40 Days Pondering Heaven - 03
Dr Jim Brown's TruNorth Devotional
40Pondering Heaven
Day 03 | PAUL AND THE THIRD HEAVEN
40Pondering Heaven
Day 03 | PAUL AND THE THIRD HEAVEN
PAUL AND THE THIRD HEAVEN
2 Corinthians 12:2-4
“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows—was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell.”
Paul is talking about himself here and is referring to a supernatural experience in which God brought him into His very presence in the highest heaven where He dwells. He was allowed to see and learn things that God wanted him to know.
1 Kings 8:30 – “And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.”
Isaiah 66:1 – “Thus says the Lord: ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool;’”
To explain the heavens… The first “heaven” is considered to be where birds and airplanes fly, the second “heaven” is considered to be where the planets and stars reside, and the Third Heaven is where God resides.
Paul describes his experience with humility and mystery, questioning whether it was an in-body experience… and says he heard what was beyond human words, an experience that parallels Stephen’s vision (Acts 7) and John’s revelation (Revelation 4).
It’s noteworthy, too, that Paul never presented this experience as something believers should pursue. And yet, this experience – and that of Stephen’s and of John’s – gives us a glimpse and a hope that “the best is yet to come.”
Prayer: LORD, though You have provided us with much beauty in this life, we are truly looking forward to what You have prepared for us with YOU forever. Amen.
2 Corinthians 12:2-4
“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows—was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell.”
Paul is talking about himself here and is referring to a supernatural experience in which God brought him into His very presence in the highest heaven where He dwells. He was allowed to see and learn things that God wanted him to know.
1 Kings 8:30 – “And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.”
Isaiah 66:1 – “Thus says the Lord: ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool;’”
To explain the heavens… The first “heaven” is considered to be where birds and airplanes fly, the second “heaven” is considered to be where the planets and stars reside, and the Third Heaven is where God resides.
Paul describes his experience with humility and mystery, questioning whether it was an in-body experience… and says he heard what was beyond human words, an experience that parallels Stephen’s vision (Acts 7) and John’s revelation (Revelation 4).
It’s noteworthy, too, that Paul never presented this experience as something believers should pursue. And yet, this experience – and that of Stephen’s and of John’s – gives us a glimpse and a hope that “the best is yet to come.”
Prayer: LORD, though You have provided us with much beauty in this life, we are truly looking forward to what You have prepared for us with YOU forever. Amen.
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