Great Doctrines of the Bible
Special English Version
Lesson 15
HEAVEN
INTRODUCTION
Heaven truly exists as a real place. The existence of heaven is not man’s
idea. It is not some person’s dream or imagination. It is not a
folk story. Heaven is not some beautiful place on earth. Heaven is a
real place where real people live. Real activity is going on in heaven
all the time. Heaven is the place where God the Father lives (John 14:2).
Heaven is the place where God the Son speaks on our behalf (Hebrews 4:16;
7:25; 1 John 2:1) Heaven is the place where all believers will live when
they die (Philippians 3:20). I pray that this wonderful truth will fill
your heart as you expect to go there some day.
IMPORTANCE OF THIS LESSON
- Many
unbelievers say that heaven is the good times you have here on the
earth. You are in heaven when you enjoy yourself. They say you
make your own heaven here on earth.
- Almost all religions and false
cults in this world offer their followers a place of eternal blessings
after death. None of these religions offer
a heaven as a home where born again believers will live together with
Christ. In heaven the believers will serve Him and praise Him through
all eternity
- It is important to study about heaven because it is a
real place where the believers will surely live. Other religions present
the followers
with an empty hope.
- Heaven is also important because it is in every
believer’s
future (1 Corinthians 15:19). It is the goal that every believer works
for (Philippians
3:14). It is the place where every believer will receive everything
that God has promised to him (1 Peter 1:4).
THE LESSON
I. WHERE IS HEAVEN?
- The Bible speaks of three heavens:
- In Genesis 1:7-8, God divided
the waters. In this way He created a space between the waters on
earth and the waters above the earth.
God
called this space the sky. “And God called the sky HEAVEN.” This
space is usually called the FIRST Heaven.
- In Genesis 1:14-18, God
placed the sun, moon, and stars in the upper sky to give light
upon the earth. This is the SECOND Heaven
- In 2 Corinthians 12:2,
the Apostle Paul says he was caught up to the third heaven.
- Paul
talked about the THIRD Heaven. This is the heaven above the
stars where God lives (Matthew 6:9).
- One might ask, “Is
heaven in outer space?” If
by outer space we mean the space beyond the stars, and if the
THIRD Heaven is
the heaven beyond the stars, then the answer would be, “YES.” Up
there beyond the stars is God’s dwelling place.
- The
Bible says that heaven is in the NORTH.
- Isaiah 14:13 – Lucifer,
a mighty angel, became Satan, He became proud and tried to
take God from His throne. Satan
tried to take control
of the universe.
Notice what he said, “…I will exalt my throne ABOVE THE STARS
OF GOD: (Note: God’s throne is above the stars.) I will sit also
upon the mountain of the congregation IN THE SIDES
OF THE NORTH: (Many times a mountain in the Old Testament refers to
a kingdom.): I will climb above the HEIGHTS OF THE CLOUDS: I will be
like
the most High.”
• Here we see that heaven is spoken of as above the clouds, above the
stars, and in “the sides of the north.”
- Psalm 48:2, “Beautiful
for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on THE
SIDES OF THE NORTH, the city of the great
king.”
- One other possible reference is Job 26:7, “He
stretches out the NORTH over the empty place….”
• It is never wise in Bible study to make doctrines from verses
that are not clear. We must not go beyond what God has written. From
these verses
we can say for certain that there is a PLACE called Heaven. We
can be sure that it is out there, up there, somewhere in an area
of outer space.
God refers to it as “the sides of the north” Jesus
called this PLACE “MY FATHER’S HOUSE” (John 14:2).
- Without any doubt, two words are used many times to tell us
where heaven is:
- It is UP.
- Acts 7:55 – This verse says that Stephen looked
UP directly INTO HEAVEN, and saw the splendor of God, and Jesus
standing
on the right hand of God.
- Acts 1:11 –The angels asked
the disciples why they stood looking UP into heaven. This same
Jesus who was taken
UP from
them into heaven,
will come back in the same way as they saw him go into heaven.
- 2 Kings 2:11 – Elijah went UP into heaven by a whirlwind.
- It is ABOVE.
- Colossians 3:1 – Paul says to the believers
in the city of Colossee that they should seek those things
which are
ABOVE,
where
Christ sits
on the right hand of God.
- John 8:23 – This verse
says that we are from beneath but Christ is from ABOVE.
• Heaven is real. It is UP and ABOVE us. Therefore let us do two things.
