Are Near-Death Experiences for Real?

As many as five percent of Americans claim to have had a Near-Death experience. In a classic case, the person nearly dies or does die in some sense. They either have no heartbeat or no brain-wave reading for a period of time. But they recover and share stories of things they did or saw while they were dead. They often see a “light,” a loved one, Jesus, or their own life flashing before their eyes. They often report floating up over their body. These experiences are real and are reported frequently, the only question is what should we make of them? And do they give us evidence for trusting what the Bible says about life after death?

 
First, there are good reasons to be skeptical. Different stories present different, contradicting realities. Visions of heaven are frequently different from biblical descriptions and follow someone's own religious beliefs. It is impossible to confirm or deny any particular religious viewpoint on the basis of Near-Death experiences (NDEs). There is a also a high incentive to report NDEs. A person with an exciting story involving an NDE can sell a lot of books, which should make the story suspicious if there is no substantial evidence to back it up. 

In 2010 Alex Malarkey wrote a book with his father called, "The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven," about his NDE and trip to heaven as a six-year-old boy. The book sold over one million copies. But recently Alex, now older, confessed, "I did not die. I did not go to heaven...People have profited from lies, and continue to. They should read the Bible, which is enough. The Bible is the only source of truth. Anything written by man cannot be infallible."

Scientists naturally seek explanations for NDEs as well. Perhaps there is something that happens in the brain as it is shutting down. Perhaps NDEs occur as the brain is shutting down that triggers very real dreams of the afterlife. When the person wakes up, they assume that the experience occurred while they were "dead" when it actually occurred just before or after that time. This may explain a number of cases.

However, it does not seem to sufficiently explain all of them. In a number of instances there is external evidence that a NDE story is based on real events. For example, a woman named Maria described floating out of her body and above the hospital she was staying in. After recovering, she told her nurse she saw a tennis shoe on the roof. According to Maria, the shoe had a worn little toe. After searching on the roof of the hospital, the nurse found the shoe just as Maria described! There are many reported cases like this, if you are interested in reading more, I recommend the book, "Beyond Death Exploring the Evidence for Immortality" by Gary R. Habermas.

The Bible tells us that we are not merely physical beings. When our body decays, we do not cease to exist. We also have a "spirit" or "soul." We continue to have consciousness after death. One day, there will be a resurrection of our bodies and our spirit will be reunited with them. Believers in Jesus go to be with Jesus when they die. Their bodies will be resurrected when he comes back to earth and they will live with him forever. Unbelievers will be resurrected at the end of 1,000 years to face judgment. They are presently being kept in some sort of prison for spirits awaiting judgement (1 Peter 3:19, Luke 16:23). No one is presently in "hell" as far as what the Bible describes as the "lake of fire" (Revelation 20). Although heaven is a wonderful place for those who are in Christ, no one is yet in the "new heaven and the new earth" that is described in Revelation 21. Even those in heaven now are eagerly waiting for the resurrection when they can join with their bodies again.

NDEs do not give good supporting evidence for all that the Bible says about life after death. However, they do give strong evidence that there is life after death. I do not put much weight into accounts like "Heaven is for Real." In that case in particular, there is little supporting evidence that anything in the story actually happened. Numerous other examples offer more evidence. When it comes to understanding what actually happens after death, I trust the Bible. The source is not merely unreliable human testimony, but Jesus, who died and is the first human to truly be resurrected. Nevertheless, NDEs sometimes offer fascinating confirmation about life after this one. Are you ready for it? Jesus is the only one that offers us eternal life that we will enjoy forever. You can trust him!

Trust the Bible is a weekday radio program that begins at about 8:10 each morning on WDOG 93.5 in Allendale, SC. You can listen to previous programs online here: http://www.fairfaxfbc.org/trust-the-bible.html