The reality of eternity

I have just watched again the film, The Bucket List which is about two men, played by Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, who are told they have just six months to live. They decide to spend those six months doing the things and visiting the places they would love to do and see before they die.

Inevitably some of their conversations concern what they think will happen when they die. Jack Nicholson’s character is of the opinion that when you die that is it, whilst Morgan Freeman’s character has some faith in God and belief that he will be going to heaven.

What is frightening though is that underlying these conversations which often reflect what most people believe, is that you can select whatever hereafter you fancy and that determines your eternal destiny. If you believe your good works will give you access to heaven or you think re-incarnation is a possibility or that eternal oblivion is the reality after death, that is what will occur. 

Personally I would say that is wishful thinking at best and frightening deception at worst. There is of course no evidence one way or the other for this thinking which I believe we need to challenge. I prefer to base my eternal hopes on something more solid than my vain imaginings. My eternal destiny is too important a reality to trust to anything other than a reliable source material.

The one thing of which I am assured is that life is 100% fatal. We will all die.  For my eternity, I’d rather trust in the Bible and what Jesus says through its words than hope it will all turn out alright on the night. Many people are very sceptical about the Bible and its authenticity.  However there are no other works that were written several thousands years ago, that are still in print, let alone freely available in Western society.  On the other hand Bibles are feared by dictators and repressive regimes of other religions ban it and imprison those who either have one or try to give the book to others.

That in itself must be some evidence for its veracity. Why would people be prepared to die to get their hands on a copy if it was the just the writings of a few good men that are irrelevant today? I used to be sceptical about the authority of the Bible but after 35 years of being a Christian, I am utterly convinced it is the Word of God.

Having said that, I take very seriously the words of Jesus found within its pages. Jesus was in no doubt that when we die there will only be two destinations – heaven or hell.  I find no mention of eternal oblivion or re-incarnation and the Bible is very clear that no one can enter heaven by their good works. 

I think as Christians we have been very slow to counter balance the pick-and-mix eternity that is so prevalent in Western society. At too many funerals we are assured everyone is in heaven with absolutely no basis for these supposedly comforting words. All this does is perpetuate the lie that we can do what we like in this life and everything will be alright. Jesus’s death on the cross to open the way to heaven for all who call on the name of the Lord, has been reduced to an optional extra. 

Jesus said ‘Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.’ Matthew 7: 13 – 14. That’s frightening. 

Jesus had so much to say about hell that even as Christians we conveniently ignore. 

And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where ‘“the worms that eat them do not die, and the fire is not quenched.” Mark 9: 47 – 48 

Jesus referred to the fire of hell on various occasions and told the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16: 19  - 31 which is just about the clearest story about the two destinations that await everyone after they die.

This is too important a topic to put on the shelf to await a day when we are older and death is more imminent. No one knows when they are going to die, unless like the two men in The Bucket List, they are given a set time to live but that is not an exact science. 

As Christians we need to sort out our own thinking, first of all about the wonders of heaven and an eternity with Jesus that is really worth talking about and the alternative – the fires of hell. As I get older, more people are dying around me. I am trying to be bolder to speak about eternity and what the Bible says. Wishful thinking will not get anyone into heaven. The narrow way is only through Jesus. He paid the price and there is no other name by which we can be saved. 

Heaven - our real home

But our citizenship is in heaven Philippians 3: 20

Set your mind on things above not earthly things Colossians 3: 2

A couple of years ago, we were on our way home after a long journey round South Africa. We stopped for petrol just before the last leg of the journey – and the car broke down. Several hours later we were towed back the way we had come to a garage that could fix our car.

I cannot tell you how upset I felt about going away from home. I had been greatly anticipating getting back to our house, our things, the place where I feel most comfortable and at ease. Now not only were we not going home, we were driving in the completely opposite direction.

All of us are destined for our real home – heaven and if we have given our lives to the Lord Jesus, that is where we are going and we should look forward to it with great anticipation.  However the reality is that many Christians secretly believe that heaven will be boring; sitting around all day singing worship songs, maybe twanging a harp and hoping they can summon up enough enthusiasm to ‘worship the Lamb’.