- LOOK
UP…for the time when God will redeem us is coming close
(Luke 21:28).
- We must keep our minds thinking about
the things ABOVE (Colossians 3:2).
II. THREE QUESTIONS ABOUT HEAVEN. IS IT A REAL PLACE? ARE PEOPLE LIVING
THERE? ARE THINGS HAPPENING THERE?
- The Bible talks about heaven
as a place God has prepared for believers.
- John 14:2 – Jesus
said that He is going to prepare a place for us.
- Hebrews 11:16 – says
that they were waiting for a better country – a
heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their
God. God has prepared a city for them. Heaven is a place that is
specially
prepared for special people. These are all the people who have
believed on THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.
- Heaven is a place where God
the Father does many things:
- God hears the prayers that come up
from the earth (Psalm 65:2; Matthew 6:9).
- God sends the answers to our prayers (2 Chronicles
7:14).
- God sees everything people do (Psalm 14:2; 2 Chronicles 16:9).
- God shows His anger against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
people do against God (Romans 1:18).
- God opens the windows of
heaven and sends blessings to people (Malachi 3:10).
- Heaven is
the place where the Lord Jesus Christ, our Master, lives (Ephesians
6:9; Colossians 4:1).
- Christ stands or sits at the right hand of
the Father.
- Acts 7:55 – Stephen saw Jesus STANDING on the
right hand of God
- Hebrews 1:3 – After Christ Himself provided
a way to clean our sins from us he SAT DOWN on the right hand
of the Greatness in
the highest
place.
- Christ serves as our counselor, our lawyer. He is the one
who speaks to the Father for us.
- 1 John 2:1 –If any man
commits sin, we have a lawyer with the Father, Jesus Christ
the righteous.
- Hebrews 7:25 –Jesus can save completely
the people who come to Him. He is able to do this because
He always
lives to SPEAK TO THE
FATHER for them.”
- 1 Timothy 2:5 –There is one God, and
one PERSON who speaks to God for men, the man Christ Jesus.
- Christ
possesses the splendor He had before He left the Father to
come to earth.
Christ had come down from heaven (John 6:51). The Father sent
Him (John 17:18). He returned to His Father (John 20:17). Now
He has
the splendor
he had before he came to earth (John 17:5).
- Christ is waiting to
return.
- When He returns he will receive His church (1 Thessalonians
4:16-17; Philippians 3:20).
- When He comes the second time
he will rule the earth (Revelation 19:11).
- Heaven is a place
where the Bible is eternally guarded.
- Psalm 119:89 –God’s
Word continues forever in heaven.
- Matthew 24:35 – The
Lord says that heaven and earth will pass away, but His words
will not pass away.
• The heaven and earth that we can see will be destroyed (2 Peter 3:10-11),
but God guards His Word forever.
- Heaven is the place where
a great number of angels live.
- Matthew 26:53 – Jesus said that the
Father could give twelve armies of angels, if he asked for them.
- Luke
15:7,10 – There is joy in the presence of
the angels for the salvation of sinners.
- Heaven is
the place where all the spirits of Christians who have died are
living. They are waiting for the
resurrection of
their bodies
This
will happen when the Lord comes for His Church (Philippians
3:21).
- 2 Corinthians 5:1 – Saints who die before
the coming of Christ are living in a spiritual
body until the
resurrection.
• The Holy Spirit is a great illustration of the fact that it is possible
to be a person without a physical body.
- 2 Corinthians
5:6,8 – When we leave this body we are “with
the Lord.”
- 1 Thessalonians 4:14, 16-17 – Our
spirits return with Christ to be united with
our resurrected bodies and
changed into Christ’s
likeness (1 John 3:2).
- It is foolish to think
that the millions of believers, now in heaven with the Lord,
do not
engage in any
activity.
III. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS MOST OFTEN ASKED ABOUT HEAVEN
- Will there
be real people in Heaven?
- Revelation 21:3 – God lives with real
people. He will live with them. They will be His people. God Himself
will be with them and
He will
be their God.
- Matthew 17:1-3 – Moses and Elijah appear with
Christ out of heaven and speak with Him. Actual names! Real people!
- Matthew 8:11 – Many people will come and sit down with
Abraham, and Isaac and Jacob in the rulership of heaven. Here we
see the names
of real people.
