Is it wise or foolish to believe in life after death? What impact does belief or non-belief in eternity have on our daily lives? Shakespeare used Hamlet’s famous speech (excerpt below) to contrast the pain of living (remedied by suicide) with the uncertainty of what comes after death.

We also have Pascal’s famous wager, which offers us a logical, practical reason for believing in God and His promise of life after death: Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that he is.

In the battle between worldviews (Humanist vs. Christian), let’s consider the pros and cons of each line of thought.

Humanist

Pros

· People can focus on living a full, meaningful life without fear of divine judgment.

· Individuals are encouraged to leave a positive impact on society, so their legacy continues to live on after they die.

Cons

· People have no hope of seeing their loved ones again.

· People may not see any purpose in life and have no objective standard on which to base their sense of morality.

Christian

Pros

· Belief in Jesus as the bridge to God assures people of their eternal destination (Heaven).

· Faith in God and His Word (the Bible) provides people with strength, direction, joy, and peace in life.

Cons

· Christians are increasingly attacked, ridiculed, and marginalized in today’s culture.

· Christians are expected to sacrifice and endure hardship for the sake of Christ.

What does science say?

In the Humanist worldview, life is the result of natural processes without the need for supernatural intervention. In that respect, they are considered naturalists. However, the “molecules to man” theory supported by naturalists doesn’t explain the origin of life on this planet. There are still only two choices to consider regarding that: either God created the universe, or the universe is eternal.

Hubble’s discovery of the “red shift” principle throws doubt on the belief that the universe is eternal. His research revealed that light waves from distant galaxies are moving away from a central point, and this discovery led to the conclusion that the universe is expanding. This principle led to the Big Bang theory, which states that the universe began as an extremely hot, dense point (singularity) that exploded, expanded, and cooled, forming matter and energy, and eventually stars, galaxies, and planets.

The 2nd Law of Thermodynamics states that everything moves from low entropy (highly organized) to high entropy (highly disorganized). If eternal, it couldn’t run out of energy.

Speaking of physics, supporters of intelligent design such as Michael Behe, William Dembski, Phillip Johnson, and Stephen Meyer argue that the finely tuned values of the fundamental constants and conditions of the universe allowed life to exist, providing strong evidence that intelligence (a mind) was involved in the creation of the universe.

What does God say?

In the Christian worldview, the universe and life are the result of God’s nature and will. It is His nature to create, and it is His character to express His love to the universe and its inhabitants.

At the end of each day in the 6 days of creation, God said that what He created was good. His original goal was for humanity to know and love Him, and to work with Him to care for His creation and spread love and goodness throughout the world. This concept is profoundly expressed in Ecclesiastes 12:13,14 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.

The risks of unbelief

Unbelief in an afterlife carries considerable risk. This includes the loss of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and grace, the loss of spiritual blessings in life, and the risk of eternal separation from God. Some may say they don’t need any of the above. Still, I believe they do because of Romans 1:20: For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. 

The risks of belief

Belief in an afterlife and in the Christian God also involves personal risk. Standing up for Biblical truth is not easy these days! Being a Christian today often exposes people to ridicule, shunning, and persecution. Christians are being cancelled and fired from their jobs for their beliefs. They are frequently viewed as old-fashioned, outdated, weak, intolerant haters.

What the Bible says

The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that we are all sinners: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We are called to bear with each other by practicing patience, compassion, and forgiveness, as seen in Colossians 3:12,13: Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

The Bible doesn’t say we are not to judge others; it says we are supposed to judge righteously and not be hypocritical about it. For example, in Matthew 7:1–5, Jesus makes the point that people should examine themselves first to discover their own character flaws before pointing out the flaws in others. In John 7:24, Jesus encourages righteous judgment, emphasizing the need to discern between truth and error and act justly.

Conclusion

So, is it wise to believe in life after death? To this author, the answer is an easy and resounding “YES!” My faith in God assures me of spending eternity with Him in paradise. Plus, I receive the benefits of His presence (peace, joy, love, comfort, and wisdom) here and now through reading scripture and worshipping Him with like-minded believers. However, the answer to this question really depends on your worldview. If you believe as Humanists do that the supernatural realm does not exist, then it’s natural for you to think it’s unnecessary to believe in an afterlife. Humanism is an unwise choice in my opinion because it robs me of the stability of having an absolute standard of morality to live by.

Some say God can’t be that standard because of His harsh treatment of certain people groups in some of the narratives in the Old Testament. However, God’s ways are not our ways. He is the one who can see the past, present, and future, and only He knows all the myriad ways events play out in people’s lives. His judgments are true, necessary, and result in the moral improvement of society. Paul Copan writes on this subject in his excellent book “Is God a Moral Monster.” I suggest that anyone having a problem with God’s judgments should read his book.