The Significance of Christ in Heaven

[Robert Pate]

Jesus Christ in heaven at the right hand of God, which is a place of honor and respect, means that Jesus has victoriously defeated sin, death and the devil and is Lord,

"And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it" Colossians 2:15.

"Who being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high" Hebrews 1:3.

Someone asked me the other day how do you know for sure that you are saved and have eternal life? I said, "I know that I am saved because my representative is in heaven at the right hand of God and I have been made perfect and complete in him" Colossians 2:10. No Calvinism or Catholicism needed.

Actually, Calvinism, Catholicism and other religions are a denial of this wonderful truth. Jesus comes into the world as God's new Adam and our new humanity, his mission was to perfect our humanity and take it back to heaven. Our salvation is in a very safe place.

Jesus said, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust does corrupt and where thieves break through and steal. but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth or rust does corrupt and where thieves cannot break through and steal. For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also" Matthew 6:19-21.

Need assurance of your salvation? Assurance of our salvation does not depend upon us and our performance as Christian. Our assurance depends upon Christ and his performance. I don't have to be good enough, Jesus was good enough for me, this is why Paul wrote, "And you are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and powers" Colossians 2:10. How can you make yourself any better than what God has made you in Jesus Christ? Answer is you can't.

All that have come to Christ as repentant sinners to be saved by him receive the Holy Spirit, which is God's mark of ownership. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit.

"In whom you trusted, after you heard the word of the truth, THE GOSPEL OF YOUR SALVATION: in whom after that you believed and were SEALED with the Holy Spirit of promise" Ephesians 1:13.

There is no unsealing, once sealed always sealed. God now sees us as perfect and complete in Jesus Christ. As far as God is concerned you are, "Dead and your life is hid with Christ in God" Colossians 3:3. We are "In Christ" and Christ is in heaven. "And has raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Jesus Christ" Ephesians 2:6.

John Calvin can't do that for you, nor can the pope. Why not dump them and trust in Christ alone?

 

[jamie]

Jesus Christ in heaven at the right hand of God...

The word "heaven" is a biblical term for the spiritual dimension. God exists in "heaven" because he is a Spirit being.

But where is heaven? And how is it we are seated there? And where is God?

Paul explains there is one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

The Father and Son comprise the Holy Spirit and we are the personification of them. They in us and we in them.

Heaven is not a physical place, it's a spiritual place all around us, but because it is spiritual we don't see it.

See?

 

[Lilstu]

Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

 

[jamie]

those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

Those two resurrections occur at different times.

 

[Lilstu]

Those two resurrections occur at different times.

Daniel 12:2New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.

Heaven?

 

[jamie]

Daniel 12:2New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.

Two different resurrections, are you familiar with the resurrections?

 

[Lilstu]

Two different resurrections, are you familiar with the resurrections?

I am familiar with what the Bible says about resurrection.

 

[Robert Pate]

Two different resurrections, are you familiar with the resurrections?

There is the resurrection of believers, 1 Corinthians 15:52.

And then there is the resurrection of the damned, John 5:29.

They will occur when Christ returns.

 

[jamie]

There is the resurrection of believers, 1 Corinthians 15:52.

And then there is the resurrection of the damned, John 5:29.

They will occur when Christ returns.

In John 5:29 the word "damned" would have been better translated as judgment.

Let's say for the sake of discussion that the penalty for sin is death. In the second resurrection those who died and then were raised to life will have paid their penalty for sin. Once a debt is paid a person is free of the debt.

In Romans 6:7 Paul said, "For he who has died has been freed from sin."

There is no condemnation for persons who have been freed from sin. The Book of Life will be opened to the resurrected and they will be judged by their response to Jesus' words. Of course they will first need to be taught Jesus' words. We will teach them and judge them.

 

[Robert Pate]

In John 5:29 the word "damned" would have been better translated as judgment.

Let's say for the sake of discussion that the penalty for sin is death. In the second resurrection those who died and then were raised to life will have paid their penalty for sin. Once a debt is paid a person is free of the debt.

In Romans 6:7 Paul said, "For he who has died has been freed from sin."

There is no condemnation for persons freed from sin. The Book of Life will be opened to the resurrected and they will be judged by their response to Jesus' words. Of course they will first need to be taught Jesus' words. We will teach them and judge them.