- Revelation 19:14 The armies of heaven coming with
Christ to smash the power of the Antichrist. Verse 8 of this chapter
says
that these
armies are the believers who live in heaven.
- What about names?
Will we have new names or will we keep our own names?
•
The Bible
teaches clearly, that we will keep the same name in heaven that we
had on earth.
- Luke 10:20 – Jesus said that we should be happy
because God wrote “YOUR NAMES” in heaven.” Not
some strange new name, but YOUR name.
- Philippians 4:3 –Paul
asked the believers to help the women who worked with him in the
gospel. THEIR NAMES are in the book of life.
Their SAME names.
- Matthew 17:3 – Moses and Elijah did not have
new names in heaven.
- God already knows our names:
- Genesis 22:11 – God called
Abraham by name out of heaven.
- Genesis 21:17 – God
knew Hagar by name and called out of heaven, “What
is wrong with you, Hagar?”
- Exodus 33:17 – God said to
Moses, “…I know you
by name.”
- Acts 9:4 – God called out of heaven to Paul
when he was still Saul of Tarsus. God said, “Saul, Saul,
why are you doing these bad things against me?”
• You should look in the Bible for yourself to find other illustrations
of this truth. Indeed, heaven is a place that is filled with
real people who have kept their own names.
- What about bodies? Will we have bodies
in heaven that we can see? Will these be bodies of flesh and blood?
- Consider
first of all, that millions of Christians will be alive on the
earth when Jesus comes on the clouds. The
Lord will take
these believers
up to heaven. They will be with Christ. This happens
when Christ takes the church out of the world (1 Thessalonians
4:15-17).
These Christians
never experience death in the body but are taken up
into heaven in a body that is resurrected.
(Note 1 Corinthians 15:51, where is says that all of us will
not die.)
- God already took some people up to heaven
in a body. Enoch (Genesis 5:24); Elijah
(2 Kings 2:11); Moses (Matthew 17:3; compare with Jude
9); and Jesus (Acts 1:9-10).
• God has already taken some people up to heaven in their bodies. God will
take millions more up to heaven in their bodies. They
will not see death. Therefore we should be encouraged to believe that we will
have
real bodies
in heaven that we can see.
- What kind of bodies will
we have in heaven?
- A body exactly like the body of our risen Lord.
- 1 John
3:2 says that we will be like Him.
- Philippians 3:21 tells
us that Christ will change our sinful body. It will be
just like His
glorious body.
- 1 Corinthians 15:52, says that Christ will
raise the dead with the result that they
will never die
again and
their bodies
can
never rot.
He will change all of us.
• God will CHANGE us so that our bodies will be just like
Christ’s
body. He will not REPLACE us.
- What does this
mean?
- It will be a body of flesh and bones.
In Luke 24:39 After the resurrection Christ
said to the disciples that a spirit does
not have
flesh and
bones
like His body.
Christ was not
a “spirit” or
a ghost and we will not be ghosts or spirits!
- It will be a body that has no blood. 1
Corinthians 15:50 says that flesh and blood
cannot inherit
the rule of God.
Why not?
• Leviticus 17:11 says that the life of the FLESH is in the blood. It is
blood spilled on the altar that atones for sin.
When Christ died, His blood was spilled on the altar of Calvary for our sins.
He arose with
the
nail prints
in
his hands, but not the blood (Luke 24:39)! For
a
human being to live on this earth he must have blood in his body. In heaven
that same
eternal
life
which
belonged to Christ from the beginning will uphold
us! (Compare with John 1:4; 5:26.)
- How will this happen?
Philippians 3:20-21 says that Christ is able to do this
through power whereby He is able even to rule all things.
• Christ made the laws that govern us and this universe (Colossians 1:16).
Christ has power over all laws. His great power
will change us.
- YES, we will have bodies in heaven. Our bodies will not have
blood. Our bodies will be made of flesh and bones. We will be able
to see these
bodies. They will live forever and never rot. They will be spiritual
bodies that are full of splendor. (Read 1 Corinthians 15:41-54 and
Philippians 3:21.)
- Will we actually know each other in heaven? What
will our relationship be like?
- 1 Corinthians 13:12 says that at that
in heaven I will know fully, exactly as God knows me. God already
knows our names and what we
are like. (Perhaps,
the people who are already in heaven also know us fully (Hebrews 12:1).
At that time, in heaven, we WILL KNOW exactly as others know
us.
