I'll respond to just this one and you might understand me better and be able to presume how I think concerning the others.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah
Why is 1 verse in Hebrews more clear than the verse in Phil where Paul says that when he dies he will be with Christ?
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Because, whether we are immediately brought into the presence of Christ, or, at another extreme, we are unaware of anything until the resurrection, our realization is that we are "with Christ." The verse does not explain.
And, even if I remain aware after death, and am actually, like the story of the rich man and Lazarus, in "Abraham's bosom" so to speak, my destiny is secure and I can say that I am with Christ because the suffering of life is over and "it is finished."
I don't really like this analogy (for obvious reasons that you will see when you read on). But if I got great tickets to a sporting event or primo concert and then later came to realize that there are now 3,000 people standing in line to get the remaining 1,000 tickets, I can say that I am "in" while many of those cannot say that. But until the concert time actually arrives and they open the doors, no one is literally "in."
What Paul says may or may not be like that. "It is decided and final. I have confidence that it is simply so."
"In any case, I'm with you."
Remember. It is language. And in some cases, the precision of language is not in every possible outcome of what that means at the moment, but what it means in context and in intent.