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That sometimes leads to Christians taking an almost light-hearted approach to death. I recently read these words, which are inscribed on the tomb of a watchmaker at St. Petrock's Church, Devon, England:

Today I'd like to probe into the specific question: What happens to us between death and the coming resurrection? This is an area of theology often called the "Intermediate State." We know from the Bible that the eternal state commences at the very end of human history when, according to Revelation 20, 21, and 22, the various resurrections will occur, the Great White Throne Judgment will take place, the wicked and unbelieving will be sentenced to hell, and the people of God will enter the new heavens, the new earth, and the city of New Jerusalem.

But what happens until then, from the moment a person dies until the resurrection occurs? Where will we go and where will we be?

The Intermediate State is an area of Christian teaching in which there are disagreements. Seventh-day Adventists, for example, believe in what is sometimes called "soul sleep," that the soul just falls asleep and will not be awakened until the future resurrection. Roman Catholics believe the souls of most people who die go to Purgatory. Even among evangelicals, there is some confusion regarding the Intermediate State. Many Bible students believe that in Old Testament times--prior to our Lord's resurrection--the souls of everyone who died went to a sort of holding area known as Sheol or Hades, a mysterious realm in which there were two different areas or compartments, one for the saved and the other for the lost. There they awaited the resurrection of Christ. When Christ rose from the grace, say these theologians, things changed, at least for the saved. When Jesus ascended to heaven, the souls of the Old Testament saints went with Him.

But to me, this seems needlessly complicated and unnecessary. I would suggest that the Bible, in both the Old Testament and New Testament, teaches that those who trust Christ for salvation, go instantly into our Lord's presence at death to await the resurrection and the eternal state described in Revelation 21 and 22. Those who die without trusting the Lord for redemption go to hell to await the resurrection of the damned and their final condemnation to the "lake of fire" according to Revelation 20.

In Luke 23:43, Jesus said to the thief on the cross: Today you will be with me in paradise. In Philippians 1:23, Paul admitted that he had a desire "to depart and be with Christ, which is far better." 2 Corinthians 5:8 says that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord."

We have the same impressions as we read the story of the rich man and Lazarus. We don't know if this is a parable or if Jesus is describing an actual incident, and there is some question among honest scholars as to whether or not we should interpret everything in this story literally. My own rule for Bible study is to take everything literally unless there is an obvious reason not to. Therefore, I approach this story in Luke 16 a little more concretely than some expositors would.

I read the other day about a professor of pediatrics at Yale University named Diane Komp who sat beside a seven-year-old girl who was dying of leukemia. The little girl managed the final energy to sit up and say, "The angels--they're so beautiful. Mommy, can you see them? Do you hear the singing? I've never heard such beautiful singing."

Because of this, I have some pastoral words I'd like to share with you today about funerals. Through the years, I've conducted a lot of them; I've observed a lot; and I've developed some opinions about them.

First, a Christian funeral should be a celebration of the grace of Jesus Christ in the life of the one who has been escorted by the angels into glory. That doesn't imply the absence of tears. When Stephen was stoned in Acts 8, godly men buried him and mourned deeply for him. But the Bible also says that we are not to sorrow as those who have no hope. A Christian's funeral should be simple, honorable, and hopeful in tone.

Accordingly, our tone at the funeral should be biblical. I think, as a rule, only Christian music should be used. At my funeral, I'd rather we'd sing All Hail the Power of Jesus Name than Achy, Breaky Heart. I also suggest that anyone who ministers in song stand before the congregation, where they can comfort the family with their countenance. Most funeral homes have a little backroom containing an organ, a microphone, and a tape player. That's where they often put anyone who is going to minister in music. But what would you think if I hid back in some room and gave the funeral sermon into a microphone, and all you heard was my disembodied voice speaking through the loud speaker? If it's true for the sermon, it's true for the song. We minister best person-to-person and face-to-face.

I like for the Gospel message--the plan of salvation--to be given somewhere in the funeral presentation. The only time some people ever hear the Bible is when they come to a funeral, and it may be their one and only time to hear the Gospel.

I also recommend that the family's time of receiving friends be limited. In the mountains, it is customary for the family to receive friends from 7 to 8:30 in the evening, and at 8:30 have the funeral service. The next morning, a private graveside service is planned for the family. But here in Middle Tennessee, I'm amazed at how long families are expected to be at the funeral home, sometimes all morning, all afternoon and all evening. It results in utter exhaustion. You need to know that when you go to the funeral home to make arrangements, you can make the decisions. You can say, we'll receive friends tomorrow night from 7 to 8:30, or whatever time you think is appropriate. The funeral director may say, "That's inconvenient for some people." All you have to say is, "They can send me a sympathy card, but we're only going to receive friends from 7:00 to 8:30."

