Chapter 11

Sickness and Death​—Why?

NO MATTER what people may do to care for their health, they grow older, get sick and finally die. No one can avoid it. Even men devoted to God could not. (1 Kings 1:1; 2:1, 10; 1 Timothy 5:23) Why is it that way?

² Our body cells seem to have the potential for replacing worn-out ones far longer than they now do, and our brain has more capacity than we could use in many life-spans. Why​—if we are not meant to use these capacities? Actually, scientists cannot explain why we grow old, get sick and die. But the Bible does.

THE CAUSE OF SICKNESS AND DEATH

³ The apostle Paul points us in the right direction, saying: “In Adam all are dying.” (1 Corinthians 15:21, 22) Paul here refers to the Bible account of Adam and Eve, which account Jesus Christ confirmed as accurate. (Mark 10:6-8) The Creator had put the first couple in a garden home, with the happy prospect of endless life in harmony with his will. They had ample healthful food from the various trees and other vegetation. Furthermore, Adam and Eve were perfect humans. Their minds and bodies were without defect, and there was no reason for these to deteriorate, as happens with humans now.​—Deuteronomy 32:4; Genesis 1:31.

⁴ Only one restriction was placed on that first human pair. God said: “As for the tree of the knowledge of good and bad you must not eat from it, for in the day you eat from it you will positively die.” (Genesis 2:17) By complying with this limitation, they would show recognition of God’s authority to determine what is good and what is bad for humans. In time, they set their own standards of good and bad. (Genesis 3:6, 7) By disobeying God’s plainly stated command, they committed what the Bible calls “sin.” In both Hebrew and Greek, “to sin” means “to miss [the mark].” Adam and Eve missed the mark or fell short of perfect obedience. They no longer reflected Jehovah’s perfection, and they brought upon themselves God’s just sentence.​—Luke 16:10.

⁵ Adam and Eve’s sin affected both them and us. Why us? Well, God did not execute them immediately. Showing consideration for all that was involved, Jehovah let the first pair bring forth children. But Adam and Eve were no longer perfect; when they sinned they began to deteriorate physically and mentally. So they could not produce perfect children. (Job 14:4) The situation could be likened to that of a couple today who have a genetic defect that they pass on to their children. We inherited the defect of sin, for we all stem from an imperfect first pair. Paul explains: “Through one man [Adam] sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.”​—Romans 5:12; Psalm 51:5.

⁶ Was the situation hopeless? Both history and the Bible confirm that left up to humans it would have been. We are unable to cleanse ourselves of the stain of sin or to release ourselves from God’s condemnation. If there was to be a release, God would provide it. His law was broken, so he would be the One to determine how perfect justice could be met and a release provided. Jehovah God showed his undeserved kindness by making provision for relief to Adam and Eve’s offspring, including us. The Bible explains what the provision is and how we may benefit.

⁷ These passages offer the basis for understanding the matter:

“God loved the world [of mankind] so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life.”​—John 3:16.

“The Son of man [Jesus] came, not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his soul a ransom in exchange for many.”​—Mark 10:45.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and it is as a free gift that they are being declared righteous by his undeserved kindness through the release by the ransom paid by Christ Jesus. God set him forth as an offering [that covers] through faith in his blood.”​—Romans 3:23-25.

WHAT IS “THE RANSOM”?

⁸ Two of those texts mention a “ransom.” That, basically, is a price paid to set a captive free. (Isaiah 43:3) We often hear the word used with reference to money for releasing a kidnap victim. In our case, the captive is mankind. Adam sold us into bondage to sin, with resulting sickness and death. (Romans 7:14) What valuable thing could redeem mankind and open up for us the prospect of life free from the effects of sin?

⁹ Recall that the Bible says that Jesus ‘gave his life as a ransom.’ (Mark 10:45) We can see from this that a human life was needed. By sinning, Adam had forfeited perfect human life. To open the way for mankind to regain life in perfection another perfect human life was needed to balance or buy back what Adam had lost. This emphasizes why no imperfect descendant of Adam could provide the ransom. As Psalm 49:7, 8 says: “Man could never redeem himself or pay his ransom to God: it costs so much to redeem his life, it is beyond him.”​—Jerusalem Bible.

