Bible Discussion Thread

When a loved one dies, how do I know if they went to heaven?

Precious friend, The Word Of God's Truth assures us we can have Confidence in our and loved ones' death, who are In CHRIST!:

"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, AND to be present With The LORD." ( 2 Corinthians 5:8). Scriptural Confirmation:

Conscious "souls IN HEAVEN":

(1a) In heaven, John says: "I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for The Word Of God" ( Revelation 6:9)

(1b) "And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O LORD, Holy and True, dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?" ( Revelation 6:10) "crying with a loud voice IS consciousness, Correct? More Confirmation:

(2) What about the "members of the Body Of CHRIST, Today, who depart from the body, in death" to be "asleep In JESUS"?

Are they not "With CHRIST, In Heaven," as Paul states?:

a) "For to me to live is Christ, and to die IS GAIN." ( Philippians 1:21)

b) "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and TO BE WITH CHRIST; which is FAR BETTER:" ( Philippians 1:23)

c) who Exactly, does "[CHRIST] God Bring WITH HIM" At our Great GRACE Departure?:

"For if we believe that JESUS died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in JESUS Will God BRING With HIM." ( 1 Thessalonians 4:14)

"[CHRIST] WHO Died for us, That, Whether we wake OR sleep, we should LIVE TOGETHER WITH HIM!" ( 1 Thessalonians 5:10) Amen? Hope this helps!

Please be Richly Encouraged And Edified!!

To whoever posted this question (No Name?),

If that loved one belonged to Christ when they died, you can rest assured that they are with the Lord right now. Their body remains in the grave until Jesus comes for His church, but their spirit separates from their body and goes to be with the Lord. That is the literal definition of the word death. It means separation. So at the point of a believers physical death, their spirit separates from their body and goes to be with the Lord. It's the physical body of flesh that remains in the grave.

Thank you for that Jesse. My sister just passed away unexpectedly and we were very close. But she did not talk about her faith very much at all. I did ask her recently if she was praying to Jesus because she had blood clots, and I wanted to know if she still excepted Jesus as her savior. She said that she does pray and so that answered my question. I guess I'm just a little confused on the issue, do we go to heaven or have to lay in the grave till Jesus returns. I will be a little upset if I don't get to see Jesus when I die. So I like your answer Jesse, and can you tell me where in the Bible it say that.

Thank you!

Part 3:

Here is what I believe with all my heart. I've received Jesus Christ into my life. At the point of my salvation, He gave me His Spirit. His Spirit came into my spirit and sealed me. I now belong to Christ. He purchased me with His blood. He owns me. My dear sister in Christ, He owns you also.

Now, If His Spirit is in us, wherever He goes, we go. He has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us. ( Hebrews 13:5). When I die physically, my physical body will lay in the grave and give the appearance of "sleep." But the Spirit of Christ in me which has sealed my spirit will leave my body and go to be in the Lord's presence. The Lord is not going to allow His Spirit to remain in the grave. And where His Spirit goes, we go.

If I may say this one more time, we as believers are not going to be judged for our sin because Jesus already payed our debt. We will stand before the Lord at what is called the Bema Seat of Christ where we will be judged, not for sin, but as believers, we will be judged on how we responded to God's Spirit in our lives every time His Spirit spoke to our hearts and persuaded us to do the things of the Lord. That is what we will be judged on. Everything that was not of Christ is going to burn, and whatever is left over, the things we did in response to the persuasion of God's Spirit in our lives persuading us to do His will, that will be our reward.

I know this was a little long, but I think this is important. This is a salvation issue. I hope this brings you some comfort. May the Lord continue to work in your heart, may He continue to transform and renew your mind daily through His word, and I pray that He brings comfort to your heart to the loss of your dear sister. It is okay to grieve. Jesus knows what we go through and He says it is okay to grieve. But He says do not be overcome with grief. Please know that you don't have to ask Christ for strength. He is your strength!

11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God,evento them that believe on his name:13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Rev22-14

14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 5For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie

1 corytian 17

Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. 18For the

preaching of the cross is to them that

perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. 20Where is the wise?

Mathiu1:22-25

JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. 24Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him

Peter

20Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.21For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spakeas they

Plasma 88

weremoved by the Holy Ghost.

