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What will we be doing in Heaven?
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When we get to Heaven, what will
we be doing? Will we be just sitting around, praising God all the
time? Will we be in just one location around God? Sitting around the throne? How will we
travel? I think we
should use a little common sense about this, since there's no scriptures that actually
reveal exactly what we'll be doing. In fact the Bible reveals
just the opposite. Probably the reason for this is with our limited
mental capacity in the flesh, we couldn't understand it anyway.
(Isa 64:4) For since the beginning of the world men have
not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what
he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him. (1 Cor 13:12) For now we see through a glass, darkly; but
then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
It's hard for us to envision a lot of things while
we're in the flesh, but when we're with Him we'll see clearly. One thing for sure, we will be with God.
At least the over comers.
(Rev 22:12) And, behold, I come
quickly; and my reward[1] is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
1 "REWARD": 3408. misthos, mis-thos'; appar. a prim.
word; pay for service (lit. or fig.), good or bad:--hire, reward, wages.
(John 14:3) And if
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that
where I am, there ye may be also. Let us
lay a little ground work first.
Where is Heaven and where is God?
Heaven is where ever God is and God is everywhere.
The next few verses tell where God is.
(Psa 113:5) Who is like unto the LORD our God, who
dwelleth on high,
(Psa 115:3) But our God is in the heavens: he hath done
whatsoever he hath pleased.
(Isa 33:5) The LORD is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with
judgment and righteousness.
(Isa 8:18) Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for
wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.
(Psa 135:21) Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which
dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the
LORD.
Psa 139:8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in
hell, behold, thou art there.
Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will
fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
(1 Cor 3:16) Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you?
God even dwells in us. The next two verses give a
good description of just where God is and how He can be closer than a brother to
all, all the time.
Jer 23:23 Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and
not a God afar[1] off?
[1] H7368; remote, lit. or fig., of place or
time; spec. precious; often used adv. (with prep.):--(a-) far (abroad, off),
long ago, of old, space, great while to come.
Jer 23:24 Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the
LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD.
Always keep in mind these two verses just
above. Jer. 23:23 - 24. If God is never far off, and He fills both the heavens and
the earth, then are the heavens and the earth apart? Nothing is far away from God.
The stars, galaxies, etc. just seem so far away to us. That's because we're in this
limited version of life, called the flesh. Remove the flesh and we're with God. See
2 Co. 5:8, where it states, to be absent from this body is to be present with the
Lord. When we're present with the Lord, then there's nothing that's far away from
us either. Where ever God is we will be. Do a little study on the word air in 1st.
Thessalonians 4:17. Learn exactly what it means. Be sure to check out the word,
(circumambient). According to Webster's dictionary (English) it is actually 2 words, circum and ambient. Check it out for your self. To me it describes just how close
our encounter is going with Jesus, when He returns. Every thing is close, very
close. When we start talking about travel, time, speed, and distance, remember,
there is nothing far away.
God shall set up His headquarters here on earth.
(Rev 21:1) And I saw a new[1] heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
See Isa 65:17 where the word new traced to its prime
is to renew or rebuild. See Eccl 1:11.
1 "NEW": 2537. kainos, kahee-nos'; of uncert. affin.;
new (espec. in freshness;
while G3501 is prop. so with respect to age):--new.
3501. neos, neh'-os; includ. the comp. neoteros, neh-o'-ter-os; a prim. word; "new",
i.e. (of persons) youthful, or (of things) fresh; fig. regenerate:--new, young.
(Rev 21:2) And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
This is just one city. There will be more.
(Rev 21:3) And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God
is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself
shall be with them, and be their God.
What is God?
(Gen 17:1) And when Abram was ninety years old and nine,
the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me,
and be thou perfect.
Gen 31:50 If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside
my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and thee.
Deu 4:24 For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.
(Num 27:16) Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the
congregation,
(Mark 12:27) He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the
living: ye therefore do greatly err.
(John 4:24) God is a Spirit[1]: and they that worship him must
worship him in spirit and in truth.
1 "SPIRIT": 4151. pneuma, pnyoo'-mah; from G4154; a
current of air, i.e. breath (blast) or a breeze; by anal. or fig. a spirit, i.e.
