For “Scripture Sinday”:
Questions About Heaven Answered From the Bible
“There are many ideas about what happens after we die. But the best place to find the truth is in the Book inspired by the One who knows the most about heaven.
A lot of people have ideas about heaven, but no human being has been there except Jesus Christ. Let’s see what God says about it in the Bible.
Am I going to heaven when I die?
No Bible passage speaks of heaven as the destination of “saved souls.”
No. Quite the contrary. Your future is right here on planet earth.
Yet many people believe that when they die they will go to heaven. That’s what the Holy Bible says, doesn’t it? Well, there are indeed plenty of books on library shelves that say that, but amazingly, the Bible isn’t one of them.
Scriptures forecasting the earth’s future put the King of Kings, Jesus Christ, not in heaven, but rather on earth in the holy city Jerusalem, governing the many nations of this planet (Revelation 5:10; 11:15; 20:4; Matthew 5:5).
The holy instruction manual provided by the Architect of the cosmos, Jesus Christ, makes it clear: We’re not going to heaven. Rather than all of us being transported up there; Jesus Christ is coming down here (see John 3:13; Zechariah 14:9).
But what about the many references to “heaven” in the Bible?
Many of those refer to the place where God’s throne is now. It is His headquarters, where many of His angelic staff serve Him, and it will be relocated to the earth in the future (Matthew 6:10; Revelation 21:1-4). Most of the biblical references to heaven are about earth’s atmosphere or about the starry skies.
No Bible passage speaks of heaven as the destination of “saved souls.”
Going to heaven or hell is one of the cardinal teachings of mainstream Christianity. If the teaching really came from the Bible, wouldn’t we expect to find many references explaining about heaven clearly?
Astonishing as it may seem, not one Bible verse says outright that your, my or anybody else’s immortal soul (if we had one) will go there when we die.
Do a search yourself for these common phrases in a reputable, word-for-word translation of the Bible (like the King James Version or the New King James Version):
- Going to heaven.
- When I get to heaven.
- Those in heaven.
- Getting to heaven.
- Men in heaven.
- Souls in heaven.
- Heavenly gates.
- Pearly gates.
- Our future in heaven.
- Eternity in heaven.
- Saints in heaven.
Not one of those catchphrases—so popular in most Christians’ faith experience—appears in the King James Version. They’re not in the Bible. The Bible does use the phrase “kingdom of heaven,” but it doesn’t refer to people going to heaven. To learn why, read our article “The Kingdom of Heaven.”
Continued at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/god/blog/questions-about-heaven-answered-from-the-bible/?
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Feast of Trumpets
“The progression of the biblical festivals throughout the year vividly portrays the glorious plan of God to bring many children to glory in His family.
The Bible lists seven festivals that God gave to the nation of Israel for them to celebrate each year (Leviticus 23). The New Testament shows many examples of Jesus, His apostles and the Church of God observing them as well. Each festival is full of rich Christian symbolism, pointing to God’s plan for humanity and Jesus Christ’s role in each step.
Most of the festivals are also special annual Sabbath rest days, which are observed in addition to the weekly Sabbath day.
The fourth festival of God is the Feast of Trumpets . The Bible describes the day as a “memorial of blowing of trumpets.” In Israel, trumpets were used as a way of announcing special, very important messages.Jesus Christ reveals that before His return to the earth, seven trumpets will be blown, announcing the downfall and overthrow of this world’s kingdoms and the return of Christ to take possession of the earth and establish the Kingdom of God. Christ’s return is announced by the seventh and final trumpet. This day also pictures the ultimate fulfillment of every Christian’s hope: the moment when faithful Christians will be resurrected to receive the gift of eternal life at the sounding of the seventh trumpet. A Christian’s eternity with God begins with the opportunity to reign on earth with Jesus Christ for 1,000 years.
(See: Leviticus 23:24-25; Numbers 10:1-10; Revelation 8:2; Revelation 11:15; Revelation 20:4-6; 1 Corinthians15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16)”
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Update:
Last Sunday I drove quite a way to see a senior who was having some problems. They convinced me to bring them over here, which was OK, but as they have some dementia, they and their relatives kept on calling each other on my phone. I had to dial the number for them. It was obvious that they really needed to be back in familiar surroundings, so I took them home. But they left me a fully stuffed down jacket to wash, as they didn’t know how to do that.
Monday, Zack, my neighbor and I worked on a few things like re-connecting a refilled 5 gallon propane tank so that my cook top will work. I can manage quite well without it as I have many electric cooking things, but I like to have the propane just in case of a power failure. We also tried out the two flat TVs that I had bought, and they both worked. Now maybe I can find someone who wants four tube-type TVs! We also sanded the floor in the mini-house where we had patched it.
Tuesday, on my way to a chiropractor appointment and to deliver the washed down-filled jacket, my van started sputtering, backfiring and died. It took 3-1/2 hours for the wrecker to arrive to take it to the mechanic. My friend Chris came and picked me up at the mechanics, so we delivered the jacket at the Seniors Center, stopped for some groceries, then she took me home. I still don’t have my van.
Wednesday was a Holy Day, The Feast of Trumpets, so Lauri from church who lives down the road, took me and my food for the potluck. I had made Roasted Cubed Potatoes with Onions and Bell Peppers, Sliced Bison and Gravy, and also Sautéed Cabbage, so I took three crockpots that day.
The Bible readings were Gen 21:1-34 about Isaac, 1 Sam. 1-2":10 about Saul and the Teaching was about “Are We Just Waiting, Or Are We Looking for Him?” We need to be ready. One of the elders, Jeff, sounded the shofar, (ram’s horn) and did the blasts like they would have done on that day. Jeff is really good on the horn, and better than Dr. Schneider on TV, http://discoveringthejewishjesus.com/ . We all enjoyed the service, food and fellowship.
Thursday, Zack and I finished washing my vintage motor-home, and he mowed.
Friday, I spent cooking and studying. Hans, the German gentleman from down my street stopped by, wondering where my van was. As I had already bothered Chris and Lauri this week, I asked him if he would take me to church on Saturday. I know he likes to go to my church once in a while. It is easier for me to go in Hans’ car, because I can’t wear cologne or hairspray when I ride with Lauri. So I brushed my hair up into a banana clip, sprayed it so it wouldn’t drop, and had several compliments. I took Turkey in Tomato Sauce, and gluten-free, organic, Spaghetti Pasta in separate crockpots. Don’t forget that I come from Europe, and we don’t mix the two until we get on our plates because some folks want more sauce and some want more pasta. I made one little dish of organic sauce for Lauri because she says she has to eat organic or she will get a migraine. The pastor’s wife had made organic ground beef, and organic refried beans for the tacos, so Lauri had some of that, too.
The Bible readings were Psa. 100, Deut. 31:1-30, Isa. 55:6-56:8 and Rom. 10:14-18. And the Teaching was about “Trumpets”, not the feast, but the times in the Bible where it says that the trumpets will sound when He arrives, and we had better be ready. Also the trumpets will sound when we are getting ready for The Feast of Taberbacles which we will be celebrating soon. Different people calculate from different new mons, that is why this church is a month behind some of the others. We will be keeping the only fasting feast, The Day of Atonement, on Friday.
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