Heaven pt 2
Series: Breath of Heaven 2011:
Scripture Text: John 14:1-3
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.”
Introduction:
Opening premise we must have to get a proper understanding of Heaven:
Randy Alcorn states the following: “Often our thinking is backwards. Why do we imagine that God patterns Heaven’s holy city after an earthly city, as if Heaven knows nothing of community and culture and has to get its ideas from us? Isn’t it more likely that earthly realities, including cities, are derived from heavenly counterparts? We tend to start with Earth and reason up toward Heaven, when instead we should start with Heaven and reason down toward Earth. It isn’t merely an accommodation to our earthly familial structure, for instance, that God calls himself a father and us children. On the contrary, he created father-child relationships to display his relationship with us, just as he created human marriage to reveal the love relationship between Christ and his bride” (Ephesians 5:32) (Heaven, page 54).
Last week we started our focus on our new theme for this upcoming year, our motto is: Breath of Heaven in 2011.”
We talked last week about the importance of understanding were we as Christians are heading. We talked about Heaven and we discussed the many misconceptions of Heaven from others. We even watched a video which revealed how confused the people in our society are of Heaven.
Randy Alcorn stated, “It’s our inaccurate thinking, I believe, that causes us to choose to think so little about Heaven” (Heaven, Page 8).
Randy Alcorn states, “I believe there’s one central explanation for why so many of God’s children have such a vague, negative, and uninspired view of Heaven: the work of Satan.”
We learned that the reason most people are confused about Heaven is because the Father of lies – Satan has blinded many to the truth about Heaven. He despises Heaven mostly because God had him thrown out of Heaven for his arrogance and sin of thinking he could elevate himself above God. See Isaiah 14:12-15. Since Satan’s banishment from Heaven he seeks to go around lying about God, His people and His dwelling place (Revelation 13:5-6). Satan’s goal is to keep as many people out of Heaven as possible since he knows this breaks the heart of God. His mindset is if I cannot dwell in Heaven and live there then I will seek to make sure as many people as possible fail to make the wonderful dwelling place of Heaven.
Randy Alcorn states, “It must be maddening for him that we’re (Christians are) now entitled to the home he was kicked out of” (Heaven, Page 11).
He adds, “What better way for the devil and his demons to attack us than whisper lies about the very place on which God tells us to set our hearts and minds? Satan need not convince us that Heaven doesn’t exist. He need only convince us that Heaven is a place of boring, unearthly existence. If we believe that lie, we’ll be robbed of our joy and anticipation, we’ll set our minds on this life and not the next, and we won’t be motivated to share the faith. Why should we share the “good news” that people can spend eternity in a boring, ghostly place that even we’re not looking forward to” (page 11)?
T.S. – We need to make a commitment this year or we could call it a News Years Resolution to try to help as many people as possible get a right view of Heaven and Jesus.
Quote: Christopher Hilling – in his sermon Reaching For Heaven http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/reaching-for-heaven-christopher-hilling-sermon-on-heaven-30725.asp shares the following opening thought about our subject again today:
This morning, I want to talk about the ultimate goal of the Christian life. This morning we are going to reach for Heaven. The outline of this sermon is taken from the famous sermon by the Nazarene preacher L. B. Hicks entitled "There Must Be A Heaven Somewhere". One Sunday morning before church, God gave him the main points of the sermon, he jotted them down on the back of an envelope, and preached a glorious message on the subject of Heaven. Some may ask, "How can you be sure there is a Heaven?" There are several answers to such a question:
1. Because the soul has always longed for such a place. Whatever culture you stumble across, whatever time period of history, you will find some sort of belief in the afterlife. I don’t believe God would plant in the soul a universal longing like that without making some provision for it.
2. Because the soul has always felt there was such a place. Like the little boy flying his kite and the kite was out of sight and someone asked him where it was and he pointed up to the sky. They asked him how he knew it was there if he couldn’t see it and he said, "I know it is there because I can feel it tug." We can know in a similar way that there is a Heaven, because we can feel the pull of it, the tug of it in our souls.
3. Because God says there is such a place as Heaven. I’d rather have God’s word about anything than the opinion of all the philosophers and scientists in all the world.
T.S. - The big question: “So what will Heaven be like?”
I. Heaven will have physical elements of our senses functioning in it:
a. If you recall from last week I noted that Heaven will have a lot of the physical dimension which we experience on this earth. I emphasized that I believe al five of our senses will function and work in Heaven. We will be able to see, hear, touch, smell and even taste. I base this assumption about Heaven from the resurrected state of Jesus in the following passages of Scripture.
i. Mark 28:9, 10: 9Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.
10Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
1. Senses noted, they heard him, they touched Him and they saw Him.
ii. Luke 24:36-49: 36While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
37They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.
38He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
39Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”
40When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.
41And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?”
42They gave him a piece of broiled fish,
43and he took it and ate it in their presence.
44He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
45Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
1. Senses used: Seeing, hearing, touching and even tasting!
iii. John 21:12-13:12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord.
13Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.
1. Do you see that the senses are being used here? Jesus is cooking and there has to be a sense of smell going on!
iv. I also add one another few references to try to clarify the sense of smell:
1. 2 Corinthians 2:15-16 “15For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?”
2. I think the apostle John references the senses in what he saw, heard, touched and smelled with His vision spoken of in Revelation. If you read the book we have bowls of incense being referenced, lake of fire burning like sulphur, smoke on altars with fires on them, and all of these references explaining the idea of things which do put off a smell.
b. Alcorn states, “Everything pleasurable we know about life on Earth we have experienced through our senses. So, when Heaven is portrayed as beyond the reach of our senses, it doesn’t invite us; instead, it alienates and even frightens us. Our misguided attempts to make Heaven “Sound spiritual” (non-physical merely succeed in making Heaven sound unappealing).”
c. There have been many who have wondered about our resurrected state:
i. The following thoughts from http://www.godandscience.org/doctrine/heaven.html will help shed some light on these new body types:
1. With physical laws being so different in heaven, it is apparent that our current bodies would not be acceptable in such a place.22 The Bible poses the question, "But someone will say, "How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?" (1 Corinthians 15:35). The answer to the question is given in a series of comparisons:
Mortal vs. Heavenly Bodies
Mortal Body Resurrection Body
perishable imperishable
dishonor glory
weak powerful
natural spiritual
ii. To a certain degree, we will be given some of the characteristics of God in Heaven, since we will be like Him and be like the glorified state of Jesus. Without at least the dimensional characteristics of God, we would not be able to see Him, which the Bible says we literally will see Him.
1. Contrary to the Mormon view of heaven, it doesn’t seem that people in heaven will be either male or female. Jesus was asked a complicated question about heaven by the Sadducees (a religious sect that did not believe in the resurrection of the dead) that directly leads us to this conclusion. The Sadducees gave a scenario of a woman who married 7 men (sequentially, since they all died prematurely) in her lifetime. They asked whose wife she would be in heaven. Jesus answered:
2. "You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures, or the power of God, for in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven “(Matthew 22:29-30).
a. In other words, there will be no marriage or sexual differences among those in heaven, since reproduction is unnecessary. This concept is supported by other biblical verses that indicate that males and females are spiritually equal.27 The same concept applies to the races.28 I doubt that there will be racial differences in heaven.
b. The idea that we will no longer be married is disturbing to some people. Personally, I like to be married. From an earthly perspective, the dissolution of marriage in heaven doesn’t sound like a good thing. However, in heaven, we will be "married" to Jesus, who will be our spiritual "husband."29 If you are not currently a follower of Jesus Christ, you cannot understand what this will be like, and it will probably not have any appeal for you. However, if you have experienced the "highs" of following Jesus as He leads you, you will have a glimpse of how awesome this experience will be. God would not take away something good if He did not replace it with something better.
d. Besides receiving a new body, those who enter heaven will be given a new name and will be incapable of committing sin. Therefore, all the problems we have by being mean to each other will be gone. We will be able to enjoy each other’s company without the fear of being hurt by anyone. It will be great to be physically and morally perfect and to have fellowship with others who have been likewise transformed. Obviously, since heaven is God’s kingdom, He will be there. What is remarkable is that we have the opportunity to be there45 and see God as He is.
The best description of Heaven in one central passage is found in Revelation 21 and 22 – the last two chapters of the Bible. This week I challenged you to read them – “How many had the opportunity to do so?”
T.S. – Visual Illustration: Have images of some beautiful scenes from around the world. Let me ask you if you think these pictures are breath taking? Play selected slides showing beautiful natural scenes from this world. Then ask, “Do you not think that Heaven will surpass these images from this earth?” I my personal view I think so!
