as a daughter of someone who's lost their mother. I often ask questions about life after death.people will often say their loved ones visit them all the time or that your loved ones are watching over you or they believe Cardinals and butterflies or animals are their loved ones who are visiting them, and comforting as that may be it's simply not true. I think I have built my relationship closer with God due to the fact that I have lost my mother and that I have been through some pretty rough things throughout my life and I reached for the Bible to seek my answers and not to a worldly View of what death is. having those answers revealed to me gives me even more respect for God and his plan in my life. it also makes me feel comforted to know where my mom is in this very moment. Here is some research I have done on death to better explain why I believe what I believe and how I know she is where she is and that one day I will see her again. I hope in some way this has comforted you and maybe answered some questions that you've always wanted to know as well
WHERE ARE THE DEAD?
Simply put, the Bible says that the dead are in the grave, awaiting the resurrection. (John 5:28, 29) They are not suffering or in any kind of pain, for “the dead know nothing at all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5) In his teachings, Jesus likened death to a deep sleep. (John 11:11-14) Thus, we have no need to fear those who have fallen asleep in death or to appease them by making offerings to them. They can neither help nor harm us, because “there is no work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the Grave.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10) By means of the resurrection, however, God will do away with death forever.—1 Corinthians 15:26, 55; Revelation 21:4.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT GHOSTS?
In the King James Version of the Bible, the word ghost appears 108 times. Of these, the word is never used in the sense of the disembodied spirit of someone who has died. It is used in only two ways. First, it appears in the phrase “to give up the ghost,” meaning “to die.” Second, it occurs as the title, “the Holy Ghost,” the third person of the Godhead or Trinity. The Bible refers to ghosts or spirits of the dead as “familiar spirits” and warns us against having anything to do with them. (see Leviticus 19:31; Deuteronomy 18:11; 2 Kings 21:6; Isaiah 8:19).
CAN THE DEAD HAUNT HOUSES?
It’s in the Bible, Job 7:9-10, NKJV. “As the cloud disappears and vanishes away, so he who goes down to the grave does not come up. He shall never return to his house, nor shall his place know him anymore."
If people die with unfinished business to care for, do they become ghosts and haunt the places and people they knew in life? It’s in the Bible, Psalm 146:4, ESV. "When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.”
CAN THE DEAD TALK TO THE LIVING?
“For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, NKJV.)
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT COMMUNICATING WITH GHOSTS OR FAMILAR SPIRITS??
It’s in the Bible, Isaiah 8:19, NASB. “And when they say to you, ‘Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter.’ Should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?” In verse 20 of the King James Version the Bible goes on to say, “To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”
What does the Bible say about those who communicate with familiar spirits? It's in the Bible, Leviticus 19:31, NKJV. "Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God."
ARE GHOSTS REAL?
Ghosts are real, but they are not angels from God or our dead loved ones. They are fallen angels trying to deceive us. It’s in the Bible, Ephesians 6:11-12, KJV. "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
It’s in the Bible, 2 Corinthians 11:14-15, NIV. "And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve."
DO GOOD PEOPLE BECOME ANGELS WHEN WE DIE?
God’s angels are heavenly beings, not spirits of dead humans. Angels have existed before humans were created. It’s in the Bible, Psalm 8:4-5, NKJV. “What is man that You [Lord] are mindful of him, and the son of man, that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.”
There are evil spirits in this world that are the fallen angels who followed Satan in rebellion against God. It’s in the Bible, Revelation 12:9, NKJV. "So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
SHOULD WE BE AFRAID OF GHOSTS?
We do not have to be afraid of Satan and his impersonations of the living and the dead, if we give our hearts to Jesus and stay away from all satanic activities such as séances, ouija boards, and other activities of spiritism. It’s in the Bible, 1 John 4:1,4, NKJV. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God. . . You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” It's in the Bible, James 4:7-8, NKJV. “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
God’s angels guide and protect us; they do not hurt us, play tricks on us, or lie to us. It's in the Bible, Psalm 91:9-11, NKJV. “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. They shall bear you up in their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”
If we are true to Jesus and obey Him by faith, we do not need to be afraid of Satan’s power. It's in the Bible, Luke 10:19, NKJV. “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
It's in the Bible, Romans 8:31, NKJV. “If God be for us, who can be against us?”
Why Christians Can Have Peace Regarding the Dead and Death
As Christians, we can have complete peace regarding the dead and death, because we have God’s assurance that heaven is real. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). We can count on God’s promise that we’ll go there to be with him after we die – and that all of our loved ones who trust him will also go to heaven.
Psalm 23, which people often read at funerals, highlights God’s presence with us even through death. Verse 4 proclaims: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
Ultimately, we can be at peace when grieving departed loved ones because absolutely nothing in death nor life can separate us from God’s love: “For I am sure that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).
God will comfort you in your grief. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).
One of the ways God may comfort you as you mourn loved ones is by allowing you to dream about them. Don’t worry if you experience dreams about the dead. Instead, thank God for the gift of them and ask the Holy Spirit to help you interpret them. Dreaming about loved ones who have passed away can help heal your grief and strenghten your faith. so to sum it up your loved ones are waiting in their graves or in their dust where we will all be risen. the sound of a trumpet at the same time God will raise the Dead they are not roaming around on Earth or lurking in your houses or reincarnated into birds and flowers and whatever else that someone has conjured up or some religion or paganistic practice has told you, the dead is dead we can grieve and mourn them but we are not to talk to the Dead!! because the only thing you'd be talking to is demonic spiritual beings not loved ones only evil forces. so just rest in the lord that from dust they were made and dust they will return and one day we will all arise to see Jesus. I myself look forward to being with Jesus in heaven and i look forward to my gloried new body i will receive.
I would say going forward seek scripture and ask God for more knowledge on anything your heart may be burdened with. For me i seek all my life's questions through God's word but it awnsers my questions and puts my heart as ease. Because i have assurance in Jesus's death burial and resurrection that my Sins will be blotted out and I'am forgiven. Amen.
Closing prayer:
Jesus thank you for your truth and knowledge for always guiding me to do your will. Thank you for being my comforter for the healing you have giving me through tough times even in grief and Death. I pray that anyone reading this post may seek you lord and seek refuge in you and your word. Bless them, keep them, let your face shine upon them in Jesus name Amen.