(human) the rational soul, (by impl.) vital principle, mental disposition, etc., or
(superhuman) an angel, daemon, or (divine) God, Christ's spirit, the Holy
Spirit:--ghost, life, spirit (-ual, -ually), mind. Comp. G5590.
I have inserted just a few scriptures that tell what God is.
There are many more.
As Christ Himself said. God is a spirit. He's in the air. Like the air, He's
everywhere. How does God travel?
God I'm sure doesn't need vehicles to get around. Even though the
next few verses describes what we today would call a flying saucer or an
unidentified flying object. The universe is a big place by our standards, but I'm
sure God can travel throughout in no time at all. He and those in that world can be
any place at any time. There is no time there, as we know time, and time as we know
it was created for this earth age. See Gen 1:14, and in Rev 10:6 where time as we know it
will cease.
How can God maintain control of all things?
The universe is a big place. Some stars and
galaxies are billions of light years away. God must be able to travel at speeds far
greater than the speed of light. At just beyond the speed of light, travel in
time is possible. God is perfect and all he does is perfect, but man in the
flesh isn't. Just suppose there was a need for maintenance, (correction as you go),
God could be at any point in time for any reason. Personally I believe it's
His natural state of being. Every where at any point in time, at any time.
I'm using the word time here a lot to emphasize that there is no such thing
as time with God, not as we know time. With God I'm sure there is a
better description of what I'm trying to say, but with my feeble mind, I'm stuck
with the word time. Whatever that word is, the meaning of it must be
something like, it's inclusive of all time, having no bounds or limits, and
one is able to be in control of all time, at the same time. With that
ability, maintenance of things would be no problem. Easy to prevent unwanted things
from happening. Easy to look into the future etc. We now live in an imperfect world.
One with time. The world we'll be in throughout eternity is perfect. No
need for time. Time to us in the flesh is precious. I guess because we
have so little of it. I've included
the next three verses about time because being in the flesh as we are,
time limits
us in our travels.
Here God created time as we know it, (for this earth age).
(Gen 1:14) And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the
heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and
for days, and years: Here, time as we know it, (this flesh age), is
destroyed. (Rev 10:5) And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea
and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
(Rev 10:6) And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the
things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea,
and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
Time is temporary, and it isn't going to be
around much longer. Again I have time in bold characters to emphasize the
importance that it is short. What about
speed? Speed = distance over time. If there is no time, then there is
no speed, at which to travel. So then exactly what is travel? In our world, (this
flesh age), it's easy to describe, because we have time. If there is no
time, then there's no speed nor is there distance. At least not as we know it.
We're stuck in this flesh body for a little while with all it's limitations and
weaknesses. Time to us is past, present, and future. If
there is no time, then there's no past or future, just present.
We can only know travel as it is in this world. It must be something else in the
next world. I have heard it said, that all God has to do is think it, and He's there.
I tend to agree. I guess we could call this Godspeed. A doctor told me one time, (he wasn't talking about me), that our
mind was a powerful thing. It can put our bodies into any state of being, you
desire. Maybe there, our minds will take us any where we want to go. In the spirit world, if we're going to travel it has to be in the
present tense. Meaning it doesn't take any time to get there. We tend to
think of things, (stars, galaxies, etc.), to be far away. It simply is not so. What
time zone are we in? The temporary time zone. There'll be no need for
clocks where we're going. With all this rambling on about time, I guess what
I'm really trying to say, is time is no big deal with God.
So much for time.
Now back to travel.
With the above in mind. God must have created a
way for Him, and others with Him, to travel while visiting this imperfect world of
ours. Not that he needed it, but probably just to demonstrate to mankind something
in a way that we just maybe could grow to understand a little. God does describe
travel. See below.
(Psa 18:9) He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was
under his feet.
(Psa 18:10) And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of
the wind.
I've listed the next several verses that describe the
vehicles seen by Ezekiel, because he goes into great detail, and it's fascinating.
One of them even had God's Throne and God on board. Probably one of the ways we'll
travel, when we get there. We will be traveling you know. The universe is a big
place. God shares his creation with us. I'm using the word travel only
because that's is the only word I know to describe what it is we'll be doing when
we get there.