There is no salvation after death.

You either die "In Christ" or you die in your sins.

You have taken Romans 6:7 out of context.

Only those that have died "In Christ" are free from their sins.

 

[Crucible]

A basic truth of scripture is that 'death' usually pertains to one of the three parts of a person. A person's body dies, one is spiritually dead, or the soul is destroyed.

Physical death is merely the death of the body. Whether one's spirit is dead depends on the person, but the soul remains intact for the final judgement.
Many people make the mistake of making 'death' universal with things, and 'resurrection' just the same.

Traditional Christian belief holds to this:
When a person dies, they undergo either 'particular judgement' or 'particular redemption'- that is, they go to either Paradise or Hell while their body remains on Earth. At the final judgement, the souls of the deceased go back to their vessels, which will either be made new or remain decrepit from which left them.
The saved will witness the judged, who will then be cast into Hell with their bodies.

That's always been the accepted dogma in Christian belief, but as with everything else, people will go and make their own notions of it.

 

[jamie]

There is no salvation after death.

Shhh... Don't tell God that, he said there will be.

Revelation 20:5 But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished.​

Why do they live again?

 

[jamie]

Traditional Christian belief holds to this:
When a person dies, they undergo either 'particular judgement' or 'particular redemption'- that is, they go to either Paradise or Hell while their body remains on Earth. At the final judgement, the souls of the deceased go back to their vessels, which will either be made new or remain decrepit from which left them.
The saved will witness the judged, who will then be cast into Hell with their bodies.

Yes, isn't that a sad belief?

 

[Robert Pate]

A basic truth of scripture is that 'death' usually pertains to one of the three parts of a person. A person's body dies, one is spiritually dead, or the soul is destroyed.

Physical death is merely the death of the body. Whether one's spirit is dead depends on the person, but the soul remains intact for the final judgement.
Many people make the mistake of making 'death' universal with things, and 'resurrection' just the same.

Traditional Christian belief holds to this:
When a person dies, they undergo either 'particular judgement' or 'particular redemption'- that is, they go to either Paradise or Hell while their body remains on Earth. At the final judgement, the souls of the deceased go back to their vessels, which will either be made new or remain decrepit from which left them.
The saved will witness the judged, who will then be cast into Hell with their bodies.

That's always been the accepted dogma in Christian belief, but as with everything else, people will go and make their own notions of it.

Everything goes down into the grave until Christ returns. There is no separation of soul, spirit and body.

When we are resurrected we will come forth as one entity, 1 Corinthians 15:52.

 

[jamie]

Everything goes down into the grave until Christ returns. There is no separation of soul, spirit and body.

Are you saying the spirit does not return to God?

 

[Robert Pate]

Are you saying the spirit does not return to God?

If the Spirit returns to God at death, then what is being resurrected? See, 1 Corinthians 15:35-58.

 

[jamie]

If the Spirit returns to God at death, then what is being resurrected? See, 1 Corinthians 15:35-58.

The human spirit mated with a human brain makes a human soul. The Greek for soul is psuche from which we get the English pysche, the mind.

It's the mind that makes a person unique. God preserves a person's spirit until their resurrection when the spirit is placed in a new body and the person is restored, never being conscious of having been dead until awakened. Where am I, is this heaven? Nope, it will all be explained to you, get dressed.

 

[Robert Pate]

The human spirit mated with a human brain makes a human soul. The Greek for soul is psuche from which we get the English pysche, the mind.

It's the mind that makes a person unique. God preserves a person's spirit until their resurrection when the spirit is placed in a new body and the person is restored, never being conscious of having been dead until awakened. Where am I, is this heaven? Nope, it will all be explained to you, get dressed.

If a persons spirit is already in heaven then why would there be a resurrection?

There is a lot of controversy concerning this.

The way I see it is, the whole person goes into the ground and the whole person is resurrected.

The Christian does not really die. He falls asleep until the resurrection.

 

[jamie]

If a persons spirit is already in heaven then why would there be a resurrection?

A spirit without a brain is non-functional. The human spirit provides intellect to a human brain which is part of a body.

Because the human spirit is non-material it is not subject to injury or disease, but if the brain is not functioning God retrieves the human spirit so it can be mated with a different brain when need be.

 

[musterion]

A spirit without a brain is non-functional.

John 4:24