II. Heaven will be an artistic masterpiece of color and design:
a. If you look into Revelation 21:10-23 – we see John experiencing bright beautiful colors and images of this place called Heaven.
i. Christopher Hilling states, “I recently read of a man who visited a distinguished artist at his studio. He found the artist there with an open Bible in front of him while he was arranging squares of colored glass. "I have made a singular discovery," he said, "these are the precious stones in the foundation of the New Jerusalem, and when placed in the order described in the vision they form a perfect harmony of color. Were a convention of artists called to produce a perfect color-scheme, they could not improve upon it."
1. He also added, “God loves beauty or He wouldn’t have put so much of it in this world. Who painted the butterfly’s wing with all those gorgeous hues and threw around the evening sun her drapery of a thousand colors? Who put the red on the robin’s breast? From whose pastel were the colors mixed that gave the rose its blushing charm and touched the lily with its dreamy white? Who taught the raindrop to take a ray of light from the sun and pencil it on the sky in one huge arch of bewildering elegance? God did it all! He made everything beautiful and only sin has marred it, and in Heaven you’ll find God’s beauty at its best!
2. Illustration: A little girl was taking an evening walk with her father. Wonderingly, she looked up at the stars and exclaimed; "Oh, Daddy, if the wrong side of heaven is so beautiful, what must the right side be! (Hilling).
b. Heaven will be filled with the best architecture the world has ever seen as well as with the most exquisite array of the arts ever seen.
c. They will have the best and most anointed music ever heard or experienced.
i. Better than anything you have experienced here on this earth or in a service or even a concert.
1. Heaven will be a place to worship God. When Isaiah speaks for the Lord of the new heavens and earth, he prophesies that "all flesh shall come to worship before me" (Isaiah 66:22,23). The Apostle, John, also predicts the same thing saying: "For Thou only are holy: for all nations shall come and worship before Thee" (Revelation 15:4; 21:24).
d. In this holy city according to Rev. 21:11 “It shone with the Glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a precious jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal.”
i. Friend the holy city was illuminated with the presence of God. There is a beautiful colorful majestic view of GOD! There is a color show more gorgeous than even a rainbow.
ii. It is absolutely breath taking. PAUSE AND LET HIS SPIRIT GIVE YOU A GLIMPSE!!!!
iii. The walls and foundations glitter and beam with the brilliant colors of beauty. The gates are white washed pearls. The streets are paved in GOLD (21:11-21)! WOW what a place!
T.S. – Heaven will take our breath away at its beauty, it’s creativeness, it’s architecture, its arts and its praise and worship! Heaven’s atmosphere will be like a fresh breath of good clean crisp air!
III. Heaven will be filled with the atmosphere of love
a. There will only good attitudes and actions there and there will be no hate/no evil allowed in this glorious place.
b. In this city crying is done away with as God wipes away all the pain and sorrow and hurt. (21:4)
i. In other words there is joy, happiness, contentment!
1. No more hurts, no more emotional wounds.
ii. In this city there is No death – only life - life with no crying, no diseases, and no pain.
1. Death is no longer a concern only eternal life!
a. Can you imagine not having to be concerned about dying? Imagine that! Your focus is on living really living in a place ran by love!
b. What is a city like when God glows and sits on the throne in a city? There is no more death, no more pain, no more sorrow! In this holy city there is a new way of doing things – the old is dead and gone – It means: This city is not like the worlds - driven by pride, by greed, by people treading on top of others to get to the top, by people doing their own thing at the cost of someone else’s life or feelings.
iii. No this city is run with Love – Love has absolute control. (21:4-10).
1. Reflect on 1 Cor. 13 “The Love chapter!”
a. 1 Corinthians 13:4-13
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
iv. In this city God makes everything new- there are no ghettos, no crack houses, no houses of ill repute, no exploitation of people and resources, no thieves or stealing – no it’s honest and righteous!
1. It’s fresh, vibrant and beautiful like a Spring day after a long hard winter!
2. There is a new honest and upright government! There is No corruption- no power plays-no self centered mindsets.
a. No bribery, no favoritism, no prejudice, no undermined deals.
v. In this city there is a spring of everlasting life. Many have looked for the fountain of youth so they could live forever. Here it is friends it’s in the New Jerusalem (21:6).
1. The great blessing is, there is no cost to drink of its life giving water.
T.S - Heaven will have living in it many famous celebrities of the Bible and of History itself!
IV. Heaven will have the who’s who of the Bible and of great men and women of past centuries who accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
a. But the most important person dwelling in this city will be God the Father – the son Jesus and the Holy Spirit!
i. Revelation 7:16-17: ”Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
ii. Rev. 21:23, 24: “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings on the earth will bring their splendor into it.”
iii. Rev. 22:4, 5: “They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever.”
