Having not shared about immortality recently, I was trying to figure out what to write for this blog post, but wasn’t sure what to say. I asked Holy Spirit what his favorite verse was on the subject, and He told me it was 2 Corinthians 5:17. Not knowing offhand what the verse said, I looked it up. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” I’ll be honest, while the Bible has a vast number of verses that reference this promise from Heaven that we can be set free from the curse of death, this is not one of the ones that has ever come to mind, so I asked Holy Spirit, “What is it about this verse that you like so much?”
“I like how it reveals the Son.” He said. And while that verse doesn’t seem at first glance to do that, verses 17-21 do. They speak about how Jesus was reconciling the world to the Father, not counting our sins against us and making us the righteousness of God in Jesus. So what does revealing Jesus as the Reconciler that have to do with immortality? Everything.
Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus.” Romans 1:17 quoting Habakkuk 2:4 says, “The righteous shall live by faith.” The payment for sin is death, so what is the payment for righteousness? If one goes throughout scripture, righteousness and life are integrally connected. Eternal life comes through faith in Jesus, and the righteous shall live by that same faith. This ultimately means that as 2 Corinthians 5 tells us, because Jesus has made us righteous in Him, that we shall live and not die. All of Romans actually addresses this issue–that we have already died with Christ and the law of sin no longer applies to us. If sin no longer applies, then we no longer are to reap the payment for sin, which is death.
The biggest struggle I find people have with this idea, in spite of the fact that the scriptures clearly say otherwise, is that we have grown accustomed to this idea that we are all fated to die. Jesus died to do away with sin, and as a result do away with the penalty, which is death. John 3:16 states this plainly, saying that God did not want us to die but instead, live forever. We have for centuries interpreted this to mean “everlasting life in heaven after we die” but the verse doesn’t actually say that–it very clearly states that God didn’t want us to die and to accomplish this He sent His Son.
If we go back to Genesis we have to remember the warning God gave Adam: “. . . you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” (Genesis 2:17). The very FIRST warning God ever gave to His children was to prevent them from dying. We have been incredibly sin-focused as the Church, but God is focused on life and death. The reason Jesus set us free from sin was BECAUSE it kills us and God loves us so much He doesn’t want us to die.
The Church is entering a new period of theological revolution. Much like Martin Luther redefined our understanding of salvation, God is yet again re-revealing who He is and what His purposes are in the earth, not so much doing a new thing, but bringing deeper revelation on what He has always been doing. As this occurs, we will discover experientially what Holy Spirit’s favorite verse on immortality says: that we who are in Jesus Christ have been made into new creations because the old, sinful, mortal version has passed away and the new version has been clothed with immortality. Even as Paul said in Philippians 3:12, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” The apostle Paul pressed forward to attain to this gift of immortality which is in Christ Jesus, having been appointed an apostle and teacher and preacher of the gospel that speaks of that very gift (2 Timothy 1:10-11). The practical revelation of how to walk in this reality is even now being released from Heaven and pulled down into the earth through men and women who have become convinced of what the scriptures say–that we will live and not die. I pray that even as God brings clarity to this plan for immortality, the only plan He has ever had, that you will grasp hold of this revelation and make it your own.
To help better understand this subject and read more on God’s plan for our future, grab a copy of my book “The Gospel of Life and Immortality,” available on both Kindle and in Print on Amazon.
I have been wrapping my mind around this for some time now….and that’s been part of my problem. I needed to wrap my spirit around it instead. I had to go back and renounce some things I’d said about not wanting to live to be old because I’d looked at it with totally human eyes and made it about me. But if we can transcend beyond thinking about physical pain and things that often accompany getting old, realizing that God’s plan is NOT for us to be in pain. And first and foremost that it’s not about US. It’s about being open to God’s plan for us, everything that that embodies and walking that out to the fullest extent. Do we believe God’s Word and its promises, or are we believing in a set of beliefs and examples that were passed down to us? Thank you for writing this!!
Needless to say, I agree with you 1000% on this.
When I first got a revelation on immortality, and started teaching it in the late 80’s/early 90’s, everyone kept quoting Hebrews 9:27 about everyone being appointed to die once, as if it were an addition to the “Big 10” (along with tithing and the commandment that says “Let God be true and every man a liar.”)
They would get upset if I brought up Psalm 102:20 (a prophetic psalm about Jesus) where it says that the Lord will loose those that are appointed to die.
Why are so many Christians so determined to die? They will fight you over immortality and justify the keeping of the Law. The doctrines of devils/traditions of men truly do make the Word of God to be of no effect. They think that Jesus is going to come back and change them, but He has already given us the Spirit that raised Him from the dead to quicken our mortal bodies!
I choose to make the phase shift of Light by the Quickening Holy Spirit rather than stay in the dark light of sin and death! I choose to be a Manifested Son of God to Creation!
Not only that, but Hebrews 9:27 when read *in context* says the exact opposite of what everyone quotes it as meaning.
And I’ll have to take a look at Psalm 102:20!
yes, after Adam fell, there was given mankind an appointment with death. But, thank God, Jesus came and took our appointment with death(1cor.15:22) by tasting death for every man(Heb2:9). Now,we have passed from death unto life.(John5:24) God is 100% Victory and in God, there is no defeat.
..the new has been clothed with immortality, I really like that and it means more to me now that I’ll be 60 this year, somehow as I get older these things have a deeper (than when I was younger) meaning to them. My spirit desires to grasps this type of Bible verse and hold on to it and meditate on it more than ever. When I was about half the age I am now I seemed to almost take for granted scriptures like that and not really think too much on them. Funny how that changes with getting older. Maybe it’s because I’m closer to heaven, but then what would happen if lots of us born again believers actually never passed away on earth but really lived forever on earth as it is in heaven? God would surely bring us all to heaven I’m sure!
God never intended for people to go to Heaven. His plan was to live in Creation with His children, watching them grow and become like Him. We are to take our place as Manifested Sons of God and make Heaven on Earth for Him to inhabit. Then expand out into the Universe playing, creating, and having fun with our loving Abba! The end of Revelation even talks about it happening after the final judgement of satan and his followers.
Heaven is a temporary area created because of death and separation from God. Why else would it exist? God has always wanted to be in an everlasting relationship with His kids! That is His greatest dream, and the reason that Jesus came and died for us.
I have been going to Heaven every day since January of this year (2017), and although it is a magnificent place, God’s desire has never been separation. People that die and go there are learning how to use the Power of the Holy Spirit within us to change Creation at the sub-atomic level. That is what we are supposed to be doing right now. God’s Will on Earth as it is in Heaven is immortality and no lack of any good thing.
Let’s make it happen so that He can come and be with us! (BTW, God and Jesus are really fun!)
Yep! We would be able to pass back and forth like Elijah and Moses on the Mount of Transfiguration!
Yay, no need for Botox! 😉
No, actually this does make sense to my spirit but not my head right now. I need to further masticate this truth I think. God has really been pushing my boundaries the past year while reading your material, as well other people’s revelations.
I feel like I’ve been going through heaven’s university!
Thanks for the article.
My pleasure! So glad you are finding it helpful 🙂