(Ezek 1:2) In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of
king Jehoiachin's captivity,
(Ezek 1:3) The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi,
in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there
upon him.
(Ezek 1:4) And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud,
and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof
as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.
(Ezek 1:5) Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And
this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.
Remember, we were made in the image of God and the angels.
(Ezek 1:6) And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.
(Ezek 1:7) And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the
sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass.
(Ezek 1:8) And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and
they four had their faces and their wings.
(Ezek 1:9) Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they
went every one straight forward.
(Ezek 1:10) As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the
face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side;
they four also had the face of an eagle.
(Ezek 1:11) Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of
every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.
(Ezek 1:12) And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they
went; and they turned not when they went.
(Ezek 1:13) As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like
burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the
living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.
(Ezek 1:14) And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of
lightning.
Fast, very fast.
(Ezek 1:15) Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the
living creatures, with his four faces.
(Ezek 1:16) The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a
beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it
were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.
(Ezek 1:17) When they went, they went upon their four sides: and they turned not when
they went.
(Ezek 1:18) As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their
rings were full of eyes round about them four.
(Ezek 1:19) And when the living creatures went, the wheels went by them: and when the
living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.
(Ezek 1:20) Whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went, thither was their spirit to
go; and the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living
creature was in the wheels.
(Ezek 1:21) When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when
those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up over against them: for
the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.
(Ezek 1:22) And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature was
as the colour of the terrible crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.
(Ezek 1:23) And under the firmament were their wings straight, the one toward the other:
every one had two, which covered on this side, and every one had two, which covered on
that side, their bodies.
(Ezek 1:24) And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of
great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of an
host: when they stood, they let down their wings.
(Ezek 1:25) And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when
they stood, and had let down their wings.
(Ezek 1:26) And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a
throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was
the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.
(Ezek 1:27) And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about
within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his
loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness
round about.
(Ezek 1:28) As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was
the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of
the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of
one that spake.
(Ezek 2:1) And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto
thee.
God Himself, came in a vehicle and was talking to Ezekiel.
(Ezek 2:2) And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my
feet, that I heard him that spake unto me.
(Ezek 2:3) And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a
rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have
transgressed against me, even unto this very day.
Let's look at some more verses that describe
some vehicles.
(2 Ki 6:14) Therefore sent he thither horses, and
chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
(2 Ki 6:15) And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth,
behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said
unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?
(2 Ki 6:16) And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that
be with them.
(2 Ki 6:17) And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may
see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the
mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
I think these horses and chariots of fire were like the
vehicles Ezekiel explained so well. Certainly makes any vehicles we have today seem
to be quite outdated.
Will we travel beyond the earth? (Gen 1:26) And
God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air[1], and over the cattle, and over
all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
1 "AIR": 8064. shamayim, shaw-mah'-yim; dual of an unused sing.
shameh, shaw-meh'; from an unused root mean. to be lofty; the sky (as aloft; the
dual perh. alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to
the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve):--air, X astrologer, heaven
(-s). Note the meaning of the word air. Could this mean that
mankind is to have dominion of outer space also? We've put men on the moon,
vehicles on mars, and spaceships, throughout space. Imagine what we'll be able to
do in the spirit, without time and conditional limitations. Man has always ventured
out to the unknown, even in the flesh.
What will we be doing there?
We must look at what's going on there now and has
been going on in times past. All throughout the Bible it is written of angels who
visit people here on earth. The first is in Gen 16:7. Note the Strong's meaning of
the word angel. This angel had a job to do. He sure wasn't setting around all the
time.
(Gen 16:7) And the angel[1] of the LORD found her by a
fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
1 "ANGEL": 4397. mal'ak, mal-awk'; from an unused
root mean. to despatch as a deputy; a messenger; spec. of God, i.e. an angel (also a
prophet, priest or teacher):--ambassador, angel, king, messenger.
Gen 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and
Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed
himself with his face toward the ground;
We all have heard the story of Sodom and
Gomorrah, and how God destroyed those cities.
Gen 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on
the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending
and descending on it.
