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  • What Is Heaven?

    a view of the clouds

    What Is Heaven?

    Creation

    God has created many beautiful things. Sometimes, we might wonder if it can get any better than this, but is there more after this life? God wrote a lot about this in His message to us, the Bible, so it seems that it’s something that He really wants us to know. What is waiting for us after this life is over will greatly affect how we live our lives today.

    purple petaled flowers near mountain
    a group of people sitting in a park

    Personalized

    In movies, we see many different ideas of what heaven is like. Usually, they will say that it’s whatever a person loves the most. Everyone seems to get their own “personal” heaven.

    Religions

    People have made up their own religions where “heaven” is their idea of wonderful. Some say that if you are good enough, you can get to a state where you are part of nothing. I suppose that if you live in a very noisy area, that might seem nice.
    Others would say that if you fight for that religion, you will get many wives.
    Usually, heaven in these religions is for people who have done good things or lived good lives. What does God say about heaven?

    Jesus

    Jesus said this.

    John 14:2-3 (NASB)

    2 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.
    3 “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.

    Jesus said that there are many places to live in His Father’s house (God’s house). He said that He was going there to prepare a place for His people. So, we see these things about this scripture.

    • There are many dwelling places (so we won’t run out of space or feel cramped).
    • Jesus went to prepare this place for His followers.
    • He will come back one day and take His followers there.
    • Jesus and His followers will be together.

    Earthly Bodies

    2 Corinthians 5:1-3 (NASB)

    1 For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
    2 For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,
    3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.

    • This body in which we live is temporary, like a tent.
    • God has prepared a place for us that is eternal — it never goes away.
    • It is in the heavens.
    • It is so much better than what we have now, it’s like not even having clothes to wear or a place to stay.

    Heavenly City

    Hebrews 11:16 (NASB)

    16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.

    • Our current country is not permanent.
    • God’s country is better.
    • It is a heavenly country.
    • God is not ashamed of His followers.
    • God prepared this city for them.

    Works

    As we said earlier, most religions say that you have to do certain things to earn a place in heaven. We all know ourselves, though. Do we honestly think that we can be good enough to deserve something as incredible as this heaven that we have been reading about? What does the Bible say?

    Romans 3:23 (NASB)

    23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

    Romans 7:18 (NASB)

    18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.

    Ephesians 2:1 (NASB)

    1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,

    If we don’t deserve heaven, and we can’t possibly earn it, what can we do?

    God’s Mercy

    Ephesians 2:4-7 (NASB)

    4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
    5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
    6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
    7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

    Because of God’s love and mercy, He took our place on the cross. This is not something that we deserved or could possibly earn. It’s a free gift.
    Notice that this is past tense. Paul is saying that God already did this. He already entitled us to having a place with Jesus, a place where He will show us “the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

    Danger

    There are dangers that we have to avoid, and challenges that we have to overcome. This life is not easy.

    Revelation 3:17-18 (NASB)

    17 Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,
    18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.

    There are times that we might be tempted to be satisfied with what we have, thinking that we are doing well. If only we could see things the way that God sees them, we would see things quite differently.
    We think we’re rich; God says we are poor.
    We think we can see everything clearly; God says that we are blind.
    God even tells us that the beautiful clothing of religion that we wear is actually like the emperor’s clothes in the old children’s story. Just because someone tells you that you’re okay doesn’t mean that you are.

    My opinion of myself is not accurate.
    The opinions of others are not accurate.
    Only God’s opinion is real.

    If God says that He is my only hope, I can believe Him.

    How We Live

    As we said earlier, what waits for us after this life will greatly affect how we live our lives. That’s because how we live our lives today greatly affects what happens to us after this life. We can’t earn heaven, but what we do makes a difference.

    Matthew 24:41,44-46 (NASB)

    41 “Then He will also say to those on His left, Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;
    44 “Then they themselves also will answer, Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?
    45 “Then He will answer them, Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.
    46 “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

    Notice:

    • The “eternal fire” was prepared for the devil and his angels.
    • The punishment is eternal (never ends).
    • The reward (life) is also eternal.
    • There is a separation between the two groups.