- Matthew 8:11 – We are going to sit down with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob in heaven. We will KNOW them.
- Matthew 17:1-4 – Peter
knew Moses and Elijah immediately without any introductions or
pictures. In other words, we will
know those we have
known,
and we will also know all the other believers.
- Acts 1:11 – this
same Jesus shall come. In other words, if it is going to be the same
Jesus, it will be the same Enoch, the same
Elijah,
the same
Moses, and so on. We shall know each other because we have kept our
rightful names, our present distinction and characteristics as well!
The difference
will be that our bodies will be changed. Our bodies will be exactly
like His body of splendor (Philippians 3:21).
• Of all the human beings born on this earth, no two are exactly alike. We
are all distinct individuals in the eyes of God.
- Our human relationships
on earth stop (Matthew 22:30). All of us will be servants of God like the angels
We will live with Christ forever.
God made
sexual and family relationships for this earth (Genesis 1:27-28,
and
Genesis 2:22-25). We shall surely know each other in heaven. We will
be “as the
angels.” We will all be sons and servants of God.
- Do babies
or little children come to ruin or do they go to heaven?
- Note especially
2 Corinthians 5:21. Here, we see that Christ bore our sins, and
he BECAME SIN. Christ became the basic nature
of all
the sin
in the universe.
This includes the sin in the natures of babies and little children.
At some point all human beings reach an age of understanding.
Only God knows
what
this age is. At the age of understanding a child becomes responsible
for his actions.
Until then, small children are covered by Christ’s precious
sacrifice.
- Read Matthew 18:1-14. This is the great children’s
chapter. In verse three Christ says that all sinners must become
as little
children before they
can be saved.
Verse 10 – Christ says that every child has an angel
representing him before the Father.
Verse 14 – Christ plainly says that it is not God’s
will that any little child be lost.
• I think it is clear, from these verses, that God the Father watches over
babies and small children; therefore, they are saved.
- Read 2
Samuel 12:23. A child was born because David failed and sinned. After the child
died the servants asked David why
he did
not fast.
He made this
remarkable statement: “Can I bring him back again? I will
go to him, but he will not return to me.”
• David failed but he was still a “man after God’s
own heart.” His
faith was in the Lord. He fully expected to go to heaven
and to see his child there!
IV. WHAT WILL HEAVEN BE LIKE?
- It will be a place of endless beauty.
(Revelation 21). Of course, this is a description of the New Jerusalem.
After this earth melts
(2 Peter 3:10-11). The new heaven and earth (Revelation 21:1) come
down from God. He establishes the New Jerusalem on the new earth (Revelation
21:2). Revelation 21 fully describes its measurements and its beauty.
• I believe this will be the final place to live for all those who put their
trust in Christ.
- It will be a place with many dwelling places (John 14:1-2).
Some people translate it, “many resting places.” In heaven there
will be no more battles to fight, and we will lay down the heavy loads of this
life.
- It will be “as a bride dressed” (Revelation 21:23). A
bride dresses herself carefully. God has decorated heaven for us.
- There
will be no night there (Revelation 22:5). No long nights of pain
and suffering. No nights of sorrow and loneliness. No nights of
crime and fear. In heaven the sun will never go down.
- Heaven will
be place of music (Revelation 5:9), and joyful service (Psalm 16:11;
Revelation 22:3), in the light of the splendor of God
(Revelation 21:11).
V. WHO GOES TO HEAVEN AND WHY?
- Who goes to heaven?
- 1 Peter 1:3 – Those who have been born
again and have a living hope.
- Romans 8:17 – Those who are
children of God by faith in Christ will receive the splendor that
belongs to Christ.
- 1 John 3:2 – “Sons of God” will
be made “like
Him.”
• Remember, heaven is a place God has prepared for people (Revelation 5:9).
These people are the ones who are redeemed by His blood.
- Who does
not go to heaven?
- Revelation 21:8 – Those who fear and those who do
not believe, and those who practice what God hates will share in
the lake of fire.
All murderers and those who commit fornication and those
who practice witchcraft will go into the lake of fire. Those who
worship idols,
and all liars will end up in the lake which burns with
fire and
sulfur
- To reject Christ as Savior and Lord will lead
to eternal ruin.
In John 8:24, Jesus said that if they did not believe that
He was Christ, they would die in their sins.
• If you have received Christ, you can be happy because of the glorious
hope that is set before you.
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