The spirit has always been with God. You are talking about a formless soul. Nope, the soul goes from a corruptible body to an incorruptible. What happens at the rapture is the robe of white. That is not the body, nor a "body". The robe is the spirit of light. God is a spirit of light. Adam was a spirit of light. The sons of God are spirits of light. Moses and Elijah had an incorruptible body, but the transfiguration was a spirit of light as in a robe of light that wrapped around the body of Jesus. Before the Cross it was still a soul with form; a Ghost. Not glorified. (Jesus could show us pre-cross, because Jesus was 3 parts God and 3 parts Man. He just did not go around all the time in a robe of white light.) Sunday morning in Ghost form, Jesus looked like Himself, but no physical substance. Mary could not touch the Ghost form of Jesus. The corruptible body could not enter Paradise nor the soul before the Cross. On Sunday Jesus and the OT believers ascended after leaving Mary in the Garden.
Now all OT and those dead in Christ for the last 1990 years have incorruptible bodies enjoying Paradise, but not Glorified. The final step is the Second Coming and rapture where the robe, the glorified spirit joins the incorruptible body. John in the 5th seal said all in Paradise, under the alter, the church, only got robes, so the souls were already there in incorruptible bodies. John does not use the same terminology as Paul: incorruptible and immortality. And John was not writing to Corinth and Thessalonica.
One can only guess at why Paul thought there were two aspects of change. But the church can only be glorified as a whole. And we know that the Cross allowed one change, because the OT went from Abraham's bosom to Paradise. One place was in sheol and the other heaven. But it only happened after Jesus grew up in a human body and died on the Cross. So the OT believers had to wait to get their incorruptible bodies until after Jesus had his physical body and became the physical Lamb. If you think there was no bodily resurrection and change at the Cross are you not missing the whole point of having an incorruptible body free of death and sin? What other body could enter Paradise? Why could not the soul enter before the Cross? Jesus other than Moses and Elijah had to be the firstfruits. The thief on the Cross entered Paradise that day. The others had bodies but not yet ascended. The thief was the first convert who died post Cross. He immediately entered Paradise with a changed incorruptible body.
Immortality is not just the soul, who we are. It is our spirit that is always in God's presence, because it is a robe of light. Conversely a demon is a spirit with no more light who leaves heaven and looks for a human to control. The reprobate condition of a soul living on earth, produces a demon void of light. Those people will be removed from the Lamb's book of life at the GWT. Their soul and demon (spirit) cast into the lake of fire. Can a spirit and soul choose God at the GWT? Is that where some may go into everlasting righteousness? I doubt they will be glorified, because they missed that event. But even those beheaded in the 42 months of Satan go into life everlasting after the 1000 years. They also missed the glorification of the church. If these have been granted a stay from the second death, they have incorruptible bodies. They are without sin and cannot die. Can anyone give a better definition of an incorruptible body?
Now about Greek mortal and immortal. The difference to them was being God or not being God. It is really not about living forever. An incorruptible body in the Bible covers that. But I think Paul was pointing out that at the rapture we will be Gods. The robe of white, the glorification process is what immortality is. Now the Greeks considered immortal to be both eternal and Godlike. That is Satan's terminology. I would prefer glorified instead of immortality, but the Greeks should understand. Paul was writing to Greeks and it is what we get. Salvation is a change in direction more than a change of soul, body, and spirit. It is the mind that changes direction from heading towards death to now heading towards life and God's will. If one does not accept Salvation this body will die, and not be changed. The spirit may be demonized beyond hope. The soul and demon will be cast into the lake of fire, the death of spirit, and eternal separation from God. The soul never dies. What dies is the physical and spiritual part of the soul. That covers 2 deaths. Where is it mentioned any where a third death?
Mary could not touch the Ghost form of Jesus. The corruptible body could not enter Paradise nor the soul before the Cross. On Sunday Jesus and the OT believers ascended after leaving Mary in the Garden.
Sorry, but that was the resurrected Jesus. She was
commanded not to touch Him for He was on His way to heaven. She COULD have touched Him had He allowed her to. It was only SOME Of the OT believers where were raised. If we look in Revelation, probably the elders.
Now all OT and those dead in Christ for the last 1990 years have incorruptible bodies enjoying Paradise, but not Glorified. If you are talking about their spirits, I agree. Their spirit has the same form as their physical body used to have. Their bodies are still in the ground, EXCEPT for those "some" that Jesus raised.
The final step is the Second Coming and rapture where the robe, the glorified spirit joins the incorruptible body. Please define "glorified" spirit, and when it happens. Please explain why you call it a robe. Show scripture.
John in the 5th seal said all in Paradise, under the alter, the church, only got robes, so the souls were already there in incorruptible bodies.
Wow! Perhaps you just don't understand. Yes, the martyrs of the church age are indeed of "the church." They were born again. That explains why they were in heaven rather that in hell. NOT "all in paradise..." only those under the altar. John was describing at the 5th seal ONLY those martyrs under the altar. Since their body was murdered, their SPIRIT with their soul was there in heaven, under the altar. Yes, they were given robes.