    Lake of Fire

    Revelation 20:10,15 (NASB)

    10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
    15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

    As we saw in Matthew 24, this lake of fire and brimstone (sulfur) was created as a punishment for the devil and his angels, not originally for people. If people choose to follow the devil, and not God, they will follow him all the way into eternal, never-ending torment.

    Book of Life

    If our names are in the Lamb’s book of life, we will be spared that torment, as we see in verse 15 above.

    Revelation 3:5 (NASB)

    5 He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

    This is what we see in this passage.

    • There is a way to get our names in the “book of life.”
    • It is possible for our names to be erased from this book.
    • There is something for us to overcome.
    • If we overcome, Jesus will tell His Father and the angels that we belong to Him.

    Overcoming

    The only way for us to overcome is to depend on Jesus. He overcame death and the grave, because He paid for our sins by His sacrifice. As we have seen, it’s impossible for us to be “good enough” to earn heaven. Jesus had to do it, and He did. All we have to do is worship Him, trust Him, and follow what He tells us to do in the Bible. If we do, He says that we have a new city waiting for us.

    New Jerusalem

    Revelation 21:1-4 (NASB)

    1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
    2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
    3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
    4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

    God is going to wipe out heaven and earth, because we have corrupted it. He is preparing a new Jerusalem, His holy City.

    Revelation 21:16 (NASB)

    16 The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal.

    To put this in perspective, 1500 miles is about the distance from Louisiana to New England. That’s how long, wide, and tall the city is. That leaves plenty of room for everyone who has ever existed.

    Light

    Revelation 21:22-23, 22:5 (NASB)

    22 I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
    23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.
    5 And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.

    We won’t need to go somewhere special to meet with God, because He will always be there with us. We also won’t need the sun or any other light, because God Himself will be there. His glory will be brighter than our own sun.

    The Curse is Gone

    Revelation 22:1-4 (NASB)

    1 Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb,
    2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
    3 There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him;
    4 they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads.

    Everyone needs water to sustain life. God will give us pure water that comes straight from His throne, providing constant, renewing, refreshing, eternal life. There will also be a tree of life that will always be bearing fruit. The curse that we all received when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden is broken. The tree of life, from which they should have been eating, will be there for us.
    To show that we are children of God, we will have His name on our foreheads. This will be a constant reminder that we no longer have anything to fear. We are now part of the family of God, and that will never change — for all eternity!

    More…

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  • Saving for the Future

    Saving for the Future

    Savings

    Most people want to save up for something. Maybe it’s a new car, or a better house, or college education. Whatever it is, it’s worth sacrificing a little today, so they can have something nice in the future. We all dream of a better life, nicer clothes, living in a new neighborhood, etc.
    What are we willing to give up now to get our dream in the future?

    Delay of Gratification

    Saving for the future usually requires denying ourselves something now. If we want to buy a house, we might need to rent a less-expensive apartment, so we can save up for the down payment on a house. If we want to send our children to better schools, we probably can’t go out to eat every night.
    If we want to follow Jesus now, there are some things that we have to give up.

    Luke 9:23 (NASB)

    23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

    Self-denial sounds like a bad thing, but it’s not always bad. For example, I intentionally deny myself food I don’t like. I also deny myself the act of hitting my head against a wall (usually). Most importantly, I deny myself things that will come between me and my relationship with God. To me, not having that closeness with Jesus hurts more than wall-induced headaches.
    What are some of the things that come between us and God?

    Hindrances

    Idolatry is when we worship someone or something more than, or instead of God alone. It can also be considering something else more important than He is to us. Throughout the Bible, God uses the example of marriage to show our relationship with Him. He created us so that He could love us.

    Colossians 3:5 (NASB)

    5 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.

