While Jesus hung on the cross between two criminals, one criminal mocked Him, the other one took responsibility for his wrongdoing and said, “We receive the due reward of our deeds, but this Man has done nothing wrong.” Then the criminal turned to Jesus and said, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” Jesus responded, “Today, you will be with Me in paradise!” (Luke 23:42-43)
I have often wondered where did Jesus go for three days after His death and before His bodily resurrection? He did not go to heaven. He said so with these words He spoke to Mary as she wept outside the empty tomb, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father…” (John 20:17) Nor did Jesus go to a place of torment namely hell. He paid the penalty for the sins of the world on the cross. That is why Jesus said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30)
The thought suddenly came to mind that Jesus was in Paradise! That’s when I had an aha moment! It all began to make sense. But then I wondered, what and where is Paradise? After much research, I discovered the Old Testament term sheol and the New Testament term Hades are interchangeable terms for the temporary abode of the souls of every human being who has died, from a baby in the womb to the expanse of a lifetime. There are two areas of Hades – one area is a place of blessing and the other is a place of judgement.
The part of Hades for the souls of the saved is referred to as Abraham’s bosom as seen in the account of the rich man and poor Lazarus recorded in Luke 16:22-23. “So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torment in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and that Lazarus was in his bosom.” (The abodes of the saved and the lost are separated by a great chasm as Luke 16:26 points out, “… Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.”)
The area of saved souls in Hades is also called ‘Paradise.’ This is where Jesus went after His death prior to His resurrection. That is why He said to the criminal, “Today, you will be with me in Paradise.” Jesus and the criminal went to the blessed side of Hades. This was my second Aha moment!
The souls of believers go to Paradise.
When our bodies are resurrected and joined with our souls/spirits at the end of the age, it is then that we will praise the Lord in a manner worthy to give to a most Holy God because we will see Him as He is. Our praise to Him while still on earth is hindered because of our humanity, but when we receive our new immortal and imperishable bodies, we will be conformed to His image. We will see Him as He is in all His glory. We will worship the King and our High Priest with pure worship. Untainted. Uninhibited. Free to glorify the Lord in the manner that He is worthy to receive. And we will have aha moments for all eternity!