¹⁰ To provide the ransom price, God sent his perfect spirit Son from heaven to be born as a human. An angel explained to the chaste virgin Mary how God would make sure that Jesus would be perfect at birth: “Power of the Most High will overshadow you. For that reason also what is born will be called holy, God’s Son.” (Luke 1:35; Galatians 4:4) Jesus, not having an imperfect human father, was free of inherited sin.​—1 Peter 2:22; Hebrews 7:26.

¹¹ After living as a human in full accord with God’s will, Christ gave up his perfect human life. It was a life such as Adam had when created, so Jesus became a “corresponding ransom for all.” (1 Timothy 2:5, 6; 1 Corinthians 15:45) Yes, it was “for all” in that he paid the price to purchase the entire human family. Accordingly, the Bible says that we have been “bought with a price.” (1 Corinthians 6:20) God, through Jesus’ death, thus laid the basis for counteracting what Adam did in bringing sin, sickness and death on mankind. This truth can have real meaning in making our lives happy.

HOW CAN OUR SINS BE FORGIVEN?

¹² It is fine to know from the Bible that Jesus paid the ransom price. But there still is something that can be a barrier to our having God’s approval and blessing. That is the fact that we personally are sinners. We ‘miss the mark’ many times. Paul wrote: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) What can be done about that? How can we become acceptable to our righteous God, Jehovah?

¹³ Certainly we would not expect God to look with approval on us if we continued in a course that we knew to be contrary to his will. We must repent sincerely of our wrong desires, speech and conduct, and then endeavor to conform to his standards set out in the Bible. (Acts 17:30) Still our sins​—past and present—​need to be covered over. Jesus’ ransom sacrifice serves us here. Paul gives an indication of this, writing that God ‘set forth Jesus as an offering that covers through faith in his blood.’​—Romans 3:24, 25.

¹⁴ The apostle was here referring to something that God arranged long before and that was to picture or to point forward to Christ. In ancient Israel animal sacrifices for sins were regularly offered on behalf of the people. And individuals themselves could make guilt offerings for special cases of wrongdoing. (Leviticus 16:1-34; 5:1-6, 17-19) God accepted these blood sacrifices as atoning for or canceling out human sins. But this did not bring lasting relief, for the Bible says that “it is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take sins away.” (Hebrews 10:3, 4) However, these features of worship involving priests, temples, altars and offerings were “an illustration” or “a shadow of the good things to come” involving Jesus’ sacrifice.​—Hebrews 9:6-9, 11, 12; 10:1.

¹⁵ The Bible shows how important this is to our obtaining forgiveness, saying: “By means of him we have the release by ransom through the blood of that one [Jesus], yes, the forgiveness of our trespasses.” (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 2:24) So, in addition to his death’s providing the ransom, it can cover our sins; we can have our sins forgiven. But something is required of us. Since we have been purchased, yes, “bought with a price” by Christ’s ransom, we must be willing to accept Jesus as our Lord or Owner and obey him. (1 Corinthians 6:11, 20; Hebrews 5:9) Consequently, we need to repent of our sins and to couple this with faith in the sacrifice of Jesus our Lord.

¹⁶ If we do so, we do not have to wait for forgiveness until God relieves mankind of all the effects of sin, putting an end to sickness and death. The Scriptures speak of this forgiveness as something that we can enjoy right now, resulting in a clean conscience before God.​—1 John 2:12.

¹⁷ Jesus’ sacrifice should, therefore, have very personal meaning for us each day. By means of it God can forgive the wrongs we commit. The apostle John explains: “I am writing you these things that you may not commit a sin. And yet, if anyone does commit a sin, we have a helper with the Father, Jesus Christ, a righteous one.” (1 John 2:1; Luke 11:2-4) This is a primary Bible teaching and is vital to our lasting happiness.​—1 Corinthians 15:3.

WHAT WILL YOU DO?

¹⁸ How do you react to what the Bible says about the cause of sickness and death, the ransom and the provision for forgiveness through Jesus Christ? A person might take in these details mentally without its touching his heart and life. But more is required of us.

¹⁹ Do we appreciate God’s love in providing the ransom? The apostle John wrote: “God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son.” (John 3:16) Remember that the humans involved were sinners, alienated from God. (Romans 5:10; Colossians 1:21) Would you give up your dearest one in behalf of persons most of whom showed little or no interest in you? Yet Jehovah had his pure and faithful Son, his beloved Firstborn, come to earth to face contempt, shame and death in order to provide relief for humankind. That moved Paul to write: “God recommends his own love to us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”​—Romans 5:8.

