Q: If Jesus always existed, even
before He was born to the Virgin Mary, what about other people? Do human souls exist somewhere before the
person is born in this world?
This is a topic of much speculation
in conversations I have heard. There are
many theories and stories about the status of people before they are born, but
sadly, most of these bear a closer resemblance to fairy tales than they do to
reality. There is a general consensus
that humans exist in a material aspect, called the body, and an immaterial
aspect, commonly called a soul or spirit.
Even though one of the most popular
of these ideas, called reincarnation, comes from non-Christian religions like
Hinduism and Buddhism, it is believed anyway by numerous Americans. This belief holds that there is really no
beginning or end to the existence of the soul.
Instead, reincarnation teaches that a soul moves from body to body,
living numerous lives. A good life would
ensure a promotion to a better species in the following life—from a fly to a dog,
for example. An immoral life would
result in a demotion in the next life—from a human to a raccoon, for example.
Another category of these stories
teaches that a human soul exists in heaven, on other planets, in other
spiritual realms, or any of a number of places, before finally being introduced
to a body at some definite point in time.
Adaptations of this story portray bodiless human souls being born as a
result of some intimate relation between the souls deceased humans. Others picture these souls spending time with
God, conversing with their dead relatives, or any of a number of other imaginative
scenarios. I even encountered one person
who was convinced that her child had been given an orientation to earthly life
by his grandfather during the short time between the grandfather’s death and
the child’s birth.
Still other types of stories portray
humans as existing as angels before being assigned to human bodies. These stories seem to be quite appealing to
those who also hold the misconception that people become angels after death. All of the stories mentioned to this point
are no more reliable than fairy tales, and some, in fact, are quite
unbiblical.
Jesus did exist eternally with the
Father before He was born, but for those of us who are not God, this is not the
case. God has no beginning and no
end. He has always and will always
exist; therefore Jesus also existed from before the creation of the world, even
though He would not be born as a man until only about 2000 years ago.
Unlike God, humans do have a definite
beginning, although their existence does not end—even at death. At the time a human child is conceived by his
parents, he exists for the first time—both in body and in soul. Before this moment, the person does not
exist. Even after death, a person’s body
and soul both continue to exist, although separated for a time—the body in the
grave and the soul either with Jesus or imprisoned awaiting judgment.
When Jesus physically returns to
earth on the last day, the bodies of all the dead will be raised from their
graves and reunited with their souls. Each
person will be judged and will live eternally, in both body and soul, in
eternal blessing or eternal punishment, according to their trust in Jesus or
lack thereof.
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