Gen 28:13 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham
thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it,
and to thy seed;
Angels of God on a ladder. What a job, and God Himself talking to
Jacob.
(Dan 6:22) My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the
lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found
in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.
This angel appears to have a little tougher job.
With their supernatural ability I'm sure it wasn't a big task for him. The next
angel it appears had a much tougher job, because he had to struggle with the
supernatural before he made his visit to Daniel.
(Dan 10:4) And in the four and twentieth day of the first
month, as I was by the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel;
(Dan 10:5) Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in
linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz:
(Dan 10:6) His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of
lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to
polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.
(Dan 10:7) And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the
vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.
(Dan 10:8) Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no
strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no
strength.
(Dan 10:9) Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words,
then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground.
(Dan 10:10) And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the
palms of my hands.
(Dan 10:11) And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words
that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had
spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.
(Dan 10:12) Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou
didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words
were heard, and I am come for thy words.
(Dan 10:13) But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days:
but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with
the kings of Persia.
Quite a job. Even for an angel. Let's look at
another job for an angel.
Dan 3:23 And these three men,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery
furnace.
Dan 3:24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and
said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?
They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.
Dan 3:25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the
fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
This job, Jesus himself did. Walked right into the
fiery furnace. But Jesus himself hadn't been born yet, but Nebuchadnezzar recognized
him? Some jobs that
angels have done and are doing now go unreported. I believe this
next verse verifies that.
Heb 13:2 Be not forgetful to
entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels
unawares. Psa 103:20 Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in
strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.
Angels do the commandments of God. Our whole duty
on this earth is to do the commandments of God. Note the next verse.
Eccl 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole
matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
The angel Gabriel's duties (Dan
8:16) And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said,
Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.
(Dan 9:21) Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had
seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the
time of the evening oblation.
(Luke 1:19) And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in
the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad
tidings.
(Luke 1:26) And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a
city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
(Luke 1:27) To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David;
and the virgin's name was Mary.
The angel Michael
Some kind of jobs Michael and Gabriel has had and have now.
Dan 10:21 But I will show thee that which is noted in
the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but
Michael your prince.
Dan 12:1 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
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.
Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed
about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The
Lord rebuke thee.
Rev 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the
dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
Rev 12:8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and
Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels
were cast out with him.
We can have the same power over Satan that
Michael has. Jesus himself has said so. Who is our number one enemy? Satan,
and one of his names is that ole serpent.
Luke 10:19 Behold, I give unto
you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the
enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Psa 78:25 Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat
to the full.
Angel's food? Will we be eating in Heaven? We were
made in their image!
War in Heaven?
What a thing to be going on there.
I believe this is the war described in Revelation 12:7. Remember
Daniel's vision was for the future. In the latter days. See the next verse. This is
some of what's going on in Heaven. Remember there's no time as we know it in
Heaven. I think the angel did what we would call a time travel to come to Daniel.
Notice how just being in the presence of the supernatural affected Daniel. And some
of our super preachers of today have the gall to say so casually, God spoke to me
today, or something along those lines. I have inserted Rev 12:7 next because I
believe it is the war the angel was talking about.
(Rev 12:7) And there was war in heaven: Michael and his
angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
(Dan 10:14) Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the
latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.
(Dan 10:15) And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground,
and I became dumb.
(Dan 10:16) And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched my lips:
then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto him that stood before me, O my lord, by
the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I have retained no strength.
(Dan 10:17) For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord? for as for
me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither is there breath left in me.
(Dan 10:18) Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of a man, and
he strengthened me,
(Dan 10:19) And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong,
yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my
lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.
(Dan 10:20) Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return
to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia
shall come.
(Dan 10:21) But I will show thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and
there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.
Good ole Michael. He's the one who'll kick Satan
from Heaven. See Revelation 12:7.
We don't know who this next messenger, (or angel), was,
but he must have lived in the flesh also. Maybe as we get there, we take on some of
these duties.
(Rev 22:8) And I John saw these things, and heard them.
And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which
showed me these things.
(Rev 22:9) Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of
thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
(Psa 91:11) For he shall give his angels charge[1] over thee, to keep
thee in all thy ways.