²⁰ The Son showed his love, too. When the time came, he willingly lowered himself to become a man. He slaved for imperfect humans, teaching and healing them. And, though innocent, he accepted ridicule, torture and a shameful death at the hands of enemies of the truth. As an aid to appreciating this, take the time to read the account of Jesus’ betrayal, trial, abuse and execution, as recorded in Luke 22:47 through 23:47.

²¹ How will you respond to all of this? Certainly a person should not let his acceptance of the loving provision of the ransom become an excuse for wrong conduct. That would be missing its purpose, and it could even result in sin that is beyond forgiveness. (Hebrews 10:26, 29; Numbers 15:30) Instead, we ought to endeavor to live in a way that will bring honor to our Creator. And faith in the grand provision made through his Son should move us to talk to others about it, helping them to appreciate how they too can benefit.​—Acts 4:12; Romans 10:9, 10; James 2:26; 2 Corinthians 5:14, 15.

²² When Jesus Christ was on earth he said that he could extend God’s forgiveness of sins. Some enemies criticized him for that. So Jesus proved it by healing a paralyzed man. (Luke 5:17-26) Hence, just as sin produced physical effects on mankind, the forgiveness of sins can result in benefits. It is important to know that. What Jesus did on earth shows that God can bring an end to sickness and dying. That is in accord with what Jesus Christ himself said, namely, that Jehovah God gave his Son so that persons with faith might have “everlasting life.” (John 3:16) But how? When? And what about our loved ones who have already died?

[Study Questions]

Why are sickness and death a puzzle? (1, 2)

How did sickness and death come to affect us? (3-5)

Why is the solution to sickness and death up to God? (6, 7)

How has a ransom been provided? (8-11)

What basis is there for our sins to be forgiven? (12-17)

How do you respond to what God and Jesus have done? (1 John 4:9-11) (18-21)

Forgiveness of our sins can involve what prospect? (22)

[Box on page 103]

Science writer Isaac Asimov explained that the RNA molecules in the human brain provide “a filing system perfectly capable of handling any load of learning and memory which the human being is likely to put upon it​—and a billion times more than that quantity, too.”​—The New York “Times Magazine.”

[Picture on page 108]

The sacrifices in Israel pointed forward to Jesus’ ransom sacrifice

Chapter 12

Death Is Not an Unbeatable Enemy

DEATH is an enemy of life. Each funeral shows that death is like a king who seems to conquer all. (Romans 5:14) Some trees live more than 1,000 years; some fish, 150; yet man’s years are only 70 or 80 before death swallows him up.​—Psalm 90:10.

² With good cause the Bible presents death as an enemy. Though we seem to have a built-in desire to live and learn endlessly, no matter what a man has learned, what his skills are, how highly he is thought of by friends and relatives, death claims him. (Ecclesiastes 3:11; 7:2) Most persons, agreeing that death is an enemy, try desperately to delay its victory. Others frantically seek all the pleasure they can from life before they are defeated.

³ Down through history, though, many people have believed that there is life after death. The Greek philosopher Plato taught that we have an immortal soul that survives the body. Do we? Interest in this has been stimulated by recent stories of persons who supposedly died, were revived and later described what they ‘saw beyond death’s door.’ Are the dead alive somewhere? Can death be conquered?

DEATH’S FIRST VICTORY

⁴ The Bible shows that humans were created to live, not to die. God placed Adam and Eve in a delightful garden where they could enjoy life. He designated one of the trees “the tree of life.” Likely if Adam and Eve had proved their appreciation and loyalty to God, he would have let them eat from that tree, symbolizing his grant of everlasting life for them. (Genesis 1:30; 2:7-9) However, Adam and Eve chose to disobey God. Their sin brought upon them the sentence of death.​—Genesis 3:17-19.

⁵ For us to understand whether death is indeed an unbeatable enemy, we need to examine the result of death’s victory over Adam and Eve. Did they “die” completely? Or was that “death” only a transition to a different kind of life?

⁶ After Adam foolishly sinned, Jehovah kept to his just and righteous word. He told Adam:

“In the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are and to dust you will return.”​—Genesis 3:19.

