Category Archives: Bible prophecy

The Creation And Expansion Of The New Heaven And Earth

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After the first heaven (our present universe) and the first earth (our present earth) are passed away (destroyed), God will give us a new heaven and a new earth.

Revelation 21:1-2

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

And the new heaven and earth will be somewhat blended together as one. This process of blending is when the third heaven (God’s eternal dwelling) is expanded to encompass our new universe and new earth.

Now as I understand it, the entire process of expansion will be accomplished when the heavenly city descends out of the third heaven to earth. Here is the process in four points.

1. The heavenly city, called the New Jerusalem, will be created by God somewhere in the third heaven. Remember, in verse 2, John saw the holy city coming down out of heaven from God. And it was made ready; that is, it was all finished (in its creation). So. its creation was in the third heaven. And Jesus Himself is the builder (Jn. 14:2).

2. This holy city (described in Rev. 21:9-21) will descend from heaven after the New heaven and earth are created. And I think it will either hang over the earth or sit on the earth. And so, the third heaven will be extended down by the holy city to the new earth. Hence the city will be as a gateway or a bridge linking the eternal heaven to the new earth.

3. This New Jerusalem, we think, will be the capitol city of heaven, and it will be where the throne of God is and where the focus of all of heaven is.

4. This city, as we have mentioned, is where we as believers will dwell. We will have our own room that He has made for us (Jn. 14:2). But that doesn’t mean that we are stuck there; for the gates of the city will never be closed (Rev. 21:25). I imagine we will be able to go anywhere we desire in the city, on the new earth, or anywhere in the new heaven—which will then be the new and eternal universe that will have no boundaries and no dimensions. Whereas, our universe now is finite and limited, the new heaven will actually be an extension of the third heaven. So, when John sees the new heaven (in Rev. 21:1) he is actually seeing a new universe that is blended with the third heaven. This is awesome to me and a little scary. But once we get our new bodies and our new mind I imagine that it will be quite exciting and glorious.

The Destruction of the Universe

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There is not much written in the bible about this particular subject, but what is written certainly deserves our attention. We will look at three passages: in Matthew, 2 Peter, and Revelation.

Matthew 24:35

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

Here Jesus is telling His disciples that in the future heaven and earth will pass away, that they are not permanent or eternal, but His words are eternal.

Revelation 20:11 and 21:1

Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away…

As we see in Revelation 20:11, as soon as it is time for the judgment of all non-believers at the great white throne, the earth and heaven will go away. After that, in Revelation 21:1, John saw a new heaven and a new earth, which appeared to take the place of the old heaven and earth. And I take “heaven” here to mean the universe—but, as we will see, some will disagree with me.

2 Peter 3:10-13

 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

This passage, as we see, presents the details that the other passages leave out.  All three of the passages are speaking of the Day of the Lord when the earth and the heavens are destroyed, but this passage is themost precise. So, as we discuss this subject more thoroughly, we will mainly look at this Peter passage.  And to give this subject a fair hearing we will look at four different commentaries holding different views. The first two will be from an earlier time—over two-hundred years ago. The second two are living today.

Adam Clark (1762-1832). From his bible commentary on 2 Peter, he writes,

[From verse 10] As the heavens mean here, and in the passages above, the whole atmosphere, in which all the terrestrial vapours are lodged; and as water itself is composed of two gases, eighty-five parts in weight of oxygen, and fifteen of hydrogen, or two parts in volume of the latter, and one of the former; for if these quantities be put together, and several electric sparks passed through them, a chemical union takes place, and water is the product; and, vice versa, if the galvanic spark be made to pass through water, a portion of the fluid is immediately decomposed into its two constituent gases, oxygen and hydrogen;) and as the electric or ethereal fire is that which, in all likelihood, God will use in the general conflagration; the noise occasioned by the application of this fire to such an immense congeries of aqueous particles as float in the atmosphere, must be terrible in the extreme.

[From verse 11] Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness. [“All these things”] will all be separated, all decomposed; but none of them destroyed. And as they are the original matter out of which God formed the terraqueous globe, consequently they may enter again into the composition of a new system; and therefore the apostle says, 2 Peter 3:13: we look for new heavens and a new earth-the others being decomposed, a new system is to be formed out of their materials. There is a wonderful philosophic propriety in the words of the apostle in describing this most awful event.1

From Clarke’s comments it is clear that he gives no possibility of the heavens to mean the universe. He is quite content to think that the passage is only referring to our atmosphere being burned off by fire. And then after the fire a new heavens (our atmosphere) and earth will be formed.

