Bible Study Christianity's Heaven

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Assuming you make it into the kingdom of God; what might you expect to see and/or not see in God's world?

Cliff
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[craigmn3]

The first thing I expect to see is the ground my face is planted in as I lay prostrate before my Lord.....then.. I expect to see my Lord, and I don't know if I am going to see anything else for a while

 

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Well; you know, I can think of a whole lot of things that I expect to see and/or not to see in the kingdom of God.

For one thing; I fully expect to be deeded a piece of my very own real estate in the country of Israel.

†. Mtt 5:5 . . Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

That's "the earth" rather than the celestial sphere.

Compare Rom 8:17, Gal 3:29, and Eph 2:11-19 where Christians are predicted to inherit property in the land of Israel right alongside their Jewish counterparts when the State of Israel will be restored to it's covenanted boundaries— and those boundaries encompass one heck of a lot of land.

†. Gen 15:18-21 . . In the same day Yhvh made a covenant with Abram, saying: Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: the Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.

If there's a map handy, it's instantly apparent just how huge a piece of real estate that God assigned to Abram and his progeny. It's very difficult to precisely outline the whole area but it seems to encompass a chunk of Africa east of the Nile, (including the delta), the Sinai Peninsula, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Onan, U.A.E., Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.

The "river of Egypt" is very likely the Nile since there was no Suez Canal in that day. The Euphrates is Iraq's eastern border. The distance from Cairo Egypt to Al Basrah Iraq is about 983 miles as the crow flies. That's roughly the distance from San Diego to Abilene Texas. The distance from Aden Yemen to Hilab Syria is about 1,698 miles as the crow flies; which is just a tad under the crow-distance from Los Angeles to Chicago.

I'm talking about some serious square mileage— roughly 1,538,370 of them; which is more than Ireland, United Kingdom, Scotland, Spain, France, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Finland combined! Currently, Israel, at its widest east to west dimension, across the Negev, is less than 70 miles; and south to north from the Gulf Of Aqaba to Shemona, about 260; comprising a square mileage of only 8,473 —a mere .551% of the original land covenanted to Abraham.

God has yet to give either Abram's or his progeny complete control over all of the covenanted land. In point of fact, the boundaries were very early on temporarily reduced for the time being. (Num 34:1-12)

FYI : 1,538,370 square miles = 984,556,800 acres / 398,436,000 hectares

Sure enough somebody is going to object by saying: What good is it to inherit some land within Abram's covenanted boundaries? It's mostly useless, inhospitable, arid desert.

Only for now.

†. Isa 35:1-7 . .The arid desert shall be glad, the wilderness shall rejoice and shall blossom like a rose. It shall blossom abundantly, it shall also exult and shout. It shall receive the glory of Lebanon, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; for waters shall burst forth in the desert, streams in the wilderness. Torrid earth shall become a pool; parched land become fountains of water; the home of jackals, a pasture; the abode [of ostriches], reeds and rushes.

Lebanon's glory of old was timber; especially cedars (1Kng 4:33). Sharon was known for its flowers (Song 2:1) and Carmel for its orchards. (Isa 33:9) So I think it's pretty safe to assume that all 1,538,370 of Abram's covenanted square miles will be very good and easily live up its anticipation as a land of milk and honey.

Does the above support replacement theology? Hah! Not even! According to Rom 11:1-36, Gal 3:29, and Eph 2:11-19; Christians join the Jews as Yhvh's people rather than replace them

Cliff
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The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that about 21,000,000 American adults ages 18 and older suffer from depression or some other mood and/or depressive disorder in any given year; and that 16% of Americans will have had depression at some point in their lives.

The population of the USA as of Sept 27, 2011 @ 02:02 pm New York time; was 312,308,809. Multiplying those by .16 indicates that 49,969,409 of this day's US population will experience depression at some time in their lives before they cross over to the other side. (I don't know if that percentage includes recovering alcoholics and Methamphetamine addicts.)

Point being: people in this life who qualify for the kingdom of God won't be down in the dumps in the next. The reason being because God will see to it that they know only joy.

†. Ps 5:11-12 . . Let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

†. Ps 16:11 . . In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

†. Isa 25:8 . . And the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for Yhvh hath spoken it.