Song or Psalm for the sons of Korah, to the chief Musician upon Mahalath Leannoth, Maschil of Heman the Ezrahite.) O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee: 2Let my prayer come before thee: incline thi

Good stuff Jesse thanks. I have a question( that might raise multiple other questions) forgive me. In vs 14 of Eph. it says: "which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession," what exactly does that mean? Could I lose the part(earnest) of my inheritance (spirit, Holy Ghost, communion with God, or whatever anyone calls it) Before ( or until ) redemption? I know it says we are sealed but isn't that His promise? What is OUR guarantee to HIM?

Gerald,

I left one thing out. It is His guarantee to us, not the other way around. The only thing He requires from us is faithfulness!

Jesse, No you didn't leave it out I got that part, what I'm asking is if I become faithless or "backslide"(a Biblical term)? Why the parable of the lost coin? or the 10 virgins with oil or (oil that had run out)?

Gerald,

I just re-read your earlier question and it looks like you might be asking if you can lose your salvation? Please correct me if I'm still misunderstanding, but if you've received Christ, He has given you His Spirit (Holy Spirit). His Spirit remains in you. His Spirit will never leave you.

Can you lose your inheritance? I would say no if indeed you belong to Christ. If you have received Christ and been born of His Spirit, you are a child of God. He owns you. He will never leave you. He will never lose you. You have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, and you are now His possession.

Now, it is my understanding that there is no such thing as a believer becoming faithless. I say this because it is the Holy Spirit in us that produces faith. The only way for a believer to become faithless is if the Holy Spirit leaves them, and that's not going to happen. His Spirit will never leave us so it is impossible for a believer to become faithless. As far as the term backsliding, that is not found any place in the New Testament. It is strictly an Old Testament term that applied to the children of Israel.

Gerald,

Ephesians 1:14 says, which (or more literally who) is the earnest (or guarantee) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. There are a lot of words in there, but each phrase is very meaty. It's after we heard, after we believed, we were sealed.

There are different kinds of sealings, even in scripture. A slave was branded. That was called a seal, or sign, or a signant. A fence or a hedge around an area was called sealing off the area. We hear it a lot with the police. They'll seal off an area.

And that's the use here. Let me just share this point with you first. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit. He doesn't give us a seal. He is the seal. He's the mark of ownership and He has sealed me so that no spiritual force or otherwise can penetrate my spirit. I've been sealed. I've been sealed by the Holy Spirit and filled with the Spirit of Christ.

A person who has received Christ has been sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise who is the guarantee of our inheritance. It's nice to know that in the midst of our weaknesses that the presence of God's Spirit is our guarantee, until the redemption of the purchased possession.

In this use of the word redemption, it's making reference to the coming of Christ, when redemption is realized. Redemption means purchased. We've been purchased and we're sitting at the will call window. He hasn't picked us up yet. But when Christ comes, He's going to come for the purchased possession. That's you and me!

You might take note of Ephesians 4:30. It tells us that we are sealed with the Spirit of God "until" Christ comes. I'm preserved. I'm being kept for Christ at His coming. That's my guarantee that I am preserved for Him. Paul gives the doxology at the end of the verse. He says, unto the praise of His glory!

Amen Brother Jesse!!

Thanks and God bless you.

Yours was a very fine response, brother Jesse, sharing what happens at death for the believer, as well as the assurance of his eternal security while on Earth - that security that comes from the Holy Spirit sealing & not from anything that we could ever do. Thank you for taking the time in your busy schedule to share these joyful & comforting Truths to us all.

Brother Chris,

Thank you for those encouraging words!

Jesse!

Thank you! That was the best answer to my question. I am so happy! I believe my sister excepted Jesus into heart heart at an early age. So that means she is with Jesus now. Thank you so much! Now if someone asks me if we go to heaven when we die, I can tell them this. God bless you!

Trisha,

You are very welcome. The only thing I ask is that you take the things I've shared with you and study them out, search the scriptures. Unless the Lord confirms the things I've shared with you, it means nothing. God Bless, and stay strong in Christ Jesus!

Thank you! I will study the scriptures. I notice there was not a Mathew 25 verses 50-52. So I read Mathew 20. I slept well last night knowing my sister is with Jesus

Trisha,

My sincerest apology to you. I should have said Matthew 27:50-53.

Part 2:

So now, what happened to the other section where the Old Testament believers were before Christ came? When Jesus dismissed His Spirit on the cross, He went down and proclaimed the victory. You can read that in Matthew 25:50-53. So now, when a believer dies, they go to be with the Lord.