    Here, Paul is telling us some of the things that God views as idolatry – worshiping a different god. They are also things that harm our lives and the lives of those around us.
    Immorality: Just like Adam and Eve, we were created to marry someone of the opposite sex and live with them for the rest of our lives. Any other sex might seem like fun at the time, but it always causes heartache in the end, leaving ruined lives behind.
    Impurity: There are temptations all around us in movies, the Internet, social media, or just crude jokes with friends or coworkers. What we do starts with what we think.
    Passion: Passion within a marriage is good; anything else is not.
    Evil desire: wanting something that we know we should not have. A young child might dream of eating nothing but candy and sweets. That can keep them from actually eating good, nutritious food, though.
    Greed: It can be easy, at times, to see someone else with something that we want. We might think that we deserve it more than they do. A major part of living a life pleasing to God is accepting how he created us. I will never be the richest or poorest. I will never be the best-looking or the worst-looking. There are many things that we will never be, but we will always be created in the image of God, and worthy of living a godly life.

    Satisfaction

    Philippians 4:12-13 (NASB)

    12 I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.
    13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

    Paul learned, through his life experiences, how to be content, whether he had a lot or a little. He knew that wherever he was in life, His heavenly Father would be there with him, helping him every step of the way.

    Easy Labor

    Matthew 11:28-30 (NASB)

    28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
    29 “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
    30 “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

    Yes, we do have to work in this life, but Jesus told us to take His yoke, to take His burden. When we are living for the devil, we carry a heavy burden of sin, guilt, and shame. Jesus wants to set us free from all of that.

    The Enemy

    1 Peter 5:8 (NASB)

    8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

    We do have an actual enemy called the devil or Satan. Long ago, he was jealous of God and wanted to be God. God, thankfully, did not allow that. He banished Satan from His presence. Since God created us (and not the angels) in His image, Satan hates us and delights in hurting us. This is why he tempts us with evil things. He knows that they will separate us from God. He knows that they will keep us in bondage to him, not set us free in Christ.

    Finding Your Life

    Luke 9:24-26 (NASB)

    24 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.
    25 “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?
    26 “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

    In order to have a good life now, and for eternity, we need to be willing to give up the harmful things in our lives. Nothing in this world can compare to spending eternity with Jesus in heaven, and the best part is that we don’t have to wait. We can live that abundant life right now.

    Abundant Life

    John 10:10 (NASB)

    10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

    When Jesus said “abundantly”, He used a word that meant something that exceeded what was necessary – a super-abundance.

    Down Payment

    2 Corinthians 1:21-22 (NASB)

    21 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God,
    22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.

    The same Holy Spirit Who was there in creation, the same Holy Spirit Who enabled Jesus to live a sin-free life, the same Holy Spirit Who raised Jesus from the dead, has been given to us, by Jesus, as a pledge, or down payment, with much more to come.

    Divine Helper

    John 14:16-17 (NASB)

    16 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever;
    17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

    When Jesus was walking this earth with His disciples, He could only be one place at one time. In order to complete His work, He needed to be wherever His children were, whenever they needed Him. After He died for us on the cross, then was raised up again, He sent the Holy Spirit to comfort us, to help us, and to give us a taste of what to expect in heaven.

    Building for the Future

    1 Corinthians 3:11-15 (NASB)

    11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
    12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
    13 each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.
    14 If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.
    15 If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

    The things that we do determine what we have. If we build a shelter out of cardboard, it will protect us from the sun, but not from any rain. If we build a substantial house, with a strong foundation, strong walls, and a reinforced roof, even a hurricane won’t be able to blow it down.
    The trials of life will test what we are building today. After this life is over, there will be a judgment day that will test what we are building. If we build with gold and silver, they will only get stronger and more purified when tested by fire. We can settle for less, but the end result will ultimately be less, and might even be completely burned up.

    Crown of Righteousness

    2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NASB)

    7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;
    8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

    At the end of our lives, may we all be able to say, as Paul did, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” If we do this, we will also have a “crown of righteousness” waiting for us. Truly, Jesus is the only one Who deserves this crown, but He wants to share this with everyone who has “loved His appearing.”

    Eternal Life

    Ever since the Garden of Eden, God has been calling to us to spend time with Him. Today can be the start of a new beginning for you. Call to Him today, and He will help you on a journey that we keep going up, all the way to eternity.

    If you would like to discuss this with someone or would like prayer, please send us a message by clicking here.