Heaven's Home Is Not One-Size-Fits-All Series

1“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In 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. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going.” John 14:1-4

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

After 25 years as a missionary in Africa, Samuel Morrison was coming home on the same ocean liner that brought Teddy Roosevelt back from an African hunting expedition. The dock where the great ship pulled into New York Harbor was jammed with what looked like the entire population of New York City. Bands were playing, banners were waving, choirs of children were singing, multicolored balloons were floating, and newsreel cameras were poised to record the return of the President.

Mr. Roosevelt stepped down the gangplank to thunderous cheers, applause, and a shower of confetti and ticker tape. If ropes and police had not restrained the crowd, he would have been mobbed!

At the same time, Samuel Morrison quietly walked off the boat. No one was there to greet him; he slipped through the crowd alone. Because of the crush of people there to welcome the President, Morrison couldn’t even find a cab. He began to complain in his heart:

Lord, the President has been in Africa killing animals for three weeks and the whole world turns out to welcome him home. I’ve given 25 years of my life in Africa, serving You, and no one has greeted me or even knows that I’m here.

In the quietness of missionary Samuel Morrison’s heart, a gentle, loving voice whispered, “But my dear child, you’re not home yet!”1

God has blessed His people. Most live comfortably and have all their needs met. Apart from God’s plan for trials and tribulations, many live the life that Christ came to offer in John 10:10: “I have come to give you life and to give it to you more abundantly.” One day our earthly dwelling will pass away and we will go to the eternal home God has prepared for us. He is preparing a new home for the redeemed of all ages. With confidence, Jesus tells His disciples the building project is under way. These verses from John’s gospel give us a glimpse of the place called the Father’s House!

The Father’s House

1. The Father’s House is built to last.

“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.” John 14:2

10By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. (1 Corinthians 3:10-14)

Few wars in history have offered as many illustrations for life and the Bible as the American Civil War. Let’s say you were alive during the end of the Civil War. You are living in the South but your home is in the North. While in the South, you have accumulated a considerable amount of Confederate currency. Suppose you also know, for a fact, that the North is going to win the war and that the end could come at any time. What would you do with all your Confederate money?

If you were smart, there is only one answer to that question. You would cash in your Confederate currency for U.S. currency - the only money that would have any value once the war was over. You would keep only enough Confederate money to meet your basic needs for the short period until the war was over and the money would be worthless.

As Christians, we have “insider-trading knowledge” that some day there is going to be a worldwide economic and social change. That change will make the currency, goods, and even fashions of this world valueless or worthless.