The body is good. (Everything God created is good.) We humans are embodied creatures. At the resurrection, our bodies will be renewed. They will be spiritual bodies. Still physical, though with different properties.
Again, much has been written on this. And there are many implications! Your questions are excellent.
