According to Christian mortalists (aka 'Soul sleep' advocates), does eternal life begin now (before death), and if so, does it continue after death?

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These questions use the expression "this life". 1 John 5:11, quoted in the Question, contains those two words, but "this" is used in the same sense as the other six instances of "this" in that chapter, simply as a demonstrative pronoun.

I'll assume that "this life" in the questions refers to the state of being physically alive and capable of dying.

Many passages seem to suggest that one … obtains eternal life on this side of eternity (before death).

Notice that most of the quoted passages are conditional.

If one follows Jesus's teaching, one is assured of eternal life, and so it's okay to say that one has eternal life. But one has it only in the sense that one will lose it the next time one stops following Jesus, by sinning.

(Compare with saying that medical students have brilliant careers ahead of them.)

Are we born again in this life?

No.

Jesus described what happens after being born again:

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” — John 3:6–8

Many today claim to be "born again", but what they really mean is that they feel like they've taken on a whole new life with new meaning. None of them can move like the wind, so obviously none of them have been born again in the sense Jesus spoke of.

Being born again is the transition from a mortal physical being to an immortal spirit being. For those saved during this age, it will happen at Christ's return, whether physically they are dead or still alive.

Does eternal life begin in this life?

Yes and no.

Life is life; it begins at conception (or whenever it begins, before or at birth, but let's not debate it here). That initial mortal life can become immortal (when the saved individual is born again as a spirit being), but it is the same life, simply with a new attribute.

(Compare with does being male or female begin before puberty.)

If so, what happens when we die? Does eternal life continue while we are physically dead (i.e. between death and the resurrection)? Can a Christian be dead (biologically/physically) and have eternal life simultaneously?

Those saved during this age that die before Christ returns will have eternal life when they are resurrected. But that gift was already given and guaranteed to them at the time they died.

(Compare with being given a present, and told not to open it until tomorrow. Do you have that present before you open it? Does it exist before you open it?)

Does eternal life begin in this life, stop when we die and resume when we are resurrected? If so, how can it be eternal if it has gaps?

Life begins in "this life". Life pauses at death. Life resumes at resurrection (as an eternal spirit being at the first resurrection, as a mortal physical being at the second).

(Compare with writing in script, "some words". The marks represent the physical location of the pen point on the two dimensional paper: two continuous parts of a line, with a gap between from when the pen was briefly lifted into a third dimension. Is it meaningful to ask about the state of existence of the line during that gap?

If a different coloured ink were used for the second word, did the colour of the line change at the end of the first word or at the beginning of the second word? (Or in writing "… an example of italic: word …". There's a guarantee that the word will be different, but was it different during the gap?)

Such questions are just as meaningless as questions about life between death and resurrection.)

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Are we born again in this life?

John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

If a person is not born again in this life, then he/she will not be able to enter the Kingdom of God. The author of Hebrews clarifies that we have only one chance at life:

Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

So it is plain that one has to be born again in "this one life" if he/she has to enter Heaven.

The illustration of Jesus regarding the wind describes how a person is born again, and not about the person becoming wind once he is born again. Just how one cannot know where the wind is coming from and where it is going, likewise it is impossible to know when or how a person is exactly born again. It is a mystery that only God knows and understands. Paul says:

2 Cor 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

John says that we are "now" the sons of God but we will become like Him physically when He appears the second time:

1John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Does eternal life begin in this life?

John 11:25,26 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

Jesus talking to Martha said the quoted verses. Further, Peter says:

1Pet 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.

The process of rebirth is a spiritual one (born of the Spirit). Physical change happens at the second coming of Jesus. But the spiritual birth happens through the medium of the Holy Spirit by the word of God. Just like the word of God is eternal, the new creature born of the incorruptible seed is eternal.

2Pet 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Peter also says that by being born again, we become partakers of the divine nature of Christ. That is the reason why Jesus says though he dies yet shall he live. We are linked to the divine nature of Christ when we accept Christ. Because Christ is God and God is immortal by definition, and Christ is our life, we become in a sense eternal too.

If so, what happens when we die? Does eternal life continue while we are physically dead (i.e. between death and the resurrection)? Can a Christian be dead (biologically/physically) and have eternal life simultaneously?

Paul says:

Col 3:3,4 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

When we are born again, our life becomes hidden in Christ. When we die, the physical body dies and our thoughts cease, but we are not dead because our lives are hidden in Christ. I would like to bring 2 different perspectives into view here.

  1. Christ compares death to sleep. Are we aware of our thoughts when we sleep? If we are aware, then we are not sleeping. Yet, are we alive? Yes. When we sleep, we are physically alive but we become unaware of our living status. Our thoughts resume consciously only when we wake up. Similarly, when we die, our soul sleeps in Christ. When Christ who is our life shall appear, then we will also live (wake up) with Him. Just because we are unaware, does not mean we are dead. Just because the physical body ceases to exist, it does not mean we are dead. Our lives are hidden in Christ until the resurrection. But our thoughts cease.

Job 14:12 So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.

  1. From God's perspective, the time we are dead is like a night to Him. (1000 years are as a night that passes). The resurrection of Saints is to God, just like normal people getting up in the morning after a good night's sleep. We don't really understand how life works. A good example would be "light". The Bible is clear that light existed before the sun came into existence. So the sun is not the source of light but rather the ruler of the day. What would happen if the sun were to cease to exist? Going by the word of God, light would still exist. How can this be? We don't understand. Similarly, when God says our life is hidden in Christ and that we sleep when we die, we simply take it like that.

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