And so now, ever since our Lord Jesus was raised from the dead, both the saints that die and all children that die, go straight to heaven. Currently, both are living together in that part of heaven that our Lord called Paradise (Luke 23:43), which is also called Eden the garden of God. But all of them are there in spirit only, for neither the saints nor the children of God, have received a physical body yet. Nevertheless, there are a number of differences between the saints and the children in heaven. The main difference is that the saints in heaven are a part of the church and are therefore destined to become the bride of Christ, whereas the children in heaven are not part of the church and are therefore not destined to become part of the bride of Christ. Another difference between the two is that the saints in heaven will stand before the judgement seat of Christ to give an account of their lives while they were on the earth (Romans 14:10-12), whereas the children in heaven will not be judged. Another difference between the two, is that the saints have been made both kings and priests to God (Revelation 1:6), whereas the children in heaven are neither priests or kings before God. And so, as priests, the saints will minister before God, in the heavenly city of Jerusalem, whereas the children of God, because they are not priests, will not dwell in the city of Jerusalem to minister to the Lord. As kings, the saints will be joint heirs with Christ, and inherit the world to reign over it. The children of God on the other hand, will not inherit the world to come, for they are not joint heirs with Christ. Nevertheless, they will dwell in God’s new earth as His children, and it is in fact the children of God, over which the saints shall reign as kings, for all eternity. There is another difference between the saints and children in heaven, which is that the saints are filled with the Holy Spirit, whereas the children are not.
Michael E.B. Maher
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