†. Rev 21:3-4 . . And I heard a powerful 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. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

FYI : according to a documentary I watched recently on NetFlix, there are numbers of people with perfectly normal brain function suffering from depression simply because there isn't enough animal fat in their diet. Hah! Apparently the Bible's God knew what He was doing when He wrote the below prescription for Noah and his progeny.

†. Gen 9:2-3 . . And the fear of you and the terror of you shall be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given: every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant.

The Lord's last meal was a dinner consisting of roasted lamb.

ps : I'm becoming concerned that this thread will become a blog unless more Christians start posting their hopes for the future.

Cliff
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†. Mtt 6:20 . . Lay up treasure for yourselves in heaven, where it will be safe from thieves.

I don't know about others but I am sick and tired of living a life of constant vigilance. My home is a fortress of locks, my vehicles have locks, my garage has a lock, my money is stored in a Well's Fargo heavy metal vault where also I have a safe-deposit box for valuables and important papers.

Locks, Locks, Locks, Locks, and more Locks plus anti-theft devices like chains, cables, gates, fences, razor wire, boards, bars, security systems, passwords, and guard dogs. I can't leave anything lying around for fear of it being taken because I exist in a world of thieves across the whole spectrum of age, race, gender, social status, income, and IQ where they'll steal not only your money, your property, and your children; but also your identity.

Well; thanks be to God that Christianity's heaven is a place where nobody steals anything. I am so looking forward to that.

†. 1Cor 6:9-10 . .The unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Be not deceived: neither thieves nor the rapacious shall inherit the kingdom of God.

FYI : Webster's defines "rapacious" as: living on prey.

Cliff
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†. Mtt 19:13-15 . .Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said: Permit little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

I truly envy the Lord in that incident. My wife is a kindergarten teacher and since retiring in 2006, I've been coming in as a volunteer assistant during Halloween and Christmas parties, and also accompanying her classes as a chaperone during field trips to a pumpkin patch, a working dairy farm, and to the zoo.

I'm not permitted to hug the kinders, nor let them sit in my lap, nor can I pick them up either to carry them when they're tired nor to hoist them aloft for a better view; and it's all because of the danger of legal action for child abuse and pedophilia.

It is very difficult for me to keep my hands and arms off my wife's little smurfs because many of the them come from single parent homes where there's no daddy and are starving for not only a man's affection but also for a man's approval. I do all I can, within legal limits, to make them feel like they matter; but it just breaks my heart that I'm not permitted to be more affectionate.

If I read the Lord correctly, there's little tykes running all over the place in his Father's house. Well; when I get there; I'm heading straight for the playrooms to see what they're up to.

Mother Teresa once said: If ever I become a saint— I will surely be one of darkness. I will continually be absent from heaven— to light the light of those in darkness on earth.

That is absolutely NOT my ambition at all. I much prefer to stay at home and brighten the faces of little fatherless cherubs in the kingdom of God. Will there be enough to go around so that I can befriend some little noise-makers of my own? Well, with something like 41 million abortions world-wide every year, and who knows how many miscarriages and stillbirths; I should think the grown-ups in Christianity's heaven are stretched to the limit.

Unfortunately not every man has a daddy's heart. Those of course will not be permitted to associate with heaven's little ones; nor would they want to anyway.

†. 2Tim 3:1-3 . .This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be without natural affection.

The koiné Greek word for "without natural affection" is astorgos (as'-tor-gos) which means: hard-hearted towards kindred.

According to 2Pet 2:9-14, one of the earmarks of the unjust reserved unto the day of judgment to be punished; is their practice of cursing children.

Cliff
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†. Mtt 5:47 . . And if you greet only your kin; what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?

†. Heb 12:14 . . Make every effort to live in peace with all men

†. Rom 12:18 . . If at all possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

You know what I am really going to like in Christianity's heaven? Everybody will speak to me; everybody. Up there; nobody's treated like an outcast, nobody's ignored, nobody's given the cold shoulder. Down here I live in a world of distant strangers; up there, nobody's a stranger; nobody is treated like a leper. Down here, people are paid to greet me and ask me how I am; up there, nobody has to be paid to ask me how I'm doing. Down here, people get offended if you look at them; up there, nobody minds.