Of course nothing could be further from the truth. As James Garlow says:

Take your deepest longings. Think of what you crave, what fills you with delight, joy you’ve never experienced but yearn for just the same. Remember your longing for home, for a lover of your soul, for the contented wholeness that leads you to the place you’ve never been yet can’t forget – the place where your every desire is satisfied more abundantly than you’ve ever dreamed. Heaven is that home.

That is the reality. The most wonderful thing is that we will be loved unconditionally, affirmed, appreciated and greatly valued just for who we are. Imagine that. No ulterior motives, no control, no manipulation, no rejection. Just pure love.

We will then be reunited with all the people we love starting with Jesus but including all our family and friends who have given themselves to serving the Lord. We will have eternity to get to know one another better but most of all to get to know Jesus and our loving heavenly Father and surely that will take eternity.

Out of that will flow the most awesome worship from hearts poured out in adoration to their Saviour and God.  Thousands upon thousands of voices raised in unity to honour and worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Nothing boring about that.

In addition, we were created to look after the earth in all its amazing diversity and beauty and the new heavens and the new earth will be perfect just as God created them to be not tarnished in any way by sin. There will be opportunities of incredible magnitude to serve and work in a deeply satisfying way.  

Think of all the things you would love to do and then imagine all the endless possibilities with the kiss of heavenly perfection on them. That is just the start of the wonders of heaven which are far beyond my imagination either to think of let alone write about.

Best of all will be the deep sense of being home with the ones we love and who love us. We are but pilgrims in this present earth; our destination is heaven where all will be well because the Creator of all things resides there with his Creation – which includes you and me.

First posted in April 2014

Can we know we are going to heaven?

Randy Alcorn in his book Heaven tells the story of Ruthanna Metzgar , a professional singer, and her husband who were invited to the wedding of a very wealthy man. She was the singer at the ceremony. Afterwards the couple went to one of the most prestigious venues in the area for the wedding feast. They climbed the stairs to the reception area glimpsing the most sumptuous food and wines being offered by waiters, tables laden with all manner of delicacies and decorated with ice sculptures.

At the top of the stairs a Maître d’ had a book with all the names of invited guests but when Ruthanna told him their name, he could not find it in the book. She explained that she was the singer at the wedding but the maître d’ was adamant, only those whose names were in the book would be allowed to the feast. Her name was not there.

He ordered a waiter to show the couple to the service lift where he pressed the button for the garage in the basement. In the car on the way home, her husband asked Ruthanna what had happened. Tearfully, she told him that she was too busy to reply to the wedding invitation. As she was the singer she didn’t think she needed to reply.

Heartbroken, she realised that this was a picture of how it will be for many people when Jesus comes again and they find their names are not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. They may have been too busy to reply to Jesus’ invitation or thought their activities would gain them entrance to heaven. Unfortunately nothing could be further from the truth.

But can we know we are going to heaven?

First of all we must realise we have nothing to offer God to get us into heaven. We are all sinners according to the Bible (Romans 3: 23) and therefore we have no automatic right to heaven.  ‘The wages of sin is death’ it says but fortunately goes on ‘but the gift of God is eternal life’ Romans 6:23.

Salvation is a gift – a free gift but it has to be asked for and accepted. This is no time for false modesty and feelings of unworthiness. No one is worthy of this gift. Realising that is a great place to start.

Being sinners our eternal destination is hell, separated from God forever (see my blog 'O hell!'). We need a Saviour, someone perfect who can save us by taking our place and dying for us. But no one is perfect, not even one. The most well known verse in the Bible says For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life John 3: 16. God sent Jesus, his son, as the Saviour of the world. 

He was perfect and a man. He lived amongst us and died the most awful, cruel, painful death on the cross even though he had done nothing wrong. Though we deserve to die for our sins, Jesus died in our place, our substitute. Our debt has been paid in full. We have not only been declared innocent of all of our sins but God has given us his righteousness as well. We are in right standing with God. Therefore we can enter heaven to spend eternity with him.

No one else could do this – only Jesus. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.’ Acts 4: 12.

God freely offers us forgiveness of our sins and his righteousness but we have to avail ourselves of it. It is not automatic. If we want to be forgiven we must recognise and confess our sins. We have to stop doing things our way and start doing them God’s way. We have to invite Jesus to be Lord of our life.

