The Afterlife - What About John 3:13?

 

As we have noted in previous posts, the scriptures clearly teach that, when a Christian dies, he or she will then be united with Jesus Christ. The Bible says that when we are absent from the body, we will be “at home with the Lord” (2 Cor 5:6-8). Paul was inspired to say that “to die is gain,” as he personally anticipated that he might “depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil 1:21-24).

For further biblical support, please read, “The Afterlife: Union with Christ at Death.”  https://serving-and-sharing.blogspot.com/search?q=at+home+with+the+lord

But … is there biblical evidence to the contrary? Does the Bible anywhere teach that we will not be with the Lord when we die? What about Jesus’ own statement in John 3:13? In that passage, Jesus said, “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.”

At first glance, perhaps one might conclude, “No one goes to be with the Lord when they die, because Jesus said that he was the only one who ever ascended into heaven.” That would be an honest mistake. We can see that mistake by considering the very words of this verse themselves.

In John 3:13, Jesus was only speaking of the time up until he spoke these words. He said, “No one has ascended (as of now) …” He did not speak of the future as to what would happen to his disciples when they would die. He did not say, “No one will ever go to be with the Lord at the point of death.” He simply said that, at the point at which he spoke these words, no one other than he had ascended to heaven. He could not have meant “never in the future,” because all the saved will at some point “ascend” (go up) to be with the Lord (1 Thess 4:16-17).

When Jesus on the cross committed his spirit into the Father’s hands, we assume that the Father received him. He took the thief with him. On that occasion, he promised the thief, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.” We conclude that Jesus took the thief with him when he went to be with the Father that day. To see that Paradise is in the presence of God, compare Revelation 2:7 with Revelation 22:2, 14. The tree of life, said to be in Paradise (Rev 2:7), is also said to be beside the river that flows from the throne of God (Rev 22:2, 14). To be in Paradise was to have access to that tree, which is in the presence of God.

Therefore, there is no contradiction between Jesus words in John 3:13 and the rest of the New Testament. In light of the clear promises made to Christians after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and return to heaven, we may have confidence. In death, we like Paul can expect to “depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.”

So, what was Jesus saying in John 3:13? When we look at the context of Jesus’ words in John 3:13, he was explaining a simple but powerful truth to Nicodemus. He had been where Nicodemus and others had not. Though Nicodemus was a teacher in Israel, he was merely an earthly man. He had not been where Jesus had been. Therefore, Jesus, not Nicodemus or others, was the only one who could reveal heavenly truth.

John 3:11 “Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. 12 “If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.”

Here’s a further note. When Jesus spoke of having ascended into heaven, he was not referring to what we typically call the “ascension,” his return to heaven forty days after his resurrection. That had not yet happened. He was talking instead about the fact that he had been in the presence of God. He was intimately aware of his omniscient wisdom and knowledge.

What about Enoch and Elijah?

Had no one gone to be with God previously? Well, God had taken Enoch to be with him (Gen 5:24), and Elijah had been taken up into heaven in a whirlwind (2 Kgs 2:11). There is no need to question those scriptures. At the same time, neither they nor anyone else had been up in heaven in the sense that Jesus had. No one but he had had access to such perfect intimacy with the Father and such infinite, eternal wisdom.

In the context, that was Jesus’ point with Nicodemus. That conversation has no bearing on the fact that, when Christians are “absent from the body,” we will be “at home with the Lord.”