What did that mean for Adam and for us today?

⁷ The earlier account of Adam’s creation tells us: “God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7) Think what that means. Before God created him from the dust, there was no Adam. Hence, after he died and returned to the dust, there would be no Adam.​—Genesis 5:3-5.

ARE THE DEAD CONSCIOUS?

⁸ Many persons might be surprised at the thought that once Adam died he no longer existed. Yet the stated penalty for sin​—Adam’s dying and going back to dust—​contained no hint of continued life. Death is the opposite of life, whether for a man or a beast. Both have the same “spirit,” or life force. Thus the Bible comments:

“There is an eventuality as respects the sons of mankind and an eventuality as respects the beast, and they have the same eventuality. As the one dies, so the other dies; and they all have but one spirit, so that there is no superiority of the man over the beast . . . They have all come to be from the dust, and they are all returning to the dust.”​—Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20.

⁹ Does that mean that the dead have no thoughts or feelings? Ecclesiastes 9:4, 5 answers: “A live dog is better off than a dead lion. For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead, they are conscious of nothing at all.” When a person dies, “his thoughts do perish,” he has no ability either to feel or to work.​—Psalm 146:3, 4; 31:17.

¹⁰ Since the Bible assures us that the dead are unconscious and without feeling, that means that death ends pain and suffering. Job, a faithful servant of God, knew this. When he was suffering a painful disease he said:

“Why from the womb did I not proceed to die? . . . Why was it that knees confronted me, and why breasts that I should take suck? For by now I should have lain down that I might be undisturbed; I should have slept then; I should be at rest.”​—Job 3:11-13.

¹¹ But is this taking into account the soul?

¹² Simply put, the Scriptures teach that your soul is you. What we have already read in Genesis 2:7 shows that. Recall that God formed man’s body from dust. Then God provided life and the breath needed to sustain it. What was the result? According to God’s own Word, the man “came to be a living soul [Hebrew, nephesh].” (Genesis 2:7) Adam was not given a soul, nor did he come to have a soul. He was a soul. In teaching this, the Bible is consistent throughout. Many centuries later the apostle Paul quoted Genesis 2:7, writing: “The first man Adam became a living soul [Greek, psykhe].”​—1 Corinthians 15:45.

¹³ The Hebrew word nephesh and the Greek work psykhe, found in these texts, are translated in various ways. At Ezekiel 18:4 and Matthew 10:28 you will find that, in many Bible versions, they are rendered as “soul.” Elsewhere those same original words are translated as “being,” “creature,” or “person.” These are valid translations of the original words, and a comparison of them shows that the soul is the creature or person himself, not some invisible part of man. The Bible applies the same original-language words to animals, showing that they are souls or have life as souls.​—Genesis 2:19; Leviticus 11:46; Revelation 8:9.

¹⁴ As a soul, Adam, or any of us, could eat, get hungry and grow tired. In the original Hebrew, the Bible says that souls do all these things. (Deuteronomy 23:24; Proverbs 19:15; 25:25) In stating a prohibition that applied to the Israelites regarding work on a certain day, God made clear another important point about the soul, saying: “As for any soul that will do any sort of work on this very day, I must destroy that soul from among his people.” (Leviticus 23:30) Hence, the Bible, here and in many other texts, shows that a soul can die.​—Ezekiel 18:4, 20; Psalm 33:19.

¹⁵ Knowing such Bible truths can help us to evaluate recent stories about persons who supposedly died (there being no detectable heartbeat or brain activity), but who were revived and thereafter told about having floated outside their body. One possibility is that they may have had hallucinations caused by medication or the brain’s oxygen-starved condition. Whether that is the full explanation or not, we know with certainty that no invisible soul left the body.

¹⁶ Also, if the dead are totally unconscious and no “soul” floats off from the body, then there can be no fiery hell awaiting the souls of the wicked, can there? Yet many churches teach that the wicked will be tormented after they die. On learning the truth about the dead, some persons have been justifiably disturbed, asking: ‘Why did not our religion tell us the truth about the dead?’ What is your own reaction?​—Compare Jeremiah 7:31.

WHAT FUTURE FOR THE DEAD?

¹⁷ If the only future for persons now living were unconsciousness in death, then death would be an unbeatable enemy. But the Bible shows that it is not.

