Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: the “Logos Reftagger” scripture links are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), when finished reading, hover your cursor off the scripture reference link. If the Reftagger pop-up doesn’t show all the verses, left click on the “More” button in the Reftagger pop-up window and it will take you to the online bible. If RefTagger pop-ups don’t work on your computer, that’s OK, try right clicking the link then open in new tab or window; or if that doesn’t work, you can always use your Bible to look up the verses. Word or Phrase definition links may not have a website that opens.
Preparing yourself for the study of God’s Word
Before we begin, only if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life) John 3:16, John 6:47 as a few examples; it is very important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so the Holy Spirit can teach you as to what your reading or hearing is true or false. To be taught by the Holy Spirit you must be filled with the Holy Spirit which means abiding in Christ. To place yourself in fellowship with God the Holy Spirit [also called abiding in the Christ], take a moment to simply name, cite or acknowledge [confess] your known unconfessed sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father). Why? Because you cannot grow spiritually if you’re not abiding in Christ [in fellowship with Him] when you take in bible truth.
1 John 1:9, says: “If we confess [meaning to simply name, cite or acknowledge to God the Father] your sins [known unconfessed sins], He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins [known sins] and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [all unknown and forgotten sins];” NKJV [New King James Version]; we call this REBOUND; read the full doctrine as to “why” we need to use 1 John 1:9 to grow spiritually. Left click the following link to learn more and fully understand the doctrine of Rebound; which answers the question, why do I need to keep confessing my sins all the time? REBOUND
If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, that He is the Son of God, the promised Messiah, as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to simply exercise faith alone in Jesus Christ alone eternal life; when you do, you will instantly receive Eternal Life: John 3:16, 5:24, 6:47, 20:30, 31.
John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life." NKJV
Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.
John 3:14-15, 16, 17, 18, says: "14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV
Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:
Study to show yourself approved to God!
Grace Bible Church
Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries
The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is taught Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday
STUDY TITLE:
Weekly Bible Study, January 29, 2024, The Doctrine of Heaven.
The Doctrine of Heaven.
In our continued study of Philippians 1:21 in which verse Paul as a mature
believer claims that living is for Christ and dying is profit, we have now
entered into a study of the Doctrine of Heaven. The believer's physical
death is a profit in that his soul and human spirit are thereafter transferred
to heaven. Though heaven is beyond the understanding of man's finite
mind and imagination let us try to note, in our limited vocabulary, the
splendor and glory of our eternal destination!
Throughout human history prophets have received glimpses of the glory of
God in heavenly places. For example, Ezekiel's vision of Eze 1:26-28. Or
the apostle Paul having actually visited heaven which is one of the reasons.
he dogmatically considered death to be a profit or promotion. God also
took John to visit the New Jerusalem which is where we receive our major
description of it in Revelation chapters 21 and 22. But regardless of the
descriptions we receive, when our eyes finally fall upon our Lord Jesus
Christ in His FULL GLORY, seated on His throne in the New Jerusalem
in heaven, we will be fixed in awe and complete devotion. The best of all
our experiences before this point will pale when faced with the glory of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in all His splendor! Heaven exemplifies
all that makes up God's essence and perfect grace. At that time we will see
and know Him in full. Right now in time we can only know Him in part,
1Corinthians 13:12, but in heaven His fullness will be exposed before us!
Such a time should be the believer's source of encouragement and
anticipation.
Heaven, by way of definition, is the dwelling place of God and his angels
variously conceived of as the place where the blessed will live after death.
It is also a place of great beauty and pleasure. The dwelling place of God,
i.e., His abode is in the third heaven. Distinction must be made since
theologically there are three heavens.
The first heaven is that which we
see, the clouds of the air, our immediately encompassing atmosphere, Acts
14:17.
The second heaven is known as the stellar universe i.e., the galaxy
beyond earth's immediate atmosphere where angels engage in spiritual
warfare, Eph 6:12.
And the third heaven in its celestial magnificence is
the abode of God, Hebrews 8:1, and is located beyond the stellar universe
to the north according to the Psalms and the book of Isaiah. In the third
heaven there is found the capital city of the eternal state, the New
Jerusalem, Revelation chapters Rev 21:1-27 and Rev 22:1-21.
The New Jerusalem is the
present and future location of the throne of God and the seat of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Upon our physical death, it is there our interim bodies will
congregate in the presence of our Lord, in the midst of the beauty and
grandeur of the New Jerusalem. It is also where our resurrected bodies
will congregate after the Rapture and Judgment Seat of Christ. This is
what Paul saw when he was taken to heaven which is why we find it no
surprise that he was not incredibly ecstatic about coming back to earth.
Of course, whatever the will of God had for his life he happily complied with
but his sight was on heaven! It's strange that believers today claim to want
to go to heaven but they do not want to die. If their faith were strong
enough, they would know that what lies beyond physical death is of profit!
Let us go through the chain of events which occur when the believer is
triumphantly released from his physical body.
