Do people go to heaven or hell as soon as they die, or are they in the grave until Jesus returns?

Sincerely,
Six Feet Under?

Dear Six Feet Under,

When a Christian dies, they go immediately to Paradise and await the day of Judgment, the day when our eternal heaven is created.  Jesus said that angels immediately carry faithful souls off to Paradise (Lk 16:22, Lk 23:43), and the wicked are immediately sent to torments (Lk 16:23).  Both Paradise and torments are part of Hades (‘Hades’ means ‘the unseen place’).  When you die, your spirit is separated from your body and goes to Hades (Jas 2:26).  On the Day of Judgment, all the souls will be emptied out of Hades (1 Thess 4:14), and all the bodies will be removed from the graves (1 Thess 4:16).  On that great Day of Judgment, every soul shall be judged (Heb 9:27).

     How do we tell if we are ready to be killed for our faith in God and automatically know that we will go to heaven?

Sincerely,
Martyr In Training

Dear Martyr In Training,

Though some Christians are placed in a position where they are killed for their faith, God doesn't command all Christians to die for Him – instead, He tells us to be living sacrifices (Rom 12:1).  We need to live our lives in a way that is faithful until death... not faithfully seeking death (Rev 2:10).  We are even told to pray for a quiet life of godliness if at all possible (1 Tim 2:2).  If we must forfeit our lives for Christ, so be it.  But we don't go seeking violence.

When people die, do they go to the Hadean world?  Is Hades separated into two parts: paradise and torment?

Sincerely,
Where To Next?

Dear Where To Next,

The Day of Judgment will only happen once, and then all of mankind will be divided between heaven and hell (Rev 20:12-15).  However, until that time, all the dead will wait in Hades.  Hades (also known as Sheol) is the place of the dead, both the good dead and the bad dead.  The word ‘Hades’ literally means ‘the unseen place’.  Within Hades, there are two areas where people wait for the final judgment.  All of the faithful who die wait in the good part of Hades called ‘Paradise’ (2 Cor 12:4, Lk 23:43).  All of the wicked who die wait in a part of Hades known only as ‘torments’ (Lk 16:23).

Where do you go after you die?

Sincerely,
Coffin Shoppin’

Dear Coffin Shoppin’,

When a Christian dies, they go immediately to Paradise and await the day of Judgment, the day when our eternal heaven is created.  Jesus said that angels immediately carry faithful souls off to Paradise (Lk 16:22, Lk 23:43), and the wicked are immediately sent to torments (Lk 16:23).  Both Paradise and torments are part of Hades (‘Hades’ means ‘the unseen place’).  When you die, your spirit is separated from your body and goes to Hades (Jas 2:26).  On the Day of Judgment, all the souls will be emptied out of Hades (1 Thess 4:14), and all the bodies will be removed from the graves (1 Thess 4:16).  On that great Day of Judgment, every soul shall be judged (Heb 9:27).  After that judgment happens, this earth will be destroyed, and a new, heavenly, spiritual world will be created for the saints to live in eternally (2 Pet 3:12-13).

What separates heaven and hell?

Sincerely,
Separation Anxiety

Dear Separation Anxiety,

The only detail we have on that subject is when Abraham says, “there is a great chasm fixed” between Paradise and torments in Lk 16:26.  We have no idea of what that great chasm looks like or how vast it is – nor even what it is made out of because it is in the spiritual realm, not the physical one.