¹⁸ The immediate future for a person after death is in the grave. The languages in which the Bible was written had words for the place of the dead, mankind’s common grave. In Hebrew it was termed Sheol. It was called Hades in Greek. These words have been translated in some Bibles by terms such as “grave,” “pit” or “hell.” Regardless of how they are rendered, the meaning of the original-language terms is not a hot place of suffering but is the grave of the unconscious dead. We read:

“All that your hand finds to do, do with your very power, for there is no work nor devising nor knowledge nor wisdom in Sheol [hell, Douay Version; the grave, Authorized Version], the place to which you are going.”​—Ecclesiastes 9:10.

The apostle Peter assures us that upon death even Jesus went to the grave, to Sheol, Hades or hell.​—Acts 2:31; compare Psalm 16:10.

¹⁹ Of course, a dead person has no power to change his condition. (Job 14:12) So is unconsciousness in death all the future there is? For some, yes. The Bible teaches that persons who are totally rejected by God will remain dead forever.​—2 Thessalonians 1:6-9.

²⁰ The ancient Jews believed that persons who were extremely wicked would have no future beyond death. The Jews did not bury such ones. Rather, they tossed the corpses into a valley outside Jerusalem where fires were kept burning to dispose of garbage. This was the Valley of Hinnom, or Gehenna. Drawing upon this practice, Jesus used Gehenna as a symbol of complete destruction, with no future prospects. (Matthew 5:29, 30) For example, he said:

“Do not become fearful of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul [or, prospects to live as a soul]; but rather be in fear of him [God] that can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”​—Matthew 10:28.

Jesus’ words, however, give us reason for hope that many who have died will live again in the future, thus overcoming death.

VICTORY THROUGH RESURRECTION

²¹ God, in one of history’s most important acts, raised Jesus Christ to life after he had been dead for days. Jesus became a living spirit creature, as he had been before coming to earth. (1 Corinthians 15:42-45; 1 Peter 3:18) Hundreds of persons saw Jesus appear after he was resurrected. (Acts 2:22-24; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8) These witnesses were willing to risk their lives in support of their faith in Jesus’ resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus proves that death is not an unbeatable enemy. Victory over death is possible!​—1 Corinthians 15:54-57.

²² Further victories over death are also possible. Persons can come back to human life on earth. Jehovah, who cannot lie, assures us in his Word “that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous [persons who knew of and did God’s will] and the unrighteous [ones who did not practice righteousness].”​—Acts 24:15.

²³ We can have confidence in God’s ability to bring persons back to human life. Men are able to record on film or videotape the image, voice and mannerisms of a person. Cannot God do much more? His memory is far more expansive than any film or tape, so he can perfectly re-create those he wants to resurrect. (Psalm 147:4) He has already demonstrated this. The Bible contains a number of accounts of God’s using his Son to bring humans back to life. You can read two of these exciting accounts at John 11:5-44 and Luke 7:11-17. With good reason men who worshiped God in the past looked forward to the time when he would remember and resurrect them. It would be like waking them from unconscious sleep.​—Job 14:13-15.

²⁴ Those past resurrections must have overjoyed relatives and friends. But those resurrections defeated death only temporarily, for the resurrected ones eventually died again. Nonetheless, they offer us an exciting preview, because the Bible points to a coming “better resurrection.” (Hebrews 11:35) It will be much, much better because those coming back to life on earth will not have to die again. That will mean a far greater victory over death.​—John 11:25, 26.

²⁵ What the Bible says about how God can and will defeat death certainly indicates his loving interest in humans. It should help us to understand Jehovah’s personality and draw us closer to him. These truths also help us to have balance, for we are safeguarded against the morbid fear of death that preys on many. We can have the happy hope of even seeing our deceased relatives and loved ones again when, through the resurrection, death is defeated.​—1 Thessalonians 4:13; Luke 23:43.

[Study Questions]

Why should we examine “enemy” death? (Job 14:1, 2) (1-3)

How did death come upon mankind? (4, 5)

What did “death” mean for Adam? (6, 7)

How could you show someone from the Bible whether the dead are conscious? (8-11)

According to the Bible, what is a “soul”? (12, 13)

Can a soul die, and what implications does this have? (14-16)

What happens to a person after death? (17-20)

How is victory over death possible? (21, 22)

Why can the future be thrilling? (23-25)

[Box on page 117]

‘It is noteworthy that in the New Testament we do not find hellfire to be a part of the primitive preaching. There are some indications in the New Testament that the ultimate fate of those who refuse God’s offer of salvation may be annihilation rather than eternal punishment.’​—“A Dictionary of Christian Theology,” edited by Alan Richardson.

