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Old 07-21-2011, 05:44 PM
 
Location: Military City, USA.
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If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
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Old 07-21-2011, 05:48 PM
 
Location: Salt Lake City
27,875 posts, read 29,674,389 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
I would say that, in most cases, the answer would be 'no.' Their marriage vows probably said "until death do you part" or "for as long as you both shall live," didn't they? My belief is that eternal marriage is part of God's plan but that it's not an automatic thing. A couple would have to be married by someone who held the authority to bind in Heaven those things which were bound on earth. (I'll wait for the refutations and the scriptural citations I know will accompany them before I add any futher explanation.)
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Old 07-21-2011, 06:21 PM
 
Location: arizona ... most of the time
11,825 posts, read 12,416,888 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
Jesus said that there is no marriage in heaven.
Luke 20:34-35
Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage
Men and women are only bound together while alive. After death no such commitment exists or binding that carries over. As Jesus revealed to Paul:
Romans 7:1-2
"Do you not know ...the law has authority over a man only as long as he lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.

As Jesus revealed to Paul:
1 Corinthians 7:1
"It is good for a man not to marry."
What's good for man is good for women. And Heavenly Father is nothing but good.

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Old 07-21-2011, 06:25 PM
 
Location: El Paso, TX
32,884 posts, read 26,100,556 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
Jesus was asked the following question by some Sadducees...

Matthew 22:23 'On that day some Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Him and questioned Him, 24] saying, ''Teacher, Moses said, 'If a man dies, having no children, His brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up an ofspring to his brother.' 25] Now there were seven brothers with us; and the first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother; 26] so also the second, and the third, down to the seventh. 27] ''And last of all, the woman died. 28] ''In the resurrection therefore whose wife of the seven shall she be? For they all had her.''

Jesus' reply was as follows...

29] But Jesus answered and said to them, ''You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures, or the power of God. 30] For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

Though there is no marriage in heaven, whatever the nature of relationships in heaven may be like, you can be assured that they far surpass any relationship which is possible in this life.
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Old 07-21-2011, 07:16 PM
 
Location: On a road heaven bound !
10,295 posts, read 9,650,281 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by twin.spin View Post
Jesus said that there is no marriage in heaven.
Luke 20:34-35
Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage
Men and women are only bound together while alive. After death no such commitment exists or binding that carries over. As Jesus revealed to Paul:
Romans 7:1-2
"Do you not know ...the law has authority over a man only as long as he lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.

As Jesus revealed to Paul:
1 Corinthians 7:1
"It is good for a man not to marry."
What's good for man is good for women. And Heavenly Father is nothing but good.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike555 View Post
Jesus was asked the following question by some Sadducees...

Matthew 22:23 'On that day some Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Him and questioned Him, 24] saying, ''Teacher, Moses said, 'If a man dies, having no children, His brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up an ofspring to his brother.' 25] Now there were seven brothers with us; and the first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother; 26] so also the second, and the third, down to the seventh. 27] ''And last of all, the woman died. 28] ''In the resurrection therefore whose wife of the seven shall she be? For they all had her.''

Jesus' reply was as follows...

29] But Jesus answered and said to them, ''You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures, or the power of God. 30] For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

Though there is no marriage in heaven, whatever the nature of relationships in heaven may be like, you can be assured that they far surpass any relationship which is possible in this life.
Amen....
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Old 07-21-2011, 08:12 PM
 
Location: Nashville, TN
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You've got a lot of great Biblical responses. This is a good question and God made the answer clear to us in His Word.
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Old 07-21-2011, 08:48 PM
 
Location: Salt Lake City
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Okay, Michigan Transplant, you have a number of answers which referenced exactly the verses I anticipated they would. I believe that these verses are among the most universally misunderstood of any in the New Testament. At first glance, they do appear to be saying that marriage does not survive the grave. But for those willing to look a little deeper, there are some significant clues which imply that the truth is a bit more involved. Matthew, Mark and Luke all relate this same incident, but with some slightly different details, so I'm quoting all three of them. My comments, though, will be limited to Mark's and Luke's accounts.

Matthew 22:23-31 The same day came to him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked him, Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother: Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh. And last of all the woman died also. Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her. Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

Mark 12:18-25 “Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man's brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed. And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise. And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also. In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife. And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.”

Luke 20:27-36: “Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him, Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children. And the second took her to wife, and he died childless. And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died. Last of all the woman died also. Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife. And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.”