1 "CHARGE": 6680. tsavah, tsaw-vaw'; a prim. root;
(intens.) to constitute, enjoin:--apppoint, (for-) bid. (give a) charge, (give a,
give in, send with) command (-er, ment), send a messenger, put, (set) in order.
Throughout the Bible God has sent angels to do a task. As the angel told John, I
am thy fellowservant and of the prophets. Meaning He had lived in the flesh but
was now in the spirit and doing whatever God wanted him to. People there are busy
and productive.
The next two verses proves that people in Heaven
are aware of their life in the flesh. This is something that's going on in Heaven
now. Note these people are not in a hole in the ground. They're right under the
alter of God in Heaven.
(Rev 6:9) And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw
under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the
testimony which they held:
(Rev 6:10) 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?
The next verses show that peoples of all types will be there and
giving glory to God. This will be going on there.
(Rev 21:24) And the nations[1] of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it:
and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
1 "NATIONS": 1484. ethnos, eth'-nos; prob. from
G1486; a race (as of the same habit), i.e. a tribe; spec. a foreign (non-Jewish) one
(usually by impl. pagan):--Gentile, heathen, nation, people.
(Isa 18:7) In that time shall the present be brought unto
the LORD of hosts of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people terrible from
their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden under foot, whose land the
rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, the mount Zion.
I think this to be the United States. When Jesus
returns we'll pay homage to Him in mount Zion. Read all of Isa. chapter 18 for
further clarification.
(Rev 21:1) And I saw a new[1] heaven and a new earth: for
the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
1 "NEW": 2537. kainos, kahee-nos'; of uncert. affin.;
new (espec. in freshness; while G3501 is prop. so with respect to age):--new.
3501. neos, neh'-os; includ. the comp. neoteros, neh-o'-ter-os; a prim. word; "new",
i.e. (of persons) youthful, or (of things) fresh; fig. regenerate:--new, young.
(Isa 65:17) For, behold, I create new[1] heavens and a
new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
1 "NEW": 2319. chadash, khaw-dawsh'; from H2318;
new:--fresh, new thing. H2318. chadash, khaw-dash'; a prim. root; to be new; caus.
to rebuild:--renew, repair.
(Isa 61:1) The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because
the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind
up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison
to them that are bound;
Jesus quoted the first half of
the next verse. See Luke 4:19.
(Isa 61:2) To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD,
and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
(Isa 61:3) To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes,
the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that
they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be
glorified.
(Isa 61:4) And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former
desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many
generations.
What former desolations and what waste cities?
Certainly not the ones made by flesh man. They're too perishable. Actually God is
going to destroy all of them and that system. Never to be anymore. Read 2 Pet 3:10
where it describes that. You may have to use the Strong's dictionary, but you will
see. Are we going to rebuild this earth? I think so.
Why not, we messed it up. Just like a parent telling their kids to clean their room.
The Holy city Jerusalem described in Revelation is just one city. Read of it's
splendor and characteristics. A fifteen hundred mile cube. There will be more
cities. Where are these former things written of in God's word? The desolate places
and wasted cities. Let's go to Jeremiah chapter 4.
(Jer 4:19) My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very
heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O
my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
(Jer 4:20) Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled:
suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.
(Jer 4:21) How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?
(Jer 4:22) For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children,
and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no
knowledge.
(Jer 4:23) I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens,
and they had no light.
See Geneses 1:2 for this destruction.
(Jer 4:24) I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they
trembled, and all the hills moved lightly.
(Jer 4:25) I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were
fled.
Even the heavens were destroyed. This wasn't
Noah's flood. The next verse is why we came here.
(Jer 4:26) I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a
wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and
by his fierce anger.
See Isa 14: 13 thru 17 where it states who
caused this. Satan. At Noah's flood God did not seem to be mad just disappointed.
See Isa 61:4 where we shall rebuild this earth and it's cities.
(Jer 4:27) For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land
shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.
God did lay the whole earth desolate. See Gen 1:2.
(Jer 4:28) For this shall the earth mourn, and the
heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not
repent, neither will I turn back from it.
