Portals between Earth and the Third Heaven and the clash of Universes

 

Portals between Earth and the Third Heaven and the clash of Universes

D.P. Weary

December 2023

 

Humans have always somehow known that there is a universe or universes beyond our earth and its cosmos. From the Tower of Babel, and the peaks of the Himalayas to the beaches of Maui, humans have sought ‘the gates of Heaven.’ What does the Bible tell us about a ‘gate to heaven’ and this alternate universe?

The Bible records many instances of interactions between two universes. These occurred at physical locations on the Earth.

[Gen 2:8 NKJV] The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.

 Eden, maybe around where the River Euphrates is today.

[Rev 9:1 NKJV] Then the fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit.

[Rev 9:2 NKJV] And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.

[Rev 9:14 NKJV] saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."

The River Euphrates

[Act 10:11 KJV] And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:

Jerusalem

[Luk 3:21 KJV] Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,

The River Jordan

[Rev 4:1 KJV] After this I looked, and, behold, a door [was] opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard [was] as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.

Patmos

[Gen 32:23 KJV] And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.

[Gen 32:24 KJV] And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

ford Jabbok. (A stream just east of the River Jordan between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea)

[Gen 28:10 NKJV] Now Jacob went out from

Beersheba and went toward Haran. (south of Jerusalem toward eastern Turkey)

[Gen 28:12 NKJV] Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder [was] set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

[Gen 28:17 NKJV] And he was afraid and said, "How awesome [is] this place! This [is] none other than the house of God, and this [is] the gate of heaven!"

[Gen 28:19 NKJV] And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously.

Just north of Jerusalem

[Mat 28:2 NKJV] And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.

 Jerusalem

These were geographical Biblical places where there was an interaction between man and heaven, between the universe of our world and the universe of Heaven. These are basically in the Middle East between Jerusalem and the Euphrates River (ancient Babylon).

But for believers, after Jesus’ death and resurrection, He is the door, the portal into this Third Heaven, Paradise.

[Jhn 1:51 NKJV] And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

Jesus is the door to Heaven

[Jhn 14:1 NKJV] "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.

[Jhn 14:2 NKJV] "In My Father's house are many mansions; if [it were] not [so], I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

[Jhn 14:3 NKJV] "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, [there] you may be also.

[Jhn 14:4 NKJV] "And where I go you know, and the way you know."

[Jhn 14:5 NKJV] Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?"

[Jhn 14:6 NKJV] Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Human flesh will never enter the Third Heaven. Man must be born again as a spiritual being to enter this universe.

[1Co 15:50 NKJV] Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.

[1Co 15:51 NKJV] Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed--

[1Co 15:52 NKJV] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

[1Co 15:53 NKJV] For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on immortality.

 

To understand our world these days we need to understand that there is a battle going on between two universes. There is our physical universe of earth and its cosmos. And there is a spiritual universe of Heaven or what the Bible calls “the Third Heaven.”

This universe of Heaven, or the Third Heaven” as the Bible calls it (where God dwells) is a very real but spiritual universe and coexistent with our lower-order physical universe. Even theoretical physicists are now struggling with new evidence and findings from both the Web Telescope and the Hadron Collider that hint at an alternate universe. This evidence hints that there exists a parallel universe to ours. Perhaps even the “UFO” phenomenon is evidence of interactions between our physical universe and an alternate universe.

To Bible believers, this alternate universe is very real and is called the Third Heaven. It is a spiritual universe and the best wisdom of man can not understand it.

[1Co 2:6 NKJV] However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

[1Co 2:7 NKJV] But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden [wisdom] which God ordained before the ages for our glory,

[1Co 2:8 NKJV] which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

[1Co 2:9 NKJV] But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him."

[1Co 2:10 NKJV] But God has revealed [them] to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

[1Co 2:11 NKJV] For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.

[1Co 2:12 NKJV] Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.

[1Co 2:13 NKJV] These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

[1Co 2:14 NKJV] But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned.

