Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves.
I am the Lord your God.
-Leviticus 19:4
Many of the ancient religions of the world held to the belief that the condition of the body at death directly affected what happened in the afterlife. Think about it; what have we learned about the ancient Egyptians? Their belief was that the body needed to be preserved so that the deceased could live in the afterlife (which explains their emphasis on mummification), and they also believed that you can take it with you when you go. Over the years when archeologists have opened the tombs of the kings, princes, and nobles of Egypt, they found the same items which the person would have had while living; furniture, food, money, and even pets which were mummified along with them.
Where had the Israelites been for the 400 years prior to entering the Promised Land? They had been slaves in the land of Egypt. They knew all about the gods, goddesses, and religious practices of their captors, and God was reminding them that He was going to instruct them that His ways were different. They were not to follow the pagan beliefs and practices of the nations around them. They were to worship the Lord and serve Him only.
It’s amazing how much of those ancient beliefs have made their way down through the ages. Egyptians, along with people such as the Trojans, and the Greeks, believed that what happens to the body influences what happens after death. That is why the ancient Greeks placed coins upon the eyes of the deceased, so they would have money to pay the ferryman who would take them across the River Styx. Even as late as the 1800,s there is evidence that the American Indians believed that what happens to the body affects what happens after death.
Our hope of eternal life rests in Christ Jesus alone. Through faith in the Lord Jesus, our home in Heaven is secured and certain.
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