Lock me away,
And don't allow the day
Here inside where I hide
With my loneliness.

I don't care what they say;
I won't stay in a world without love.

Sung by Peter and Gordon
Written by Lennon / McCartney.
1964

Cliff
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†. Luke 10:29-37 . .Who is my neighbor?

. . . In reply Jesus said: A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.

. . . A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

. . . But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own burro, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. "Look after him" —he said —"and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have."

. . .Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? The expert in the law replied: The one who had mercy on him. Jesus instructed him: Go and do likewise.

What the Lord described in that story isn't unusual in America where people are just as likely to watch like spectators at a sporting event as they are to offer assistance while you're beaten, robbed, raped, and/or abducted.

Down here on the earth that I know, it's not safe to trust strangers. Even the cops highly recommend that you be cautious in accepting roadside assistance from strangers lest they take advantage of your situation to rob, rape, and/or murder you. That happens all the time in the good old U.S. of A. We're a nation of both predators and prey.

Citizens in Christianity's heaven are not like that; not like that at all. It's a society and a culture where people can be trusted, and everybody looks out for everybody else; ergo: there's no need to fear strangers. One day, it will be like that in the State of Israel too.

†. Zeph 3:13 . .The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down and no one will make them afraid.

Cliff
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†. Mtt 24:35 . . Heaven and earth will pass away

When I was just a boy, my dad once told me that the earth would be destroyed with fire. He never said how he knew that but the Bible corroborates his statement.

†. 2Pet 3:10 . . The day of the Lord will come like a thief; in which the cosmos will pass away with a roar, and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

But after that; then what?

†. Isa 65:17 . . Behold: I create new heavens and a new earth— and the former things shall not be remembered nor come to mind.

†. Rev 21:1 . . And I saw a new universe and a new earth; for the first universe and the first earth passed away

Who gets to live on the new earth?

†. Ps 37:11 . .The meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace

†. Mtt 5:5 . . Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

I must have chanted that beatitude dozens of times in church and catechism without really comprehending that the meek won't inherit heaven; but rather— the earth? Yes, the earth.

So then, who qualifies as meek? Well; Moses was meek (Num 12:3) and the Lord was meek (Mtt 11:29, Mtt 21:5). Personally I wouldn't categorize either of those two men as meek. So then, what really is meekness?

The koiné Greek word for "meek" in the third beatitude is praus (prah-ooce') which means: mild.

Webster's defines "mild" as: gentle in nature or behavior; viz: temperate; in other words : agreeable, approachable, reasonable, calm, mellow, and self-controlled.

Non-temperate people could be characterized as moody, grudging, vengeful, irritable, emotional, thin-skinned, unreasonable, and reactive; around whom one has to walk on egg shells all the time and has never really learned to turn the other cheek.

A temperate person, though mellow in demeanor, should never be assumed lacking in strength, courage, conviction, or self confidence. Anybody who's studied the lives of Moses and Jesus can easily testify that neither of those men were either timid or wimpy; no, they walked softly and carried a big stick.

Jacob and his dad Isaac were temperate men; but could be assertive when the situation called for it. Temperate people like Jacob and Isaac pick their battles carefully, and avoid getting all riled up over trifles. Can you just imagine the advantages of living in a global society composed entirely of temperate people? That alone is Nirvana to me.

Cliff
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†. Prv 1:32 . .The prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

Need I mention the results of all the chemicals in today's supermarket foods, the E.coli 0157-H7 stemming from concentrated animal feeding operations, the poisoning of the Mississippi river due to the insecticides, fungicides and synthetic fertilizers used by industrial farming methods, the huge raft of mid-ocean plastic, the dead coral reefs, the ozone hole, overfishing the deep sea, global warming, toxins in the world's streams, creeks, rivers and aquifers, green house gas emissions, the increases in diabetes and obesity, the oil spills, the extinctions, the endangered species etc. to prove the truth of Prv 1:32?

Because of his prosperity, the very air man breathes, the food he eats, and the water he drinks have become threats to his very existence rather than the sustenance for which they were intended. It's beyond belief but for the first time in American history, the next generation, on average, is not expected to live as long as their parents— and that in spite of the best health care in the world and a pill for every ill.

