Before the Cross

Many of us Christians, when we first heard about the scriptures about Enoch and Elijah in the Old Testament being Raptured out of the Earth were very excited.  The mistake is the assumption that they were able to go permanently into Heaven during the Old Testament period before Jesus Christ's payment on the Cross. 

Before the Crucifixion by Jesus Christ, which was the greatest prophetic event in all of history, it was impossible for at least three reasons for anyone to be in the presence of God the Father in Heaven:

1. Our God is Perfect and cannot allow sinful human beings into His presence in Heaven without the payment for sins because this violates God's Character.  There is no one righteous on their own. 
2. It is impossible for anyone to go and stay in Heaven, along with getting to be in the presence of God the Father, at the Thrown, when Jesus Christ had not made the payment for sins at the Crucifixion Event.  This is sometimes referred to as the different Dispensations of Salvation, but in all periods in history, Salvation is always through Jesus Christ. 
3. In the center of the Earth, there is a Lower and Upper Sheol.  The good compartment, Upper Sheol, is also called the Bosom of Abraham in the parable of the Rich man in Luke 16:19-31. 
   (a) The good compartment contained everyone who has Salvation and were awaiting the coming of Jesus Christ to take them into Heaven after the payment of sins at the Crucifixion by Jesus Christ.  
   (b) The Prophet Samuel was called up from Upper Sheol by King Saul in 1 Samuel 28:14-19.

   1 Samuel 28:15

   Now Samuel said to Saul, Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?

If any human being can go to Heaven and stay there before the payment made on the Cross by Jesus Christ, along with being in God the Father's presence, then Jesus Christ's death on the Cross for the payment of sins was not necessary.  Furthermore, it would mean that a human being can be righteous without Jesus Christ, which we are not.

God Cannot Do These Things

There are several things that God cannot do, which is actually a type-of oxymoron statement, and is always spoken out of reverence to reflect the perfection in God.  There are many lists in books, and on websites, where below is this author's favorite peronalized list of primary things that God cannot do, which is a beautiful and loving list of our Awesome God. 

Reviewing the list actually brings Glory to God, along with giving us reassurance, hope, faith, love, peace and so much more.  Understanding these items in the list, leads us to understanding what is God's greatest problem concerning us:

1. Cannot be stopped, replaced or deceived.
2. Cannot allow His Holy Name to suffer from not fulfilling His Promises, Attributes and Character.
3. Cannot learn because all things were created by Him.
   (a) God Created all things so that God knows the potentials, boundaries and attributes as part of the design.
   (b) God's Creation is for His Pleasure and Enjoyment
   (c) God's Creation of Human-Beings, like the Angels, is for Fellowship with Him.
4. Cannot do anything against His own Character.
   (a) God's Character will not have Himself forcing Angels or Human-Beings to Love Him as that was part of the Design by God to receive earned love that is deserved by the created Angels and Human-Beings.
   (b) God's Design of Human-Beings enables us to reciprocated God's Love when we become increasingly aware of the Love God gave us which is the type of true love that we will enjoy in eternity in a more completeness. 
   (c) Those that go to the Lake Of Fire for eternity will be utterly alone and will worship God in their depraved way because of the absence of God.  They will realize that God is the only one that can rescue them.  They will also recognize they no longer have the ability to ever receive back any acknowledgment from God because God will not listen because of the rejection of God.
5. Cannot forgive Lucifer and the Fallen Angels and Demons.
   (a) The sin of Lucifer and the Fallen Angels is different than Adam and Eve.
   (b) Adam and Eve did NOT try to usurp God.
6. Cannot forgive any human-being that did NOT have the acceptance of restitution for theirs sins through Jesus Christ at the Crucifixion.
7. Cannot speak anything that is not true.
8. Cannot make a mistake, and His Word will always be fulfilled.

Here are a few scriptures, of many, that relate to this list:

God's Greatest Problem

This author has heard this from many Biblical Scholars describing our predicament of human beings. 

"God's greatest problem is how can He allow sinful creatures into His Presence without violating His Character that exercises perfect justice?  The answer required Him making the payment for the sins of mankind." 

While the scriptures state this exact same point, but perhaps all of us have heard the Cross story to many times, become desensitized to it, and have forgotten:

1. God is Perfect and absolutely requires perfection that we are not capable of doing on our own as human beings until we are changed at the Judgment Seat of Jesus Christ.  God's perfect justice required a payment for sins for each and absolutely everyone.
2. The Crucifixion was not a tragedy but a perfectly carried out, accomplished, completed and victorious plan that was set out before the foundation of the world by hundreds of prophecies, analogies and patterns. 
3. The Crucifixion gave every one of every Dispensational era of history, the ability to enter eternity by accepting Jesus Christ as their Savior. 
4. The Christian's life on Earth will still have consequences of sin, but are subject to Grace and Mercy where both good and bad is part of sowing and reaping along with obtaining future Rewards in Heaven.

What to read next?

Who are the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11:3?  What is Salvation?  Is it is possible to lose Salvation?  We have eternal life.  Evolution is not real.  When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it.  Rewards in heaven.  Do we Tithe?  What does the 3rd Commandment tell us?  What is Grace and Mercy?  Is there an Age of Accountability?  Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?