1. The Holy city’s first characteristic is God dwells in it (21:3).
2. God – Yes – Dwells, resides, lives, in this city LITERALLY!
3. Don’t underestimate how huge this is! To be able to experience what Adam and Eve experienced with God prior to their sin. Fellowship with God – the Great “I AM.” The Creator of the Universe and the world we lived in, our creator who formed us in our Mother’s wombs.
4. I also get to meet Jesus! I believe Jesus will meet me at my point of entrance into Heaven. Oh what a day that will be – last week during our video we heard the song by Mercy Me, “I can only imagine.” And the song talks about what it will be like to meet Jesus and helps us ponder so what will we do at that moment: Dance before Him, bow down before Him, embrace Him?
iv. This city has no temple – no church buildings - because God along with the Lamb resided there literally. You can see them, touch them, speak to them, hear them, and smell their sweet presence (21:22, 23)
1. Revelation 21:23 states, “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb its lamp.”
a. In the city - God flows and He glows and all can see His eternal light. It may be like what Moses experienced in the Burning Bush!
2. Remember in this city a resident is one who has had a personal relationship with the Lord God Almighty while on earth.
a. This relationship is personal and intimate! It’s not philosophical it’s real!
v. I discovered in my study that a resident of this city walks in the light because of God’s presence – they see by God’s illuminating presence. There is no need of natural light because God’s supernatural light is everywhere guiding the way around in the city.
1. Jesus told us in John 8:12 “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
2. John tells us in 1 John 1:5 “…God is light in Him there is no darkness…”
3. The Psalmist wrote of the Lord (Psalms 119:105) “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”
b. In this city we told in verses 24-26 that the kings will honor and praise the Lord. Yes even the leaders and the whole nation will proclaim the Lord the king and bring him glory.
i. In this city everyone even the President and Congress type people will honor God.
ii. There will be no separation of Church and State.
iii. They are one because you cannot have good government without the Lord Almighty directing it.
1. The city will never close its gates again. All will be able to enter into the presence of the Lord. There will be no night.
2. In other words night represents evil and it will be banished forever – it will never be allowed into this holy city! There will only be THE LIGHT.
a. In heaven, there will be: No power shortages, for God is all powerful; no bumping into things in the dark; no sleepless nights (there is no night there, Revelation 21:25). Nor will there be: Bills; hospitals; bank accounts. In fact, heaven will have: No complaints; no back-talk; no hate; no fear; no crime.
c. In this city the residents will worship God alone.
i. They will not worship themselves only HIM!
d. Think of some of the other individuals you can meet in Heaven - Who will be in Heaven with God?
i. Enoch, Abraham, Isaac, Moses, Joshua, David, Solomon, Elijah, Elisha, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Malachi, King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel, Paul, Peter, Timothy, John, and many others.
ii. Then there will be your own family which has passed before you – your ancient ancestors who had accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
1. Share the paper from mom about her ancestors and read a few of the names.
2. I will see my grandfathers and grandmother again!
iii. Your friends who have gone before you in the Lord: For me I am looking to catch up with Leo and Dave my ministerial friends who passed away.
iv. The angels will be there, and have been there since God created them.
1. I am personally looking forward to talking with the Archangel Michael.
2. Gabriel will be there!
e. But sadly - The Bible gives several lists of people who will not be in heaven.
Sins That Keep One From Heaven
sexual immorality idolatry adultery prostitution
homosexual offense theft greed drunkenness
slander swindling impurity witchcraft
hatred discord jealousy fits of rage
selfish ambition dissensions factions and envy orgies
abomination lying cowardice unbelief
murderer sorcery
f. The list is fairly extensive and includes some things that all of us have done.
i. In the Holy city the residents will be holy and righteous. There will be no evil or unclean individuals. There will be no deception only truth. It will be full of residents who are written in the Lambs Book of Life.
