Jesus said to the dying thief, in
Luke 23:43,
"Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise."
And yet Jesus did not go to paradise that same day, as clearly testified by the scriptures
John 20:17 “Do not cling to Me,” Jesus said, “for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go and tell My brothers, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.’”
There is no punctuation in the greek, thus the comma placement should came after today to be more consistent with scripture.
This is not uncommon in scripture
Acts 20:26 Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all,
Dueteronomy 6:6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.
Acts 7:59-60 records, “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”
Stephen’s spirit was separating from his body and went to be with God. However, his body was going to the grave.
Jesus also yielded up his spirit to the Father.
Luke 23:46 Then Jesus called out in a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I commit My Spirit.
But as scripture testifies, he did no go to heaven that day.
John 20:17 “Do not cling to Me,” Jesus said, “for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go and tell My brothers, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.’”
2 Corinthians 5:8 says,
"We are confident, I say, and willing rather ‘to be absent’ from the body, and ‘to be present’ with the Lord."
‘ekdeemeesai’ – ‘be absent’
‘endeemeesai’ – ‘be present’
The context of this passage is the resurrection
2 corinthians 5:4-5 For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
Thus Paul would rather, or be "well pleased" to be absent from the body, from the earthly tent, and be present with the Lord in the heavenly dwelling. This goes right back to the main context: the resurrection
2 corinthians 5:6-8 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage,
and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
Notice, Paul states to always be at home with the Lord occurs at us being caught up to the Lord. This is consistent with 2 corinthians 5, to be away from the body is to be with the Lord.
1 thessalonians 4:17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord
Paul said in
Philippians 1:21-24 says,
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.”
Right, and Paul clearly states that while his departure "has come", it wouldn't be until the appearing of the Lord that he would receive his reward.
2 timothy 4:6-8 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
The going to be with Christ has to be taken with the entire context of Paul's messages. To be with Christ would occur at the resurrection.
Paul states believers who have died are "sleeping", not yet at home with the Lord
1 Corinthians 15:6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.
1 corinthians 15:51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
Again Paul confirms it is upon being caught up to the Lord, that we are always with Him.
1 thessalonians 4:17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord
Death was a promotion for Paul!!!
Well, Paul did believe the resurrection was "about to be"
Acts 24:15 having hope toward God, which they themselves also wait for, [that] there is about to be a rising again of the dead, both of righteous and unrighteous;
Revelation 14:13 agrees:
“And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.”
In
Revelation 4:4, 10, 5:8, 14, 11:6, 19:4, we see 24 Elders around the throne in heaven. Who are they? Also, in
Revelation 7 we see several references to 144,000 in heaven that have been redeemed from off the earth. Who are they?
Revelation 20:4 says,
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.”
And continues,
“I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”
Revelation 6:9-10 similarly says,
“I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?”
Revelation 6:9-10 – the fifth seal – is unquestionably speaking (1) of heaven and also (2) of a time prior to the Second Advent and the day of God’s wrath – the sixth seal.
The very next verse of this narrative (6:11) says,
“And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.”
Here we clearly have a heavenly scene, and a heavenly scene in this present period of time. It reveals the risen saints in glory awaiting the consummation of all things.
Revelation 15:1-3 says,
“I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God. I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, andover his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the lamb, saying, great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.”
Again this relates to the intra-Advent period. Also, there is no doubt that this scene is in heaven and that “victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name” evidently meant martyrdom for those in view. However, absent from the body for the believer assuredly means present with the Lord in His heavenly abode.
Revelation 7:9-14 adds further light on the matter, saying
, “I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb…one of the elders answered, saying unto me, what are these which are arrayed in white robes? And whence came they? And I said unto him, sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, these are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
Here are what the dead in Christ are clothed with - Christ's robes of righteousness. They are far from naked and exposed.
The souls are therefore identified here as (1) the redeemed and are clearly located (2) in heaven.
Verse 15 continues,
“Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.”
Symbolic language from an Apocolyptic book, not the best place to create a doctrine about going to heaven upon death prior to the resurrection.