Now that you have looked over our two previous posts “Do I have A Soul” and “Immortal Soul Unmasked” we will now continue on to the final act of the “Heaven Trilogy” so to speak.
In other words, this is where we actually find out what going to heaven is all about.
So, if you’re ready let’s proceed onward, you just might discover some rather surprising facts along the way.
In our last post, “Do I Have A Soul?”, the issue of whether or not humans possess an immortal soul was addressed.
As we continue to search out the facts concerning this subject, we should realize that the first great deception was told by the satan to Eve when he advised her that if she ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil “you will not die (Gen. 3:1-5).”
It is recognized that most of us have been taught from our early years that we all have an immortal soul. Then upon death, our soul would ultimately end up spending eternity in either heaven or hell, depending on what Saint Peter decided at the Pearly Gates.
Unbeknownst to many, Scriptures give an entirely different scenario.
Our last post dealt with the possibility of the Rapture from an Old Testament viewpoint but alas, with negative results.
In “Rapture Redux” we will continue our quest to see if we can find that ever-so-elusive “Shortcut to Paradise” by next delving into the New Testament.
1 Thessalonians
One of the major proofs offered in the New Testament for a rapture of saved individuals off the earth sans death is contained in 1 Thessalonians:
Needless to say there are a number of people that want to circumvent the rules by avoiding scriptural truth and the reality that all must suffer death at least once.
There is a popular saying that you might have heard which goes something like this, “Everybody wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die.”
First of all, the reality is that no person is going to heaven regardless of dying or not. The one exception is the person whose name and title is Yahushua the messiah. As you know, his circumstances were just a little bit different. (Another topic for a later time.)
Second, all persons will in fact die before the Judgment Day whether they believe so or not. Even Yahushua had to submit to this reality.
Is there really any merit to the idea that some select group of believers can actually take a shortcut to paradise by avoiding death?
Let’s begin our investigation to find out the truth of the matter.
In our two previous posts, “The Law and Paul’s Explanation,” Part 1 and Part 2, the details were laid out regarding the Torah of Moses (the Law, Old Covenant) and its relationship to the Abrahamic Covenants of Promise.
Additionally, Paul, in the New Testament seems to stress the concept of grace and that we are no longer under “the Law.”
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law (Torah of Moses), but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? The deity forbid. (Romans 6:14-15)
Does grace provide a free ticket to salvation?
If you’re not sure about the answer, how about we proceed to investigate the truth of the matter.
It is apparent that there seems to be a widespread misunderstanding of the events occurring after Yahushua the messiah’s death that lead up to the earthly arrival of father Yahweh.
The sequence of events expounded by many goes something like this:
• Just before the return of Yahushua the messiah there will take place a period of time called the Great Tribulation.