In the Bible, the word heaven describes three levels of existence (2 Corinthians 12:2). The first heaven is the atmosphere that surrounds the earth, the environment in which we live.
The second heaven is what we commonly refer to as outer space. This must be a realm in which angels operate, because in the Bible, angels are often called stars (Job 38:7).
The third heaven is the throne room of God—the place we normally think of when we hear the word heaven. It is about this heaven that the Bible has the most to say. In fact, the third heaven is a very busy place, because it is the control center of the universe.
In the book of Ephesians alone, we find numerous references to heavenly places. Understanding how to tap into the heavenly places is crucial to waging victorious spiritual warfare.
Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” This verse tells us that God resides in the heavenly places, and so do all of our spiritual blessings.
This is important because if you are engaged in a spiritual battle and need help to win, the help you need is with God the Father, who is in the heavenly places. But if you don’t know how to get to heavenly places, you won’t know how to get to the heavenly help you need to win the battle in earthly places.
According to Ephesians 1:20, when God the Father raised Jesus Christ from the dead, He seated His Son “at His right hand in the heavenly places.” Not only are the Father and your blessings in heavenly places, but Jesus Christ is there, too. So, if you need Christ’s help in earthly places, you’d better know where He can be found and how to take a trip there to obtain His help in your warfare.
You may say, “Wait a minute, I’m here on earth. I’m in a physical place.” But that’s the problem. If you only see where you are physically and never understand where you’re supposed to be spiritually, you’ll never be able to win in spiritual warfare. Paul is saying that when you accepted Christ, you were transported to another sphere. Even though your body is limited to earth, your spirit that should be controlling your body is operating in a wholly different realm.