Another thing to look at is the thief who was crucified next to Jesus. He said to Jesus "Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom." That's all the thief said. There was no sinner's prayer. He did this based on the Lord's mercy. "Lord, remember me. That is all I ask when you come into your kingdom." And the Lord response was "Today, you will be with me in paradise." Wow, today. Not you will go to the grave and have to wait to be with me. Jesus said today!

It is true that we will all have to stand before God and give an account of our lives. Every single person will do that. But for the believer who dies in Christ, we do not wait to be judged before we go to be with the Lord. A believer will not be judged for sin because Christ paid the penalty for our sin. The non-believers are the ones who will be judged for their sin.

Also, there will be two more future resurrections. When Jesus returns for His church, His bride, all those who have died in Christ from the time of His ascension into heaven until the time He comes, they will be resurrected from the grave, not their spirit because their spirit went to be with the Lord, but their body will be raised from the grave, and it will be a glorified, incorruptible body, and their spirit will rejoin that body and be forever with the Lord. Again, the non-believing dead will not be resurrected at this time. They will be resurrected after the thousand years, they will be judged for their sin, and they will be eternally separated from Christ.

I am going to need one more post.......

Jesse The Church of God in the Church epistles is the body of Christ which started day of pentecost in Ephesians 3:4-6 verse 6 That the Gentiles should be Fellow heirs of the same body. In the 4 Gospels all the context of when the bridegroom is mentioned the context is the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

In the Gospel of John 3:26-30 in that context Jesus Christ is called by John the Baptist the bride groom Israel that rejected him was the bride. That's my understanding.

Hi George,

I received an email from this website this morning that you posted a question to me. I cannot find your post, but this was what the email said:

"Jesse If the bridegroom is the church why is it never called that in the Church epistles and why is the bridegroom most mentioned in the context of the gospels."

My answer would be that I did not say that the church was the bridegroom. I said that Jesus Christ is the bridegroom. Did you read my post carefully? If you can find where I said that the church is the bridegroom then I will admit my error because that is not what I believe. If I said that, then I apologize, but can you please tell me where I said the church is the bridegroom? Thank you!

George,

I agree. The church is made up of every believer who has been born of God's Spirit, both Jew and Gentile alike. The church is the body of Christ. And yes, Jesus Christ is the bridegroom, I agree. I am reading over the verses in John's gospel that you listed ( John 3:26-30), and what I take away from this section after getting to verse 29, John is basically saying "I'm just the friend. I bring the bride and bridegroom together, the bride being the church, and the bridegroom being Christ.

Jesse Saw the comment thought i would give my perspective the way I understand it Christ is the head of the Body of Christ and He was the Bride Groom in the Gospels and Israel was the bride, like I said that's my perspective. In His Service

Rick,

Thanks for sharing that. I agree, Christ is the head of the body, and I agree that He is the bridegroom. As for the bride, when Christ comes for His bride, I see it as Him coming for His church. I see the church, the body of Christ being His bride.

Again, thanks for sharing your perspective!

Trisha,

This may be a little long but I think what I have to share with you is important and might bring some comfort to your heart. I am going to break this up into hopefully two parts so please bear with me.

Part 1:

My apology for not responding sooner. I am retired military and I still work for the military as a civilian. My day at work today has been a little crazy so I have not had a chance to respond. First off, I am so sorry to hear about you losing your dear sister. I know that has to be tough. The only comfort that can be found is in knowing that if she received Christ into her life, she is now with Him. I'll try my best here to explain why I believe we go to be with the Lord immediately after death.

When a person dies, their physical body is buried in the grave, but their spirit goes to be with the Lord. This was not the case before Jesus came. Their body was still buried, their spirit still departed the body, but they didn't go immediately to be with Jesus. Before Jesus came, when people died, their physical bodies were buried in the grave, but their spirit departed the body and went to a place that was divided into two sections, one for the Old Testament saints, and one for the lost. You can read about this in Luke 16:19-31.

Today this place still exists, but only now, there are no believers there, only the unsaved. There are no longer two sections there, but one. And that one section is only non-believers who have died without God in their lives. They will remain there until after the one-thousand year reign of Christ, and then they will be released during that resurrection, judged at what is called the Great White Throne Judgement, and then cast into the lake of fire. No believer will be at that judgment.

I will continue with a Part 2....

We won't know until we are in the afterlife ourselves. No one goes to heaven until they are judged on the day of judgment and that doesn't happen until Jesus comes and the dead rise. Until then the dead remain in sleep. Link

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

1 Corinthians 15:6

Matthew 27:52

John 11:11-14