Jamison, Fauset and Brown. (of the same time period as Adam Clarke). In this commentary they write,

The certainty, suddenness, and concomitants, of the coming of the day of the Lord. Faber argues that the millennium. etc., must precede Christ’s literal coming; not follow it. But “the day of the Lord” comprehends the whole series of events, beginning with the premillennial advent, and ending with the destruction of the wicked, final conflagration, and general judgment (which last intervenes between the conflagration and the renovation of the earth)… As “the works” in the earth are distinguished from “the earth,” so by “elements” after “the heavens,” Bengel explains ‘the works therein’-namely, the sun, moon, and stars (as Theophilus of Antioch, pp. 22, 148, 228; and Justin Martyr, ‘Apology,’ ii. , 44, use stoicheia). Rather, as “elements” is not so used in Scripture Greek, the component materials of “the heavens,” (including the heavenly bodies (mentioned in the world’s destruction, as in its creation): it clearly belongs to “the heavens,” not to “the earth,” etc.2

Here the heavens are depicted as the universe (the sun, moon and stars). And other theologians are referred to: Johann Bengal (1687-1752), Theophilus of Antioch (writings from 180-185 AD), and Justin Martyr (100-165 AD). I would say, they have some excellent sources.

Randy Alcorn, from his book Heaven (published 2004). Alcorn has an entire chapter devoted to this subject, entitled, “WILL THE OLD EARTH BE DESTROYED…OR RENEWED?” Here are a few quotes:

A variety of theologians take this view of temporary, not final, destruction. Wayne Grudem, in his discussion of 2 Peter 3:10, which speaks of “everything” in the earth being “laid bare,” suggests that Peter “may not be speaking of the earth as a planet but rather the surface things on the earth (that is, much of the ground and the things on the ground).3

John Piper argues that God did not create matter to throw it away. He writes, “When Revelation 21:1 and 2 Peter 3:10 say that the present earth and heavens will ‘pass away,” it does not have to mean they go out of existence, but may mean that there will be such a change in them that their present condition passes away.4

Several prominent ancient theologians acknowledged the continuity between the present earth and the New Earth. Jerome often said that Heaven and Earth would not be annihilated but would be transformed into something better. Augustine wrote similarly, as did Gregory the Great, Thomas Aquinas and many medieval theologians.5

As God may gather the scattered DNA and atoms and molecules of our bodies, he will regather all he needs of the scorched and disfigured Earth. As our bodies will be raised to new bodies, so the old earth will be raised to become the New Earth. So, will the earth be destroyed or renewed? The answer is both—but the “destruction” will be temporal and partial, whereas the renewal will be eternal and complete.6

It appears that Alcorn has done some great research, but I think he has pretty much gathered from only those that agree with him. I would say that he is in the same camp with Adam Clark. And they speak only of the earth and not the universe.

John MacArthur (taken from his The MacArthur Study Bible notes on 2 Peter 3:10 and Revelation 21:1). From 2 Peter 3:10, he writes,

The “heavens” refer to the physical universe. The “roar” connotes a whistling or a cracking sound as of objects being consumed by flames. God will incinerate the universe, probably in an atomic reaction that disintegrates all matter as we know it…The “elements” are the atomic components into which matter is ultimately divisible, which make up the composition of all the created matter. Peter means that the atoms, neutrons, protons, and electrons are all going to disintegrate…The whole of the physical, natural earth in its present form, with its entire universe will be consumed. Cf. Is 24:19, 20; 34:4.7

From Revelation 21:1 MacArthur writes,

The entire universe as we know it will be destroyed (2 Pet. 3:10-13) and be replaced by a new creation that will last forever. This is an OT reality (Ps. 102:25, 26; Is. 65:17; 66:22), as well as a NT one (Lk 21:33; Heb. 1:10-12).8

As we can see, MacArthur’s view is much different than most others. That is because he sticks closely to the literal meaning of the text without rationalizing or reasoning as to what would be more logical. Also, instead of going to other human sources, he is more content in using only (or mostly) Scripture.

