Friday, November 16, 2012

The Believer's Three Trips to Heaven

If you are truly saved, you know that at death your soul will go to heaven (2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23). 

Likewise, at the rapture, both the dead in Christ and living saints will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thes. 4:13-18), and then taken to heaven where they will appear before the judgment seat of Christ (Rom. 14:10-12; 2 Cor. 5:10).

But did you know about your third trip to heaven?  It's actually the first one every believer makes.  You see, when you trust Christ, your spirit is joined to the Lord in heavenly places (1 Cor. 6:17, Eph. 2:6, Phil. 3:20).  When Paul says in Phil. 3:20 that "our conversation is in heaven," he is saying that we live there, in the spirit.  Hence his exhortation to "Set [our] affection on things above, and not on things on the earth" (Col. 3:2), since that's where your spirit is "seated," though it's in your body as well (James 2:26).  So great salvation!