Everyone is offered this free gift of forgiveness for sins, salvation and eternal life with him in heaven. Neither religious activity (Matthew 7: 21 – 23) nor assuming you are a Christian gains us entry to heaven.  There is nothing we can do, achieve or offer that will earn us a place in heaven. It is a gift of grace For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God –  not by works, so that no one can boast Ephesians 2: 8 – 9. God gives it to anyone who asks. Every sin is covered. God knows it all, loves us and forgives us freely and totally - if we ask. That's grace.

Only Jesus can get us there but we have to believe, humbly ask his forgiveness and hand control of our lives to him. Then we will receive the gracious gift of eternal life. When we do that our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life – no turning away from heaven.

You were made for Jesus and you were made for heaven but the two go together.  You cannot have one without the other. You have to accept this wonderful gift offered to you so one day you can experience the wonder of spending eternity with Jesus in heaven.

‘On the cross, Jesus experienced the Hell we deserve, so that for eternity we can experience the Heaven we don’t deserve.’

If you would like to become a Christian and receive this free gift and know that you are going to heaven, please pray this:

Lord Jesus, I acknowledge I am a sinner. Thank you that you love me so much that you came to earth and died on the cross for me.  I ask that you forgive me for all my sins. I am truly sorry and repent of them all. I now ask that you become Lord of my life. I hand control of my life and destiny to you. Thank you. In Jesus’ name. Amen

If you have said this prayer truthfully and sincerely, it is vital you tell someone preferably another Christian what you have done.  You then need to find a church or some other believers to help you come to know Jesus better and grow in your Christian faith.

Home

But our citizenship is in heaven Philippians 3: 20

Set your mind on things above not earthly things Colossians 3: 2

We were on our way home after a long journey round South Africa. We stopped for petrol just before the last leg of the journey – and the car broke down. Several hours later we were towed back the way we had come to a garage that could fix our car.

I cannot tell you how upset I felt about going away from home. I had been greatly anticipating getting back to our house, our things, the place where I feel most comfortable and at ease. Now not only were we not going home, we were driving in the completely opposite direction.

All of us are destined for our real home – heaven and if we are confident that is where we are going we too should look forward to it with great anticipation.  However the reality is that many Christians secretly believe that heaven will be boring; sitting around all day singing worship songs, maybe twanging a harp and hoping they can summon up enough enthusiasm to ‘worship the Lamb’.

Of course nothing could be further from the truth. As James Garlow says:

Take your deepest longings. Think of what you crave, what fills you with delight, joy you've never experienced but yearn for just the same. Remember your longing for home, for a lover of your soul, for the contented wholeness that leads you to the place you've never been yet can’t forget – the place where your every desire is satisfied more abundantly than you've ever dreamed. Heaven is that home.

That is the reality. The most wonderful thing is that we will be loved unconditionally, affirmed, appreciated and greatly valued just for who we are. Imagine that. No ulterior motives, no control, no manipulation, no rejection. Just pure love.

We will  be reunited with all the people we love starting with Jesus but including all our family and friends who have given themselves to serving the Lord. We will have eternity to get to know one another better but most of all to get to know Jesus and our loving heavenly Father and surely that will take eternity.

Out of that will flow the most awesome worship from hearts poured out in adoration to their Saviour and God.  Thousands upon thousands of voices raised in unity to honour and worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Nothing dull or boring about that.

There will be certainly be no opportunity to become bored in any other way. Mankind was created to look after the earth in all its amazing diversity and beauty and the new heavens and the new earth will be perfect just as God created them to be not tarnished in any way by sin. There will be wonderful ways to serve and work in a deeply satisfying, fulfilling and stress free manner.  Think of all the things you would love to do and then imagine all the endless possibilities to explore with the kiss of heavenly perfection on them. That is just the start of the wonders of heaven which are far beyond my imagination either to think of let alone write about.

Best of all will be the deep sense of being home with the ones we love and who love us. We are but pilgrims in this present earth; our destination is heaven where all will be well because the Creator of all things dwells  in great glory with his Creation – which includes you and me - his loved ones. 

Death the final destination

 Jesus said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.’ John 11:25 – 26.

Death like heaven and hell is not usually a subject discussed in Western society if at all possible. Yet as J John says the most undeniable of all statistics is that life is 100% fatal.

However despite its certainty, most people will go to any lengths to not just avoid talking about it but also to avoid the event as well. When it becomes inevitable people will usually be overcome by fear based on uncertainty.

