But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.
Jude 20-23
Imagine that there was a law giving everyone a second chance. Every citizen is given the right to not be punished for his first offense. It does not matter whether the offense was a speeding ticket or grand theft, tax fraud, or first degree murder, everyone receives a second chance. What would happen to a country that instituted such a law? Logically, the crime rate and the severity of those crimes would increase exponentially. If there is no punishment for the first crime, everyone would commit the crime that would benefit him or her the most without fear of repercussion.
Just as people do not get a second chance in the eyes of the law, they do not receive a second chance for eternity. Sadly, some religions teach that there is a second chance for everyone in the afterlife which dilutes the exigency of their message. Unbiblical views in the LDS Church and Jehovah’s Witnesses teach a second chance after death, detracting from the urgency of this life, while a biblical view of the finality of death emphasizes the urgency of this life.
Who Teaches a Doctrine of Second Chances?
The LDS Church
First, the view that there is a second chance after death detracts from the urgency of this life. Both the LDS Church and Jehovah’s Witnesses teach a “doctrine of second chances.” According to the LDS, when someone dies, if he is a faithful Church member, he will go to paradise, a place of rest for the faithful (Nelson et al.). There the dead enjoy “a state of happiness” and “a state of peace” (Nelson et al.). However, if one has not heard the teaching of the LDS Church or has rejected it, he will go to a place called the “spirit prison.”
According to the LDS Church, Jesus went to paradise and appointed teachers after He died but before He rose again. These teachers instruct the evil dead. If they accept the true teaching, the once evil spirits are freed. If they do not, they remain in the spirit prison. Unless they commit the “unpardonable sin” (which is undefined), any spirit can accept the “gospel” at any time. The only judgment appears to be the period of waiting, though this is unclear in LDS literature.
After the period of waiting, Jesus will resurrect the dead, and everyone will be assigned either to hell, or to a level of heaven. Only Satan, his angels, and the very worst of humanity will be condemned to hell. Even the worst of humanity, the “liars, sorcerers, whoremongers, and adulterers,” will eventually get their own level of heaven that is so much greater than anything on this earth that it “surpasses all understanding” (Ludlow 368).
Jehovah’s Witnesses
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in a doctrine of second chances slightly different from the one taught by the LDS Church. Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that humans do not have a soul in the Christian sense of the word, but that souls simply refer to one’s being (i.e., one’s personality, feelings, characteristics, etc.). After one dies, he will simply cease to exist (“What Does the Bible Say?”). Jehovah’s Witnesses use Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, 10, and Psalms 146:4 to support this belief because these verses state that the dead do not know anything and thus are not conscious. They read other verses in the Bible that state that sin merits death (i.e., Romans 6:23, Ezekiel 18:4, 20) to mean that one’s sins can only be paid for by his death.
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus has spiritually returned to earth and has reigned invisibly on the earth since 1914. However, at some point in the future, Jesus will set up a thousand year “Day of Judgment” and visibly reign (“What Is the Resurrection?”). During this thousand-year period, God will use His omniscience to recreate everyone who has ever lived and imbue him with his previous personality that has been purified.
Only a few souls will be condemned to Gehenna, which is “a symbol of everlasting destruction or non-existence” (Hodge and Patterson). Though this time is called a time of judgment, because Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that one’s death pays for his sins, none of the resurrected beings will be judged for the sins of their previous life. Rather, those who were not Jehovah’s Witnesses before will be taught true doctrine and will be given a second chance. Only if they reject Jehovah for a second time will they be annihilated (Hodge and Patterson).
The Problem with the Doctrine of Second Chances
Both of these second chance doctrines detract significantly from the urgency of this life. One might argue that, logically, Jehovah’s Witnesses and LDS Church members would not be as diligent to witness to those around them. After all, the person that they are trying to convert will have a second chance later. However, this does not seem to be the case; Jehovah’s Witnesses and the LDS Church are very diligent to share their faith. Because they believe that they are in the last days and that they have very little time left to share their message, neither the LDS nor Jehovah’s Witnesses sit idly by (Hodge and Patterson).
