Heaven and Hell Explanation

Here is another e-mail response I wanted to share. I have a dear friend that wanted to know what my new opinion on heaven and hell was. This is what I wrote to her.

My ideas about heaven and hell have changed, but are not yet definitive. The main thing that has changed, is that I no longer believe it to be the point. The Christian church is all about "saving you from hell," but I disagree. I don't believe hell is what Jesus came to save us from. I believe Jesus came to set us free from the bondage sin put us in. When we were put into the bondage, we were separated from the Father. I believe when Jesus died, his sin covered everyone, not just those that have faith. 

However, I believe that no one can enter the "Kingdom" unless they have relationship with God, through Jesus. Hence, "No one can enter the Kingdom except through me." Yet, I do not believe the Kingdom is heaven. I believe, but am reserving the right to change my mind on this, that Heaven and Earth are places, and the "world" and the "kingdom" are mindsets (for lack of a better term.)

 I don't even think about hell. 

The Kingdom is an indescribable place where God resides and his authority reigns. The kingdom is the place where you can "ask anything in my name, and it will be given to you." This is why I believe it says, "Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." It is the authority and presence of God. I believe you can be on earth and in the Kingdom at the same time. I hypothesize that would mean you could be in heaven and in the world at the same time.

 I commonly experience the kingdom. I have also experienced being "born again." Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot enter the kingdom." Before I actually experienced it, I thought being born again meant "accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and savior." I now know that when I did that it was my "conception," not birth. Being born was a tedious road of stripping away the foundation of the enemy and squeezing me through a narrow canal out into the kingdom on the other side. (This almost killed me.) Then, having the Lord start me out as a baby, building my foundation on Him, and relationship with Him. I have no other way to describe it than that. I truly believe it has to be experienced, and that only God can do it. There is no set formula or speech to get one there. 

I believe the "world" is the enemies mindset. It is a facade to distract us and get us to worship him and his ways. I believe the central theme of the enemy's kingdom is money. Hence, "you cannot serve both God and money. In the "world" we make it a God, letting it define us and using it as our security. This does not mean I believe everyone that has money is evil. I just know it to be the tool the enemy uses most. In the rich and the poor. It makes people that are poor feel "less than," and people who have money feel "better than." Forcing us to define ourselves by our financial (or success) status, rather than who the Lord says that we are. It consumes our minds and constant thoughts and has corrupted men for all time. However, "the World" is manifested in multiple ways.  

The subject of Hell hasn't really come up between the Lord and I, so I figure it must not be the point, or He probably would have made it urgent. Again, I reserve the right to change my opinion. Hope that explains what I think somewhat. It's really hard to describe, and I never have before. 

Talk to you soon,

Tara