As for my beliefs and comments on this awesome subject, I would like to go first to the small phrases: “fled away” (in Rev. 20:11), “passed away” (in Rev. 21:1, and “pass away” (in 2 Pt. 3:10 and Matt. 24:35). They seem to depict a going out of existence, not a burning off for a later renewal. I think Revelation 20:11 is the most convincing of this. It says, “[the] earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.” It sure sounds like they (heaven and earth) disappeared to John. And when you add the 2 Peter passage to it, we may understand that the fleeing away will be quickly and in all directions—like a huge atomic explosion or an incineration.

And then, in Revelation 21:1, when the new heaven and earth come into existence, they will come to replace the old heaven and earth; for it says, “for the first heaven and the first earth passed away.” Note also that there is a clear distinction from the heaven and the earth, confirming that the heavens referred to is not earth’s atmosphere; it is the universe.

Now some may have the belief that God will bring us back to the garden of Eden, that He will want to continue what He started—a do over; hence the belief of earth’s renewal. And I am not apposed to thinking that the new earth will be similar to Eden. But I don’t think it will be a renewal. It will be an all-together new and different earth—a new creation that will last forever, without flaws.

Certainly, God is not opposed to destroying and starting over. He did it with the flood, and He did it with Sodom and Gomorrah. But next time it will be a total destruction and a recreation.

Also, we see in Matthew 24:35, and other references, that this earth and the heavens will not last forever. Here are a few of those other references.

Psalm 102:25-26

And the heavens are the work of Your hands.

26 “Even they will perish, but You endure;

And all of them will wear out like a garment;

Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.

Isaiah 34:4

And all the host of heaven will wear away,

And the sky will be rolled up like a scroll;

All their hosts will also wither away

As a leaf withers from the vine,

Or as one withers from the fig tree.

Matthew 5:18-19

“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

Hebrews 1:10-12

“YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH,

AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS;

11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN;

AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT,

12 AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP;

LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED.

BUT YOU ARE THE SAME,

AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”

1 Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.

2 Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.

3 Randy Alcorn, Heaven (Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.: Wheaton, Illinois, 2004). P. 146.

4 Ibid., pp. 146-147.

5 Ibid., p. 149.

6 Ibid., p. 150.

7 John MacArthur, The MacArthur Study Bible (Thomas Nelson, 2006), John MacArthur’s notes on 2 peter 3:10.

8 Ibid., notes on Revelation 21:1.

Imagine Heaven — Part 2

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In the last post we looked at verses fromMatthew 5:8, John 14:1-4, Philippians 3:20-21, Colossians 3:1-3, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18, Hebrews 11:13-16, 1 Peter 1:3-4, and Revelation 21:1-8. Today we will look at verses from Revelation 21:9-22:5.

Revelation 21:9-22:5. This section depicts all that God reveals to us about the holy city, the New Jerusalem—that place that will be our eternal dwelling with God. We won’t go over every point in any great detail; we will cover just the high points to stir our imagination of what our future home will be like.

Ch. 21:10-11. This great city, which John saw coming down out of heaven from God, sparkled with the glory of God. Its brilliance was like that of a crystal-clear jasper. Some commentators say that it will be more like a clear diamond.

Ch. 21:12-14.  This great and marvelous city will have a very high wall around it with twelve gates, three on each of its four sides; and the gates will have written on them the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. These gates with the names inscribed on each one will be an eternal reminder of Israel and also of the millennial temple that will be set up in the same way (Ezek. 48:30-35).

Ch. 21:15-16. The city will be 1,500 miles square and 1,500 miles high, in the shape of a cube. So, it will have over two-million square miles of ground space and plenty of space above for several levels. I imagine that each of our dwellings will be very large! With very high ceilings! What do you think?

Ch. 21:17-20. The thickness of the clear diamond walls will be seventy-two yards; that’s almost three quarters the length of a football field. That’s pretty thick, but it has to be to support all the weight of a 1,500-mile-high city. Also, the rest of the inside of the city; its streets (v. 21), and I suppose other interior walls, will be of pure gold, gold like pure glass. I’ve never seen transparent gold. I can’t imagine it, nor can I imagine clear diamond walls. Now the foundation of the city—all around the bottom part of the walls—will be composed of twelve kinds of very expensive precious stones, again it will represent and bring honor to the Jewish people.

Ch 21:21. The twelve gates all around the city will be made of pearl; that is, each gate will be made of a single pearl. That is very hard to imagine since the gates will be very large; at least seventy-two yards thick and who knows how high.

