Bible Discussion Thread

what does spiritual death mean

Hello, Selasi,

I think that Chris spoke well in referring to the passage in Ephesians concerning being spiritually dead.

I wish to add, without God's saving grace and mercy, every single person that every lived was a sinner and enslaved to sin, deserving God's righteous judgement of eternal punishment without God. This is hell.

Every single person who every lived was spiritually dead due to the sinful nature that is inherent in all of us because of the sin of Adam which allowed this nature to become a part of human nature from then on. Being spiritually dead means that we cannot every rectify or reform ourselves to please God. We cannot every erase the sins we have committed or get rid of the sinful nature in this life. Being spiritually dead, we cannot respond to God correctly. We cannot choose to be saved. We cannot resist following the temptations and promptings of the evil one and the inward sinful thoughts and outward deeds of our own devising.

Most people, though dead in sin, can make choices to do "good" to others. But they can never please God nor turn back His rightful judgment on our sin by any good that we may do. In order to be saved, we must be made spiritually alive (reborn or regenerated). This is done only by the Holy Spirit who used the testimony of the Gospel and the witness from believers to effect this being made alive to God. This is why we share the Gospel with others. It is the power of God unto salvation, as the Spirit uses it to quicken us spiritually from being dead to God. This is all of grace, all a gift, all a working of God's mercy, all a fulfilling of His eternal will for each of us who come to faith in Christ. But God acts first, we respond in faith because the Spirit has made us spiritually alive and able to believe. He even gives us the faith to believe.

Hi Selasi. I think the Apostle Paul described spiritual death well in Ephesians 2:1-6. If you would first read this passage & then view my comments, you may appreciate its meaning.

Paul is writing to Christians that they were now made alive ("you hath he (God) quickened") - i.e. they were now spiritually alive; but not referring to a physical life.

So, if they were made spiritually alive by God, they must have been spiritually dead (i.e. not having spiritual life). And Paul then goes on to remind the Ephesians that when they were spiritually dead, their sinful life which controlled their thoughts & manner of life, came not from God but from Satan (the prince of the power of the air). Whenever we allow Satan to control us, i.e. to tempt us & we give in to him and sin, it shows that we're not allowing God's Spirit to have full reign (or, control) over us.

In the past, these believers lived their lives as the world without God, lives (v2). And this included allowing the desires of their flesh & mind to overrule (v3), making them the children deserving of God's Anger. And then that wonderful conjunction word: BUT (in verse 4). This word BUT wonderfully brings two thoughts together. Once we were children of the world deserving God's Judgement, BUT God stepped in to rescue us from the world, ourselves, & Satan. And He did this because He is a Merciful God, a Loving God, Who gave us new life through the Gift of His Son Jesus Christ. I think you can see how special that BUT is in this passage - when once we had no hope, but now a joyous hope because we're forgiven & accepted through Christ.

Maybe, I shared more than you expected, but felt that this whole passage truly shows us what 'spiritual death' is. Our spirits were once dead God-wards & nothing we could do could rectify that awful state to be in. BUT God stepped in bringing us out of spiritual death & judgement, to give us spiritual life, health & peace - through Him Who loved us & gave Himself for us.