The one group of people for whom this should not be the case are Christians. Thanks to Jesus we can have full assurance that the grave is not our final destination – heaven is.

However it is amazing how far people will go to try to ignore God in their beliefs.   Many today confidently assert that there is nothing after death. Not only does life end, so does existence. The problem with nothing after death is that when the believer of this hypothesis dies, it will be too late to find out they were wrong. If there is indeed life after death, their eternal destination is settled and it may not be the choice of their dreams.

Someone told me the other day all about the aura or incandescence lingering around a dead body for three days after death. What is the evidence for this?

The evidence for heaven or hell however is great. The Bible frequently talks about death and the afterlife in both the Old and New Testaments. Jesus very clearly explained that heaven is the eternal destination for those who believe and trust in him.

In addition there are many many people who have had ‘out of body’ or ‘near death’ experiences. All of these seem to back up the Bible’s version of life after death. No one talks about their aura hanging around the body for three days and no one says everything just went black and I ceased to exist. 

However visions of heaven, Jesus, family members who have already died and yes even hell have been told by far too many people to be ignored. It might be nice to think they are all wrong especially if you are determined to ignore God but the evidence is pretty overwhelming.

The comfort that comes both to the dying and those remaining that heaven is not just a reality but also their own destination is too good to ignore. Anyone who believes that Christians are deluded should read the Scriptures and any of the many books about ‘out of body’ experiences. The details these people include are too compelling to be dismissed.

Heaven is too marvellous a place to take a chance on getting there. Hoping that our good works will open the door is a risky strategy as is ignoring death and hoping for the best. Assurance is what we all long for and as Christians we have that assurance.

Unfortunately many Christians are not only shaky about going to heaven but very shaky about what it will be like. I believe as we read the Bible and other books on the subject by authors grounded in the Scriptures we can start to get revelation on just how truly amazing heaven is.

Not only is it far better than our wildest imaginations – it is also too wonderful a place not to talk about to others. Everyone needs to know not just the reality of the wonders of heaven but also how to get there. As Christians that is both our responsibility and our joy. 

Heaven or hell

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.  John 3: 17 – 18.

Hell is not a word much in evidence these days except perhaps as a euphemism for a hard time; I had a hell of a day or it was hell.  However no one mentions hell as a place, a destination. It is considered at best politically incorrect or at worst downright rude to talk about hell.

Yet the reality is that hell is the eternal destination for most people because they have not chosen the alternative. Everyone will go to hell unless they receive God’s gift of eternity spent with him in the wonders of heaven. This gift comes free because Jesus paid for it completely.

No one wants to believe hell exists which is hardly surprising but if it does exist then people hope it will be a place of partying and doing everything ‘miserable sinners’ love to do together. Unfortunately nothing could be further from the truth.

The Bible makes it abundantly clear that hell is a place of eternal punishment and torment. The worst thing is that this will be away from God and everyone else. There is no partying in hell – partying is in heaven with Jesus, the angels and all the other believers. 

The tragedy is that no one needs go to hell. Everyone can go to heaven but only if they accept Jesus’ gift.  Most people hope to get to heaven by their good works but the truth is that no one can ever do enough to satisfy a perfect God – only Jesus did that.

As Randy Alcorn recounts in his book Edge of Eternity: I (Jesus) loved you as you were but I loved you too much to let you stay that way. Rather than give up on you, I gave myself up for you. I chose to go to hell for you rather than go to heaven without you. The gift I extended to you is free but not cheap. It costs you nothing. It cost me everything.

Christians used to be happy to talk about hell but I think it usually came liberally laced with condemnation, judgement and hypocrisy. No one wanted to listen to that.

People need to know how much God loves them and has a wonderful plan and purpose for their lives. They do not need or want to be told they are sinners – they know that. What they need to know is that there is a Saviour who came to rescue them from their sin and its consequence.

Christians who know the love of God and live in it are a powerful witness to those still struggling to make sense of life. They can talk about the terrors of hell and the wonders of heaven with Godly conviction and love.

Christians have been intimidated and become embarrassed to speak about hell for fear of offending people. The thing is though that thousands are going to hell daily because we have been frightened into not talking about it.

Today I believe as Christians we need to learn afresh how to speak about heaven and hell in love and grace and talk about the wonderful gift  of eternal life in heaven that Jesus holds out to all who come to him.

