The image of the gates in popular culture is a set of large gold, white or wrought-iron gates in the clouds, guarded by Saint Peter (the keeper of the "keys to the kingdom"). Those not fit to enter heaven are denied entrance at the gates, and descend into Hell.
Later Christian tradition attributed the duty of greeting the souls of the faithful at the Gates of Heaven to Saint Peter.
In fact, the Bible indicates we will know each other more fully than we do now. The Apostle Paul declared, "Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12). It's true that our appearance will change, because God will give us new bodies, similar to Jesus' resurrection body.
Genesis 28:10-22. “This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, [10] Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
According to Dr. Mortimer, heaven lay within the sun as a vast globe, “at least 500,000 miles in diameter.”
The Bible says that in heaven Christ “will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21). The Bible gives us a hint of what we will be like in its account of Jesus' transfiguration. (You can read it in Luke 9:28-36.)
God will give us new bodies in heaven -- bodies that will be similar to Christ's body after His resurrection. The Bible says that Christ, "by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body" (Philippians 3:21).
The reunion of believing loved ones
When Paul writes to believers who grieve the loss of a loved one, he offers them this comfort: “We who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:17, emphasis mine).
In this sequel to The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Eddie, the amusement park mechanic appears to Annie as a guide in heaven. Annie, who has just married her love Paolo, is enjoying a hot-air balloon ride with him when a horrific accident occurs. The tale transitions between Annie's current life and her past.
The second person Eddie meets in heaven is his captain from World War II. They fought together in the Philippines where Eddie's troop, including the captain, was taken prisoner by four Filipino guards. Eddie, the captain, and three other soldiers were held in a bunker and forced to work in a coal mine all day.
Heaven will be an infinite world of new discoveries, and Jesus Christ will unfold them to you. Thomas Boston says: The divine perfections will be an unbounded field, in which the glorified shall walk eternally, seeing more and more of God; since they can never come to the end of the infinite.
He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.
Hadraniel (or Hadrianiel among other variant spellings), whose name means "majesty [or greatness] of God", is an angel in Jewish Angelology assigned as gatekeeper at the second gate in heaven.
The “Twelve Gates” have their origin in folklore, mythology and scripture. In the Book of Revelations (Revelation 21:12), there is reference to the twelve gates, each of which represents a different passageway to heaven.
As for the rest of humankind, after the final judgment, it is expected that the righteous will receive eternal life and live forever on an Earth turned into a paradise. Those granted immortality in heaven are absolutely immortal and cannot die by any cause. Even God himself wouldn't be able to kill them.
Our old, physical body will be left behind; our new, spiritual body will be “raised up.” The Scripture reveals that our resurrection body will be a spiritual body perfectly suited to be with the Lord forever in Heaven. The apostle Paul agreed with Jesus' words and timing according to 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 (ESV).
Many Christians rely on Matthew 22:30, in which Jesus tells a group of questioners, "At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.”
Purgatory (Latin: purgatorium, borrowed into English via Anglo-Norman and Old French) is, according to the belief of some Christian denominations, an intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification.
You enter heaven by forgiveness and through the righteousness that Jesus gives you. You do not enter into heaven by the Christian life. It's always true that where faith is birthed, works will follow, but salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
To move heaven and earth means to put tremendous effort into accomplishing something, to do everything one can to make something happen. The expression move heaven and earth came into use in the 1700s, but its origin is uncertain.
This book is a story about how Igwe visited heaven for 30 minutes and God told him what Christians were doing wrong that will stop them from gaining eternal life. In this 30 minutes encounter with God, you will learn how to be certain that you will end up in heaven and not in hell.
The Bible does not say in any part that it is only the 144,000 that will go to heaven. The revelation to John supports Matthew 8:11, which says that many will come from every corner of the earth to sit with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The number 144,000 that were sealed or chosen are not pre-chosen.
According to the post-biblical Midrash, eight people went to (or will go to) heaven (also referred to as the Garden of Eden and paradise) alive: Enoch, Noah's great grandfather (Genesis 5:22–24) Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) Serah, daughter of Asher, son of Jacob (Midrash Yalkut Shimoni (Yechezkel 367))