Resurrection

[ViaCrucis]

Because that is how God uses the the word sleep (asleep) in the context....My only insight is through the eyes of God from the Word of God.

Yet Scripture speaks of those who have fallen asleep in Christ as a great cloud of witnesses, and are described as conscious before God in heaven. The imagery in Hebrews is that of someone running a race and the saints who have gone on before us are there cheering us on, they are a great many witnesses there calling us onward, to keep persevering, to keep our eyes on Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith. Those described in the Apocalypse as before God in heaven are aware of the trials and tribulations of the Church on earth, they are there in heaven speaking, acting, and are given robes to remind them that the full course of things is not yet finished, but will be.

So that the Church on earth and the Church in heaven are, together, one Church and one Body in Christ, with a single vision and hope of that future and glorious Day when all shall be brought to is good and rightful consummation.

When the Bible says the dead are sleeping, it doesn't mean they are unconscious, it means that their bodies lay slumbering in the grave--the body shall be awakened, roused from its slumber, at the resurrection of the dead.

So the Scriptures say, "Awake O sleepers, and arise from the dead and Christ will shine on you." (Ephesians 5:14, wherein the Apostle may be combining elements of Isaiah 9:2, Isaiah 26:19, Isaiah 60:1, though it's not entirely clear).

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

Many would say it is IMPORTANT as it is not in the Greek text , would you agree or disagree ?

I do not agree; the Blessed Trinity is not in the Greek text of the new testament, yet I believe. It is not forbidden, in the scriptures, to use words that are not in the Greek text of the New testament.

 

[Dan Perez]

I do not agree; the Blessed Trinity is not in the Greek text of the new testament, yet I believe. It is not forbidden, in the scriptures, to use words that are not in the Greek text of the New testament.

What about Matt 28:19 , Go ye therefore , and teach all NATIONS , baptizing them in the name of the FATHER , and of the Son , and of the HOLY SPIRIT .

I see one the FATHER .

I see two , the SON .

I see three , the HOLY SPIRIT .

Can we agree that there are THE BLESSED THREE ?

There are many more that I can write down !

dan p

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

What about Matt 28:19 , Go ye therefore , and teach all NATIONS , baptizing them in the name of the FATHER , and of the Son , and of the HOLY SPIRIT .

I see one the FATHER .

I see two , the SON .

I see three , the HOLY SPIRIT .

Can we agree that there are THE BLESSED THREE ?

There are many more that I can write down !

dan p

Perhaps I was insufficiently clear; I meant that the word "Trinity" is not in the Greek text of the new testament.

 

[sandman]

Yet Scripture speaks of those who have fallen asleep in Christ as a great cloud of witnesses, and are described as conscious before God in heaven. The imagery in Hebrews is that of someone running a race and the saints who have gone on before us are there cheering us on, they are a great many witnesses there calling us onward, to keep persevering, to keep our eyes on Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith. Those described in the Apocalypse as before God in heaven are aware of the trials and tribulations of the Church on earth, they are there in heaven speaking, acting, and are given robes to remind them that the full course of things is not yet finished, but will be.

So that the Church on earth and the Church in heaven are, together, one Church and one Body in Christ, with a single vision and hope of that future and glorious Day when all shall be brought to is good and rightful consummation.

When the Bible says the dead are sleeping, it doesn't mean they are unconscious, it means that their bodies lay slumbering in the grave--the body shall be awakened, roused from its slumber, at the resurrection of the dead.

So the Scriptures say, "Awake O sleepers, and arise from the dead and Christ will shine on you." (Ephesians 5:14, wherein the Apostle may be combining elements of Isaiah 9:2, Isaiah 26:19, Isaiah 60:1, though it's not entirely clear).

-CryptoLutheran

Paul by revelation from Jesus Christ wrote the book of Hebrews around 65 AD (there is a reason I mention this date, which will be clear later)

Hebrews is not addressed to the church in the sense that we know the Church established on Pentecost. It is addressed to born again believers, but those who have never walked in the freedom of the new birth. …… It’s addressing the Jews of the dispersion ….those who are still zealous for the law.

In a sense they are cheering us on through their legacy…. which God had written down for us in Hebrews eleven. And despite the mind picture we might come up with, we can’t add things to the Word especially anything that would contradict other scripture, that is something God frowns upon. If God doesn’t tell us we just don’t know. There are several areas in the Word that come right to the edge that I could fill in the blank for God, but I don’t …and if I do ….I always make it clear…. it’s my hypothesis and I explain why I think what I think…. but whatever it is…. it cannot contradict the Word in any other place. And having people in heaven contradicts the Word….Please see this post to explain → #15 It will also explain why I mentioned the date above.

 

[Hawkins]

When a person dies where do they go?

Heaven, or hell, perhaps purgatory as a preliminary to heaven?

So, why is there such a thing as resurrection?

I would like to put down a bit of details on what I experienced.

Matthew 27:50 (NIV)
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

Mark 15:37 (NIV)
With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.


Everyone does that at the last moment, but all of us make that loud cry in an off body status such no one actually hears us (except for those in Hades). I figure that Jesus' loud cry was made in body serving as a witness that He did die a human's death, as every human dies with such a loud cry.

That's the moment when the spirit goes out. That cry was actually made by the spirit but not you (not your soul that now I know). I was truly scared by that loud cry from my mouth but yet not made by me myself. Then the spirit flied out. "Flying out" is the best description. It flied out with this loud cry at the same time. The other best description about the shape of the spirit is that it takes the form of a flying dove.

I couldn't find a good description of my own spirit the whole first year after my experience. One day I was sitting in a large room in church watching a large wall painting. What caught my eye was a white shape very much resembled the shape of my spirit. I had to stand back a bit in order to see what the painting was about as it's a large painting covering the whole side of the wall. Then I realized that it's a painting on Jesus' baptism that the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in bodily form like a dove.

Luke 3:22 (NIV)
and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

So my theory is that one another fold meaning of "we are made in God's image" is that our spirit takes the form just as God the Holy Spirit.


I also figured that I was in Hades at the time when I made the off-body loud cry, as there were echos of wows from people around me. It seems to me that they were interested in watching how the spirit flying out from me, and gave it a wow when that loud cry was made. I couldn't see them but just their wows. I speculate that our soul by default is transparent unless we manifest an image for it. That's why it's our body which serves as our image for other humans to recognize.

This is a personal experience though, you don't need to be serious about it if you don't want to. Back then I was not truly a Christian and had almost zero biblical knowledge. I was rasied an atheist, though through my wife I perceived that a God must exist. That experience changed me upside down and inside out.

 

[IoanC]

Heaven or hell are not places, but states of being. It's probably more like asking "how is one feeling at this point? ", "is he/she in full communion with God?" , etc..

 

[Hawkins]

Heaven or hell are not places, but states of being. It's probably more like asking "how is one feeling at this point? ", "is he/she in full communion with God?" , etc..

They are quite physical in Pharisaic Jewish concepts (which dominated the Jews back in Jesus' days) though, just as how Josephus the Pharisee explained to the Greeks.

 

[IoanC]

We have already died and resurrected with Christ "in this life", having received the Grace of The Holy Spirit.

We are already in Heaven, but perhaps there are levels of Heaven, or a progress of our spiritual development.

 

[Hawkins]

We have already died and resurrected with Christ "in this life", having received the Grace of The Holy Spirit.

We are already in Heaven, but perhaps there are levels of Heaven, or a progress of our spiritual development.

I don't disagree with this saying, though it won't tell whether heaven or hell is physical or not.