"It is in your nature to destroy yourselves"
Terminator 3, Judgment Day

Arnold Swarzenegger's character was so right; but what's the remedy? Answer: a change of command.

†. Isa 11:9 . .They will not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

The Lord's knowledge would come in very handy when men start thinking about modifying wetlands, or scraping up and hauling away literally thousands of cubic yards of arable topsoil in order to build condos, factories, warehouses and shopping centers, or burning rain forests, or constructing dams. Man doesn't have enough brain power to foresee the ramifications of his actions so he ends up looking back at his mistakes instead of looking forward before he does something stupid to the planet that is difficult, if not impossible, to reverse.

Cliff
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†. 1Cor 6:9 . . Homosexual offenders will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Webster's defines "homosexual" as: (1) of, relating to, or characterized by a tendency to direct sexual desire toward another of the same sex, and (2) of, relating to, or involving sexual intercourse between persons of the same sex

In other words; one need not actually practice same-sex intimacy because the desire for it alone is sufficient to categorize somebody as a homosexual.

It's a relief to know that gays and lesbians will not be permitted the status of protected species in heaven, nor will criticism of them and their way of life be condemned as hate speech. I am so glad to know that because I'm sick and tired of having to tolerate them and their way of life as normal and equal with decent people.

Peter labeled their way of life "filthy".

†. 2Pet 2:6-8 . . God turned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)

This past July, my wife and her sister took the ferry to visit Provincetown Cape Cod. Just by dumb luck their visit coincided with a festival known as Bear Week. Well, long story short, it was a gathering of gay men. Without going into detail, many of the "bears" were hairy-chested, bearded homosexuals. They were all over the place cuddling, holding hands, and touching each like some sort of other-world planet of the apes. My wife and her sister were very disturbed. The experience was disgusting and revolting to say the least. Thank God there will be no gay pride marches, no gay weddings, and no bear weeks to put up with in the Bible's heaven.

†. Eph 5:5 . . For this ye know, that no unclean person hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Cliff
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†. Mrk 10:19 . . You know the commandments: do not defraud.

Webster's defines "defraud" as: to deprive by deception; viz: to cheat.

Organic foods are rapidly gaining in popularity as a defense against the industrial foods that are poisoning people with chemicals and depriving them of adequate nourishment. Industrial foods are bad enough but what really chafes my hide are foods marketed as organic but in reality are only legally organic rather than truly organic. In other words; legally organic foods have been treated with a certain amount of organic-approved chemicals.

The world suffered the tragic results of massive fraud in 2008 when Wall Street fell of a cliff during the mortgage melt-down. In a nutshell, the ratings firms of Standard & Poor, Moody's, and Fitch were paid to give stupidly high ratings to debt obligation packages marketed by Bear Sterns, Lehman Bros, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley; which led investors to believe they were purchasing reliable packages when in fact they were as shaky as the fill upon which the city of San Francisco is constructed.

But the real kick in the face is that Bear Sterns, Lehman Bros, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley not only marketed those packages with fraudulent ratings; but even while they were recommending them to investors they were themselves taking out investment insurance on them from AID because the bankers knew only too well that those toxic packages would eventuate in massive defaults.

Well-known to connoisseurs of fine cuisine is a meat called Kobe beef which can be likened to the Rolls Royce of meats whose steaks can retail for as much as $100 at high-end restaurants and specialty stores.

What consumers often don't know about the Kobe beef on their plates is that not all of it labeled Kobe is the real McCoy. True Kobe beef comes from wagyu cattle raised in the Hyogo prefecture of Japan. What most people are eating (and paying for) is a version raised in either America or Australia, and likely as not comes from a hybrid version of wagyu cattle cross-bred with Angus and Hereford; et al.

I don't know if this item is true or not but I heard from someone who keeps up on nutrition that unscrupulous agribusinesses are lobbying for the right to label high fructose corn syrup as a natural sweetener and that's because of its association with America's obesity epidemic and the alarming increase of type 2 diabetes in children. High fructose corn syrup isn't natural in any sense of the word. It takes a pretty fair amount of chemical processing to convert corn into a sweetener. Even the corn itself isn't natural. It's been genetically modified to produce an amazing percentage of starch per kernel. I'm not talking about hybrid corn; no, I'm talking about GMO corn which is a Frankenstein grain spawned in the mad labs of demented bio-chemists.

