As we discussed in Created with a Free Will Abel died an unjust death. He was not the only or last one to die as a good man. Zechariah died an unjust death as well in the Old Testament, as we can read in 2 Chronicles. This was at the time when Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem. Why would God allow this to happen? Is there more than just life on Earth?
Luke 11:50-51 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.
Why would a loving God allow Evil?
You might have heard intellectuals say: Why would an all-loving, all-knowing God allow evil? If he is this, why wouldn’t he stop the evil or doesn’t He know it exists? There is an answer to this question and it is called:
Judgement Day
The eternal punishment or reward is much more than any injustice that has happened to a person in this life. You might have wondered why many people who are loved by God, die prematurely in the bible, and why so many Christians have died for their faith and will do:
Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
This explains why many women and men of God suffer for their faith in this earthly life: They get a big reward in eternity/heaven.
Afterlife
You won’t find many references to the afterlife in the Old Testament. Even if you lived as good Daniel or David, how could they ever get back to our Holy God? Yes, there are prophetic books like Daniel and Zechariah, but they are more prophetic descriptions of the events which are to happen in the end, than a personal call to get your life in order.
Only in the New Testament, when Jesus Christ appeared on the scene, there are many verses that there will be a judgement and eternal life.
Matthew 5:11-12 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
There is good news for Abel, a direct link between people who suffer for God and an eternal reward.
When you read this you might not trust the bible so much yet. That could but I am just telling you here that the New Testament is consistent on this part with the Old Testament.
Why should there be an afterlife?
What you can learn from it, is that if you are only seeking the higher powers, or God, to have a blessed and good life on this earth, you might have not understood it correctly.
Yes, surely many people who believe are blessed by God. Alas, when you read your bible you cannot get to another conclusion that it is not God’s ultimate goal with his followers.
Even when the 70 are sent out to heal the sick Jesus told them not to focus on things of this world but on the things hereafter.
Luk 10:20 Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.
A man who was greatly used by God, John Bunyan got a prophetic vision about the afterlife. You can find it here: Vision of Heaven and Hell (divinerevelations.info). He has been in prison for 12 years for his faith and wrote The Pilgrim’s Progress. That is why I trust his testimony. I am careful what other people say about the afterlife if I don’t know who they are.
But wait a minute, there is more than one God in this world isn’t it? Which God is the right one?