DAVEH:
Do you suppose the 'salvation' Jesus referred to coming to Zacchaeus' house
(Lk 19:9) might refer to the author of salvation (Jesus) abiding
at his house (Lk 19:5)? > the cross, both of which would seem to
punch holes in your argument,
tc:No
DAVEH: You are reading into Scripture what
is not there, Terry. What makes you think the thief was saved?
While no claim of salvation is made by Scripture, many folks make that
mistaken assumption based on the comment that Jesus made that he (Jesus)
would see him (the thief) in paradise. .
The reason we know the thief
did not go directly to heaven is
because Jesus told him........
"........Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt
thou be with me in
paradise." (Lk 23:43)
..........Now, where did Jesus go that day (which
was Friday)? We know
it was not heaven, because 2 days later he said
to
Mary........
"......Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended
to my Father:......" (Jn
20:17)
.......So Terry, since Jesus had not yet returned
to his Father until
Sunday (after he met Mary), then it follows that
he spent the
previous day or so NOT in heaven. That
brings up the question of where
was he? I have quoted this verse before,
but will do so
again.......
"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; Which sometime were disobedient,
when
once the long-suffering of God waited in the
days of Noah, while the ark
was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight
souls were saved
by water." (1Pet 3:18-20)
.......And, what was he doing there?........
"For for this cause was the gospel preached also
to them that are dead,
that they might be judged according to men in
the flesh, but
live according to God in the spirit." (1Pet
4:6)
........So, it seems reasonable to conclude that
paradise is not in
heaven, but a part (with spirit prison) of the
spirit world where
Jesus taught the gospel to those who had not
yet heard it. This gives
evidence of several things.....
1. Spirits exist after death and prior to
being resurrected.
2. The gospel can be taught to those who
have previously died.
3. Those spirits have free agency to accept
the gospel.
4. The reason the gospel is taught in the
spirit world, is that the
spirits who have not had the opportunity to hear
the gospel while
alive would hear it in the spirit world so that
they could be judged as
though they were still in the flesh, but return
to heaven.
5. The spirit world is comprised of a paradise
and a spirit prison.
6. And finally, the thief was not necessarily
"saved" merely because Jesus said he would meet him in paradise.
> with no mention of even a drop of water.
DAVEH: Perhaps he was one of those who were
baptized for the dead as mentioned by Paul in 1Cor 15:29! :-)
+++++++++++
