The Reality Of Heaven Series

THE REALITY OF HEAVEN

A couple from Oklahoma decided to go to Florida for a long weekend to thaw out during one particularly icy winter. Because they both had jobs, they had difficulty coordinating their travel schedules. It was decided that the husband would fly to Florida on Thursday, and his wife would follow the next day. Upon arriving as planned, the husband checked into the motel. He decided to open his laptop and send his wife an e-mail back home. However, he accidentally left off one letter in her address, and sent the e-mail without realizing the error.

In Houston, a widow returned from her husband’s funeral. He was a pastor of many years who had been called home to glory. The widow checked her e-mail, expecting messages from relatives and friends. Upon reading the first message, she fainted and fell to the floor. The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read: TO: My loving wife FROM: Your departed husband SUBJECT: I’ve arrived! MESSAGE: I’ve just arrived and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you then! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was. P.S. Sure is hot down here.

Today, if you are a Christian you have something wonderful to look forward too. I want to re-kindle the fires of your hope. Today if you are not a Christian I pray that the hope that those who are in Christ have will move you to accept Christ in order that you to may be born again into a living hope.

Heb 11:13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country -- a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

Today I want us to look towards our heavenly home. Though we may only see it from a distance I hope it will encourage you. I can’t wait to get to heaven. It is going to be a blast. Let me give you the top 10 reasons why I am looking forward to heaven:

1. WE GET A NEW HOME

John 14:2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.

I like the King James Version of this verse because it says MANSIONS. There is no such thing as a perfect house in this life. In Canada we had the chance to build a house from scratch and even that did not end up exactly the way we wanted it. Sacrifices had to be made. Because of cost, corners had to be cut. It turned out nice, but it was just a house. Have you ever dreamed of living in a mansion? We lived in a huge house in Kuwait but it was nothing compared to some of the truly HUGE homes. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in something like that?

When we lived in Kuwait we would visit Canada during the summer. We would spend a month living with my mother and then with Naomi’s parents. Both of them have small homes. We were able to survive the cramped conditions because we knew it was temporary. I know there are many here who live in small houses. I want to say to those of you who struggle with their earthly home today, your heavenly home will be wonderful!

An elderly couple passed away and found themselves at the pearly gates. Peter was there to welcome them. First he showed them their mansion. The man overwhelmed by the sheer luxury of it all asked, "How much does this place cost per night?" Peter replied, "Sir, this is Heaven, it doesn’t cost anything." Then Peter took them to the dining room where table upon table was piled high with the most delicious foods you could imagine. Again overwhelmed by the glory of it all the man asked, "How much for the meals?" Peter said, "You forget, this is Heaven, it’s free." Peter then took them out back where they saw a fantastically beautiful golf course. As the man stood there open-mouthed Peter said, "Now before you ask, there are no greens fees, this is Heaven, everything is free." The man looked at his wife and said, "You and your confounded bran muffins, I could have been here 10 years ago!" Sometimes when people think of heaven they think of it as dull and boring. This joke however captures the promise of eternal life - a place of unbelievable beauty and delight.