I believe the Holy Spirit will help us if we trust him to be our teacher and guide. Let’s not be put off from declaring the truth but with great grace let’s promote truth about eternity as God gives us opportunity. 

Journey versus destination

Whenever we are on a journey, whether between two places or on the journey of life, I think it is very important that we not only keep the destination in mind but also make the most of the adventure. Too much focus on either of these to the detriment of the other can cause us to live an unbalanced life.

If all we have in mind is the destination then we get so little joy from our travels and we may not make the most of the adventure.  If our focus is on the journey and we forget our destination, it is very easy to get lost.

We were once travelling between two places in Britain and instead of using the easy but unexciting motorway, we went cross country. It was a wonderful journey, full of interest and beautiful scenery but we had to keep our destination in mind.  If we had forgotten where we were going, we would have had a wonderful journey until we realised we were hopelessly lost.

The same can happen on the journey of life.  So many Christians are enjoying the journey, concentrating on the ups and downs of life, growing in their knowledge of God but with so little focus on where they are going.  Heaven is our destination. This is what gives meaning to the journey. Knowing that we are going to spend eternity in a perfect world with a God who loves us more than we will ever know, should change our whole perspective of life.

 I am always surprised by Christians’ reaction to death. Many do not want to talk about it but death is the doorway to a wonderful eternal life. Of course we grieve when a loved one dies but Paul says we ‘do not grieve like the rest of mankind without hope’ (I Thessalonians 4:13). Our loved ones (if they are Christians) are with Jesus rejoicing with him; no more tears or pain.  That is good news which should change the way we grieve.

Every person has a final destination and many non Christians do not want to think about this. They are fearful of death and what will happen.  They have no hope but one of our highest callings after loving the Lord with all our heart, soul and mind is to share the good news that no one need fear death if they have given their lives to him. 

On the other hand, only focusing on heaven means we may rush through life missing so many wonderful opportunities and life experiences; some of which are hard but always worth it.  God did not call us to an easy life, he called us to walk with him, growing more and more like him each day. The journey will always be of great value because Jesus is with us.

So as Christians I believe we should be keeping in balance the value of the journey whilst always keeping our wonderful destination in mind. One without the other leads us to an unbalanced life.

Lord I want to ask you to help me make the most of my life’s journey, enjoying the experiences and valuing and benefitting from every circumstance both good and bad. However Lord help me also never to lose the focus on my wonderful destination – spending eternity with you in heaven. May the joy of that destination flood my life so that I live my journey with hope and expectation. In Jesus Name Amen. 

Is life meaningless?

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.

My heart took delight in all my work and this was the reward for all my labour.

Yet when I had surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve.

Everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.    Ecclesiastes 2: 10 – 11

 There can be times when we look at our lives and wonder whether we have achieved anything worthwhile. The writer of Ecclesiastes, thought by many to be King Solomon, evaluated his life and despite all that he had achieved (and Solomon achieved more than anyone else I Kings 4: 29 - 34), he wrote that it was all meaningless. In fact he says, ‘for a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless (2:21).

 At some point in your life, you may realise you are not going to do some of the things that you thought you might do or even wanted to. These can be hard pills to swallow. Perhaps you have not got married, had children, got the promotion you expected. Perhaps an accident, disability, ill health, divorce or redundancy have stopped you achieving what you thought of as your heart’s desire. Nevertheless that does not mean your life has been meaningless or worhtwhile.

We can look at our life and draw some wrong conclusions. If we evaluate our lives by the world’s standards, very few of us will have any achievements to commend ourselves. The world only values the outwardly successful, famous or beautiful. However if we look at our lives from God’s perspective with an eternal mind set, things look very different. God values the faithful, trustworthy, honest, diligent, persevering, kind, loving, joyful, peaceful person. What matters most is not our achievements but our fruit. 

 Dallas Willard in The Divine Conspiracy says of those people who see their life as a failure; much of the distress of these good people comes from a failure to realize that their life lies before them; that they are coming to the end of their present life, life ‘in the flesh’ is of little significance. What is of significance in the kind of person they have become. Circumstances and other people are not in control of an individual’s character or the life that lies endlessly before us in the kingdom of God.