I would also post the entire text of John 17, because it is very important to an accurate understanding of these passages on marriage, but I don't want to clutter my post up with any more scriptures than I already have. You may, however, wish to review that chapter yourself. Anyway, here are my thoughts on the subject:

1. We need, as always, to be aware of who Jesus’ audience was. In this instance, He was speaking to the Sadducees. What do we know about the Sadducees? First of all, they didn’t believe in a resurrection at all. In asking a question of this sort, do you honestly think they were looking for the truth? Or do you think that, as on many other occasions, they were simply trying to stump Jesus by asking a question that would cause Him to have to contradict something He’d previously taught. (It's also likely that the subject of marriages enduring beyond the grave had been mentioned before. At least this question seems to be hinting that it had.) At any rate, it’s entirely logical to assume that Jesus, knowing their hearts as perfectly as He did, would have given them an answer that, while entirely honest, would pertain to them specifically. In teaching a truly receptive audience, His answer would likely have reflected His concern with their genuine interest in knowing.

2. John 17 (which I referred to earlier) makes frequent use of the phrases “of the world” and “not of the world.” These phrases are, in fact, used so many times that it’s almost impossible to brush them off as inconsequential. In the prayer recorded in this chapter, Jesus made a clear distinction between His followers, in other words, those individuals who, like Him, were “not of this world,” and those who rejected Him, thereby falling into the group who were “of the world.”

In Luke’s account of this event, Jesus once again uses the phrase, “of the world.” Jesus was telling the Sadducees, who were obviously “children of the world” what they could expect in the next life. Because they were not His followers, they would not receive the blessings of eternal marriage, but would instead be as angels. Jesus did not explain to them the blessings that the children “not of this world” would receive. Why should He have done? They would have believed Him to exactly the same extent that they believed they would be resurrected.

3. Looking at Mark’s account, we see another important indication of what Jesus really meant. Here, Jesus is recorded as having said, “Ye know not the power of God.” What on earth could He have meant by that? The power of God to do what – un-marry someone? In the context of His statement, He could only have meant that the Sadducees did not understand that God has the power to unite a husband and wife forever. Without such power, death would certainly end the marriage covenant, but with it, the covenant is eternal. Jesus gave Peter the keys to bind in heaven that which he would bind on earth. Having that authority, he would be able to exercise the power of God to make the marriage relationship endure. We know from the Old Testament that “whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever.” When Peter received the keys to the kingdom of God, he received the power of God to do something that would have eternal significance. A marriage performed by someone not holding that power would endure only under one or the other partner died.

4. Finally, it is significant that Jesus never did say that no one would be married in Heaven. He merely said that no one would get married in Heaven. There is a difference between these two things. The Greek word translated as “marry” is “gamosin,” the third-person form of the verb “gameo,” which means “to enter into the marriage state or to get married.” The term “gamizonai” (“giving in marriage”) is another way of saying the same thing. But, He never used the word, “gemesas,” (as is found in 1 Corinthians 7:33) to describe “a married person.” He never said that there will be no married individuals in Heaven; He only said that marriages won’t be performed there. And I believe this to be the case.

At any rate, that's the way I see it. If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them. I've heard all the arguments and the criticisms to my opinion on numerous occasions, though, so I probably won't have too much to say unless someone actually introduces a new point worth considering.

Last edited by Katzpur; 07-21-2011 at 10:17 PM..
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Old 07-21-2011, 10:11 PM
 
Location: Southern California
2,037 posts, read 2,143,672 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
If Christian couples are soulmates, they will be together. If not, then they won't. This information is written in the Book of Life.

Philippians 4:3 - And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and [with] other my fellowlabourers, whose names [are] in the book of life.
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Old 07-21-2011, 10:39 PM
 
7,704 posts, read 12,540,083 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.
I don't think so. Because the Bible says we will not be given in marriage in Heaven. But you will meet up with your husband and family members as soon as you get into Heaven. From what I have read, we're still family in Heaven with our family on Earth. Because we spent the most time with each other there and we loved each other. So we're still going to be as close as were on Earth to them in Heaven but the difference is we're no longer blood.

But I have read a testimony about Heaven with this man who went there and wrote a book and says we will have "companions" so-to-speak. Such as if you and your husband loved each other so much on Earth you will also be together in Heaven as such but not in marriage. Just together all the time for eternity. I don't know if this vision was real but it's something to think about.

The Testimony of Oden Hendrick: Inside the Holy City
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Old 07-21-2011, 10:44 PM
 
4,196 posts, read 6,268,026 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant View Post
If a couple is Christian, and one spouse passes before the other, when the living spouse passes do they meet up in heaven? Are they still married?

Please give Bible verses/scriptures in your replies.

Thank you all in advance for your research and postings.

aaahhh...no. they're both dead. worm food. done. finished. no meeting again 'later', not in 'heaven', not 'up there', not anywhere.

i'd tell the 'couple' to enjoy this life and stop living your life for the 'next' life that doesn't exist.
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