I would like to share this study I did some time ago with the deep thinkers of God's word.
Let me know your thoughts?
No One In Heaven, part one.
Todays belief is that when saved people die they go right to heaven to praise God and experience joy and when an unsaved person dies they go right to a place called hell where they hate God and experience pain from burning fire. But is this what the Bible teaches? Here are just a few verses to speak contrary to what people believe today.
Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun.
Psalms 115:17 The dead do not praise the Lord, Nor any who go down into silence.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.
Psalms 146:3-4 Do not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salvation. His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; In that very day his thoughts perish.
Psalms 6:4-5 Return, O Lord, deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies' sake! For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks?
The Bible clearly teaches us that the dead, whether saved or lost, do not praise, love, or hate nor is there any remembrance of God in the grave. The Bible is clear when it says there is only silence in the grave.
You might be asking yourself, but what about Moses, Elijah and Enoch, arent they in heaven right now? This is where Satan has done a powerful delusion.
People have been led to believe, through delusion, that these men have died and gone into heaven. But we will soon see this is not true and totally against Gods word and Gods plan.
The Bible is clear regarding who has gone to heaven and who was the first to be raised from the dead never to die again.
John 3:13 No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man.
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
The Bible is clear that no one, except for Jesus, has ever ascended into heaven to where the Father dwells. The Bible is also clear in that Jesus was the first one to be born from the dead. These statements lead us to believe that neither Moses, Enoch, Elijah or anyone else has received immortality or has gone into heaven, except for Jesus.
God calls us to test everything and hold onto that which is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.
With this, lets see what the Bible says, as a whole, regarding Moses, Enoch and Elijah. In doing this it will take some time and deep study to untie all the knots of confusion that Satan has tied over the years.
Many people have been taught to believe that Enoch, Elijah and Moses went to heaven where the Father dwells. But we have seen that this belief contradicts the Bible as a whole, as well as, Jesus own words.
Let's start with Enoch.
Hebrews 11:1-12 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. By faith Enoch was translated so that he did not see death, "and was not found because God had translated him''; for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would afterward receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.By faith he sojourned in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
Here in the book of Hebrews we have a whole list of faithful people. At the end of this list it says they all died without receiving the promise, including Enoch. We know that the promise was something in the future because they all looked forward to it, in the same way we look forward to it. The promise was the coming kingdom of God in the new heaven and new earth.
So how do we understand the fact that all these faithful people died without receiving the promise, yet, it seems to be saying that Enoch did not die? Is this a contradiction of Scripture? No, its an illusion used to support a false belief. If we study it more closely we will see that its not saying what we're making it say.
As we carefully read the words in these verses we will see that they say nothing of Enoch going to heaven. The teaching that says Enoch went to heaven is a conclusion that man has come based on delusion. Nowhere in these verses dose it say Enoch went to heaven. All it says is that God translated him so that he should not see death.
When these verses speak of what happened to Enoch they use some strange words. Because these are strange words we will have to use the Bible to interpret them.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
The NT translators chose to use the word, (translate) probably because of their preconceived theological mindset of believing that the dead are alive somewhere else, which contradicts the whole Bible and Gods plan for a resurrection.
When looking at the word, translate, used by the NT translators, we have to keep in mind that these verses in the NT are explaining what happened to Enoch in the OT. So lets go back to the OT and see what it says regarding Enoch.
Gen 5:23-24 And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
The word, (translate) in the NT is a word that is being used by the translators when describing what God did with Enoch in the OT but its not the same word being use in the OT. The NT word, (translate) opens our mind for all kinds of misinterpretations and illusions; a false perception, conception, or interpretation of what one sees.
We also see from the OT that God says "ALL THE DAYS OF ENOCH WERE 365 YEARS". Why were Enochs days only 365 years? Because God took him and he was not. These are the words being used in the OT.
So what does this all mean?
We know from the Bible that when God says, "All the days of ______ were ______" it means the person died.
Genesis 5:8 And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
Genesis 5:5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.
Genesis 5:11 So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died.
Genesis 5:17 So all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died.
What does it mean when God says someone (is not - because God took him)? These are some strange words.
So we don't come to our own conclusion in understanding what God meant when He says a person, (is not) because God (took him) we will have to go to the Bible and learn how God uses these phrases in other verses. In doing this we will not come to a false conclusion or misinterpret what God was saying.
The first verse is found in Genesis 42:13.
Genesis 42:13 And they said, Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not.
The question we need to answer in this above verse is, who is this one, who is not?
The one, who is not, in the above verse, is the son who died. A couple verses ahead in Genesis 44:20 tells us who the one (who is not) is and what happened to him.
Genesis 44:20 And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him.
The one (who is not) was the son who died. So when God uses the phrase, "was not" He is referring to someone who has died.
Lets look at another verse that speaks of someone who (was not).
Matthew 2:18 In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
Rachel was crying for her children because THEY ARE NOT, in other words, they died.
Lets look at another verse that gives us a very clear picture of what God means when He says someone is not.
Psalms 37:36 Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
This person died and was not. The words, "They looked for him but he could not be found" are very important to keep in mind because its referring to this person who died. Now read Hebrews again and pay close attention to similar wording when referring to what happened to Enoch.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
Because Enoch obeyed God's word, by living a life pleasing to God, God took him so that he should not see death. God took Enoch so that he SHOULD not see death.
Which death is God referring to here? Is it the death that we all have to face or is it the second death He is referring to here?
I believe God was referring to the second death because He makes it clear that Enoch walked with God and pleased God.
Revelation 2:11 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.'' '
Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.
The fact that Enoch obeyed God's word makes him a righteous man. Are righteous and merciful men ever taken away, in other words, do they die? Yes, God does take them away but they too won't see death, the second death because they obeyed God and overcame.
Isaiah 57:1 The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart; merciful men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous is taken away from evil.
God says the same thing about us. He tells us that if we obey His word we too will not see death, referring to the second death.
John 8:51 "Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.''
Sometimes the translators use of words in the NT can cause confusion. But if we let the Bible speak as a whole, according to Gods plan, we can clear up all these confusions.
Proceed to part two...