When Jesus took it upon Himself to pay off humanity's sin debt, He opened the door to Heaven. Without His payment, that door would have stayed closed.
Here's what I mean. Before Jesus died on the Cross, the Holy of Holies in Jerusalem's Temple was closed off by a heavy veil. That symbolized that the door to God's full presence in Heaven was closed.
When Jesus died on the Cross to pay humanity's sin debt, Heaven's closed door was opened. That was symbolized on Earth when the Veil blocking the earthly Holy of Holies was supernaturally torn in two.
Matthew 27:51 (Expanded Bible)
...the curtain in the Temple [dividing the Most Holy Place from the rest of the Temple] was torn into two pieces from the top to the bottom, representing new access to the presence of God...]
About Heaven's now open door...because God won't force anyone, we must each individually choose to go through it. This is the part where you
- Confess,
- Ask for forgiveness based on Jesus' payment,
- Then surrender to His total Lordship.
The first time you sincerely do that, He responds by rebirthing your spirit and instantly transferring your ownership from Satan's domain to Jesus' Kingdom (Colossians 1:13).
Let's go a little deeper.
Remember, you are a three part creation: Spirit, soul and body.
You are a spirit.
This is the real, permanent you. Your spirit has a body (1 Corinthians 15:44) which is invisible to our physical senses. It's not just some shapeless, gaseous vapor. While you're in this earthly life, your spirit resides in your physical body.
You have a soul.
This is understood to be your mind, will and emotions. Your soul will stay with your spirit.
It may be easier to think of your soul as being embedded in your spirit. When all is said and done, there are only two places your spirit and soul can end up: Heaven or Hell. There's no third option.
Your spirit and soul reside in your body.
Your body is the temporary, physical "earth suit" that your spirit and soul wear while you're on this earth. It's designed to have an expiration date. Your physical body dies when your spirit and soul leave it behind. When your body dies, it will look like you've died. But you haven't died; you've simply taken off your "earth suit".
Because you are a three-part being, God's plan for your eternity has three distinct stages.
Stage One
This stage is about your spirit. It's what Jesus was talking about in John 3:6-7:
Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’
At the moment of rebirth that Jesus is talking about, God's Spirit miraculously replaces your corrupted, alienated-from-God human spirit with a new, pure, connected-to-God spirit.
By virtue of its pure conception, it is born embedded in His Spirit and joined to His Spirit. It is born in harmony with God. The full truth is even stronger than that.
God’s Spirit and your rebirthed spirit are one. That may be hard to understand, I know, but it's what Scripture says.
But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.
In the Greek text, the word for "one" is the same Greek word ("HEIS") that Jesus uses to describe His own Oneness with His Father (John 10:30).
The mess that remains in your soul isn't permanent. God's plan in Stage Two fixes it.
Always remember, this temporary physical body you're wearing now most certainly isn't the real, permanent you, no matter how it seems.
The death of your physical body -- your earth suit -- is not the end. It's simply the signal that your spirit and embedded soul have left it behind and moved to a place far more glorious.
When my physical body dies, I won't experience death. No, I will experience life, incredible life in Jesus' wonderful Presence. That, my friend, is a lot to look forward to.
If your earth suit died the next moment after you're born again, your newly birthed, very real and purified spirit -- would take your embedded soul and go straight to Heaven. No waiting necessary.
Stage Two
This stage works in your soul, building on the Stage One foundation of your born-again spirit. Unlike Stage One, Stage Two is a process, not an event. The process will continue for as long as you're on this earth.
Stage Two aims to transform the way you think, feel, and live your life (Romans 12:2).
The Bible word for this soul-level process is "sanctification".
This is the soul-level stage of salvation that Paul references in a frequently misunderstood verse:
Therefore, my beloved... work out your own salvation with fear and trembling...
Paul is saying "work OUT your salvation". He is not saying "work FOR your salvation."
He's not talking about gaining a born-again spirit -- remember, that's already happened. He's talking about what's now going on as your old ways of thinking, choosing, and feeling are being evicted and replaced.
Big big difference.
Stage Three
In the final stage of salvation, God will replace your original earth suit with a glorified one that's fit for Heaven and eternity (1Corinthians 15:42-44; Philippians 3:21). Just wait, it's gonna be good.
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