my only question...where in the bible does it say when you die you go to heaven? throughout the entire bible..death is referred to as a sleep.
I mean...when jesus was ressurected...mary attempted to caress her beloved savior...and Jesus said in clear tones....do not touch, for I have not ascended unto the father, but go and tell my disciples that I go to the my father and their father... If Jesus was not in heaven for the three days, where was he? just a thought....

Remnant,

Question: "Where was Jesus for the three days between His death and resurrection?"



Answer: 1 Peter 3:18-19 states, "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison."



The phrase, "by the Spirit," in verse 18 is exactly the same construction as the phrase, "in the flesh." So it seems best to relate the word "spirit" to the same realm as the word "flesh." The flesh and spirit are Christ's flesh and spirit. The words "made alive by (in) the spirit," point to the fact that Christ's sin-bearing and death brought about the separation of His human spirit from the Father (Matthew 27:46). The contrast is between flesh and spirit, as in Matthew 27:41 and Romans 1:3-4, and not between Christ's flesh and the Holy Spirit. When Christ's atonement for sin was completed, His spirit resumed the fellowship which had been broken.



First Peter 3:18-22 describes a necessary link between Christ's suffering (verse 18) and His glorification (verse 22). Only Peter gives specific information about what happened between these two events. The word "preached" in verse 19 is not the usual word in the New Testament to describe the preaching of the gospel. It literally means to herald a message. Jesus suffered and died on the Cross, His body being put to death, and His spirit died when He was made sin. But His spirit was made alive and He yielded it to the Father. According to Peter, sometime between His death and His resurrection Jesus made a special proclamation to "the spirits in prison."



To begin with, Peter referred to people as "souls" and not "spirits" (3:20). In the New Testament, the word "spirits" is used to describe angels or demons, not human beings; and verse 22 seems to bear out this meaning. Also, nowhere in the Bible are we told that Jesus visited hell. Acts 2:31 says that He went to "Hades" (New American Standard Bible), but "Hades" is not hell. The word "Hades" refers to the realm of the dead, a temporary place where they await the resurrection. Revelation 20:11-15 in the NASB or the New International Version give a clear distinction between the two. Hell is the permanent and final place of judgment for the lost. Hades is a temporary place.



Our Lord yielded His spirit to the Father, died, and at some time between death and resurrection, visited the realm of the dead where He delivered a message to spirit beings (probably fallen angels; see Jude 6) who were somehow related to the period before the flood in Noah's time. Verse 20 makes this clear. Peter did not tell us what He proclaimed to these imprisoned spirits, but it could not be a message of redemption since angels cannot be saved (Hebrews 2:16). It was probably a declaration of victory over Satan and his hosts (1 Peter 3:22; Colossians 2:15). Ephesians 4:8-10 also seems to indicate that Christ went to “paradise” (Luke 16:20; 23:43) and took to heaven all those who had believed in Him prior to His death. The passage doesn’t give a great amount of detail about what occurred, but most Bible scholars agree that this is what is meant by “led captivity captive.”



So, all that to say, the Bible isn’t entirely clear what exactly Christ did for the three days between His death and resurrection. It does seem, though, that He was preaching victory over the fallen angels and/or unbelievers. What we can know for sure is that Jesus was not giving people a second chance for salvation. The Bible tells us that we face judgment after death (Hebrews 9:27), not a second chance. There isn't really any definitively clear answer for what Jesus was doing for the time between His death and resurrection. Perhaps this is one of the mysteries we will understand once we reach glory.

Recommended Resource: Vital Christology Issues by Roy Zuck.

This is one study into your question. I hope that it sparks you to read and pray on this yourself.

God bless,
Nigh

To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.....I forget the Scripture but there you have it....Once your body dies your spirit leaves and you are present with the Lord.......But does one have to die before going to Heaven.....I say no....many will not die an earthly death when Christ comes to Rapture the church....But I feel all must die a spiritual death as Paul so often mentioned...We die to ourselves as Paul writes....I died.....I no longer live...But Christ lives in me....As long as we are living for ourselves Christ is of no affect in our lives....So Paul was saying He died when Christ died on the cross....He identifyed himself with Jesus on the cross....Now Paul lives by giving his life to Jesus.......Jesus now has full rein in his life......and all his writings showed that.
I hope this helps............................