1. There will be no disgusting practices..
2. No child abusers, no rapists, no violence, no crime, no murderers, no pornography, no liars, no self-centered individuals, no sexual immorality, there will be only people who are blessings to each other.
ii. But I am with the apostle Paul who in Romans 7:14-25, states:
1. “…For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate to do…” “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
2. Paul reminds over and over in His writings that we cannot deliver ourselves from sin, we can be good enough to get into Heaven it only comes through accepting the gift of Jesus Christ and by the willingness on our part to admit our sin and repent of it.
a. Great White Throne judgment of God. God will go through the "books" to see where we stand with Him.
i. Those found in the Lambs Book of Life will be allowed entrance into Heaven and those not will be banished to a place filled with torment and anguish, called Hell.
iii. I do want to make it clear this morning that Christians will be held accountable for their lives for what they did or did not do at the Judgment seat of Christ. After accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
1. This judgment will determine your position in Heaven for Eternity according to 2 Corinthians 5:10: “For we must all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”
a. John Bevere looks at it this way: The Judgment Seat of Christ is literally the divine tribunal of God. Scripture declares that the Father has committed all judgment to the Son (John 5:22). Jesus Christ is not only our Savior, but He is our Judge and will soon judge his own household. The simplest way to define the original word for judgment is to say it is a decision resulting from an investigation, for or against. There are numerous individuals in church unaware that they will give an account of what they’ve done in their short stay on earth. Many have the erroneous idea that all future judgment is eradicated by their salvation. Indeed, Jesus’ blood cleanses us from the sins that would have lept us from the kingdom; however, it does not exempt us from the judgment of how we conducted ourselves as believers, whether good or bad” (Driven by Eternity, page 186).
b. He notes it more clearly by saying this, “In regard to your calling; you’ll be judged according to what you did, but rather according to what you were called to do” (Page 202)!
T.S. – Heaven will have wonderful love filled atmosphere and many famous who’s who will be there for us to fellowship with and talk with. Could imagine some for the conversations you could have in heaven with these fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord. Can you imagine what it be like to walk and talk with God? With Jesus?
V. What will we do in heaven?
a. Many People have the misconception that heaven will consist of people sitting around on clouds, playing harps.
i. However, the Bible does not describe clouds, although some of the angels and the 24 elders and some of the saints are described as having harps in heaven.
b. One of our first acts in heaven will be to help judge the world - specifically the angels.
i. Why do the angels need to be judged? Before God created the earth, He created the angels, who, initially, all worshipped God, being led by the most beautiful angel, Satan. However, Satan became jealous of God and sought to take His place.
1. Satan managed to convince one third of the angels to join him in rebellion. At this point, there was war in heaven, as the rebellious angels of Satan fought against the archangel Michael and the angels of God. Satan and his angels were cast from heaven onto the earth, where they attempt to persuade humans to follow him in rebellion against God. These rebellious angles are now referred to as demons. Since there are no rebels in heaven, the angels who rebelled against God will be judged by God’s people and cast into the lake of fire.
c. Besides acting as judges in heaven, the Bible says that we will reign with God in heaven.
i. From http://www.bible.ca/su-heaven-like.htm
1. Surely heaven will be a place of joy and productive work. We can be sure that in heaven we will be like God and Jesus, and they have always worked. Jesus said, "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work" (John 5:17). We find this same description of the new heavens and new earth in Revelation 21:1 and Isaiah 65:17. Isaiah describes it as a place of joy where there will be no tears nor the sound of crying. This is in Isaiah 65:19, and also in Revelation 21:4; 7:17. Isaiah continues to show us it will be a place where one can labor and see his labor bear fruit. This is in Isaiah 65:21-23.
d. We will also be learning more than we ever did here on the earth.
i. Alcorn states, “Does Scripture indicate that we will learn in Heaven? Yes. Consider Ephesians 2:6-7: “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace.’ The word show means ‘to reveal’ The phrase in the coming ages clearly indicates this will be progressive, ongoing revelation, in which we learn more and more about God’s grace” (Heaven, page 318)
1. I do believe we will continue to learn in Heaven! Remember God is the one who placed in us the ability to learn and process information in this life. I don’t think we are going to lose any of this.
a. I believe we will retain our memories of this world without the sting or hurt of them.
b. I think our friendships will continue to grow and develop with others around us in Heaven.
ii. I believe with Randy Alcorn that we will experience processes – these processes include gaining knowledge, insight, wisdom, stories, testimonies of others about God and the whole idea of growing spiritually!
1. I really don’t believe our testimonies are lost in Heaven instead I think we will share them with others.
2. Have guys share about their trip to Mexico this week.
e. Last week I asked how many just want to rest – or retire in heaven? Some raised their hand and said yes – retire! I believe we will rest in Heaven.
i. God rested on the seventh day after creation – I think rest will be mandatory in Heaven!
