In this post we will see what exactly is a believer's inheritance?
There is an Inheritance in Heaven
If I am an unbeliever and you tell me that I can go to heaven when I die if I believe in Jesus, that sounds pretty good, "but wait, there's more" - the Bible says that there is also some sort of inheritance kept in Heaven for us:
1 Peter 1:4 (NIV) 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,
Acts 20:32 Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified
Acts 26:18 this is the MKJV or NKJV (because the NIV doesn't include the word inheritance)
18 to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’
The Holy Spirit is the Promised Blessing
The inheritance was promised to Abraham and all believers (Gen 12:3, Gal 3:6). The promise of blessing given to Abraham and His descendants is not really land, wealth, riches, it is the Holy Spirit (Gal 3:14).
The promise of the Spirit through faith is a pledge or foretaste of our inheritance (Rom. 8:23; Eph. 1:14, Gal. 3:18, 29; 1 Cor. 6:9; Eph. 5:5; Heb. 9:15).
God Is Our Inheritance
The blessing of the Spirit gives some clue about what our inheritance is. If the Holy Spirit is a foretaste of our inheritance, then what is our inheritance? The answer is God Himself, the Trinity. When Adam and Eve fell, they lost God. As a whole consequence, the whole human race has lost God.
The Psalmist (David?) realized that He had nothing in Heaven except God, and that God was his portion forever:
Psalm 73:25-26
25 Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
26 My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Details of the inheritance are found in 1 Peter, particularly 1 Peter 1:3-12:
We get 5 things:
These 5 things can be generalized into two things
1. Salvation of our souls, or complete deliverance from darkness
2. God's glory, or glorification (Heb 2:10).
The old testament shadow is the Jubilee - Lev. 25:8-13, the blessings are freedom from the powers of darkness and return of lost possessions (primarily spiritual possessions, namely Christ).
Our Glorification
God's intention is not only to save mankind but also to bring them into His glory, and glorification is the last of God's work of grace (Rom 8:29-30).
The whole creation eagerly awaits the revelation/glorification of the sons of God (Rom 8:19-21).
Christ in us is our hope of glory, or hope of being glorified at Christ's return (Col 1:27). All of this will be accomplished at Christ's return where we will be manifested with Him in glory (Phil 3:21, Col 3:4).
The hope of a Christian is to be glorified with Christ at His return.
Glorification is when God will completely saturate our dead, mortal body of sin (Rom 7:24) with the glory of His life, to transfigure our body to conform it to the resurrected glorious body of His Son (Phil 3:21).
God has already regenerated our spirit with His Spirit when we first believed in Christ. Glorification is God regenerating our mortal bodies with His Spirit so that we are delivered from darkness in our whole being (spirit, soul and body) and become like Christ.
The Believers Heavenly Inheritance in Summary
1. When mankind fell, mankind lost God. Losing God was the worst thing that could possibly happen to mankind, and gaining God back as our inheritance is the greatest thing that could happen to mankind.
2. The promised inheritance to believers is God Himself (all that He is, all that He has, all that He has done). God's intention is to give Himself back to mankind. The believer's heavenly reward is God Himself.
3. The gift of the Holy Spirit is given to believers as a foretaste of our inheritance (God).
4. Our inheritance includes the salvation of our souls, and our glorification - which is to transfigure our body to conform it to the resurrected glorious body of His Son (Phil 3:21).
There is an Inheritance in Heaven
If I am an unbeliever and you tell me that I can go to heaven when I die if I believe in Jesus, that sounds pretty good, "but wait, there's more" - the Bible says that there is also some sort of inheritance kept in Heaven for us:
1 Peter 1:4 (NIV) 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,
Acts 20:32 Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified
Acts 26:18 this is the MKJV or NKJV (because the NIV doesn't include the word inheritance)
18 to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’
The Holy Spirit is the Promised Blessing
The inheritance was promised to Abraham and all believers (Gen 12:3, Gal 3:6). The promise of blessing given to Abraham and His descendants is not really land, wealth, riches, it is the Holy Spirit (Gal 3:14).
The promise of the Spirit through faith is a pledge or foretaste of our inheritance (Rom. 8:23; Eph. 1:14, Gal. 3:18, 29; 1 Cor. 6:9; Eph. 5:5; Heb. 9:15).
God Is Our Inheritance
The blessing of the Spirit gives some clue about what our inheritance is. If the Holy Spirit is a foretaste of our inheritance, then what is our inheritance? The answer is God Himself, the Trinity. When Adam and Eve fell, they lost God. As a whole consequence, the whole human race has lost God.
The Psalmist (David?) realized that He had nothing in Heaven except God, and that God was his portion forever:
Psalm 73:25-26
25 Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
26 My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Details of the inheritance are found in 1 Peter, particularly 1 Peter 1:3-12:
We get 5 things:
- We get salvation of our souls (1 Peter 1:5, 1 Peter 1:9),
- the grace to be received at the revelation of the Lord, which is for the salvation of our souls (1 Peter 1:13),
- the glory to be revealed, including our glorification (1 Peter 5:1, Rom 8:17),
- the unfading crown of glory (1 Peter 5:4). At the time, perishable crowns were given to winners of the athletic games. This crown is an eternal reward for loyal service to God.
- and the eternal glory (1 Peter 5:10, 2 Tim 2:10, Heb 2:10).
These 5 things can be generalized into two things
1. Salvation of our souls, or complete deliverance from darkness
2. God's glory, or glorification (Heb 2:10).
The old testament shadow is the Jubilee - Lev. 25:8-13, the blessings are freedom from the powers of darkness and return of lost possessions (primarily spiritual possessions, namely Christ).
Our Glorification
God's intention is not only to save mankind but also to bring them into His glory, and glorification is the last of God's work of grace (Rom 8:29-30).
The whole creation eagerly awaits the revelation/glorification of the sons of God (Rom 8:19-21).
Christ in us is our hope of glory, or hope of being glorified at Christ's return (Col 1:27). All of this will be accomplished at Christ's return where we will be manifested with Him in glory (Phil 3:21, Col 3:4).
The hope of a Christian is to be glorified with Christ at His return.
Glorification is when God will completely saturate our dead, mortal body of sin (Rom 7:24) with the glory of His life, to transfigure our body to conform it to the resurrected glorious body of His Son (Phil 3:21).
God has already regenerated our spirit with His Spirit when we first believed in Christ. Glorification is God regenerating our mortal bodies with His Spirit so that we are delivered from darkness in our whole being (spirit, soul and body) and become like Christ.
The Believers Heavenly Inheritance in Summary
1. When mankind fell, mankind lost God. Losing God was the worst thing that could possibly happen to mankind, and gaining God back as our inheritance is the greatest thing that could happen to mankind.
2. The promised inheritance to believers is God Himself (all that He is, all that He has, all that He has done). God's intention is to give Himself back to mankind. The believer's heavenly reward is God Himself.
3. The gift of the Holy Spirit is given to believers as a foretaste of our inheritance (God).
4. Our inheritance includes the salvation of our souls, and our glorification - which is to transfigure our body to conform it to the resurrected glorious body of His Son (Phil 3:21).
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