For what reason are we to be ''raptured''???

Well I will try and answer that....From reading the Bible we find a few instances where a so called rapture takes place....1st is Noah....Noah and his family were thee only righteous people on the earth in his day....So God told him what He was going to do.....Flood the Earth and wipe out all of mankind....but Noah was spared.....why....not because he was righteous....but he had Faith in God....for a 120 years Noah warned the people of the pending flood by God.....but no one listened.....sound familiar....2nd we have inpending destruction on some sin citys called Sodom n Gohmora...you know the story of Gods conversation with Abraham....anyway only Lot and his family were not engaging in the sinful activates that were taking place....so angels were sent in as men and took out lots family.....they were spared that judgment....but for Lots wife well we all know what happened there......So here we have 2 raptures that took place....God taking out his own before judgement falls.....3rd....in the book of Revelation....the church which is us....the Body of Christ on Earth is spoke of in the first 4 chapters of Revelation......Then the church is not memtioned again until chapter 19.....In between chapters 4 and 19 are the trumpet and bowl judgments....Gods own remanent us born again in Christ will not go through these judgments.....What confuses people is the fact that the word Rapture is not in the Bible anywhere.....Enoch was taken.......Jesus spoke of the Rapture in Matthew I forget the chapter but He goes on the say 2 were in the field.....1 was taken the other left......So once the church is gone from the earth....via the Rapture.....the 2 witnesses will come back and evangilize the earth like never before.....many a debate on who theses two are.....but my guess is Moses and Elijah.....not because they were the 2 that were talking with Jesus at the mount of Olives when Jesus was transfigured....but because they are the only two that did not complete there ministry.....just my thoughts there.....Judgment always comes upon the wicked.....there is no reason for Born Again Believers to be here.....we have already been judged in Christ!

.................................................. .........................Selah

Isa 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn


Luk 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
Luk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Luk 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
Luk 4:21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Clearly, Christ preaching to the captives in prison took place before he even died.

How did you come to that conclusion?

Where does it say that the breath of life has a conscience?

REally, all we are two components. The body of dust and the breath of life which God gives. death is the separation of the breath of life from the body leaving the body to return to dust.

''So called rapture'' ''modern'' concept & therefore not biblical?????? Why do we have armour?? Why are we the army of God??What battler are we in??Are the weapon we have just for this place& the battles we face every day??

Remnant,

I believe that there is a conscience being within me, that does not require the life of my body. Yet I am given a body to live in a state of awareness on the planet Earth. Now, one of the reasons that I believe this is because I have been conscious out side of my body. It was a very spiritual experience, with the awareness of other spiritual beings, in “another place”.

[edited by moderator/ use scripture only]

Nevertheless, I still believe what the Bible says, “…Those who live and believe, shall never die…” (John 11:26)

My question is, who is ready to fully believe the Word of God that says…“God has no pleasure in the death of him that dies, turn yourselves, and live ye” (Ezekiel 18: 32); “There is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave (Ecclesiastes (9: 10); “The law of the wise is a fountain of Life, to depart from the snares of death (Proverbs 13: 14); “The last ENEMY that shall be destroyed is death” (1 Corinthians 15: 26). The question is who can hold on to their faith in the Word of God and prevail?

I have been reminded of much, and have learned much from this thread. I thank each of you for your input.

CQ

Pardon me for saying this if it sounds blunt but let's try to put it this way.

Does it matter if your body dies before you go to Heaven or "have to die"? No it does not. No matter if your physical self dies or not, you still have the free gift of Salvation in Jesus Christ where you will be born agian spiritually and given eternal life with GOD in Heaven. You have to die to self and be born again of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:23
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

John 3:3
In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "

Romans 8:11
And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.

Romans 8:10
But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.