Why do I believe that God welcomes all to heaven? Quite simply, because the God that I worship and praise is a gracious and loving God, one that cares for everyone’s eternal spirit. I believe like many philosophers and theologians before me that there are layers or steps in heaven. Once we arrive there is still work for us to do, lessons to be learned.
Depending on the lessons we have learned in this lifetime, we will arrive in heaven on one of these tiers leading us ultimately to one with God. I base this belief not only on reading other theologians’ work, but on experience in my family. For example, there have been members of my family that have not lived the Christian life, yet they have appeared to me in my dreams after they have died and become spirit. One was a self-avowed atheist who appeared to my father the week that he died. Surely she would not have gone to heaven, she was a non-believer. Yet, her spirit survived.
The first two years after my mother died, she visited me often in my dreams and brought me messages from beyond. Than one night she popped in to my dream and said good-bye, that it was time for her to move forward, to learn new lessons. That same night she visited my oldest brother and his wife, who she never met, with a similar message. This visit reinforced for me that indeed there are layers in heaven and lessons to still learn once we get there. When I need my mom, I pray to God for her to visit me and she usually comes. So, she is still watching over me, but from a little farther away.
Since we still have opportunities to grow once we leave this physical world, I strongly believe that we all get to go to heaven. We just may have never starting places once we get there. What do you think? I would love to hear from you.
Blessed Assurance 