How are near-death experiences
to be evaluated biblically?
So-called near-death experiences represent su-pernatural events that have a strong emotio-nal impact on people and can only be explained to a limited extent scientifically. There is no comparable example of such a phenomenon in the Bible.
Most near-death experiences report what peo-ple supposedly saw and experienced in “heaven” and/or “hell”. What many such accounts have in common is the description of a bright light that people refer to as "God" and in whose presence they felt peace and freedom as well as happiness and perfect love. Many people who talk about such experiences wished they could stay in this place forever. In some cases, people were asked to return to Earth and de-liver a specific message. Shortly afterwards the people regained consciousness.
Many details are often described in the re-ports of Nativity experiences, which in most cases cannot be confirmed by the Bible. For example, while in some near-death experiences people are tormented by demons in a burning underworld, the Bible teaches that both the devil and his angels, along with all people condemned by God, die in the lake of fire, which is a It is a symbol of the second, eternal death. Contradictions with the Bible can also be found regarding the reports about heaven. While people report that they have seen loved ones again in heaven, the Bible says that so far no person other than Jesus has been raised to immortal life or ascended to God in heaven. According to Jesus' own statement, the resur-rection of the dead, which Christians are wai-ting for according to God's promise, will take place when he returns at the end of this earth age.
The near-death experiences in which Jesus is mentioned also contain many contradic-tions. Some report journeys with Jesus into the “Stone Age” and in this context of “cavemen” (who, from a biblical point of view, did not exist). Others were given prophecies that were never fulfilled and therefore could not have come from God. In still other reports, Jesus does not appear at all. Instead, people talk about encounters with dead people such as Buddha, Mohammed, Mary or some pagan “gods” in which they believe. There are also comple-tely different statements regarding the exter-nal appearance of Jesus.
The Bible describes many supernatural events and miracles that were clearly performed by God. But this does not mean that everything supernatural that people experience then and now must also be from God. Although some such reports may be authentic, the many con-tradictions with the Bible and other near-death reports suggest that most of these phe-nomena do not have a divine origin. However, the influence of demons (= fallen angels), whose goal is to deceive people and lead them away from God and the truth, cannot be ruled out.