Don’t you look forward to going to heaven? “What a day that will be…”
Facts about Heaven Rev 21:1-8… 1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
1. Heaven is a Real Place
Liberals deny existence…say it’s a state of mind/wishful thinking…but is a literal place it will be 1,500 miles squared…a perfect cube…in other words, it’s that high, that long, that wide! There will be room for every human who has ever lived if they had all been saved.
Foundations—building foundations are usually underground, and cannot be clearly seen, but this one is visible, and not only visible, but 12 layers thick! And each of the 12 foundations is garnished w/ a different jewel. The jasper will be clear crystal Sapphire-blue Chalcedony-greenish blue Emerald-deep green Sardonyx-white w/ brown streaks Sardius—blood red Chrysolite-yellow quartz Beryl-green Topaz-yellowish green Chrysoprasus-apple green Jacinth-blue
Amethyst-purple
Jesus said John 14:1-3
1Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
It’s literal, tangible, described in detail. The emphasis is on what John SAW…w/ literal eyes.
v. 1 “saw”
v. 2 “saw”
Heaven is as real as Signal Mountain Tennessee!
And we’ll have real bodies…glorified bodies! Jesus rose from the dead in His glorified body. He could pass thru walls, but yet he could touch people, sit down and eat…praise God!...It will be a different existence, but as real as it gets!
2. Heaven is a Remaining Place
v. 1 “passed away”
Nothing you see on this physical earth is going to last…nothing will remain. We like to have nice things and we should enjoy them, but don’t get too attached…they are not permanent.
In the end, all we have left is our soul! All we will have in eternity is the treasures we send ahead.
“Only 1 life…”
Jesus said we send ahead of us treasures--by how we serve, how we give now
Matthew 6: 19Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.….all that will be left is our souls and our spiritual investments, that have been stored up for us.
One of the most precious experiences we will have in heaven is being approached by someone who says, I got saved because of your witness, your testimony, your missions giving, your prayers, etc.!
Heaven is a real place, a remaining place…
3. Heaven is a Readied Place…v. 2 “prepared”
I’ve done a lot of weddings…and it takes the bride a long time to get ready…hours and hours…w/ someone just for dress, hair, makeup, etc.
And the Lord has spent a lot of time, and is sparing no expense in readying heaven for us. [2,000 years compared to 6 days of creation! And there’s some great beauty in this earth…even tho’ it’s been cursed!]
R.G. Lee—“Heaven is the most marvelous place the wisdom of God could conceive and that the power of God could prepare.”
The butterfly, the sculpted rose, the stars and planets…all in 6 days…and by comparison to heaven, what we have here will be nothing compared to Heaven. wound!
I believe that in heaven we’ll run around breathless, and when we see the apostle John we’ll say, “why didn’t you tell me?” and he’ll say, I tried, but words wouldn’t suffice!
1 Cor. 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
4. Heaven is a Place of Relationship
v. 3 This is what makes heaven heaven!
If the streets were not gold but gravel, if the walls were particle board and not jasper, if mud was knee deep and weeds over our heads, it will still be heaven because Jesus is there!
If they were no pearly gates or harps or angels it still will be heaven because Jesus is there.
Heaven is a reward for those who are faithful…Those who endure to the end will be saved….we can’t work our way to heaven..but we can be faithful to God and receive his reward. We’ll be elated, yes, when we see him we’re RELATED! Heaven is a place of relationship…
5. Heaven is a Place of Relief
Romans 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
v. 4-5 no more crying, sighing, or dying!
No hospitals or graves!
There will be no aging, wrinkles.
Nothing will ruin, rot, or rust.
There will be no thirsting, or hungering.
No itching, no blindness, no deafness, no diabetes,
No cancer, or heart attacks, or scars, no witchcraft,
No drugs, no alcohol, or tobacco!
No divorce, child abductions, accidents…and no more bills!
And the more you may go thru down “here”, the sweeter heaven will be for you!
Some call it heaven/new Jerusalem/pearly white city/Glory/and some call it “home”.“I’m kinda homesick for a country…”whose builder and maker is God
Heaven will be a Restricted Place
v. 8 God gives us a list of some who won’t be there.
Why does God include this info? Perhaps to show that the sin which has cursed and ultimately destroyed this world will NOT be allowed into the next!
The fearful—never accepted Christ, afraid to take the stand.
The unbelieving—didn’t believe at all in Christ or the Bible.
The abominable—not just sinners…these have committed abominations. From God’s perspective, there’s no difference between big and little sins…but this is encouragement of what WON’T be there and we need to understand from a human perspective.
Introduction: The doctrine of hell is one of the most neglected doctrines in all of Scripture. When hell is mentioned today, it is generally ridiculed, as if the whole idea of hell were so old-fashioned that only the naive and ignorant would really believe that such a place actually exists.
Natural men hate the idea of being held accountable for their lives to a holy God, because they love sin and do not wish to part with it. The carnal mind throws up objection after objection to the idea of hell because it does not want to face the reality of it. Men live their lives thinking that maybe if they ignore a difficulty long enough, it will go away. Even religious leaders are now attacking hell. Let men do what they will; the objections of the foolish will not do away with hell.
He who is the essence of infinite love- describes “Hell” the place of punishment
I. Why is there a Hell?
A. Hell is a place where God will deal righteously with the devil
John 8:44 The Devil, was a murderer from the beginning and has always hated the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Matthew 25:41 Everlasting fire was prepared for the devil and his angels:
B. Hell is where God will deal righteously with the dammed
John 5:29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
Hell was created for the Devil and his angels. When man fell, he also became subject to eternal judgment; thus, the wicked went also to hell. God wants no one to go to Hell
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
II. What will Hell be like?
A. A sinners endless torments in hell is described
1. A place filled with unimaginable fear
Repeatedly Jesus spoke of outer darkness, where there will be wailing, weeping, and gnashing of teeth. This gnashing of teeth- demon possessed-
Mark 9:18 And whenever this evil spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground and makes him foam at the mouth and grind his teeth and become rigid.
2. A place filled with unquenchable fire
Jesus associates hell with “fire” as “hell fire.” In Mark 9:46 and 48 hell is described as a place where the fire is not quenched.” Jesus describes hell as a furnace: cast them into the furnace of fire: The Book of Revelation describes hell as “a lake of fire burning with brimstone” (Rev. 19:20)
3. A place filled with intolerable filth
In Mark 9:46 Jesus described hell as a place where “their worm does not die
In the time of Jesus the Valley of Hinnom was used as the garbage dump of Jerusalem. Into it were thrown all the filth and garbage of the city, including the dead bodies of animals and executed criminals. To consume all this, fires burned constantly. Maggots worked in the filth. When the wind blew from that direction over the city, its awfulness was quite evident. At night wild dogs howled as they fought over the garbage.
B. The sinners eternal time in hell is described
The most terrifying aspect of all about hell is its length or duration. Hell is eternal. Hell will last forever. Can you comprehend eternity? No mathematical equation or formula can explain it. Your mind cannot conceive of eternity, but it is nonetheless real. This aspect of hell alone should cause men to cry out in repentance.
Revelation 20:10 “shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”
"In hell there is no hope. The dammed have not even the hope of dying--the hope of being annihilated. They are forever--forever--forever lost! On every chain in hell, there is written "forever". In the fires there, blaze out the words, "forever". Above their heads, they read, "forever". Their eyes are galled and their hearts are pained with the thought that it is "forever".
Conclusion:
Hell is a real place with real punishment & pain.
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