It would not seem the least bit contentious to you or anybody else if you understood the major difference between the "heaven" that the OP was referring to and the "new heaven" that I mentioned.
The Bible indicates that there are three heavens.
Co 12:2
I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth) such an one
caught up to the third heaven.
2Co 12:3
And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth)
2Co 12:4
How that he was
caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
According to scripture, "the third heaven" is where "paradise" is currently located, and it is the place where God, Jesus, and the dead in Christ currently reside. If there is a "third heaven," and there is, then logic dictates that there must also be a first heaven and a second heaven. Here is the first heaven.
Gen 1:20
And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life,
and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
According to scripture, that which we might rightly call "the first heaven" is where the fowl fly, or it is part of this earth's atmosphere. If there is a first heaven and a third heaven, and there is, then logic dictates that there must be a second heaven situated somewhere between the two of them. Here is the second heaven.
Gen 1:14
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
Gen 1:15
And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
Gen 1:16
And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night:
he made the stars also.
Gen 1:17
And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
Gen 1:18
And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that
it was good.
According to scripture, that which we might rightly call "the second heaven" is where the sun, moon, and stars are, or what we might call "outer space."
In his erroneous claim, the OP was (and still is) insisting that "the third heaven" is where Christians will spend eternity, and this is not only patently false, but that "heaven" and the "new heaven" are not the same place. Consider what Peter said here.
2Pe 3:1
This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in
both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:
2Pe 3:2
That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:
2Pe 3:3
Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
2Pe 3:4
And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep,
all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
2Pe 3:5
For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
2Pe 3:6
Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
2Pe 3:7
But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2Pe 3:8
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day
is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
2Pe 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night;
in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
2Pe 3:11
Seeing then
that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner
of persons ought ye to be in
all holy conversation and godliness,
2Pe 3:12
Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God,
wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
2Pe 3:13
Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
2Pe 3:14
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
In relation to scoffers in the last days who will walk after their own lusts or desires, Peter said that they will believe that "all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation" (vs. 4), but their beliefs will be unfounded. In other words, Peter said that they would be "willingly ignorant" (vs. 5) in relation to the heavens and earth of old, or in relation to the heavens and earth that we read about in the creation account in Genesis chapter 1. According to Peter, "the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished" (vs. 6), or the original heavens and earth were greatly changed as a direct result of the great deluge in the days of Noah. In other words, there were both atmospheric and geological changes which took place at that time.
In fact, Peter went on to distinguish between the original heavens and earth and the heavens and earth in which you and I currently live when he said "but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (vs. 7). Notice "the heavens and the earth, WHICH ARE NOW." Again, our current heavens and earth are not the original heavens and earth of Genesis chapter 1 because of the atmospheric and geological changes which occurred at the time of the great deluge in Noah's day. Not only this, but Peter said that the heavens and the earth, which are now, "are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (vs. 7). In other words, whereas the original heavens and earth of Genesis chapter 1 were greatly changed BY WATER as a direct result of the great deluge in Noah's day, the current heavens and earth will be greatly changed BY FIRE at some future time, and Peter went on to address it further when he said how Christians are "looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat" (vs. 12). He then added how "we," Christians, "according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (vs. 13). In other words, this new heavens and a new earth have absolutely nothing to do with what the Bible calls "the third heaven" (2 Cor. 12:2). Instead, they have everything to do with the heavens and the earth which have been (in Noah's day), and which will be (at a future time), affected atmospherically and geologically BY WATER (in Noah's day) and BY FIRE (at a future date).
I ran out of space, so I will have to conclude in my next post.
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