Does this mean ONLY MARTYRS get robes? No. I suspect all who die and their spirits go up, get robes when they arrive in heaven. By the way, Human spirits are forever; they are not "corruptable." Human spirits cannot rot or disintegrate. Neither can a human soul, which is not make of anything physical. REmember, the human spirit and soul are tied very tightly together. Where the soul is, there the spirit is - where the spirit is, there the soul is. The spirit has essense and can be seen. How can one SEE a memory or a thought?
Note: the usage of the word "soul" has changed over time. Sometimes the bible uses it for the entire being as in the shipwreck Paul was in: they were called souls, but speaking of the entire being. Sometimes "soul" is used only for the thoughts and emotions of a being. In the OT often "soul" was used for both the spirit and the unseen part of man: his mind, thoughts, memories, etc. Thoughts and emotions are very real, but they have no essence and cannot be seen.
If God allows it, He can open people's eyes to the spirit realm and they can SEE angels or demonic spirits - or even human spirits. My pastor, in a vision, saw his son's spirit leave his body, but saw an angel say "GET BACK IN THERE" and it instantly went back to his son's body. Another time he was demonic spirits come to church with people and saw the demons trying to distract them while he was preaching.
the church can only be glorified as a whole. Then you are saying that when a saved person dies, their spirit is not "glorified;" it is just escorted to heaven as a normal, human spirit.
Paul thought there were two aspects of change. Please explain Ah. Perhaps you mean the spiritual change when one is born again, and then the physical change when our body is changed to immortality.
the Cross allowed one change, because the OT went from Abraham's bosom to Paradise. That is the change of being born again: regeneration of the human spirit - from Adam's DNA to God's DNA.
So the OT believers had to wait to get their incorruptible bodies until after Jesus had his physical body and became the physical Lamb.
You seem to imagine that the OT saints were ALL raised to immortality when Jesus rose - but the scripture tells us many (NOT ALL) were raised. The general resurrection of the OT saints is in our future. I am convinced it will be on the last 24 hour day of the 70th week - when John tells us of that worst ever earthquake. When God pulls together the "dust" that once made up the bodies of those saints before the flood, it is going to cause a tremendous quake: some particles of "dust" from one body just may be thousands of miles from another particle, but in one instant God will pull them together and reform that body. It will end up shaking the mountains down into the ground.
If you think there was no bodily resurrection and change at the Cross are you not missing the whole point of having an incorruptible body free of death and sin? Sorry, but DEATH happened at the cross; LIFE happened when Jesus rose. But the corruptible bodies of the church will not be changed until the day of the rapture.
Why could not the soul enter before the Cross? Why could not the SPIRIT enter before the cross? (souls come attached to the spirits) "Adam" spirits (before regeneration) were not qualified. Only "born again" (GOD'S DNA) spirits can enter heaven.
He immediately entered Paradise with a changed incorruptible body. The "paradise" the thief entered was also called Abraham's bosom, deep inside the earth. He did not get an incorruptable body. His body DIED on the cross, but at that moment, His spirit with soul left the dead body and descended down into hades, but went to Abraham's Bosom side. Again I remind you, ONLY those OT saints that were raised when Jesus rose got immortal bodies back them. And that was "many," not all. The general resurrection of the OT saints is still ahead of us. But they must wait until AFTER the resurrection of the church.
Immortality is not just the soul, who we are. It is our spirit that is always in God's presence, because it is a robe of light. Again you are mistaken: the human spirit was created by God to leave FOREVER. It will never corrupt and turn into dust. It is only the BODY part of man that will corrupt and turn into dust. Humans - those of the church, will get immortal bodies at the rapture - NOT BEFORE.
It is our spirit that is always in God's presence, because it is a robe of light. Please find a scripture that calls a human spirit a robe. I want to see it.
Those people will be removed from the Lamb's book of life at the GWT. Again you are mistaken. The moment of conception a new name is ADDED to the book of life. It is a NEW life that never existed before. Their name will REMAIN in the book of life until they reach the age where God will hold them accountable. Then, when they sin, their name is removed. It can be added back ONLY if they are born again. So it is SIN that removes a name. The book of life is EXAMINED for names at the GWT, but names are not removed then.
The reprobate condition of a soul living on earth, produces a demon void of light. Are you saying the PEOPLE - HUMANS - turn into demons? Show us a verse. ALL humans live on earth and SOME get born again; some don't. NONE turn into demons. (Some may ACT like demons!)
Their soul and demon (spirit) cast into the lake of fire. Say WHAT? NO ONE is cast into the lake of fire yet.
Can a spirit and soul choose God at the GWT? NOT A CHANCE! "choice" is before death, while the human heart still beats. (unless by a miracle someone prays someone back into their bodie after death, so they are given another chance.)
If these have been granted a stay from the second death The ONLY people that are not at the GWT judgement are those who are born again and resurrected into immortality.
Salvation is a change in direction more than a change of soul, body, and spirit.
My friend, you really need to KNOW things before you write. Do you not understand being "born again" or what some call "regeneration?" It is a change in the human spirit: the old "Adam spirit" is put to death (the wages of sin is death) and instantly God creates a NEW human spirit - and you can bet - if spirits have DNA, the new spirit will have GOD'S DNA. ONLY reborn spirits can enter heaven.
Note: there are 3 deaths:
1. Physical death: the heart stops beating
2. Spiritual death; all born in this state due to Adam: born with an Adam spirit.
3. Eternal death: 1 plus 2 = eternal death