For the Christian, this life is not all there is. This is just the start and we look forward to a life in eternity when all things will be restored. The best really is to come and we must not look at our life or anyone else’s and see it as meaningless or a failure. We have a wonderful future with God and we must always keep our eye on that truth for God has incredible things beyond our imagination here on earth ready for us when our earthly life finishes. Our life truly is going from glory to glory.

 

The guarentee of our future inheritance

Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory Ephesians 1: 13 - 14

One of the amazing things that people who have visited heaven before their death tell us about is the ability to communicate without using the spoken word. This is how it is described in one account I read:

Communication was forming in my mind without the need for sound. ‘Hey how are you doing?’ a man asked matter-of-factly. ‘How long have you been here?’

I told him I had only just arrived but I was stunned, because it was like he was speaking with two voices. Underlying what he’d said was this stream of affirmation that continuously kept telling me what an amazing person I am and what wonderful qualities I have. I will never be able to express the joy I felt at this.  Excerpt from Real Life, Real Miracles by James L. Garlow and Keith Wall.

Telepathy, which is what we call this, is God’s creation which was stolen by the devil at the fall. The devil now has full use of it on earth which is why as Christians we must not use it but at the recreation of all good things, telepathy in all its original power and beauty to communicate not just words but ideas, pictures, affirmation, love will be restored to us just as it is in heaven.

Of course this is how God communicates with us now. He rarely uses the spoken word but he uses his written word and also forms thoughts, ideas and pictures in our minds. He constantly seeks to affirm us with his love. He talks to us continuously without speaking aloud, if we are listening. We may not speak to one another using this means of communication but God does.

This is just one of the many things that I believe we now have as a deposit through the Holy Spirit, guaranteeing what is to come.  In Bible times a seal was not just a sign of ownership but also could be used as a pledge or down payment which would guarantee the full amount, paid later. The Holy Spirit has been given to us as such a guarantee. When we die or when Jesus returns, everything we have just a tiny part or glimpse of now will come to us in its fullness.

We will see, know and understand then what we have only an inkling of now. So many things lost in the fall will be redeemed to us fully; communion with God, health, strength, vitality, prosperity. As Paul says, ‘we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:23).

We will be fully redeemed and restored to how God meant things to be and how wonderful that will be for us all            `.

Heaven - our eternal destination

There is no doubt that the more that I read and think about heaven, the more fantastic it seems to be. There are many books around with testimonies of God’s amazing intervention in people’s lives in the form of miracles and some of these have involved people being given glimpses of heaven. This not only encourages the individual but also us, the reader.

Naturally everyone’s experience is different but all of them are incredible and involve wonderful things. Heaven is indeed a wonderful place and one common theme seems to be that it is completely pervaded by light. One account that I read involved a man whose son had been tragically killed at an early age. He was devastated but God took him to heaven to see his son. He describes this incredible but not blinding light that emanated from everything.  There was light and life everywhere which is not surprising as the Bible is full of references to God being light and bringing light and life to the world.

However, whenever you start to talk to people about heaven, they think you are being morbid. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are going to spend eternity in heaven, if we have given our hearts and lives to the Lord Jesus Christ and it is a wonderful thought that we will be with him forever in this incredible place that he has prepared for his people.

I often wonder, especially around this Easter time, why the disciples did not understand or take onboard what Jesus was saying to them about being crucified and raised from the dead.  No one comprehended this though Jesus told them at least five times.. No one was waiting for the resurrection and indeed the disciples had great difficulty believing it until Jesus came and stood amongst them with his nail scarred hands and feet. Was there a veil over their eyes? Was the truth deliberately hidden from them or were they just like us, pushing an unpleasant thought under the carpet?

Dying is so full of negative emotions that in the west at least, no one wants to talk about it. Our eyes are earth bound instead of heaven gazing.  However, we are told to ‘set our minds on things above not on earthly things (Colossians 3: 2). It is not bad luck to think about heaven and dying but a realistic and exciting prospect even if we do not want it to happen today! We can have the attitude that there is so much to live for here on earth that we don’t need to think about heaven.

The truth is that everything we do here affects our heavenly experience. Our life here is a preparation for our heavenly eternal life. I believe that getting a realisation that our earthly life is but a blip before the main event of eternity in heaven helps us live much more effectively here on earth.