Safeway got in trouble recently for marketing it's in-house brand of Kona blend coffee which upon reading the label on the bag a customer discovered it to be virtually 100% Arabica coffee. In the state of Hawaii, blends must contain at least 10% Kona beans to wear the label. When questioned, Safeway attested there is some genuine Hawaii Kona in their coffee but refused to reveal the percentage.

In late July, L'Oréal was forced to pull an ad campaign in Britain featuring Julia Roberts. The foundation application promised "the aura of perfect skin" but the photos showed an air-brush had far more to do with the results than the makeup.

During the week ending Oct 2, the Federal Trade Commission attacked Reebok International Ltd. over claims that its toning shoes provided wearers particular sculpting and strength to their legs and buttocks. Reebok's advertising of its EasyTone and RunTone shoes stated they are capable of better toning than regular shoes. The FTC ruled that the claim was unsupported and deceptive. Reebok agreed to pay back 25 million dollars to purchasers of the shoes but admitted no wrong-doing.

The above kinds of chicanery won't be seen anywhere in the Christian heaven depicted in the Bible.

†. Rev 21:27 . . Nothing unclean will enter it, nor anybody who loves and practices lying.

†. Rev 22:15 . . Outside are all who love and practice deceit.

FYI : the commandment to which the Lord referred is located at Lev 19:13

Cliff
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†. Rev 22:14-15 . . Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs:

Dogs in ancient Israel were regarded with the same degree of abhorrence that we in the west regard rats. They weren't your average domesticated pet, but rather, feral, homeless curs that prowled city streets and landfills, feeding on garbage, road kill, and the corpses of low income folk who died without proper burial (e.g. 1Kgs 14:11, 1Kgs 21:19, 1Kgs 21:24, 2Kgs 9:29-37, cf. Luke 16:21). A study of the dogs of the Old Testament reveals just how low in one's estimation is the person regarded as one. Feral dogs were not only unsanitary, but treacherous too.

†. Mtt 7:6 . . Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

A dog can be categorized as someone who is spiritually feral; which Webster's defines as: (1) of, relating to, or suggestive of an animal; viz : savage, (2) not domesticated or cultivated; viz : wild, untamed, (3) having escaped from domestication and become wild, and (4) beastly.

A dog then, in the spiritual sense, is little more than a brutish human scavenger : they are identified in Rev 22:14-15 as (1) those who practice magic arts, (2) the sexually immoral, (3) the murderers, (4) the idolaters, and (4) everyone who loves and practices falsehood. Those species of unsanitary hominid creatures will not be permitted to contaminate the streets of the holy city depicted at Rev 21:1 - 22:5.

Cliff
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†. Rev 22:3 . . And there shall be no more curse

I believe the curse referred to in that statement occurred very early in the history of homo sapiens.

†. Gen 3:17-18 . . Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you,

Multiplied tons of toxic petrochemical weed killers, fungicides, nitrates, phosphates, and anhydrous ammonia fertilizers are utilized by industrial farming methods to coax every possible ounce of productivity from the cursed soil. Well, in the beginning those chemicals— poisoning aquifers, streams, and rivers; poisoning the soil, and poisoning man —weren't needed because the soil was extremely fertile and weeds weren't the default vegetation that they are now.

In the kingdom of God, nature won't take over fallow ground and vacant lots with noxious vegetation. No, it will take over fallow ground and vacant lots with nutritious vegetation instead. I truly suspect that if people in the future want to grow a garden consisting only of weeds; they are going to have to work at it just as hard as they work at growing a garden of nutritious vegetation now. But nutritious vegetation won't be the only kind; there's others too.

†. Isa 55:13 . . Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree

†. Isa 35:1-7 . .The arid desert shall be glad, the wilderness shall rejoice and shall blossom like a rose. It shall blossom abundantly, it shall also exult and shout. It shall receive the glory of Lebanon, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.