Ch. 21:22. There will be no temple anywhere in heaven, for the presence of God will fill the new heaven and earth and He will be the new temple.

Ch. 21:23-24. Whether there will be a sun or moon anywhere in heaven, I’m not sure; but in the city there will be no need for their light, for the glory of God will light up the city and also the new earth. All people on the earth will see by the light of the glory of God coming from the city.

Ch. 21:25-27. There will be no night in the city; it will be light all the time and the gates will never be closed, inviting anyone to come and go in and out of the city. And it appears that God will be pleased with people coming into the city; their personalities will be honoring to God and others; that is, every person that comes into the city will make it more glorious and honoring to God. Think of it, my presence there will bring an added joy to all. But nothing unclean or evil will be allowed in the city.

Ch. 22:1-5. In this passage John records things that are especially enjoyable and beneficial to the soul for eternity. John sees a river flowing from the throne of God coursing down the center of main street. This river is unique in that it is crystal clear and eternally nourishing. That is, it holds all the qualities in it that keeps us living and thriving for eternity. Hence, it is more than H2o; it contains all the living qualities of God’s holy life. I believe it is the very water that Jesus spoke of to the woman at the well (Jn. 4:14). It is water that if anyone drinks of it will never thirst again. Hence, in heaven we will be eternally satisfied. Moreover, on either side of the river there will be a tree of life bearing twelve crops of fruit—one crop every month; and the leaves of the tree will be for the healing of the people.

Now I don’t think this description of the river and the fruit trees are entirely literal. I’m not sure what we can expect to see, but I think the main point of this picture is to tell us that we will be eternally nourished and satisfied with God and the Lord Jesus. I think there may be several living rivers and multiple fruit trees wherever we go—to delight us.

Verses three through five seem to clump many things together—important things that John needs to say before he concludes.

  • That there will no longer be any curse. All that from the old earth is over.
  • That God’s throne and of the Lamb will be present somewhere in the city. I imagine it will be in a central location.
  • That His bond-servants (you and me) will serve Him.
  • That we will see His face; finally, we being sinless will be able to see God’s face.
  • And God’s name will be on our foreheads—to symbolize that we are His and He forever will protect us (Rev. 7:3).
  • And there will no longer be night; and we will no longer need the light of the sun because God’s glory will give us all the light we need.
  • And we will reign with God and the Lord Jesus forever and ever.

Imagine Heaven

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One good way to keep our focus on heaven is to once in a while try to imagine it. I don’t very often do that, but I should. I confess that maybe I don’t trust my mind. But we should remember what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:15-16,

But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. 16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

Well, right away I’m thinking, am I spiritual enough? That I suppose sounds logical, but we must believe God to sanctify our mind. I would say, get in the word more and pray more and obey Him more. And then trust God that you do have the mind of Christ. And as you are trusting Him, I would suggest going through all the passages we have previously looked at on heaven and see if that will stir up your imagination.

Randy Alcorn wrote a book on heaven. He said early on in his book, “God has given us glimpses of Heaven in the Bible—to fire up our imagination and kindle a desire for Heaven in our hearts.”1

Now before we go through the nine passages again for the purpose of stirring our imagination, I would suggest that there will be very little in the bible, in reference to heaven, that speak of the beauty of nature on this earth. There are many passages that speak of nature’s beauty in reference to God’s creation and His power over creation, but not in reference to what heaven will be like. You will see this in Romans 1:20 and also in a few Psalms.

I say these things not to dampen your imagination in regard to nature’s beauty. I do think that God is all for beauty and that heaven and the new earth will be very beautiful. However, remember that God said in Revelation 21, that the “first earth” and “the first things” are “passing away.”  And He said, “I am making all things new.” Also, remember that our flowers, and most other plants, fade away and can be very easily damaged. But things in heaven will never fade away. I suggest that they will be made of different stuff than we have now. That’s something to think about.

Okay, lets go over all the references we looked at earlier and make some observations about what heaven is like.

Matthew 5:8. Here we may conclude that heaven will be seeing God for who He really is, having all the fruits of the Spirit.  And we will also enjoy all the people who are in their new bodies—how they are not being at all sinful, and how they are also seeing God as we do.

John 14:1-4. In heaven we will see the Father’s house (the New Jerusalem) with many rooms. Everyone will have his own room. And where He is, there we will be also. Yes, we will have our own private room, but God and Jesus will always be there too. And we will also be going and visiting each other. It will always be a party, enjoying company with good friends. I wonder how our rooms will be decorated and whether we will be involved in decorating them.

Philippians 3:20-21. Our body will be glorious like Jesus’ glorious body was. And they will be supernatural: powerful, able to do miraculous things—whatever Jesus did after He was resurrected. He walked through walls, appeared and disappeared, etc.

Colossians 3:1-3. Our life is now hidden with Christ in God. In heaven He will be our ultimate comfort, joy and protection. And we will be so much life Him in many ways.

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18. We will always be with the Lord; and just as we will ascend with Him to heaven, I imagine that He will take us to many marvelous places in the new universe and in the third heaven. Yes, I think we will fly around together with Him to many wonderful places.

Hebrews 11:13-16. In heaven when we are enjoying our great city that he has prepared for us, we will look back and remember how we longed for a better place—a holy and sinless place.

1 Peter 1:3-4. When we were born again we were born into a living hope—the hope of obtaining an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not pass away. Hence, this inheritance has eternal qualities like joy, peace and righteousness, in addition to God’s presence and Christ’s companionship.

Revelation 21:1-8. This passage is a summary of all that will be new and different in the heavens and the earth. Here is a list of the differences:

  • There will no longer be any sea. There is a lot of discussion among theologians as to what this means, which we will discuss later.
  • There will be a holy city, the new Jerusalem, which will descend down from the third heaven. This is where we will live. Each of us will have our own living quarters there.
  • God’s presence will always be with us. We will be His people.
  • He will wipe away every tear from our eyes.
  • We will never die; we will live forever in our eternal bodies.
  • There will no longer be any mourning, crying or pain.
  • We will forever be satisfied with the springs of living water—everlasting nourishment from Christ.
  • We will never have to fear evil people. They will be gone forever in their own place.

1 Randy Alcorn, Heaven (Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.; Wheaton, Illinois) 2004, p. 16.

Small Tastes Of Heaven

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Though we aren’t in heaven yet, God will send us small tastes of heaven. The more you connect yourself with God through His Spirit by prayer and meditation on His word, and by your personal holiness and obedience, the more you will be blessed and will taste of all of the spiritual blessings He has given us (Eph. 1:3).

I love what Paul says in Colossians 3:1-3.

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Let me go through this passage and comment briefly. In verse one Paul instructs the believer to “keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” He is talking about heaven isn’t he?  We are to “keep seeking” those things in heaven.

What does he mean by this? How are we to do it? Well, verse two gives us his answer. We are to set our mind on the things above (on heaven where Christ is) instead of on all the things down here on this earth.

In verse three Paul continues with this thought. He is giving us the reason why we are not to set our mind on things of this earth: it is because we have died to our old life and have been raised up with Christ to a new life with Him. Our real life now is in Christ in God. That is to say, everything that gives us real meaning in life is in the Christ life. Our real home now is with Christ in heaven.

So how do we actually taste of heaven? I would say anything that brings the life of Christ into us is how we taste of heaven—because heaven is really enjoying the life of Christ. Here are five ways that we can taste of heaven:  

  1. Obey Christ in everything. Remember that obeying Him is loving Him.
  2. Pursue holiness. The more we stop sinning the more we will see God (Matt. 5:8).
  3. Stay in prayer. Prayer is our connection to God.
  4. Fellowship with other believers. The more we love and encourage them in the Lord the more He will bless us—satisfy us with His love.
  5. Worship together. Praise to God is most blessed and satisfying when we do it together.

How To Keep Your Focus On God and Heaven

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In order to live with a heavenly perspective, in holiness, it is important to keep our focus on God and heaven.  I have five suggested ideas to do that. Here is the first idea.

Cultivate A Love For God And His Heaven

I think of cultivation as a farm word. It involves working the soil to promote the growth of whatever you are trying to grow. Love for God and His heaven grows best by working the ground of love—or by preparing the heart for love.

First of all, to do this the heart needs to be free of the weeds of the lust of the flesh and of the cares of this world (1Jn. 2:16). Then replace those thoughts with the thought that God has made us citizens of heaven and that He has paid for our citizenship with His own blood (Eph. 2:19).

Next, it would be good to do whatever you can to invest your time and money in heaven. That is, in bringing as many people into the kingdom of God as is possible; and then you will see your love for God and heaven grow. Then also, give your heart to worship and singing about heaven and your hope of heaven, and you will experience a great joy in the Lord.

Heaven: By Death or by Rapture

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We should know

that for the Christian there are two avenues to heaven: one is through death and the other is through the Rapture. And since death is what we see now, we will start there.

Entrance into heaven through death. Some would say that when the body dies the soul goes into a time of sleep until Jesus comes. They call if “soul sleep.” But that is a false teaching. In 2 Corinthians 5:8 Paul tells us that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. In death the body dies but the soul lives on in heaven with the Lord.

But what happens to the soul at death? Is there any need for a change to the soul? To make it pure and holy? Yes. Since the soul is the entire nature of man and is his entire personality, the soul as well as the body is sinful. When we are saved, salvation comes to our soul (Ja. 1:21), but even after our conversion, the soul is affected by sin the same as our body is. Hence, the soul of the righteous, entering heaven needs a full cleansing. According to the Westminster Confession of Faith,

The bodies of men after death return to dust, and see corruption; but their souls, (which neither die nor sleep,) having an immortal substance, immediately return to God who gave them. The souls of the righteous, being then made perfect in holiness, are received into the highest heavens, where they behold the face of God in light and glory, waiting for the full redemption of their bodies.”2

Now, there is also the question of the intermediate state, or the intermediate heaven.

The intermediate heaven. This state is the state of the soul without the body, from the time between the death of the body to the point at which the body is raised and transformed at the Rapture. There is much false teaching on this subject, such as soul sleep—as previously mentioned. And there is also the Catholic doctrine of purgatory: that after death the soul goes to a place to be purged from sins by much pain and suffering, so to be purified for heaven. But this is such a slam to God, teaching that the sufferings of Christ were not sufficient to atone for our sins, that we must add our own sufferings to His. Really, we can add nothing!

However, aside from false teaching, there are some things that we can consider a bit regarding the intermediate state. I say “a bit” because Scripture in not clear on the subject; and it gives us no definite teaching. Nonetheless, here are two passages we could examine for maybe a small bit of truth.

Luke 9:30-31. Here is the Mount of transfiguration, where while Jesus was praying (with Peter, James and John present), His face was changed and His clothing became white and gleaming. And then suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared and they were talking to Jesus about His departure (His death). Now we know that both of these men died a long time before this; but here they stand in some kind of a glorified body. I would say that this is definitely an example of the intermediate state of heaven.

 Here is what we may observe from this passage regarding what the intermediate state is.

  • It is having some kind of a glorified body.
  • It is being able to speak in a normal language. They did not use any kind of heavenly language.
  • It is having friendly communication with Jesus. They were talking with Jesus as a close friend; they were discussing His departure. This suggests that we may have regular communion with Jesus and will be discussing whatever is on our heart.

Revelation 6:9-11. Here is a passage revealed to us as the Lamb (Christ) broke the fifth seal during the Tribulation. It opens up to us the conversation of certain people who were martyrs for their faith. In verse ten we have a portion of that conversation—a prayer to God. They cried out to Him with a loud voice, “How long, O Lord, holy and true will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”

And then in verse eleven is the response by God. “There was given to each of them white robes and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer…”

Here is what we may observe from this passage regarding what the intermediate state is.

  • There will be prayer in the intermediate state. These martyred souls were waiting on God to avenge their blood and were crying out in prayer to Him. We may also conclude that there will be a sense of anticipation for God to make all things right.
  • They will know what is happening on earth. These martyrs seem to know what is happening on earth—that God was refraining from judging (v. 10). It may be this way for all who die before the Rapture.
  • They will have bodies that are able to wear clothing. They were given white robes.
  • They are holy and pure—cleansed from all sin. The white robes are symbolic of purity; Jesus will give them these garment to remind them of their holiness and of His shed blood for them.
  • We will be at rest in the Lord. They were told to rest for a while longer. This state of rest is confirmed to us in Revelation 14:13 of what this intermediate state basically is—that we will rest from our labors; the labor of keeping the commandments of God and having faith in Jesus. So, here in this state we will have glorified souls perfected in God, and we will no longer have a need to persevere in the faith. We will be at rest in the Lord and waiting for our new glorified body.

Entrance into heaven through the Rapture. When God sees that the time is right for the dead to be raised, and for their souls to be united with new bodies, and for the living to be rescued from what is to come on this earth, then He will…

descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord (1 Thess. 4:16-17).

This passage (above) pretty much lays it out, but let me summarize it in chronological order.