[Picture on page 114]

DUST

ADAM

DUST

[Picture on page 119]

Lazarus’ resurrection shows that death can be overcome

Chapter 13

Communicating with the Spirit Realm

“THE compulsion to communicate runs deep.” With that statement, the book Machines began a chapter on the radio. By radio we can communicate with persons around the globe or even hear from astronauts in outer space.

² Radio communication is now an accepted part of life. But many persons ignore or misunderstand a more important type of communication​—with the spirit realm.

SPEAKING TO THE CREATOR

³ Centuries before radio was invented, King David wrote:

“To my sayings do give ear, O Jehovah . . . Do pay attention to the sound of my cry for help, O my King and my God, because to you I pray.”​—Psalm 5:1, 2.

Does it not seem reasonable that the highest intelligence in the universe can “give ear” to what we say in prayer if he desires to do so? And is it not sensible for us to seek help from God, who can give us the very best guidance?​—Psalm 65:2.

⁴ A transmitter and a receiver are necessary in radio communication. But what do we need in order to contact Jehovah in prayer? The first requirement is faith. “He that approaches God must believe that he is and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him” (Hebrews 11:6) Also, a person must be attuned to God’s moral standards and ways. Otherwise God will no more listen to him than an upright person would listen to a radio program that he viewed as morally repugnant.​—1 John 3:22; Isaiah 1:15.

⁵ Jehovah does not have a rigid format for acceptable prayers. Whether you pray out loud or silently, he can “hear.” You can pray when standing, seated, kneeling or lying in bed. (1 Samuel 1:12, 13; 1 Kings 8:54) No special words or religious language are needed. More important are sincerity and a humble spirit. Note how Jesus illustrated this at Luke 18:10-14.

⁶ Individually, we can approach Jehovah in prayer at any time. However, he also welcomes united prayers, such as from a congregation of Christians. By their listening to the prayers at the congregation meetings some who never prayed before have learned how to employ this vital communication. Family groups, too, can and should pray together. One opportunity is at mealtimes, following Jesus’ example in thanking God for the food that he made available.​—Mark 8:6.

⁷ You may know of persons who have prayed but who complain that they get no answer. Why? Christ told his followers: “If you ask the Father for anything he will give it to you in my name.” Jesus Christ, and no other person, is the way of approach to God. Might the problem be a failure to appreciate this? (John 16:23; 14:6) Also, what did Jesus mean by “anything”? The apostle John shows that it is “anything” that is ‘in accord with Jehovah’s will.’ We would hardly expect a righteous God to accept prayers for wrong, immoral or greedy ends. (1 John 5:14) Yet many pray for instant wealth or power over others. It is no wonder, then, that God does not respond to such prayers. Requests for our valid personal needs should come after matters such as God’s will being done on earth.​—Matthew 6:9-11.

⁸ Prayer affords opportunities for us to talk to God as to a loving father, to express our joys, our troubles and needs. If you have not been doing that regularly, do not put it off. Your having a trusting relationship with God and being able to communicate with him at any time will give you much peace of mind and bring happiness. You can unburden yourself, being sure of his interest in you.​—Psalm 86:1-6; Philippians 4:6, 7.

RESPONSE FROM THE SPIRIT REALM

⁹ One of the main subjects of prayer should be our need for wisdom and guidance from God. (Psalm 27:11; 119:34-36; James 1:5) In what manner will God respond? In ancient times, he occasionally gave verbal messages, speaking through angels or human prophets. But the apostle Paul says that God has now “spoken to us by means of a Son,” whose teachings and life pattern are set out in the Bible. (Hebrews 1:1, 2; 2:1-3; John 20:31) So, rather than expecting God to speak to us personally, we should seek help through the means he has chosen to use, the Bible. With this in mind, we should follow up prayers for guidance by diligently studying his Word. (Proverbs 2:1-5) Added help is available through devoted Christians who regularly meet to study and discuss the Bible.​—2 Timothy 2:1, 2.

