I was just watching the movie “Ghost” with Donna the other night, and at the end of the movie, when his girlfriend sees him as he goes up into the lights where all the people come to greet him, I thought to myself:
“What a bunch of hooey!”
If you prefer to watch a video, click on this link: Watch the video.
Heaven exists, alright, but that is where God and the (aptly named) heavenly beings live. But not us: not now, not then, not never.
When we read the prophetic parts of the Bible that talk about the Acharit haYamim, the End Days, and what happens after this life, we aren’t walking around on the clouds in heaven, earning our wings (did you hear a bell ring?) and playing lyres.
No. When we die, we sleep, and then we come to judgement; and, if we have accepted Yeshua as our Messiah, through his sacrifice we have the opportunity to be forgiven of the sins we have committed throughout our life, and as such, get to be in God’s presence, forever.
That is, assuming we have constantly asked for forgiveness (by means of Yeshua’s sacrifice) and done our very best to be obedient to God’s instructions for righteousness. Which, for the record, are not found in the New Covenant, or even in the books after Deuteronomy- the instructions God gave us for how he wants us to worship him and how to treat each other are found in only one place in the entire Bibel, and that is in the Torah (the first 5 books).
According to Revelation, after the Apocalypse is over, the Enemy and his minions are all swimming in the Lake of Fire, and the new earth has been created, that is where we will be. We will be able to worship in the temple, the Messiah will rule, and God’s spirit will be with us, providing eternal light.
Religion has, amongst its many other lies, misled people into thinking that when we die, we go to heaven, where all our loved ones (already there waiting for us) will meet us, and we will be forever happy. It is a very pleasant image, but it is unsubstantiated by what the Bible tells us.
What it is, in reality, is a marketing plan to get people to join that religion.
Judaism is not innocent of this, either. In fact, within Judaic mythology there are 7 levels of heaven! (Talmud Tractate Chagigah 12 b)
So, the next time you get all teary-eyed thinking of how wonderful it will be to see all your loved ones when you die and go to heaven, take a deep breath and get a hold of yourself, because that ain’t gonna happen.
What you need to do is realize that odds are those who you keep telling yourself are watching over you from heaven are not in heaven, they’re sleeping, and maybe they won’t even get to be on the nice side of that chasm Yeshua talked about in his drash regarding Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19-31).
It is not a happy thought, but the truth is that the road to salvation is a narrow one, and the gate is hard to get through. Most everyone we have known and loved, especially those who have been misled by Christian-generated lies about not having to obey the Torah, are probably going to need a gallon of SPF 50,000 lotion instead of waiting in line to be fitted for a pair of wings.
I am not saying this to be cruel or to upset you, but if you continue to believe in a lie that leads you away from proper worship, it is necessary to use the rod instead of the hook, because your religion has already hooked you.
That old adage, “There must be a heaven because it’s hell here on earth!” is true, but no one goes to heaven after they die. At least, that’s what the Bible says, so you get to choose who to believe: your man-made religious fantasies or what we are told in the Bible.
That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and (an early) Shabbat Shalom!