The cities at this time, and this time had to be before this
flesh age, they really had to be something. Read in Revelation about the New city
Jerusalem. I think that would give a good representation.
You know the apostle Paul was taken to the third heaven, (or heavenly
age). There he heard things unlawful for him to talk about. What all did he hear and
what all did he see? Well I guess we'll just have to wait. Sounds exciting to me.
What might we be doing in Heaven?
We can only speculate but some things to think about.
Certainly one, would be restoring this earth to it's original state, prior to this
flesh age, that we've polluted so much. The next few verses say a lot.
(Gen 11:4) And they said, Go to, let us build us a
city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be
scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
(Gen 11:5) And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of
men builded.
(Gen 11:6) And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and
they have all one language;
and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained
from them, which they have imagined
to do.
If in the flesh, mankind can do all he imagines
by being of the same mind and understanding, Just imagine all the possibilities in a
spiritual, (supernatural), body.
(Gen 2:1) Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the
host[1] of them.
1 "HOST": 6635. tsaba', tsaw-baw'; or (fem.) tseba'ah,
tseb-aw-aw'; from H6633; a mass of persons (or fig. things), espec. reg. organized
for war (an army); by impl. a campaign, lit. or fig. (spec. hardship,
worship):--appointed time, (+) army, (+) battle, company, host, service, soldiers,
waiting upon, war (-fare). Look at the meaning of the word host in Strong's
H6635. Were we put here to do battle? Is God putting our souls into extreme
conditions for training? Extreme, considering we came from there in the first place.
Like a basic training camp. There is no flesh in Heaven so any war there cannot be
war as we know it. In the eternity there'll be no war or anything to offend.
When I say we came from there in the first place, I guess I should document that.
Look at the next verse.
John 3:13 And no man hath
ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is
in heaven. (Eph 6:11) Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be
able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
(Eph 6:12) For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places.
(Eph 6:13) Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
(Zec 14:2) For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall
be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go
forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
(Zec 14:3) Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he
fought in the day of battle.
There's a lot in the Bible concerning war. Just
maybe after Satan rebelled, God put us here to get it out of our system. Cleaning up
our act before we get back with Him.
(Isa 64:4) For since the beginning of the world men have
not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what
he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
What ever God has in store for us and intends for us to be doing requires true love
and dedication on our part. Those who cannot measure up, just simply wont be there. In
Hosea 6:6 it states that He wants our love and for us to get to know Him. He's going to
have it. If you get to know Him, you will love Him. There's lots of scripture on
warfare in the Bible. Warfare is usually the ultimate test for mankind's survival from
the enemy. I'm not suggesting that there'll be war in Heaven after the great white throne
judgment, I'm sure there wont be, I'm just saying we're going through a lot of training
for something. Just look around, God has made a great universe
and it's huge by any standard. It has moving parts and they just fly around all over
the place. Things require maintenance. Maybe that will be one of our duties. God doesn't
like lazy people, (sluggards). I know God can handle it all, after all he did make it. I know all things are possible with God, but maybe he just wants some loved
ones around to share in all the pleasure. He made all things for his pleasure. Whatever
we'll be doing will certainly bring Him pleasure, and us to. Just think of the most
pleasurable moment of your whole life and it will pale in comparison to the pleasure we'll have. Being pleased in this natural state is nice. One can't imagine pleasure of a
Supernatural kind. What will we be doing
in Heaven? When God gets through testing us, molding us, and sorting out the ones
that can't cut it, there's no telling what all we'll be doing. Remember this verse.
Gen 11:6 And the LORD said, Behold,
the people is one, and they have all one language;
and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have
imagined to do.
When I was just a child,
I heard this little saying. The imagination is the greatest nation of all. In Heaven we'll all, have the same desire. To please the
Almighty God. I'm sure we'll be
doing that, and doing it well.
I said earlier that
there wasn't too much written about what we would be doing in Heaven. That was an
inaccurate statement. There's lot's of information in God's word telling us. We just
have to remove the blinders so we can see. There's enough to make one want to go.
Thanks, for allowing me, to share
this with you. Remember, to always, study to show thyself approved unto God, a
workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto
more ungodliness.
In His Word,
Art Porter
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