¹⁰ In answer to our prayers, God can also aid us personally through his spirit. With this, he helps Christians to understand his Word and apply it. (John 16:7-13) David prayed: “Teach me to do your will . . . Your spirit is good; may it lead me in the land of uprightness.”​—Psalm 143:10.

ARE THERE EVIL PERSONS IN THE SPIRIT REALM?

¹¹ Not only does the Bible assure us that Jehovah, his Son and angels exist in the spirit realm, and that we may communicate with God by prayer. Just as reliably the Scriptures show that there are intelligent spirit persons who are now very wicked, specifically Satan and his demons.

¹² Some persons feel that “the Devil” is just a carry-over from an old superstition or myth. Others think that when the Bible mentions “Satan” it is referring simply to a principle of evil.

¹³ However, Matthew 4:1-11 tells us of a time when Satan offered three very specific temptations to Jesus. Certainly, the Satan here referred to was no evil principle within Jesus, for the Son of God is free of evil and sin. (Hebrews 7:26; 1:8, 9) No, Satan is a real person. This is also borne out by the account at Job 1:6-12, which tells of Satan’s appearing before Jehovah.

¹⁴ But what of Satan’s origin? We know that Jehovah is the Creator of all things and that “perfect is his activity.” (Deuteronomy 32:4; Revelation 4:11) Hence, is it not logical that Satan must at one time have been an upright spirit person created by Jehovah along with other angels? How, then, did he become corrupt? James 1:14, 15 gives us a clue:

“Each one is tried by being drawn out and enticed by his own desire. Then the desire, when it has become fertile, gives birth to sin.”

¹⁵ From what has occurred among men, we know that even someone in a trusted position might see how he could misuse a situation in order to get more power. It appears that this is what occurred with one of God’s angels. Being a free moral agent, this spirit creature chose a bad course, perhaps believing that he could become like God, with humans following him. What happened is evidently comparable to the experience of a king of Tyre, as related at Ezekiel 28:1-19. This man had been in a favored position relative to ancient Israel, but he became puffed up with pride, leading to his downfall. Similarly, pride led to the ruin of the one who made himself Satan, a resister of God.

¹⁶ An understanding of Satan’s existence sheds light on the events in the garden of Eden that resulted in our being imperfect, sinners, subject to sickness and death. With his above-human intelligence, Satan used a serpent to communicate a lying, fatal proposition to Eve. (Genesis 3:1-5) Accordingly, Revelation 12:9 calls Satan “the original serpent.” And Jesus said this one did not “stand fast in the truth,” but became “the father of the lie” and a “manslayer.”​—John 8:44.

¹⁷ Satan is not the only spirit creature who rebelled. The history in Genesis 6:1-3 explains that in Noah’s day some angels​—perhaps stimulated by Satan’s rebellion—​took on human bodies so as to have sexual pleasure with women. This was unnatural and corrupt. (Jude 6, 7) When God wiped out the wickedness on earth by a global flood, these disobedient angels returned to the spirit realm, but now on Satan’s side, as demons. (2 Peter 2:4, 5) The well-known Greek and Roman mythologies about gods that moved back and forth between heaven and earth may be distortions of the facts about the disobedient angels as reported in the Bible.

WICKED INFLUENCE FROM THE SPIRIT REALM

¹⁸ The wicked spirits are not interested in our welfare but are bent on deceiving and misleading humans, turning them away from God. The apostle Paul called Satan “the god of this system of things” who “has blinded the minds of the unbelievers” so that they might not learn the “good news” about Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:4) He has been quite successful in this.

¹⁹ One tactic that he has used is by encouraging the view that there is no Devil or Satan. He is like a criminal who spreads the idea that a crime syndicate does not exist, thus lulling persons into a false security. Another tactic is reflected in the horrible deeds committed by religious zealots​—crusades, inquisitions, the blessing of warfare. These have caused many sensitive persons to turn away from Jehovah God, mistakenly thinking that the churches represent him.

²⁰ Recall, too, that the apostle Paul said that Satan is “the god of this system of things.” Some persons scoff at the idea that Satan is maneuvering the nations. But when Satan offered Christ authority over the nations, Jesus did not deny that the Devil has power over the political kingdoms. (Luke 4:5-8) And does it not seem that there is some evil force behind world affairs today? With this in mind, read what Revelation 12:9, 12 says about Satan’s efforts.

