"And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." (Luke 24:36-39)
"Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you." (John 20:19-21)
The disciples of Jesus were having a discussion about the accounts of people who claimed to have seen the resurrected Jesus and suddenly, there he stood in the midst of them! They were understandably terrified and troubled. Maybe some of them even wanted to run. Then, Jesus spoke to them and said "peace be unto you". They were full of joy to see the resurrected Jesus that some brethren had been talking about. They therefore calmed down and decided to listen to him. Could it be that the rumours were real?
They drew closer to him. So, it is true? What a marvellous thing we are witnessing today! They were so joyful. Nevertheless, they still doubted in their hearts if this was really Jesus or a spirit. They were considering how he just appeared in their midst. It is only spirits that can do that. Jesus saw their confusion and said to them "...it is I myself: handle me and see: for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see me have". I am not a spirit. I have flesh and bones as you can see. Touch me and see that it is me. The text says: "...they yet believed not for joy, and wondered..." Then, Jesus asked for food and ate it before them.
Jesus wanted them to know that there is another level of existence that is not well known to man. On the topic of life after death, the disciples knew about a man dying and his body decaying while his spirit goes to heaven or hell. Jesus told them the parable of the rich man and Lazarus during his earthly ministry. They also knew about ghosts, demons and devils. These are all without flesh and bones like an earthly man. Jesus said "a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have". Jesus wanted them to know that there is a third level of existence that is different from the two they are aware of.
This level of existence is the transformation of the body. It is also the salvation of the body. Man is made up of three parts, namely; spirit, soul and body. When a man comes to Christ, his spirit is instantly transformed and saved. The spirit part is the one made in the image and likeness of God, because God is a spirit and God made man in His image and likeness. That is the real man. The salvation of the soul is a gradual process as the new man renews his mind with the word of God day by day. This is the reason we need to study the word of God, meditate on it and allow it to transform us. The salvation of the body will happen on the resurrection day.
The disciples were confusing a man in a glorified body with a ghost. Jesus appeared to them in his resurrected or glorified body. This body is the same body in the flesh that has put on incorruptible and become transformed. (1 Cor. 15:54-57) That was why they could not find his body in the grave. The power of resurrection came upon his body, raised him up and transformed his earthly body into a glorious body. It is therefore no longer an earthly body that is limited and subjected to earthly principles.
After Jesus died on the cross, he went to hell (Acts 2:25-28). The grave could not hold him captive. On the third day, he resurrected. "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." (Rev. 1:18) When he rose from the dead, he went to heaven before God to make atonement for us. Before he travelled to heaven, he appeared to Mary. Mary refused to leave the sepulchre when they could not find the body of Jesus, that was when Jesus appeared to her in the garden. She mistook him for a gardener. Jesus had to call her by her name- "Mary!" before she could realise it was Jesus. When she recognised Jesus, she wanted to touch him, but Jesus said: "...Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." (John 20:17)
Heaven is a tangible place we can go to and return, but in a glorified body. Our Lord was with them for forty days, showing himself alive with many infallible proofs and speaking to them about the kingdom of God. After these things, he ascended to heaven right before them as they looked on. The cloud received him out of their sight. They kept starring at the skies even when they could no longer see him. While they looked steadfastly towards heaven, two angels appeared to them and said to them: "...Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." (Acts 1:11)
The ascension was a private show to illustrate the expected rapture of the saints to the disciples. Jesus could have ascended secretly, but he went back to heaven in the presence of them all while they looked on. He showed them what is now possible for those who will follow the way of Christ. Immediately after Jesus rose from the dead, he briefly went to heaven. Only Mary saw him, but she did not see how he ascended. At the ascension, the disciples saw how Jesus defiled the law of gravity and journeyed into the sky. The same Jesus, we are told, in Acts 1:11, will come back in a similar fashion.
Rapture is not new. Even before Jesus came to earth, some witnesses already experienced transformation and travelled bodily to heaven. Enoch and Elijah readily come to mind from the Old Testament. Enoch walked with God and God took him (Gen.5:24). We were not informed of the process of how God took him. In Elijah's, case, we were informed of how God took him home. He went to heaven in a chariot and horses of fire. Messengers were sent from heaven on a flaming chariot, riding on the wind to fetch Elijah. The flaming chariot was the transportation vehicle and the weapon of war at the same time. Many enemies would have wanted to kill Elijah. In the case of Jesus, he did not need to be taken up, he ascended by himself right in the full glare of the disciples.
On the cross, as Jesus gave up the ghost, some great things happened. The curtain covering the temple was torn into two from top to bottom; the earth quake and the graves were opened. Some saints resurrected and appeared to many in the holy city. (Matt. 27:50-53) Those saints rose from their graves in an incorruptible body. They also appeared to many people in the city of Jerusalem before ascending to heaven. After they resurrected, they did not continue to live in Jerusalem. They went to heaven after a short time of walking and talking with some people in the holy city.
The spirit realm is dynamic. When Jesus appeared to Mary at the tomb, Mary did not recognise him. She taught he was one of the gardeners and asked if the man knew where they kept Jesus' body. Then, Jesus called her name: "Mary!" That was when her eyes of understanding opened and she exclaimed: "Master!" She could only recognise Jesus when Jesus wanted her to recognise him. On the road to Emmaus, Jesus appeared to two of his brethren and talked with them, but they could not recognise Jesus until Jesus opened their eyes of understanding. Jesus vanished out of their sight. (Luke 24:31)
Heaven is a tangible location. It is not just an imagination or a place solely existing in the spirit realm. To have an idea of heaven, examine the resurrected body of Jesus Christ. It is touchable and tangible. Heaven therefore is a touchable and tangible place. Heaven exists in a location not too far from the earth for someone in a glorified body. For people who are still in the flesh, heaven is in a location that will take millions of years to journey to. No one can get there in the flesh. "...flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption." (1 Cor. 15:50)
Can you see heaven?