However, from an outsider’s perspective, both Jehovah’s Witnesses and the LDS Church have messages that are not very urgent. It does not seem to matter what anyone does in this life because there is a second chance. For LDS members, the doctrine of second chances impacts the urgency of this life dramatically. The LDS Church member must remain faithful in this life or risk losing his salvation, but it does not matter in the end. No matter if one is not faithful enough or if he rejects the message entirely, as long as he does not commit a very grave sin, he will go to a place of incomparable glory (Ludlow 368).
According to the teaching of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a person’s death pays for all of his sins (Hodge and Patterson). While some Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that one can commit a sin so unpardonable in this life that he will be annihilated at death, the average person can do whatever he wants to in this life. Because death pays for all sin, what does it matter what one does during this life?
From an outsider’s perspective, does the risk of his situation merit a change if what these religions teach is true? In other words, if Jehovah’s Witnesses and LDS Church members are speaking the truth, maybe the outsider should convert. On the other hand, if they are wrong, he can just accept their message later. It is not worth giving up the pleasures of this world if the pleasures of the next world can be obtained at no extra cost.
The Bible and Second Chances
God’s Word emphasizes the urgency and importance of this life. The Bible teaches that God created man to glorify Him (1 Cor 10:31, Matt 5:16), but man chose to sin and to work against God (Rom 5:10, Col 1:21-22). Sin separates man from God, and because God is holy and just, all of mankind deserves His eternal wrath (Rom 3:23). Moreover, there is nothing that man can do to merit salvation from this wrath. Sin has so completely marred everyone that even our good deeds are filth.
Remarkably, though, God decided to love mankind. He sent His Son Jesus to this earth to live among men. Like the prophets who came before Him, Jesus told of man’s sinful state, but He also told of the only way to be saved from sin: trust in Him for salvation from the wrath to come. Jesus died so that anyone could be justified before God and live with Him forever.
However, this window of salvation to escape mankind’s coming damnation is slim. Once one dies, there is no opportunity to change his ways. Hebrews 9:27 says “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” As we keenly observe and experience, human life is fleeting (Jas 4:13-17, Psa 144:4). No one knows whether he will live to see next year, next month, next week, or even tomorrow. Therefore, the message of Christianity is one of utmost urgency. Because those around the Christian are dying and do not have a second chance to be saved from eternal condemnation, Christians must strive to reach those around them to warn them of their impending doom. For an outsider, the message of Christianity presents a clear choice. To say “Tomorrow I will repent” is to risk eternal hellfire.
Is the Doctrine of Second Chances Biblical?
Over and over again, the Bible warns believers about false teaching. By giving people false hope for a second chance, the LDS Church and Jehovah’s Witnesses are teaching doctrines that lead others astray. 1 Timothy 6:3-5 says that,
If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain.
In Ezekiel 3:18, the Lord says “When I say to the wicked, ‘You will certainly die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way so that he may live, that wicked person shall die for wrongdoing, but his blood I will require from your hand” (NASB).
Both the LDS Church’ and Jehovah’s Witness’ doctrines on a second chance after death dilute the exigency of this life. In contrast, the Bible teaches that this life should fill the Christian with urgency because this fleeting existence is all that one has to tell others of their danger. The Christian only has a little bit of time on this earth to preach the Gospel.
– J.C.
Bibliography
“What Is the Resurrection?” Jehovah’s Witnesses, www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/questions/what-is- the-resurrection/.
Hodge, Bodie, and Roger Todd Patterson. World Religions and Cults. Vol. 1, Master Books, 2015.
Ludlow, Daniel H. Encyclopedia of Mormonism. Macmillan, 1992.
Nelson, President Russell M., et al. “Death, Physical.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/death-physical?lang=eng.
“What Does the Bible Say?” Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jan. 2016, www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-no1-2016-january/what-does-the-bible-say-about-death/.
