PARADISE LOST?
Jesus stated to the thief on the cross in Luke 23:43 "And Jesus said unto him, truly I say to you, Today you shall be with me in Paradise". Some people take only one scripture and try to build a religion around it. Those that don't believe the scripture in 2Cor. 5:8 "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord" believe that Jesus said, "Truly I say to you Today....you shall be with me in Paradise". In order to understand scripture we must keep it in context with all other scripture. If the thief was to be with Jesus in paradise that day then we must first find out in scripture what it was and where it was located.
Par'adise. This is a word of Persian origin, and is used in the Septuagint (LXX) as the translation of Eden. It means "an orchard of pleasure and fruits," "a garden" or "a pleasure ground", something like an English park. It is applied figuratively, to the celestial dwelling of the righteous, in allusion to the Garden of Eden.
Where was Paradise?
The thief would immediately go to Paradise with Jesus when He died. Paradise at this time was in the earth where hell is also located: (Luk 16:22-26) "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And He cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that He may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now He is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
So, by this we see that in the bowels of the earth there were two compartments and not just one. There was the burning compartment as we see in verse 23 that Lazarus was in torment in the flames yet He could see Abraham afar off. We know that Abraham and the other righteous saints that died prior to Jesus went to Paradise as I will explain later on in this teaching. Since Jesus went to Paradise with the thief we know that He stayed there for three days and three nights (Mat 12:40) "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth". After three days Jesus was resurrected by the power of the Holy Spirit. When He came out of the grave He led all the ones held in Paradise to the surface and many re-entered their bodies. You see, when the earthquake happened at Jesus' death the graves of many opened and when Jesus brought them out of Paradise they re-entered their bodies and walked through the streets of Jerusalem (Mat 27:51-53) "And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many".
Jesus the First Fruit of the resurrection
Now when Jesus died He went to the lower parts of the earth (Eph 4:9) "Now that He ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower parts of the earth"? (1Pe 3:18-19) "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison;" (1Pe 3:22) "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him".
This is where the righteous saints were held until His resurrection. All this had to transpire for Jesus had to be the first fruit in the resurrection. Act 26:23 "That Christ should suffer, that He should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should show light unto the people, and to the Gentiles" 1 Cor. 15:20-21 "But now is Christ risen from the dead, become the first fruits of them that slept. For since by man death, by man also the resurrection of the dead". Some have died and been brought back to life such as Lazarus, but, Lazarus had to die again. He was brought back to life but He was not resurrected. 1 Cor. 15:22-23 "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming". When Jesus left hell He took the people that were held in Paradise with Him to the surface of the earth where they re-entered their bodies and walked among the people and were seen by many. What a sight that must have been (Mat 27:51-53).
Now the events of the day of the resurrection are not delineated in scripture but, to stay with the essence of scripture we have to surmise the following: While the people were appearing to the people in the city Jesus went to heaven to prepare a place for them (Joh 14:2-3) "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also". First Jesus was met by Mary at the tomb just after His resurrection and Jesus said, John 20:17 "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." Now, this is important for we see by scripture that nothing "unclean" can enter God's presence Rev 21:27 and since Mary was still in a fleshly body, had she touched Jesus in His celestial body she would have made Him unclean to enter before the Father. So, we must conclude that Jesus ascended to heaven to prepare a place for these resurrected saints and there He was glorified so that later that day He could call them to their new home.
The Glorified Jesus meets His own
Later that same evening He would appear before the one hundred and twenty in the upper room and tell them, Joh 20:19-20 "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples we assembled for gear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when He had so said, He showed unto them His hands and His side". Luke 24:39 "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself: handle Me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me have". He then took all the risen saints to heaven (paradise) Eph. 4:8 "Wherefore He saith, when He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. John 14:3 "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also".
Where is paradise now?
Paul tells us that He went to the third heaven (paradise) 2Cor 12:2 "I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such a one caught up to the third heaven". 2Cor. 12:4 "How that He was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter". In the book of Revelations John said that it was in heaven Rev. 2:7 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God". It has, thus, come into familiar use to denote both the Garden of Eden, and the heaven of the just.
Jesus the first fruits of the resurrection.
Jesus was the first to ever be resurrected (the first fruits of the resurrection). Enoch walked with God and was not. He simply disappeared but He didn't die! Gen. 5:24 "And Enoch walked with God: and He was not; for God took him". Elijah was caught up in a fiery chariot but He didn't die either. 2Ki. 2:11 "And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven". Since these two have not died they have it to look forward to for the scripture says (Heb 9:27) "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:"
It is my personal belief that these will be the two witnesses in the book of Revelations 11:3-7 "And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them".
Paradise is in Heaven now but in the end we will see New Jerusalem come down to earth from Heaven and Paradise will then be here on our new re-fashioned earth (Rev. 3:12 and Rev 21:2).