Lebanon's glory of old was timber; especially cedars (1Kgs 4:33). Sharon was known for its flowers (Song 2:1) and Carmel for its orchards (Isa 33:9). It should be interesting to see how God gets timber, flowers, and orchards to flourish in deserts like the Negev, Syrian, Arabian, Dasht-e Kavir, Death Valley, Dasht-e Lut, Simpson, Atacama, Thar, Sahara, Gobi, Kalahari, Patagonian, and the Great Victoria— multiplied millions of acres of wasteland that if converted to arable soil could easily feed the whole world without even half trying. And Isa 55:13 and Isa 35:1-7 are talking about the future of this current earth during the millennial portion of the kingdom of God. One can only imagine how incredibly verdant the new earth will be.

Cliff
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†. Eph 2:1-3 . . You were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air— the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

That is a profound statement! It reveals:

(1) the dead in trespasses and sins are manipulated by evil spirit beings.

(2) the dead in trespasses and sins are children of wrath rather than children of God.

(3) the children of wrath are so "by nature".

Item #1 is terrifying enough; but #3 presents a serious dilemma.

†. Jer 13:23 . . Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? Can a leopard remove its spots? Neither can you start doing good, who are accustomed to doing evil.

The above testifies that the dead in trespasses and sins don't go to heaven when they cross over to the other side because they quite naturally belong in the other place; viz: hell is their natural habitat and hell is where they feel the most at home. If the dead in trespasses and sins were forced to go to heaven, they would insist on leaving as soon as possible because they would be out of their element. In other words; the dead in trespasses and sins actually prefer hell to heaven because wrath is what they're most comfortable with. Isn't that amazing?!

So; though I feel sorry for those moving towards the wrong place, I'm sort of happy for them too because they're going home; and like they say: home is where the heart is.

Cliff
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†. Mic 4:3 . . And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

That is a wonderful prediction. It says to me there will be no more mercenaries, no more standing armies, no more professional soldiers, nor more revolutions, and no more terrorists, no more bombs, and no more land mines, no more conquerers, no more colonizing. Instead of using their weapons to maim, cripple, destroy, obliterate, paralyze and otherwise kill men, women, and children; combatants will use their weapons to produce food instead.

You know, at this particular juncture of the thread, I really should point out that the kingdom of heaven is slated to be brought on line in two distinct stages. The first stage, often labeled the Millennium, will take place right down here on the current earth; hence the elimination of warfare and the proliferation of agriculture.

†. Mic 4:4 . . But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it.

Farmers had good reason to fear warfare in ancient times because one of the first things invading armies did was to burn, destroy, and/or capture a county's food supply. It's a proven tactic. When an opponent's infrastructure is disrupted, that handicaps his ability to mount an effective defense; so farming communities were often the first casualties of war.

Cliff
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†. Isa 65:20 . . No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his days; for the youth will die at the age of one hundred and the youth who does not reach the age of one hundred shall be thought accursed.

Longevity is pretty much a given in the millennial phase of the kingdom of God; but what's even better is the duration of one's youth. I began loosing my youth and falling apart right around the age of 32-33; but in the kingdom, people won't start falling apart till they've lived at least a century. At my current age of 67, I would be the equivalent of 21 by kingdom standards.

FAQ : I was taught that people in the kingdom of God will have eternal life and immortality. How is it then that you're talking about aging and death?

Answer : not everybody on earth will be eradicated by the awful calamities depicted in the book of Revelation. A number will survive to witness the Lord's return.

†. Rev 1:7 . . Look! he's coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him.

Those survivors will be ordinary people; viz: they won't be immortal; but have to undergo debilitation and death just the same as all other ordinary people.

†. Gen 3:19 . . In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken: for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.

†. Heb 9:27 . . It is appointed for men to die once

The millennial phase of the kingdom of God will take place right here on the current earth. During that time; Tribulation survivors will proliferate and re-populate the earth. Unfortunately numbers of their progeny will chafe under Messiah's rule and Satan will take advantage of their discontent to organize one last world-wide rebellion against God and His anointed (Ps 2:1-12 and Rev 20:7-10) That event will bring to a close the millennial phase of the kingdom of God. In the final phase of the kingdom; nobody will die or grow old. (Rev 21:4)

Cliff
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†. Mtt 22:30 . . For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

The discussion leading up to the Lord's statement concerned an Old Testament law requiring a Jewish man's nearest eligible male kin to marry his widow and attempt to produce a child with her who would become the dead man's legal heir; viz: essentially a posthumous adoption. (Deut 25:5-10)

The Lord's opponents were unaware that resurrected people don't come back with the same kind of bodies in which they died. The Lord attested that their faulty logic was the result of not understanding that very point.

