Problem 23 - That Jesus taught Israel that they would go to heaven when they die

PROBLEM NO. 23 --THAT JESUS TAUGHT DURING HIS EARIHLY MINISTRY THAT BELIEVERS IN HIM WOULD GO TO HEAVEN WHEN THEY DIED

John, chapter 3, is usually given as the basis for this misleading idea. The Gospel of John is supposed to be very different from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. The theology of John and Paul are supposed to be the same; that is, they are to supplement each other. John, chapter 3, is supposed to present the Gospel of the grace of God. The 'Kingdom of God' in John 3:3,5 is supposed to be spiritual' and stands for 'heaven' itself.

THE TRUTH

The third chapter of John is probably the most familiar chapter in the Bible. This is due to the evangelists who preach repeatedly from this portion of Scripture and preach salvation for today out of it.

John 3 deals with Nicodemus coming to Jesus at night and conversing with Him about the Kingdom of God. Twice Jesus said to him that he had to be 'born again' (John 3:3,7). Jesus also spoke about 'seeing' the Kingdom of God and 'entering' into the Kingdom of God (verses 3,5).

I am not going to go into all the details here, but we need to look at verse 12 because it supplies the key to a right understanding of this passage: "If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?"

There are two 'ifs' in this verse which come from two different Greek words - EI and EAV. The first 'if' comes from EI, which can mean 'since' when it is used of a fulfilled condition, such as here in this verse. The second 'if' comes from EAV, which always means 'if' because the subjunctive mood (which is represented by EAV) speaks of a possibility, and so the words 'should,' 'could,' and 'maybe' are used with it. Then the translation of verse 12 is: "Since I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I should tell you heavenly things?" This is much clearer and indicates that the Lord was speaking about earthly things to Nicodemus. This would naturally include the 'Kingdom of God' mentioned in verses 3 and 5.

The Jewish people were rightly looking for an earthly Kingdom which would be ruled over by their Messiah (Zech. 14:9; Jer. 23:5-6; Dan. 7:13-14; 2:44; Psalm 2:6-9). They were not ignorant of the Old Testament promises of this Kingdom.

Now Acts 2 and Covenant theology brethren believe that the 'Kingdom of God' here in chapter 3 is just another term for 'heaven.' But this is wrong, for Jesus NEVER taught during His earthly ministry that believers would go to heaven when they died. The Kingdom of God is not 'heaven' in the teachings of Judaism but is related to the earth. The phrase 'Kingdom of heaven' found only in Matthew's Gospel indicates that this Kingdom comes down from God in heaven, and it can be demonstrated that this 'Kingdom' does indeed have some 'heavenly' features. Peter said that their inheritance (which is the Kingdom) is reserved in heaven for them (1 Peter 1:4); hence, the term 'Kingdom of heaven' used by Matthew. Jesus promised the earthly Kingdom of God to those who believed His words. After being 'born again' they were qualified to 'enter' this Kingdom and to 'see' this Kingdom.

So what about heaven? The following information is taken from my booklet 'Christianity Is,' pages 29-30:

"The Jewish believers were not promised heaven as a final place of abode. There is not one Scripture that teaches that those saved under the Gospel of the Kingdom would go to heaven when they died. (The Kingdom of heaven is not Heaven itself). The Greek word for 'heaven' is used about 147 times in the four Gospels, and is broken down into the following categories:

1. Kingdom of heaven - 33 times

2. God the Father in heaven - 18 times

3. Treasures in heaven 6 times

4. The actual heavens 90 times

This is the way the word 'heaven' must be understood in the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

"The only beings spoken of as going to heaven or being in heaven are the Lord Jesus and the angels. Everlasting life, promised to Jewish believers according to the Gospel of the Kingdom, will be spent on the earth, beginning with the Millennium, which in turn will be replaced with the NEW EARTH of Revelation 21 and 22. The 'treasure,' 'reward,' and 'names' written down in heaven are in relation to the Millennial Kingdom. When Christ comes back to reign, He will bring His reward with Him: "And behold, I come quickly, and MY REWARD IS WITH ME, to give every man according as his work shall be" (Revelation 22:12).

"The reason for the Gospel of the grace of God is to prepare sinners, Jews and Gentiles, for HEAVEN itself. Paul got a glimpse of the place where God dwells (2 Cor. 12:1-4). No wonder he wanted to depart and be with Christ, which is far BETTER (Philippians 1:23). To die is gain. Absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Our conversation (citizenship) is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). 'When Christ our life shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him IN GLORY' (Colossians 3:4). All of God's people in the Bible have everlasting life, but we are not all going to spend eternity in the same place. The Body of Christ, God's one true Church in this Dispensation, has the highest position of all the redeemed in the Bible. We are seated together with Him IN THE HEAVENLIES (Ephesians 2:6). Praise the Lord!"

The Apostle Paul is the only writer in the Bible who can direct us to heaven. His Gospel, which is called 'my Gospel' three times in the New Testament (Rom. 2:16; 16:25; 2 Tim. 2:8) is the ONLY MESSAGE FROM GOD that prepares sinners for heaven. My friend, I hope you have believed it in your heart (Rom. 10:9-10).

By Robert C. Brock