Graftedbranc Member
Joined: 2005/11/8 Posts: 619
| Re: | | Quote:
This is pre-ascention. Captivity has now been taken captive, all believers go to heaven to be with the Lord.
That is an interesting speculation built on some's interpretation of Leading captivity captive. But this verse means that those who were held captive by Satan have been captivated by Christ and are given as gifts to the Church, Ie. apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepards/teachers, etc.
No where in scripture is Paradise said to be a place of "captivity". Paul also in 2 Corinthians said he was caught away into the third heaven and also "caught away into Paradise" showing Paradise still exists and it is separate from "the third heaven".
Ephesians 4:8-12 "Therefore the Scripture says, "Having ascended to the height, He led captive those taken captive and gave gifts to men... And He Himself gave some as apostles, some as prophets, etc... for the perfecting of the saints unto the work of the ministry..."
In Acts 2:25 It says"
Whom God has raised up, having loosed the pangs of death, since it was not possible for Him to be held by it. For David says regarding Him, "I saw the Lord continually before me, because He is on My right hand, that I may not be shaken... because You will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor will You permit your Holy One to see corruption..."
Men, brothers, I can say to you plainly concerning the patriarch David that he is both deceased and was buried, and his tomb is among us until this day... He seing this beforehand spoke concerning the resurrection of Christ, that neither was He abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.
vs 34, "For David did not ascend into the heavens... "
Peter spoke these words after Christ's ascenssion and He says, "David did not ascend to the heavens. " In fact the plain implications of Peter's words are, "David is still dead, David is still in the grave, and David is still in Hades, but Christ is resurrected, Christ is ascended, Christ did not remain in Hades, etc. Hades is where you stay till you are resurrected and only Christ thus far is resurrected.
David is still in the grave bodily and his soul is still in Paradise awaiting the resurrection of his body in the Day of the Lord.
His spirit is one with the Lord Jesus and the Lord Jesus indwells him, but locality wise he is in Paradise as are all the redeemed, regenerated belivers awaiting the resurrection when the "dead in Christ shall rise first..." and be caught up together with those who are alive and remain and thus ascend to the Lord in the air to ever be with the Lord.
We are all (believers), even now "in Christ in the heavenlies. We are one spirit with the Lord Jesus who is asceneded. "Ye died and your life is hid with Christ in God, when Christ who is our life is revealed, you also shall be revealed with Him in Glory...
But our soul today, though our spirit is one with the ascened Christ, is still in our mortal bodies. and It will decend into Paradise at our physical death. Our spirit is one with the Ascended Lord and we enjoy Him as our Life both now and to a greater degree in Paradise, but not until our soul is reunited with our resurrected, glorified bodies will we ascend to meet Christ in the Air. And this is future. Christ has physically ascended and we also will physically ascend to meet Him.
It is just fanciful tradition which says, "you either go to heaven or hell when you die. That is just not what the scriptures teach. YOu don't go to heaven if you are a believer and you don't go to "hell" if you are not. Rather if you are a believer you're body goes into the grave and your soul enters paradise to await the resurrection at Christ's comming.
If you are an unbeliever, you decened into hades into torments to await the resurrection of the lost for the last judgement prior to being cast into the lake of fire in the last day.
These are solomn words but true words.
Graftedbranch
Graftedbranch
|
|