The Kingdom Seminar The Kingdom of God, Heaven and Hell

SLIDE 2 Session Overview The Kingdom of God on earth. Where does heaven fit in? Where does hell fit in?

SLIDE 3 The Kingdom of God on Earth “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure for ever…” Dan 2:44 “Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth…” Num 14:21

SLIDE 4 A Recap of the Kingdom The Kingdom will be on earth Jesus will reign from Jerusalem All nations will worship God A time of peace and glory to God

SLIDE 5 A Timeline of the Kingdom Planet Earth : Life as we know it today The Return of Christ : Establishment of God’s Law & Kingdom The Millennium : Cleansing the earth and preparation for God The Kingdom : Established in it’s fullness

The Kingdom Seminar Heaven is God’s Dweeling PLAce

SLIDE 7 What is Heaven? God’s Dwelling Place “Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel..” Deut 26:15 “then hear from heaven, your dwelling-place.” I King 8:39 “This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” Matt 6:9

SLIDE 8 Who is in Heaven? God’s Throne This is what the LORD says: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Isa 66:1 Angels And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem.. Luke 2:13-15 Jesus So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. Mark 16:19

SLIDE 9 No-one has gone to Heaven?! Jesus’ Words : “…no man has ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven…” John 3:13 What about righteous men of old? David Abraham Moses, etc

SLIDE 10 No-one has gone to Heaven?! David Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto this day. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he says himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thy foes thy footstool. Acts 2:29,34-35

SLIDE 11 No-one has gone to Heaven?! Abraham By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed… These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. Heb 11:8-13

The Kingdom Seminar “Hell” is the Grave

SLIDE 13 Hell in the Old Testament As a word, the original Hebrew word 'sheol', translated 'hell', means 'a covered place'. 'Hell' is the anglicized version of 'sheol‘ Biblically, this 'covered place', or 'hell', is the grave. There are many examples where the original word 'sheol' is translated 'grave'. Some modern bible versions scarcely use the word 'hell', translating it more properly as 'grave'. "God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave" (sheol [Ps.49:15]) ie : David's soul or body would be resurrected from the grave, or 'hell'.

SLIDE 14 Hell in the New Testament In the New Testament ‘Hades’ is the equivalent of the Hebrew ‘sheol’ The belief that hell is a place of punishment for the wicked from which they cannot escape just cannot be squared with the fact that a righteous man can go to hell (the grave) and come out again. Hos. 13:14 confirms this: "I will ransom them (God's people) from the power of the grave (sheol); I will redeem them from death". This is quoted in 1 Cor. 15:55 and applied to the resurrection at Christ's return. Likewise in the vision of the second resurrection, "death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them" (Rev. 20:13). Note the parallel between death, i.e. the grave, and hell.

SLIDE 15 Hell in the New Testament Weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth Always used in parables VALLEY OF HINNOM Apparently, the Valley of Hinnom was used as the garbage dump for the city of Jerusalem. Refuse, waste materials, and dead animals were burned here. Fires continually smoldered, and smoke from the burning debris rose day and night. Hinnom thus became a graphic symbol of woe and judgment and of the place of eternal punishment called HELL. (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary)

SLIDE 16 Hell In the New Testament The Valley of Gehenna 'Gehenna' is the name of the rubbish tip which was just outside Jerusalem, where the refuse from the city was burnt. Josh. 15:8 At the time of Christ it was the city rubbish dump. Dead bodies of criminals were thrown onto the fires which were always burning there, so that Gehenna became symbolic of total destruction and rejection.

SLIDE 17 The Nature of Man "For what is your life? It is a vapour, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away". James 4:14 "We all die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again". 2 Sam. 14:14 “The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground…” Gen 2:7 “…since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return…” Gen 3:19

SLIDE 18 Voices from the Grave? No one praises God when dead "(Man's) breath goes forth, he returns to his earth; in that very day (moment) his thoughts perish" (Ps. 146:4). That death is truly unconsciousness, even for the righteous, is demonstrated by the repeated pleas of God's servants to allow their lives to be lengthened They knew that after death they would be unable to praise and glorify God, seeing that death was a state of unconsciousness.

SLIDE 19 Voices from the Grave? No one praises God when dead For the grave cannot praise you, death cannot sing your praise; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for your faithfulness. The living, the living-- they praise you Isa 38:18-19 Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake. For in death there is no remembrance of you: in the grave who shall give you thanks? Ps 6:4-5

The Kingdom Seminar Eternal Life is God’s Gift

SLIDE 21 Eternal Life is God’s Gift “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life…” John 3:16 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom 6:23 Eternal Life is God’s gift to those who seek it. Even a life of everlasting punishment in “hell” is “eternal” God is not going to give the gift of “Eternal Life” so one can spend it suffering…

SLIDE 22 The Resurrection Lazarus : Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day…” John 11:23-24 David : “Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day… …For David did not ascend to heaven…” Acts 2:29-35

SLIDE 23 The Resurrection The Hope of the Apostles… Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, "My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee. I stand on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead…” Acts 23:6

SLIDE 24 The Logic of Heaven & Hell RESURRECTION? MAN DIES GOOD PEOPLE IN HEAVEN BAD PEOPLE IN HELL

SLIDE 25 The Logic of the Resurrection MAN DIES RESURRECTION “MANY THAT SLEEP IN THE DUST OF THE EARTH…”

SLIDE 26 Summary Heaven is God’s dwelling place Hell is nothing more than the Grave Death is likened to a sleep Our hope is to be resurrected to eternal life in the Kingdom of God