Christians should be excited about their eternal prospects. Let’s talk positively about heaven and how to get there. The world needs to know and God has chosen us to continue the work started by the disciples to tell the world that Jesus is the resurrection and has made the way for each one of us to spend eternity with him in the incredible, amazing place called heaven.

 

Imagine

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.  I Corinthians 2: 14

At both the Opening and Closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics they used John Lennon’s song Imagine. It was beautifully sung by Emeli Sande and for many people its apparently noble sentiments will have deeply touched them. The song imagines there is no heaven, no hell, no countries, religions, beliefs - in fact everything that God has created. Then John Lennon assumes there will be nothing to fight over, so no war and we will all live as one.

These wonderful sounding ideas are of course deeply flawed and yet they are a perfect example of the secular humanism that underpins our western societies today. Secular humanism supposes that man is capable of being moral and ethical without religion or God. It is completely opposed to faith and believes every human being must carefully examine ideas for themselves based on science or philosophy. 

As we know nothing could be further from the truth and it is faith that pleases God our Creator.  Man in his fallen state is completely incapable of high moral or ethical behaviour without God whether acknowledged or not.

Instead let’s imagine a world where people acknowledge and worship God; a world so beautiful and perfect where creation dwells together in harmony and people walk with God. Let’s call it the New Earth. Let’s imagine a beautiful city coming down from heaven clothed like a bride called the new Jerusalem. Let’s imagine how magnificent it will be clothed with the glory of God. Let’s imagine the thick walls made of jasper and the city fashioned from pure gold like transparent glass and every gate a single pearl. How truly awesome that will be.

Let’s imagine this city with no sun or moon because God himself will be there and his glory will illuminate everything. The glory of the nations will be brought into the city and there will be nothing impure in it. Let’s imagine the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. Let’s imagine that on each side of the river there stands the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And let’s imagine that instead of no nations the leaves of the tree of life will heal the nations.

C S Lewis said, ‘It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one.’  Let’s think about our eternal destination and imagine its awesome beauty and the wonder of spending eternity with our Lord and Saviour. Let this change our attitude to this fallen world and its lost inhabitants who believe that without God everything will be fine. Let’s instead show them the love of God and reach out with compassion and power to change the world around us – just like Jesus did.
 

Heaven is a wonderful place

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3: 1 - 2

In the UK the main school holidays are just about to start. Many families will be eagerly anticipating their summer holiday which they may have booked months ago. I am sure many of them will have researched their destination. They will know what they are going to so they can make the most of their time away maybe with family and friends.

What is strange is that very few Christians so eagerly anticipate their final destination of heaven. If you start talking to anyone about death or heaven they think you are being morbid and want to change the subject. However heaven is the most amazing destination and should be eagerly anticipated by the Christian so much so that they desire to take as many people as possible with them.

The fear of death or at least dying grips many Christian souls – yet it shouldn’t. Paul said ‘²² If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! ²³ I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; ²⁴ but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.’ Philippians 1: 22 – 24. Paul was torn between being with Christ in heaven or staying to continue his labours with the Philippians. I am convinced this should also be our dilemma – to go to Christ or continue our work here.  Certainly whilst I am not looking to die in the near future neither do I fear it as I used to. I asked God to deliver me from a fear of death and dying and he has done so.

I am persuaded that heaven is a wonderful place yet so many Christians dread heaven imagining it will be one long, rather boring worship service. Or maybe we will be sitting around on clouds playing our harps. Nothing could be further from the truth and yet we do not take the time to research it and find out the truth.

One of the problems is that whilst the Bible says a lot about death, dying and heaven it is scattered throughout the Old and New Testament. There is not a chapter on heaven which we can read. As well there is a lot of apocalyptic teaching about heaven and allegorical writing and it is difficult to know what is hard fact and what is symbolic. Sometimes there are so many opinions especially about the book of Revelation that we just give up.

However there are good books on heaven and there is the Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth. Let him guide your reading on death and heaven both in the Bible and other books and let him take away any fear you may have. We are going to spend eternity in heaven and it is very important that we prepare well for it. Hiding our heads in the sand is not the answer.

My desire is that we are excited about heaven and want to tell others how to get there. People need to know that they are not going to get there by their own good works which is what most people believe.  They need to know that God loves us so much that he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross to take away our sins so that we can spend eternity with him. This is the greatest free gift available to anyone who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ.