Heaven

Many think to go to heaven

Lots of Christians do think that when they die they shall go to heaven. They'll better would read their Scriptures to know that it are only a very few (144 000) selected who shall go to sit with Christ to govern his reign. The majority shall have to wait until Christ shall return, to judge the living and the dead. Only at that time Jesus shall judge who shall be allowed to go into the narrow gate of the Kingdom of God, not in heaven, but here on earth, in the Promised Land.

Heaven and Kingdom of Heaven

In the Bible, ‘heaven’ can mean slightly different things. For example:

And God said, ” . . . let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.”

I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore.

. . . for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.

  • Heaven is used figuratively for political powers. Isaiah 1:2:

Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth; for the LORD has spoken . . .

which is explained in Isaiah 1:10 as heavens being the rulers and the earth being the people:

Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom! Give ear to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah!

Further to these meanings, many people have misunderstood the Bible teaching about the Kingdom of Heaven. The phrase ‘the Kingdom of Heaven’, occurs in Matthew’s account of the gospel. The equivalent phrase in Mark and Luke’s records, is ‘the Kingdom of God‘. This Kingdom of Heaven/God, is referring to the establishment by God through Jesus, of a Kingdom on Earth with Jesus as King ruling from Jerusalem. This Kingdom is where the resurrected faithful believers will be given immortality at the return of Jesus. It is called the Kingdom of Heaven because it is a heavenly kingdom operating on God’s principles and ruled over from the man from heaven. 1 Corinthians 15:47

“The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.” (1Co 15:47 NIV)