 

In our day we are seeing a clash between our physical universe and the spiritual universe, the third heaven. This is because there exists in this spiritual universe pure evil in the form of fallen angels led by one we call Satan. Satan and his minions are the ultimate rebels. They hate God, and God’s people. They have been attempting to establish their kingdom on the earth since the days of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Today their attack on God’s people is relentless. Prue evil is being manifested in our world; great hatred of Christians and Jews, unreasonable lawlessness, inhumane behaviors, open occult practices, wars and rumors of wars, nations rising against nations, and kingdoms against kingdoms, famines, and pestilences, in various places. Corrupt, evil, governments, courts, economic systems, and unbridled deceptions and lies are beyond being explained in the natural. To deal with all of this in the natural will be futile. We are in an ultimate spiritual battle between good and evil. For believers in and followers of the Lord Jesus, these battles will be won, but not by human might or power, but by the Spirit of the Lord.

[Zec 4:6 NKJV] So he answered and said to me: "This [is] the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts.

[2Co 10:3 NKJV] For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.

[2Co 10:4 NKJV] For the weapons of our warfare [are] not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,

[2Co 10:5 NKJV] casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

[2Co 10:6 NKJV] and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

[Eph 6:10 NKJV] Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

[Eph 6:11 NKJV] Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

[Eph 6:12 NKJV] For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual [hosts] of wickedness in the heavenly [places].

[Eph 6:13 NKJV] Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

[Eph 6:14 NKJV] Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

[Eph 6:15 NKJV] and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

[Eph 6:16 NKJV] above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

[Eph 6:17 NKJV] And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

[Eph 6:18 NKJV] praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints--

 

The good news in all of this is that this Third Heaven, the Kingdom of God is at hand. Furthermore, the actual transition of believers in Jesus (as Lord, Savior, and King of the Kingdom) into God’s Kingdom, the Third Heaven is very close. The battles on the earth are not going to cease. They are going to get more intense. These times are described in the Bible as ‘the last days,’ ‘the Day of the Lord,’ and ‘the days of the wrath of the Lamb’ (the wrath of God). It is the Lord Jesus who will overcome all the evil in the world at His coming to execute righteous judgment. He will also establish His Kingdom on the earth for 1000 years where once again, as it was in the days of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the physical universe of earth will be mingled with the spiritual universe of the Kingdom of God. The prayer Jesus taught us to pray will be answered.

[Mat 6:10 KJV] Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven.

 

But for believers, the transition into the Third Heaven will occur before these last days of His wrath and tribulation, and this transition is very close at hand. God’s children and the Lord’s Bride will not experience these last day’s battles and the wrath of the Lamb.

[Rom 5:9 NKJV] Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

[1Th 5:9 NKJV] For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

[Rev 3:10 NKJV] "Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

[1Th 4:13 NKJV] But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.

[1Th 4:15 NKJV] For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive [and] remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.

[1Th 4:16 NKJV] For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

[1Th 4:17 NKJV] Then we who are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

[1Th 4:18 NKJV] Therefore comfort one another with these words.

 

 

 

 

What are the three heavens?

Published by TheBibleMadePlain on September 19, 2020

 

The Bible mentions three different heavens. What are they exactly?

The Earth’s Atmosphere

The first heaven, in terms of distance from us, is the earth’s atmosphere. It is where clouds form and from where rain falls. Here are some Scriptural examples of this heaven.

Luke 4:25  “But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land;

Luke 17:24  “For as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day.

Luke 17:29  “but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

Rev 11:6  These have power to shut heaven so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire.

Outer Space

The second heaven, in terms of distance from us, is outer space. It’s where the stars are.  Here are some Scriptural examples of this heaven.

Mat 24:29  “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

2 Pet 3:10  But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

Rev 6:13  And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.

God’s Throne

The third heaven, in terms of distance from us, is the throne of God. It’s where God is.  Here are some Scriptural examples of this heaven.

Mat 5:34  “But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne;

Acts 7:49  ‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest?

Paul referred to this heaven as the third heaven.

2 Cor 12:2  I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago; whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows; such a one was caught up to the third heaven.

This heaven is also the place where our reward is stored.

Mat 5:12  “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Mat 6:20  “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Mat 19:21  Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Our inheritance is reserved in heaven.

1 Pet 1:4  to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,

Our names are written in this heaven.

Luke 10:20  “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

Heb 12:23  to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect,

Our citizenship is in heaven.

Phil 3:20  For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

The Father is in heaven.

Mat 5:16  “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Mat 5:48  “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Jesus Christ is in heaven.

Heb 8:1  Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,

1 Pet 3:21  There is also an antitype which now saves us; baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
1 Pet 3:22  who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him.

Angels are also in heaven.

Mat 18:10  “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

Mat 22:30  “For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.

Luke 22:43  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.

Gal 1:8  But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.