Jesus stated to the thief on the cross in Luke 23:43 "And Jesus said unto him, truly I say to you, Today you shall be with me in Paradise". Some people take only one scripture and try to build a religion around it. Those that don't believe the scripture in 2Cor. 5:8 "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord" believe that Jesus said, "Truly I say to you Today....you shall be with me in Paradise". In order to understand scripture we must keep it in context with all other scripture. If the thief was to be with Jesus in paradise that day then we must first find out in scripture what it was and where it was located.
Par'adise. This is a word of Persian origin, and is used in the Septuagint (LXX) as the translation of Eden. It means "an orchard of pleasure and fruits," "a garden" or "a pleasure ground", something like an English park. It is applied figuratively, to the celestial dwelling of the righteous, in allusion to the Garden of Eden.
Where was Paradise?
The thief would immediately go to Paradise with Jesus when He died. Paradise at this time was in the earth where hell is also located: (Luk 16:22-26) "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And He cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that He may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now He is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
So, by this we see that in the bowels of the earth there were two compartments and not just one. There was the burning compartment as we see in verse 23 that Lazarus was in torment in the flames yet He could see Abraham afar off. We know that Abraham and the other righteous saints that died prior to Jesus went to Paradise as I will explain later on in this teaching. Since Jesus went to Paradise with the thief we know that He stayed there for three days and three nights (Mat 12:40) "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth". After three days Jesus was resurrected by the power of the Holy Spirit. When He came out of the grave He led all the ones held in Paradise to the surface and many re-entered their bodies. You see, when the earthquake happened at Jesus' death the graves of many opened and when Jesus brought them out of Paradise they re-entered their bodies and walked through the streets of Jerusalem (Mat 27:51-53) "And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many".
Jesus the First Fruit of the resurrection
Now when Jesus died He went to the lower parts of the earth (Eph 4:9) "Now that He ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower parts of the earth"? (1Pe 3:18-19) "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison;" (1Pe 3:22) "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him".
This is where the righteous saints were held until His resurrection. All this had to transpire for Jesus had to be the first fruit in the resurrection. Act 26:23 "That Christ should suffer, that He should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should show light unto the people, and to the Gentiles" 1 Cor. 15:20-21 "But now is Christ risen from the dead, become the first fruits of them that slept. For since by man death, by man also the resurrection of the dead". Some have died and been brought back to life such as Lazarus, but, Lazarus had to die again. He was brought back to life but He was not resurrected. 1 Cor. 15:22-23 "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming". When Jesus left hell He took the people that were held in Paradise with Him to the surface of the earth where they re-entered their bodies and walked among the people and were seen by many. What a sight that must have been (Mat 27:51-53).
Now the events of the day of the resurrection are not delineated in scripture but, to stay with the essence of scripture we have to surmise the following: While the people were appearing to the people in the city Jesus went to heaven to prepare a place for them (Joh 14:2-3) "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also". First Jesus was met by Mary at the tomb just after His resurrection and Jesus said, John 20:17 "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." Now, this is important for we see by scripture that nothing "unclean" can enter God's presence Rev 21:27 and since Mary was still in a fleshly body, had she touched Jesus in His celestial body she would have made Him unclean to enter before the Father. So, we must conclude that Jesus ascended to heaven to prepare a place for these resurrected saints and there He was glorified so that later that day He could call them to their new home.
The Glorified Jesus meets His own
Later that same evening He would appear before the one hundred and twenty in the upper room and tell them, Joh 20:19-20 "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples we assembled for gear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when He had so said, He showed unto them His hands and His side". Luke 24:39 "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself: handle Me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me have". He then took all the risen saints to heaven (paradise) Eph. 4:8 "Wherefore He saith, when He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. John 14:3 "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also".
Where is paradise now?
Paul tells us that He went to the third heaven (paradise) 2Cor 12:2 "I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such a one caught up to the third heaven". 2Cor. 12:4 "How that He was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter". In the book of Revelations John said that it was in heaven Rev. 2:7 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God". It has, thus, come into familiar use to denote both the Garden of Eden, and the heaven of the just.
Jesus the first fruits of the resurrection.
Jesus was the first to ever be resurrected (the first fruits of the resurrection). Enoch walked with God and was not. He simply disappeared but He didn't die! Gen. 5:24 "And Enoch walked with God: and He was not; for God took him". Elijah was caught up in a fiery chariot but He didn't die either. 2Ki. 2:11 "And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven". Since these two have not died they have it to look forward to for the scripture says (Heb 9:27) "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:"
It is my personal belief that these will be the two witnesses in the book of Revelations 11:3-7 "And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them".
Paradise is in Heaven now but in the end we will see New Jerusalem come down to earth from Heaven and Paradise will then be here on our new re-fashioned earth (Rev. 3:12 and Rev 21:2).