Memory Verse; 11 Corinthians 12:2: I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell, or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth,) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
What is the "third heaven?" It is the abode of God.
The first heaven is the atmospheric heaven that surrounds the earth. The second heaven is where the planets and stars are located. The third heaven is the focal point of the universe and the place to which Christians go when they die.
Paul was stoned at Lystra and it is generally thought that he died during this stoning and then resurrected. See Acts 14:19-20. Approximately fourteen years later he wrote the words of our text. Most feel he was looking back to that experience. Answering a question concerning this in his book "Bible Questions Answered," Dr. William Pettingill said: " . . . if we believe, as seems very probable, that Paul is discussing his Lystra Experience in 11 Corinthians 12 you will find that just about 'fourteen years' elapsed between them. (See 11 Corinthians 12:2.) Whether the stoning was actually to death or not, it is certain his recovering so quickly and so fully miraculous, and that the infirmity of the flesh resulting for the experience, was given him only that he might not be ruined in his testimony by undue exaltation."
Reflecting on the experience, Paul said that paradise was unspeakable. He couldn't find the words to describe it. Some future for Christians!
We're headed for the "third heaven!"
What is the "third heaven?" It is the abode of God.
The first heaven is the atmospheric heaven that surrounds the earth. The second heaven is where the planets and stars are located. The third heaven is the focal point of the universe and the place to which Christians go when they die.
Paul was stoned at Lystra and it is generally thought that he died during this stoning and then resurrected. See Acts 14:19-20. Approximately fourteen years later he wrote the words of our text. Most feel he was looking back to that experience. Answering a question concerning this in his book "Bible Questions Answered," Dr. William Pettingill said: " . . . if we believe, as seems very probable, that Paul is discussing his Lystra Experience in 11 Corinthians 12 you will find that just about 'fourteen years' elapsed between them. (See 11 Corinthians 12:2.) Whether the stoning was actually to death or not, it is certain his recovering so quickly and so fully miraculous, and that the infirmity of the flesh resulting for the experience, was given him only that he might not be ruined in his testimony by undue exaltation."
Reflecting on the experience, Paul said that paradise was unspeakable. He couldn't find the words to describe it. Some future for Christians!
We're headed for the "third heaven!"
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