Okay, flame me if you want, but I haven't yet taken the time to read all 5 pages of posts on this matter. I did however read the article in Time which started it all. It was delightfully brief and to the point. If nothing else, Rev. N.T. Wright knows how to get his point across within the attention span of the average American ... an amazing feat in and of itself.
Moreover, I find I really disagree with him on only a few points, and one of those is purely semantic.
He describes an "intermediate state", but what He calls the intermediate state is precisely what I have always called "Heaven". (I believe that "Paradise" was a part of "Sheol" that existed before Christ's ressurection, but that it has passed away when Christ arose and those who were there are now in "Heaven". An in-depth discussion on this may be outside the scope of this thread.)
So, I agree that there is an "intermediate" state. I just believe that the intermediate state is, in fact, Heaven.
The final state, what Rev. Wright calls "Heaven" is what we Evangelicas call collectively "The Millenial Reign" followed by "The New Heaven and New Earth". Yes, we will be raised bodily, and at that point "Heaven" is not where we will want to live. We will want, and be allowed, to live on the transformed Earth and, after 1,000 of Chirsts reign a brand-new newly created Earth.
Heaven is a place for spirits, like angels or humans with no bodies. They are full of joy there. But like God Himself, we are triune beings, sprit + soul + body (We are, after all, created in His image). Without our bodies, we are not really complete. We are only 2/3 of what we are meant to be. Our final fulfillment will not occur until the resurrection of the dead.
I do think there will be a 7 year tribulation between the initial rapture and the establishment of the Millinial Reigh, but those will be 7 years on Earth. I'm not sure if the time will pass in Heaven at all. 7 years here may be the blink of an eye or less in Heaven.
I would like to point out that someone on this thread asked why the concept of the "Rapture" was such a recent invention. I would contend that it wasn't. The basic ideas have always been there, but the history of the church shows that the ideas are always being expressed in ways that best communicate the unmutable truth to new generations.
The idea that we will be raised bodily has never left the church. If you have ever recited the Apostle's Creed in church, you have stated that you "believe in ... the resurrection of the body and life everlasting". The belief in the "Rapture" has always been there. We just haven't used that word until recently.
Another thing I would disagree with Rev. Wright on would be his eschatology. I do belive in a pre-millinial and pre-tribulation rapture. However, I think Rev. Wright was speaking primarly of what happens when we die, not at the end of the age, so that's a bit outside the scope of his article.
The last thing I would mention is that I am not sure if you was merely mentioning the idea of purgatory or endorsing it. Since he is Anglican, he probably believes the concept.
This, I must say, is where I would have the most serious disagreement. For Hebrews 9:28 says that Christ was sacrificed to "take away" our sins. 1 Corinthians 6:11 says we are "sanctified" in the name of the Lord Jesus. Moreover, 1 Corinthians 1:30 states that it is CHRIST that is "our righteousness, holiness and redemption". If CHRIST is our righteousness, what possible need could there be for a "purgatory"?
2 Corinthians 5:17 says that if you in Christ, you are a new creation and the old has "passed away". Psalms 103:12 says that He has removed our transgressions from as "as far as the east is from the west". If my sins are that far from me, what is left to purify?
I know Lewis expressed the idea that we needed to be made "ready" for Heaven (I know he believed in Purgatory), but scripture says we will be changed "In the twinkling of an eye". Christ will make me "ready" for Heaven instantly, just as He saved me instantly. It's not as if I could do it.
As far as hell, there are also two states for that. There is "[i]Gehenna[/]" (spelling?) which is where the unsaved dead go for now. The literal "Gehenna" was the refuse dump outside Jerusalem where the fires to burn the refuse never went out, but the word is also used for the holding place of the unrighteous dead.
But, just as there will be a "New Heaven and New Earth", so there will be a "New Hell" known in Revelation as the "Lake of Fire". It will be, amazingly, even worse than the first.
I don't think the idea of it being a place where we get what we want, to our eternal torment, is really scriptural. Although, it did form the basis for one of my favorite episodes of "The Twilight Zone".
Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."