1. All believers from all ages of history who have died, they will be raised up and their decayed bodies will be transformed into imperishable, new bodies (1Cor. 15:53-54).

2. And the souls of those resurrected dead will merge with their new transformed bodies, so they will at last be souls with new bodies. Hence, this will be the end of their intermediate state (as previously discussed).

3. Then those who are alive will be changed (transformed) very quickly— “in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor. 15:52).  And they will be caught up (snatched up) together with those previously dead.

4. And then we will all meet the Lord in the air; and we will from then on, and always, be with the Lord in heaven.

2 John MacArthur, The Glory of Heaven (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1996), p. 71.

The New Heaven And The New Earth

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In this article we will look at Revelation 21:1-7, verse by verse.

Verse 1. After John got a good view of the great white throne judgment, God flashed this scene before his eyes. He saw a new heaven and a new earth. It appeared very different than the old ones. And one reason is because there appeared to be no seas. And what that means I’m not exactly sure, but we will discuss a few different views in chapter eight.

Verse 2. Next, after being in awe of the new heaven and earth, John was dazzled by a very large bright cube-shaped city descending from the heavens. This, John commented, was “as a bride adorned for her husband.” These words tell us that it is the place where the saints (the church as well as the Old Testament and Tribulation believers) have been taken to live with the Father and the Son (Jn. 14:2-4).

Verse 3. Then John heard a loud voice from the throne of God saying, “The tabernacle of God is among men” (all believers)—meaning that God now lives together with His believers. I am not sure whether this is referring to the holy city, or to all of heaven. The new Jerusalem will be the capitol city of heaven and where God’s throne is; but certainly, all of heaven and earth will be God’s abode and His presence will be everywhere.

Verse 4. This verse describes the new changes that God will bring to all believers. (1) He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; (2) there will no longer be death—for you remember (in 1 Cor. 15:26) that death was abolished; and (3) there will no longer be mourning, crying, or pain; these things have passed away.

Verse 5. And then He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And then He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true” (NIV). So, God wanted to make a firm point to John, and to make sure to record it—that He was making all things new, that the heavens and the earth, and the people and all things were new and different. It is nothing like the old. No sin, no tears, no death, no pain and no curse. Everything is and will continue to be very good and new.

Verse 6. Then God said to John, “It is done.” He was saying that His work of making all things new was completed. Then Jesus said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.” So, He was saying here clearly that He is supreme overall and if anyone has any needs He will supply that need.

Verse 7. Here Jesus puts a condition on those who receive His blessing freely. It is for only those who are overcomers of sin according to their faith, which makers them sons of God. For all others, their part will be in the lake of fire (v. 8).

The Great White Throne Judgment

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This great and important event takes place immediately after the destruction of heaven and earth. We will comment on it verse by verse from Revelation 20:11 to 20:15.

Verse 11. After John saw (in his vision) the devil being thrown into the lake of fire, he then immediately saw the vision of a great white throne and Him (God) sitting upon it. And the Scripture text here is written as if this throne with God upon it was all there was. That is, the earth and heaven had fled away, or we could say that it disappeared or gone into non-existence. It seems here as if John missed the great explosion of heaven and earth. His eyes saw the great white throne, and then he realized that heaven and earth were gone.

Verse 12. Then next John saw the dead (those who had died) standing (now alive) before the throne. And John here is careful to make clear that all the dead are here: great and small, which means the young and old; the rich and the poor; the big ones and the short ones, etc. And the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged according to what was written about them in the books—all their deeds (everything they ever did, good or bad, was recorded in these books).

Verse 13. God here seems to circle back to make certain that no dead is left out, even those who died at sea, or that were thrown into the sea; these were included in the number of dead. And all the places of death and hell turned in or released their dead ones to go and sand before the throne of God. Apparently, these dead beings are given new bodies suited for hell.

Verse 14. At first glance this verse was difficult to me. But when I looked back at 1 Corinthians 15:26 the meaning was made clear. At this point, that is, at the great white throne, death and hell will be abolished forever—cast into the lake of fire. And this is the second death. The first death was only physical death, but this second death is spiritual and eternal.

Take note also that this second death is only for unbelievers. It will have no power over believers. They will reign with Christ for a thousand years and then on into eternity (Rev. 20:6; 22:5).

Verse 15. Here it is made clear who will be judged. It is all those whose names are not written in the book of life.