Where Do We Go After We Die

[MomOfADramaQn]

Can someone give me scripture that supports the doctrine that you go to heaven after you die? My husband is of a faith that does not believe you go to heaven after you die. One of the scriptures they use is from Ecclesiates 9:5 ".....where it says the dead know nothing....". That is in the Old Testament and the gift of "eternal life" is was not given then - am I interpreting that wrong? Also - how will the "dead in Christ" rise first if they are already in heaven? Am I overlooking scripture that says when you die you go to heaven?

[ILG]

Good questions.

[Michael The Disciple]

They will say your body alone dies and the real you will go to Heaven.

Paul makes no such distinction here.

13: But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14: For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15: For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18: Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 1 Thess. 4:13-18

Paul said he does not want us ignorant about this topic.

The resurrection is so we might live after death.

[MomOfADramaQn]

Originally Posted by Michael The Disciple

They will say your body alone dies and the real you will go to Heaven.

Paul makes no such distinction here.

13: But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14: For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15: For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18: Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 1 Thess. 4:13-18

Paul said he does not want us ignorant about this topic.

The resurrection is so we might live after death.

So are you saying you believe that you do not go to heaven after you die - that it will not happen until the resurrection?

[ILG]

I believe that we don't know.

[MomOfADramaQn]

LOL - prob so - but if a preacher gets in a pulpit and preaches it is it "false doctrine" if there is no scripture to back it up? Personally - It is not something I lose sleep over - I just try to live right and hope I make it there but it is preached so much in pentecost that we will go to heaven - just want to know why it is preached

[TK Burk]

Here is a copy of a study I recently taught to our church family.



Asleep in the Grave, Awakened to Everlasting Life

The resurrection of the dead gives hope to the Christian. Yet when asked how it takes place and in what manner it will occur, many of these same saints may feel hopeless to explain. Understanding the time and nature of the resurrection will affect how you view God’s Word. That is why it’s of paramount importance that every child of God has a clear understanding of what the Bible says about this subject.

When we look in our Bible we see the promise of never seeing “the grave” or “death” is aligned with a believer being “transformed” from their body in a “spiritual resurrection.” This is the difference between reanimation of flesh and transformation from flesh. But before the resurrection came into fruition, deceased saints are described in the Bible as being in a state of “sleep” (See Deu 31:16; 1Ki 1:21; Acts 13:36; 1Co 15:51; 1Th 4:14). Daniel spoke of this…

Daniel 12:2
And MANY OF THEM THAT SLEEP IN THE DUST OF THE EARTH shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

Daniel placed those in the grave in a place of rest while waiting for the prophesied time when they would awaken to eternal life. Concerning “dust,” the Bible says that a dead body returns to the same substance from which it was made.

Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Ecclesiastes 3:18-21
I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

Job 34:14-15
If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath; All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.

Psalms 90:3 KJV
Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.

Look at this same verse in Psalms is translated in the English Standard Version.

Psalms 90:3 ESV
You return man to dust and say, "Return, O children of man!"

Psalms 104:29-30
Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.

Psalms 146:4
His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.

The timeframe Daniel placed for those sleeping to awake to everlasting life is found in the following verse:

Daniel 12:7
And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and swore by him that liveth forever that IT SHALL BE FOR A TIME, TIMES, AND A HALF; and when he shall have accomplished TO SCATTER THE POWER OF THE HOLY PEOPLE, all these things shall be finished.

"Time, times, and a half" is prophetic language for “1-year,” “2-years,” and “½ year,” which equates to 3½ years, 42 months, or 1260 days. Each of these times is used in the Bible to refer to the 3½ year AD70 siege and destruction of Jerusalem and her Temple. The Temple was burnt August 10, AD70 (the Jewish Ninth of Av), the exact day and month on which it had been burnt by the king of Babylon many years before.

Part 1 of 2

[TK Burk]

Part 2 of 2

THE NEW COVENANT AND THE RESURRECTION

The faithful who had died prior to this "Great Tribulation" were resurrected from their graves in AD70 to go and live forever in the presence of their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Daniel 12:1-3
And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was [Compare with Matthew 24:21] since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life [resurrection and blessings], and some to shame and everlasting contempt [judgment and curses]. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever.

Paul spoke of this time in the following verses:

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel ["at that time shall Michael stand up” – Dan 12:1], and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Jesus said this was to occur during the AD70 judgment of Jerusalem.

