Is there no second chance after we die?

Sometimes we try to cling to ever straw of hope and say that perhaps there will be another chance for them after death. Maybe they will be given a second opportunity to turn to God and be accepted by Him. If God is a God of love would He really keep this person I love away from His presence? We would all like to say this, but we cannot do so if we look at the Bible. There are many examples where the Bible teaches that there are no second chances after death. Imagine someone driving over the edge of a cliff and as they are sailing over the edge saying to themselves, 'maybe I'll get another chance to put my foot on the breaks. In fact I'll do that now - surely that will help?' The answer, as we all know; it is just too late.

The Bible is very clear in a number of places, for example:

Hebrews 9:27  'it is appointed for men to die once, and after this comes judgement'.

2 Corinthians 5:10 'for we must appear before the judgement seat of Christ'

Perhaps the clearest example is that by Jesus Himself in the story of the Rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. Jesus speaks of 2 men who died one went to be with God, and the other did not. The whole point of the parable is that there was no second chance for the man who was not with God, no matter how he pleaded. It was too late for any change to take place. All the more reason that times like bereavement make us reassess the realities of life and death. They cause us to ask the question - "Where do we stand before a God who loves us and waiting with outstretched arms to accept us?"