†. Mtt 22:29 . .You are mistaken: not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.

Their error was in assuming that one of the blessings bestowed upon homo sapiens in the beginning carries over into the resurrection.

†. Gen 1:28 . . God blessed them and said to them: Be fruitful and increase in number

So your first life is the time for having a family because death closes that door forever.

It's difficult to imagine an existence sans libido; but I have to say: it will be a welcome relief. In my opinion; sexual frustration and sexual tension are major downsides to the first life for people born with my looks.

Cliff
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†. Isa 2:3 . . And many people shall go and say: Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of Yhvh, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of Yhvh from Jerusalem.

The "law" to which that Old Testament passage refers is Moses' covenanted law (a.k.a. The Commandments). A very interesting aspect of Moses' law is that there are zero stipulations for jails and prisons. Another interesting aspect is that there are zero stipulations for appeals. In other words, criminal justice in the kingdom of God will be summary and it will be swift; viz: people who commit capital crimes won't be given life sentences; in point of fact, they won't be given any kind of a sentence. They will be dead.

As of June 30, 2009, there was something like 1,617,478 prisoners under the jurisdiction, or legal authority, of federal and state correctional authorities; and that number represented only 2/3rds of the total behind bars. Factoring that out indicates a total prison and/or jail population of 2,4507,224 inmates. Processing and caring for that number of criminals inflicts a 60 Billion dollar tax burden upon American citizens; and the really sad part of it is: all that money squandered on warehousing criminals isn't enough to make people feel safer.

FAQ : Crime in the kingdom of God?!

The kingdom of God is in two distinct phases. The first is commonly labeled the Millennium phase (Rev 20:4) and the second is labeled the eternal phase (Isa 65:17, Rev 21:1). The millennium phase of the kingdom is ushered in by the Lord's public return to rule the world.

†. Rev 1:7 . . Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him.

The kindreds of the earth, and their eventual progeny, will be the ones committing crimes in the millennial phase of the kingdom. There won't be any crime in the eternal phase. (Rev 20:11-15, Rev 21:8, Rev 22:15)

Cliff
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†. Isa 5:8 . .Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

That very thing is business-as-usual in America's Midwestern farming communities where the prevailing business attitude is: Get big or Get out. One after another, little farmers have been, and are being forced out and their land gobbled up and annexed by giant multinational corporations in an every increasing expansion of tax-payer subsidized industrial farming methods that are literally killing the Mississippi delta and poisoning Midwestern soil and water supplies.

A really cute movie worth seeing is "You've Got Mail" starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. At the core of the plot is a huge chain similar to Barnes and Nobel that invades a neighborhood and crushes a quaint little mom and pop book store.

Just five corporations control 80% of television and print media news: Viacom, News Corporation, Walt Disney, Time Warner, and Vivendi.

It's the same story with food processing. More than 80% of all meats from chickens, turkeys, cows, and swine; are centralized, processed, and controlled by just four major packing houses: Tyson, Swift, Cargill, and National Beef; who've just about wiped out America's local butchers.

Wal-Mart is another mom and pop killer. Everywhere it goes, Wal-Mart leaves a wake of ruined hardware stores, department stores, shoe stores, and produce markets, et al.

Fast food chains like McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy's, Carl's Junior, Taco Bell, et al; have made it very difficult for small restaurateurs to survive. There are something like 26 McDonalds on Manhattan alone, and 210 in Brooklyn.

It used to be against the law for corporations to buy each other. Now they do it all the time so that the typical corroborate structure resembles a tree with many branches and all owned and operated by one big fat parent corporation.

If we ever colonize Mars, it's my guess the first things out there will be 7-11 and Starbucks.

Well those kinds of greedy, predatory expansions won't be permitted in Christianity's heaven; you may be sure of that because those kinds of business practices are woe-worthy rather than blessing-worthy.

Cliff
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