At the moment your
physical body breaths it's last the (believer's) soul and human spirit exit
the human body and enter the interim body noted in 2Corinthians 5:1-8 at
which point the believer is met by angels who are sent to escort him on his
breathtaking journey to heaven. Why is an angelic escort sent? Is it
because God thinks we will get lost? No, it is because of the fact that
fallen angels can prohibit space travel between heaven and earth according
to the account noted in Daniel 10:12-13 in which the angel who was sent
to aid Daniel was delayed 21 days by the fallen angels in the atmosphere.
You must remember the angelic conflict drives fallen angels to try and
botch up whatever they can within God's plan and realm. Another example
of the foul play of fallen angels would be Satan's attempt to steal the
physical body of Moses to mislead God's people. So, Daniel 10:1-13
describes the type of battles that take place in the spirit world. Battles that
if we could see would cause us to be so frightened, we wouldn't leave our
houses.
Now, when the Rapture of the church occurs, we are told that in a second
of time we will be face to face with the Lord in the clouds of the air, 1Th
4:17; 1Co 15:52. But when we die physically and the angels come to
escort us to our home in heaven, it is a glorious journey. We do not die
and in a second are face to face with the Lord, there is nowhere in
Scripture that indicates this second in time transfer at death. Our ascent is
one of leisure and beauty. Heaven is billions and billions of light years
away, what we experience during our ascension to the third heaven goes
far beyond our best vacation!!
We rise through the clouds free from any
physical impediments we knew in our human bodies. We are free also
from the laws of gravity and are lightly rising in a quiet, pleasant fashion.
We are also faced with angels who are smiling and beautiful. We continue
to rise above the clouds through the planets and stars that we use to gaze
up at on earth and speculate about. What our astronauts were renown for
we are casually passing by. We continue to sweep upward into the third
heaven which is beyond the sun and stars and has a glorious illumination
of its own. It appears so cheerful and enchanting due to the presence of the
Shekinah Glory, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. No sun is needed here in
this heavenly city that we are approaching, the city called The New
Jerusalem, which is the capital of heaven.
As we approach the holy city, we are aghast at its overwhelming beauty.
We are unable to speak having never before seen such radiant and majestic
delight. The angels smile knowing that for us to behold this sight is
completely exhilarating! They probably receive just as much pleasure
watching our response. This city is a very real and unique city, it is not a
mirage or some type of mystical projection. It is an enormous city who's
architect and builder is God, Hebrews 11:10. It is a city in which the
perfect will of God is done! Think of the most breathtaking place you have
been or seen, well it cannot even compare to this perfect and holy city! It's
mind blowing! Even if you could contact loved ones on earth to share with
them your experience you wouldn't be able to describe it. When God took
the apostle John to visit the New Jerusalem John found it very difficult to
describe in language of human accommodation and so likened it as unto a
bride who is arrayed in her most beautiful and extravagant attire.
Surrounding the enormous city, the newly deceased believer who we shall
here forth call the newly alive believer, notes a commanding and stunning
wall which is described in Revelation 21:1-27. This wall is 72 yards tall and
1,500 miles long on each side, forming a perfect cube around the holy
city, which city is also 1,500 miles high! The foundation of this grand wall
is made up of twelve foundation stones on which are written the names of
the twelve apostles. Each foundational stone is 500 miles long with an
apostles name engraved and gilded into it, our apostles being: Peter,
Andrew, the 2 James', John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew,
Thaddaeus, Simon, and Paul.
Is this to say that these men are monuments
of greatness? No! It is rather a show of God's awesome grace. We are all
mere men and in as such are objects of God's grace. All these men though
they have all failed, have their names engraved into the immense
foundational stones of the wall surrounding the eternal city, expounding
on the fact of God's grace. In fact, the focus in this city is the grace and
magnificence of God. It is a city where God's perfect will is done!
Now, attached onto each of these twelve foundational stones is an
enormous precious stone. In fact, the same stones which were placed in
the Ephod (i.e., the breastplate of the Jewish high priest), Exo 28:21, are
also the stones which make up the wall surrounding the New Jerusalem.
The stones are as follows:
1) Jasper, a translucent stone probably what we today know as a
diamond.
2) Sapphire, a blue stone with a star seen within.
3) Chalcedony, a bluish white stone.
4) Emerald, a bright green stone.
5) Sardonyx, a white/orangish red stone.
6) Sardius, a blood red stone.
7) Chrysolite, a yellow/green stone.
8) Beryl, a bluish green stone.
9) Topaz, a yellow-gold stone.
10) Chrysoprase, a greenish stone.
11) Jacinth, a red/yellow stone.
12) Amethyst, a purple stone.