I also want to suggest that the family leave the graveside immediately after Scripture reading and prayer has been conducted. Some families feel they must remain on site as the gravediggers lower the casket, seal the vault, and fill the hole with dirt. I've often felt that that scene was not worthwhile. We have to remember that that Christian is in heaven, walking the streets of gold, enjoying a great reunion with those who have gone before, fellowshipping with the Lord Jesus. The last thing they would want is for us to put ourselves through unnecessary anguish.

Finally--and this is my own penny-pinching, tight-fisted opinion--don't spend a cent more than you absolutely need to. I have good relationships with the various funeral homes in our area, and every one of them has bent over backward to be gracious to me on every occasion. Many of them view their work as a ministry. But I still want to remind you that they are not nonprofit organizations. I've told my wife that if anything happened to me, she should select the least expensive option at every single point in the funeral arrangements. It isn't going to matter to me whether it's in a pine box or a million dollar coffin. One will be no better than the other as far as I'm concerned, and I would rather leave whatever I have to my family than to give it to the shareholders of the funeral industry. Several years ago, I ministered to a family whose child had died, and they were not a wealthy family. I sat with them as they made the arrangements, and I advised them to select the least expensive options. But the funeral director began using words like "water seepage" and "decay" and "protection for the body" and by the time he was done, that family had spent a lot of money they really couldn't afford.

I want to remind you of what evangelist D. L. Moody once said: "Someday you will read in the papers that D. L. Moody of East Northfield is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now."

Will through the ages be glory for me.

One of the most remarkable deathbed scenes I've ever read about is that of the aforementioned evangelist D. L. Moody, whom I mentioned earlier in the message. On December 22, 1899, as his family hovered around his bed, Moody suddenly opened his eyes and spoke clearly: "Earth recedes! Heaven opens before me." His son, sitting near him, suggested he was dreaming. "This is no dream, Will," Moody replied. "It is beautiful! It is like a trance! If this is death, it is sweet! God is calling me, and I must go!"

"This is my triumph!" said Moody, shortly afterward. "This is my coronation day! I have been looking forward to it for years." His face suddenly lit up. "Dwight! Irene! I see the children’s faces!" (Dwight and Irene were his recently deceased grandchildren.) Moody closed his eyes and appeared unconscious. Then he spoke again. "No pain! No valley! If this is death, it’s not bad at all! It’s sweet!"

A little later, he raised himself on an elbow and exclaimed, "What does all this mean? What are you all doing here?" His wife explained he had not been well. Moody fell back on the bed, and said, "This is very strange! I’ve been beyond the gates of death to the very portals of Heaven, and here I am back again. It is very strange."

Shortly after, he died with a glow of glory of his face, reunited with his dear grandchildren and with his friends who had gone on before. His conscious existence never ceased, although his location changed.

2 Corinthians 5 says:

For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down—when we die and leave these bodies—we will have a home in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long for the day when we will put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. For we will not be spirits without bodies, but we will put on new heavenly bodies. Our dying bodies make us groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and have no bodies at all. We want to slip into our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by everlasting life. God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit (New Living Translation).

Is this referring only to our resurrection body, or does it imply that even during the Intermediate State God is going to provide some temporary clothing for us? If you were robbed and stripped and showed up at my house naked, I'd loan you some clothing until you could get your own back again, and I believe God will do the same. But that's just my thought. I'm content to leave it where Paul left it in 2 Corinthians 12 when he described his experience of being taken up temporarily to heaven:

I know a man in Christ (referring to himself) who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know--God knows. And I know that this man--whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows--was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell.

And so I'll leave it at that: During the Intermediate State will we be in the body or out of the body? God knows.

And he longs in hell for his brothers still on earth, still alive, to hear and head the Gospel message. The cry of Lazarus from the grave is one of Scripture's most eloquent missionary appeals.

Now when you consider the fact that at any moment your heart could stop beating, any day you could have a fatal accident, if you aren't prepared to meet God, you are taking the ultimate gamble--and sooner or later, you'll lose.

The Bible says: Prepare to meet thy God. It is appointed unto man once to die, and after that the judgment. What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? And that's my challenge to you today. Are you ready for eternity? If not, how long will you procrastinate? Today is the day of salvation.

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his ways and the evil man his thoughts, and let him turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He shall abundantly pardon.