Matthew 13:41-43
The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. THEN SHALL THE RIGHTEOUS SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN [The “sun is the ‘SON,’ Jesus Christ – See Rev 21:22-24] in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

This collates with Daniel’s statement…

Daniel 12:3
And they that be wise SHALL SHINE AS THE BRIGHTNESS OF THE FIRMAMENT; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever.

Paul indicated that those awake during that time will receive the same promise of eternal life.

1 Thessalonians 4:17
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Paul's promise is the same as that which Jesus made to Martha.

John 11:26
Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.

Those who were alive after AD70 were given the same hope of eternal life only with a more powerful promise—they would never experience the grave or death!

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should NOT PERISH, but HAVE EVERLASTING LIFE.

"Perish" means "death," and "everlasting life" means "continuing without end, immortal." Jesus literally died so that His followers would never see death, but would instead pass from this world into life eternal. A physical resurrection would not allow this promise to be true today, but a spiritual resurrection would, and a spiritual resurrection is what we find promised in the Bible. This was the inspiration for the words of the old Christian hymn, Sweet Hour: “Upon leaving our physical robe of flesh behind, we do spiritually enter that perfect land—Beulah Land—the eternal home of the righteous—the city whose builder and maker is God!” – Sweet Hour, William B. Bradbury, 1861

The thing that made Nicodemus take notice was that he knew Jesus’ talk of a birth of the "Spirit," was prophesied to take place during the time of the Messiah. He knew the Torah said this time would happen during the last days of the Jewish age (See John 3; Isa 61:1-2; Eze 11:17-21, 36:25-27; Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:16-21). These “last days” were the same days as those prophesied by Daniel. He foretold that they would conclude with the resurrection of the dead. Since Daniel spoke of the destruction of AD70, and since those days are now past, then the resurrection he spoke of has occurred. This means that when a man or woman, who’s been Born Again in Jesus' name, breathes their last breathe in this life, they are translated from their flesh body, and instantly go into the eternal kingdom of the Lord God. This was the promise of Jesus; that His believers would never see the grave or death.

Paul spoke of this promise in the next verses.

Romans 6:3-11
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, WE SHALL BE ALSO IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS RESURRECTION: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. NOW IF WE BE DEAD WITH CHRIST, WE BELIEVE THAT WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; DEATH HATH NO MORE DOMINION OVER HIM. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. LIKEWISE RECKON YE ALSO YOURSELVES TO BE DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, BUT ALIVE UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.

2 Timothy 2:11
It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him.

Peter gave witness to this same promise in his first Epistle.

1 Peter 4:6
For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.

The New Testament mentions this same promise of a ‘new spiritual life’ and ‘everlasting life’ in these verses such as: John 3:15-18, 4:14, 5:24, 6:50, 6:54-58, 8:51-53, 10:28; Romans 8:13; 1John 5:10-12.

A believer in Jesus cannot die. For them, “death” is a doorway through which they enter into eternity.

2 Corinthians 5:8
We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be ABSENT FROM THE BODY, and to be PRESENT WITH THE LORD.

1 Corinthians 15:50-57
Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, THEN shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP IN VICTORY. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The last trump sounded at AD70 when the “holy people's strength” was “scattered” (Daniel 12:7). This occurred during the same Jewish generation that crucified Jesus, saw the armies of Titus make their house (The Jewish Temple) desolate, and also scattered their survivors throughout the known world of their day (See Dan 12:7; Mat 23:37-38, 24:1-2; Luke 21:6, 20; Zec 13:6-9 / See “This Generation” Mat 24:34; Mark 13:30-31; Luke 21:32-33 / See “These Things” Mat 24:6; Mark 13:29; Luke 21:31). This then means that the resurrection of those asleep in the grave has already taken place, and now, when a saint of God dies, they leave their earthly body and are instantly translated to the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, where they will remain for eternity.

[MrsMcD]

I really don't think anyone knows the answers. We just all have opinions and my opinion keeps changing. lol

I have always thought our spirit may go to heaven but I really don't have a clue.

[ILG]

Originally Posted by MomOfADramaQn

LOL - prob so - but if a preacher gets in a pulpit and preaches it is it "false doctrine" if there is no scripture to back it up? Personally - It is not something I lose sleep over - I just try to live right and hope I make it there but it is preached so much in pentecost that we will go to heaven - just want to know why it is preached

Things are preached because it is the personal view/traditional view of the church/preacher. These views are usually based on scripture, favoring some, overlooking others.