And within each one of these immense precious stones is found a gate like
that of a huge pearl. Why a pearl, for the reason of serving as a constant
reminder of the price Jesus Christ paid on our behalf. A pearl is formed
from the suffering of it's host, the oyster. Above each pearl gate is a
plaque with a name of one of the Tribes of Israel. So here's the picture...
each side of the wall has three foundational stones each with an apostles
name on it and on top of each foundational stone is attached a huge
precious stone making up the wall. These stones are semi-transparent
through which the radiance of the Shekinah Glory within shines out.
Set in each brilliant stone is a gate, so there are three gates on each side and
above each gate is a plaque with a name inscribed on it. The names
inscribed above each gate make up the twelve tribes of Israel, again
pointing to the grace of God. So on the East wall above the gates we have
inscribed the Tribe names of Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. On the south
wall we have Reuben, Simeon, and Gad. On the west wall we have
Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin. And, on the north wall we have Dan,
Asher, and Naphtali. And standing at each of the twelve gates is an angel,
representing victory in the angelic conflict, they are also there to serve us.
None of these angels "deserve" to be standing before the city of God, also
another representation of the grace of God. Note, that these gates are not
used to keep anyone out but to channel the incoming traffic. Nor do we
have to answer any trick questions to enter the "pearly gates".
But, because it is so overwhelming we might just feel inclined to stand at the
gates starring at this splendid wall for all eternity. So, the angels make
sure we find our awe-struck little selves around the holy city.
Next the angels take us to meet our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ! We
cascade through the golden, glassy streets of the city. We ascend to the
high point of the city, called Mount Zion, on which is situated our Lord's
throne. Yes, we will finally see the splendor and glory of the majesty on
high, Isa 35:2! That which we have been eagerly anticipating all our lives,
the Lord Jesus Christ - face to face in all His fullness! If we could we
would faint but no longer being hindered by a human body we proceed
forward accompanied by angels.
When our eyes finally fall upon the One
who saved us, redeemed us, reconciled us to God and offered us the
occupancy of this glorious city we fall in worship, in gratitude, and
complete humility at the feet of our precious love, so gracious and selfless.
We melt in adoration before Him as He welcomes us to His home, the
home He went to prepare for us. We gaze up at His wrenching brilliance,
we find that His gaze is beyond description, far greater than the most
dazzling and beautiful of sunsets that had ever moved our souls on earth.
How we loved His word on earth and how it moved us then, but to meet
Him face to face brings us near the feeling of explosion!
After meeting TLJC [The Lord Jesus Christ] on His throne we are shown to our welcoming
committee of loved ones who have gone before us! There is a joyous
reunion as we catch up on the grand accounts of heaven. Our loved ones
show us around the New Jerusalem, our new and eternal home.
We see that the throne of God is at the peak of Mount Zion and that there are
miles and miles of indescribably majestic terrain which stretch from the
throne down to the 1,500 mile wide square base. We marvel at it's
enormous size, a perfect cube of 1,500 miles wide by 1,500 miles long by
1,500 miles high. We are no longer bound to mere horizontal travel, but
our interim bodies now include vertical travel and this grand city climbs
1,500 miles upward!
Level after level of the most beautiful architecture we
have ever seen! Oh that house on earth that we though was so pretty is
poverty in light of God's perfectly designed and majestically built city. We
also notice that there are twelve rivers flowing through the New Jerusalem
from God's throne. These rivers are perfectly clear and one is able to see
right down to their crystal bottoms! We are told that these waters offer
supernatural power in liquid form.
On each side of these sparkling rivers are beautiful heavenly orchards with
twelve kinds of fruit. The leaves of these trees are used for the healing of
the nations, indicating that there will be nations in heaven, but no enmity
between them. The old sin nature was left far, far behind in the dead
physical body. Away with it went our selfish desires and the things of the
earth as noted in Gal 5:19-21. In heaven we will not only have perfect
fellowship with God but with each other. We will knit together through
the perfect impersonal love of God. We will all reside in perfect
righteousness with no old sin nature!
We will always walk in the light, 1Jo 1:7. In heaven everything is done according to the perfect will of God. In heaven, all the misery caused by being self-centered will no longer exist.
Hence we will love all as we love TLJC. It will be just as natural for us to
be unselfish in heaven as it is natural for us to be selfish here on earth. We
are all to some degree self oriented, we can't avoid it since we have an old
sin nature. In heaven we will be NON POSSE PECARRE, that is not
able to sin. Just as Jesus Christ incarnate was not able to sin in His deity
yet able to sin (POSSE NON PECARRE) in His flesh.
We will no longer be held captive by our flesh and so we will be unable to sin. We will reside in our new nature forever. Every day spent in our earthly body is
another day we are not face to face with our Lord. But it is also another
day we are afforded the opportunity to glorify God on earth by our
decisions for His plan in the angelic conflict. Through the work of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we have a new home waiting for us! A
hearth warmer than any known on this earth, a brilliance grander than any
splendor experienced in this life. This is why the apostle Paul states in Phi
1:21 that to die is profit!! He has seen the New Jerusalem as we too will
someday see it. That should be our anticipation, that should be our energy.
The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.
No comments:
Post a Comment