Heaven is effectively an imaginary place anyway.
The Bible is the truth. Jesus said (John 17:17) while in prayer to God who resides in heaven. "Your Word is Truth." [capitalization's mine]. The entirety of the sentence says "Sanctify them by the Truth. Your Word is Truth."
So if heaven is imaginary, and since the Bible tells us that God dwells there, then what the Bible says about heaven and God is imaginary, and Jesus being sent to earth to be crucified then raised from the dead, our being saved, and sanctified.. is all imaginary. Nothing in the Bible can be relied upon, our faith is vain. And we are all false witnesses... if heaven is imaginary. [based on portions of 1 Cor.15]
But, the gospel is proved to be true by God who cannot lie, as said in Titus 1:2 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness, in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.
Titus 3:7 so that, having been justified by His grace, we would become heirs with the hope of eternal life.
1 Sam.15:29 Moreover, the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind, for He is not a man, that He should change His mind.
Heb.6:18 Thus by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be strongly encouraged.
Ps.119:160 The entirety of Your Word is true.
So that all who hear the gospel and believe, have the assurance in their hearts concerning salvation and becoming a child of God, born again. And upon death to go to heaven where God resides. Where Jesus ascended to.
Therefore what it says about heaven, about God, about all in the Bible is the truth, except where the context indicates that an unbeliever speaks a lie. But even that sort of incident tells the truth about the matter.
I don't know who wrote the first three verse of Revelation, but the grammar suggests it wasn't John.
Revelation 1:1-3 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw-that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.
I'm an amateur writer and I've experimented with writing in the third person so I recognize that the writing style is narrative summary written by the author, the apostle John. Even as the books of Moses were written by him, though he speaks of all things as an observer, and therefore himself in the third person.
Since the apostle John was alone on the isle of Patmos when he had the revelation, it doesn't make sense that some unknown person would be there with him to write a beginning summary because for some reason John couldn't..? And in his haste he forgot to..? Or that someone reading it, thought it needed it..?
That would violate what John wrote that no one add to what was written. It would only make sense that since he was alone that he used a writing style for the beginning then continued on through to write what he saw, sometimes in first person, other times in observatory third person.
Unless you think that every observation in third person was written by someone else who also got the same revelation.
referring to the revelation, verse one says: and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John. What John said, verse 10, Revelation 1:10 (NKJV)
10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,
John was in the presence of Christ, whether he ascended or not doesn't seem to be important.
It says that John was in the spirit on the Lord's day.
In Luke 2:27 it says, He (Simeon) came in the spirit into the temple.
It could then be said that the presence of the Lord was with him in both cases.
When someone mistakes a revelation received while firmly staying on the ground, with literally ascending into heaven.. then it does make a difference of which actually occurred.
My understanding is that being born again is in two parts, in the beginning and in the end; in the beginning a person is a seed planted that may become fruit or may become a tare, at the end born again is fruit being harvested and raised incorruptible. It is true those not saved are not saved and would not have the Holy Spirit.
You are speaking of the parable of the wheat and the tares that Jesus taught concerning all people up until the time of harvest.
The believers are described as wheat or barley growing in a field while the unbelievers are described as tares which look similar as a grain-based plant.
It takes the experienced eye to discern between the good crop and the bad crop.
The time of harvest and the Great White Throne Judgement is the same thing. It happens after the Tribulation.
In Mat.7 Jesus presides over discerning the good from the evil. Even though (vs 15) the false prophet says that he is good because he did good things, yet Jesus knows that he is lawless, declaring "I never knew you, depart from me." Mat.7:23.
In 2 Timothy 2:19 it says, Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The LORD knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the LORD must turn away from wickedness."
The false prophet said "Lord, Lord.." but since Jesus called him 'lawless' that means that he never believed in His name and thus was saved.
Jhn 1:12 To all who receive him, to them are given power/authority to become the children of God, even those who believe in His name.
Jhn 6:37 says, All that the Father gives me shall come to me, and him that comes to me I will not at all cast out.
Comparing Mat.7:23 with Mat.25:31-46, Jesus judges all according to their deeds while they were alive. In 41 Jesus says to the wicked, Depart.. into eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.
That coincides with the wheat and tares parable that states that the tares are to be gathered up and burned.
So, yes.. those who didn't receive Jesus as their Savior while they were alive will not at death have any opportunity to be saved after they'd died, even when raised up in order to be judged for deeds done while they were alive. Jesus in Mat.7 did not offer redemption to (vs 15) the false prophet.