1. The problem is that here in this world rest is looked at as lazy, unproductive, only what losers do – not so in Heaven though!
f. We will also work in Heaven.
i. Randy Alcorn notes: “The idea of working in heaven is foreign to many people. Yet Scripture clearly teaches it. When God created Adam, he ‘took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it’ (Genesis 2:15). Work was part of the original Eden. It was part of a perfect human life on Earth” (Heaven page 331)
ii. Can I be honest with you – if you are doing a job that you love is it really working?
1. I have considered myself blessed for the position I have in this life – I love my job and even though there are elements to it that are hard, stressful, awe full or even heartbreaking I do love what I do.
2. Alcorn notes consider Jesus’ life: “Consider Christ’ activities: working in a carpenter shop, walking the countryside, fishing, sailing, meeting people, talking, teaching, eating-doing his life’s work. Even after his resurrection he moved from place to place, connecting with his disciples and continuing his work” (Alcorn page 332, see his mini-theology of work).
g. Will we have our own dwelling place?
i. According to Jesus we will! This will be our private home!
1. See John 14:2
ii. Will we host guests in our homes?
1. See Luke 16 – If you listen to Christ’s words and research it a little I think we will! The Lord loves fellowship!
h. What will our relationships be like?
i. Our relationship with God will be restored!
1. Remember Jesus great Command Matthew 22:36-40 (CEV): “36“Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?”
37£ Jesus answered: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.
38This is the first and most important commandment.
39£ The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.”
40All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets£ are based on these two commandments.
ii. But we will have other relationships in Heaven listen to the Apostle Paul’s words to the Thessalonians in 1 Thessalonians 2:
1. 1 Thessalonians 2:17-20:
a. Paul Wants To Visit the Church Again
17My friends, we were kept from coming to you for a while, but we never stopped thinking about you. We were eager to see you and tried our best to visit you in person.
18We really wanted to come. I myself tried several times, but Satan always stopped us.
19After all, when the Lord Jesus appears, who else but you will give us hope and joy and be like a glorious crown for us?
20You alone are our glory and joy!
b. Paul tells them that they will meet again and enjoy the lost fellowship from here up there!
iii. Will there be marriages and families?
1. Jesus said, “29Jesus answered: You are completely wrong! You don’t know what the Scriptures teach. And you don’t know anything about the power of God.
30£ When God raises people to life, they won’t marry. They will be like the angels in heaven.
31And as for people being raised to life, God was speaking to you when he said,
32£ “I am the God worshiped by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” He isn’t the God of the dead, but of the living.” (Matthew 22:29-32 CEV)
2. The truth is in Heaven we will all be married to Christ the groom and we all become brothers and sisters in Christ!
3. But I believe we will enjoy our families along with others and those who did not have families will have families in Heaven for we are all made one in Christ!
a. The ultimate thrill in Heaven is that we are married to Christ!
Conclusion:
The Seven Wonders of Heaven Bruce Howell, from sermoncentral.com
HERE’S AN AD I CAME ACROSS RECENTLY:
FREE!
BEAUTIFUL HOMES
to be
GIVEN AWAY
in a
PERFECT CITY
with:
100% Pure Water (free)
No Light Bills
Permanent Pavement
Perpetual Lighting
Everything New
Perfect Climate
Nothing Undesireable
Immunity from Accidents
Beautiful Music
Free Transportation
No Taxes
No Upkeep
SECURE A CONTRACT TODAY!
In the days of Alexander the Great, the Greeks originated the first group of “Seven Wonders of the World.”
This group is composed of monuments remarkable for their splendor and/or size:
• Pyramids of Egypt
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon
• Temple of Diana at Ephesus
• Statue of Jupiter in Athens
• Mausoleum of Artemisia in Asia Minor
• Colossus of Rhodes—bronze statue of the sun god—105 feet high
• Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria, Egypt
Seven Wonders of the Modern World
• Great Pyramid
• St. Sophia
• Leaning Tower of Pisa
• Taj Mahal
• Washington Monument (555 ft. high)
• Eiffel Tower (984 ft. high)
• Sears Tower? Mackinaw Bridge?
Seven Wonders of the Natural World
• Grand Canyon
• Rio de Janeiro Harbor
• Iguassu Falls of Argentina
• Redwood Trees
• Mt. Everest
• Nile River
• Northern Lights
We could go on and on, talking about the seven wonders of science, transportation, communication, and medicine. But as wonderful as these all are, we can turn to the Book of God and find something more amazing than all of these—heaven!
C.S. Lewis said, “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next.”
Let’s all get a fresh revelation of Heaven in this New Year of 2011 and get excited about receiving a fresh breath of this glorious marvelous wonder of the Universe.