AVOIDING CONTACT WITH WICKED SPIRITS

²¹ Scientists have done research on what is known as ESP (extrasensory perception). This includes phenomena such as a person’s knowing others’ thoughts, describing events or objects that he could never have seen or learned of, and using ‘mind over matter’ to influence such things as the fall of dice. The psychic researchers have tried to exclude the possibility of trickery, yet they cannot explain these superhuman feats. Might what the Scriptures say be the explanation?

²² Satan and the demons can directly affect humans and their affairs. For example, a girl in ancient Philippi, in Greece, was able to make predictions. How? The historical record says that “a spirit, a demon of divination,” influenced the girl’s utterances. The apostle Paul helped her to get free from the demon.​—Acts 16:16-18.

²³ Because the demons are real and powerful, God’s Word repeatedly warns against involvement with them. It condemns the use of spells (as in black magic or voodoo), the consulting of mediums or a person’s trying to contact the dead. (Deuteronomy 18:10-12; Leviticus 20:6, 27; Galatians 5:19-21) Those warnings are still timely. You may have observed the widespread interest in psychic phenomena and the occult. Many films and novels have featured ‘the spirits’ or man’s efforts to exorcise, or cast out, demons. The use of Ouija boards or astrology for guidance is common.

²⁴ Communication with wicked spirits is dangerous. Reports indicate that once the demons gain influence over a person, they can do much harm​—physically, mentally and emotionally. (Compare Matthew 8:28-33.) They have harassed persons, making noises at night, causing objects to move about, fondling sex organs and causing illness. Their “voices” have even driven persons to insanity, murder or suicide.

²⁵ Of course, some “strange” occurrences may result from physical problems, such as disturbances of body chemistry, which may affect the mind and the senses. But it would be foolish simply to dismiss the existence of Satan and the demons. Do not underestimate the seriousness of the Bible’s warning about them.

²⁶ If a person is being harassed by the demons, is there any way to get relief? God is not now using humans to heal the sick, cast out demons or raise the dead, as he used the apostles. But he will help someone break free from “the authority of Satan.” (Acts 26:18; Ephesians 6:12) It is necessary to turn to Jehovah in prayer, using his name and earnestly seeking his help. (Proverbs 18:10) Also, one must resist demonic suggestions, as did Jesus, ceasing spiritistic practices and needless fellowship with those pursuing demonism.​—Matthew 4:1-11; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17.

²⁷ Additionally, reports show that the demons often keep in contact with a human through an object, so it is important to get rid of items formerly used in spiritism (charms, crystal balls, and so forth). The Bible tells us that some who had practiced magical arts in ancient Ephesus did that.​—Acts 19:18-20.

²⁸ Yet there is no need to be in constant dread of wicked spirits. Rather, the Bible urges us to clothe ourselves with spiritual armor:

“Stand firm, therefore, with your loins girded about with TRUTH, and having on the breastplate of RIGHTEOUSNESS, and with your feet shod with the equipment of the GOOD NEWS OF PEACE. Above all things, take up the large shield of FAITH, with which you will be able to quench all the wicked one’s burning missiles. Also, accept the helmet of SALVATION, and the sword of the spirit, that is, GOD’S WORD, while . . . you carry on PRAYER on every occasion.”​—Ephesians 6:14-18.

As God’s Word here shows, an excellent safeguard against unwanted communication with wicked spirits is regular communication with Jehovah through prayer. The Bible fittingly says: “Subject yourselves, therefore, to God; but oppose the Devil, and he will flee from you.”​—James 4:7.

[Study Questions]

Why should we be interested in communicating with the Creator? (1-3)

What is needed for acceptable prayers? (1 Peter 3:12) (4, 5)

What can we learn from the Bible about the nature of our prayers? (6-8)

How can we receive communication from God? (9, 10)

How can we know that Satan exists? And what is his origin? (11-15)

How does our knowing of Satan and the demons aid us? (16, 17)

In what way have wicked spirits affected humans? (2 Corinthians 11:13-15) (18-20)

What practices can involve a person with wicked spirits? (21-23)

How can you protect yourself from harmful communication with the spirit realm? (24-28)

[Picture on page 123]

Daily we can communicate with God through prayer