Introduction:
Adam and Eve began life in a perfect place with perfect surroundings. Man’s sin of disobedience affected God’s perfect creation and man lost his perfect home in the Garden of Eden. God has placed within every human heart the desire to search for that perfect home Adam lost. Sinful man, however, is searching for that perfect place in the wrong place with the wrong people. Only those who put their faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord can begin the search in the right place with the right person. Christ paid the price for our sin and restoration and has prepared a new home for us called the heavenly city. The heavenly city has more to offer and is worth more than anything we can ever imagine or dream of. We are pilgrims here on earth on our way to our new home in the heavenly city.
Step One: The heavenly city
a) A city prepared for the saints
God has prepared a heavenly city for those who believe in Him. “By faith Abraham went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God”. (Hebrews in 11:9-10) The Old Testament saints did not receive God’s promises but saw them by faith, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
b) A city where God reigns
The heavenly city is a city where God reigns in the hearts of its inhabitants. Everywhere God reigns His attributes and works are evident and one can only thank, praise, and worship Him. How else can we respond to the One who has not only saved us and made us righteous but has also prepared a new heavenly city for us?
c) A city where God’s will is done
A place where God reigns is subject to His will. A person who is filled with thanksgiving, praise and worship will acknowledge God in every area of their life and cannot do anything outside His will. We declare this whenever we say the Lord’s Prayer “Our Father who art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. When we are sincere in our praise and worship, we will accept that doing His will is the best thing that can ever happen to us. In the heavenly city everything is perfect as everything is in accordance with His will. We become His people and live with him when we do His will. As His people He will wipe away every tear from our eyes and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Illustration:
At Creation God prepared a perfect home for man. He gave man dominion over all creation to safeguard that perfect home. He had dominion over the serpent but was deceived and lost his home and his god given dominion. Satan believed he had won an important victory because God had given authority to man and only a man could restore that authority and man was no longer in a position to exercise that authority. This seemed impossible because in Adam all have sinned and justice and righteousness were the foundations of His throne. The devil did not reckon that God would become a man without a sin nature, live a sinless life and be offered up as a sacrifice to pay the penalty for sin. On the Cross Christ shed His blood to pay the penalty for sin “for the wages of sin is death”.
Application:
“For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive”. Christ has bought our redemption with His blood and whosoever believes is made spiritually alive and becomes a child of God.
Step Two: The entry requirements
a) Belief in Christ
The entry requirement to enter the heavenly city is belief in Christ. Salvation is a necessary visa and can only be obtained by believing what Christ has done on your behalf through His suffering, death and resurrection. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” Eph. 2:8.
b) The righteousness of Christ
Salvation imputes to every believer the righteousness of God. When Christ was made sin with our sinfulness, we were made righteous with His righteousness. We are a spirit being, we possess a soul and we live in a body. At salvation we received a new spirit where the Holy Spirit can live and renew our minds.
c) A renewed mind
A renewed mind thinks and acts in accordance with the Word of God. We can only renew our mind when we know the word of God especially because before salvation, we had always acted contrary to the Word of God.
Illustration:
Many Ghanaians today are earnestly praying for American visas and will go to great lengths to acquire them. Without the visa you will not even be allowed to travel. Some have tried fake visas but are often caught and prosecuted. Many of those who acquire the right visas end up doing the worst jobs available in America and do not have the opportunities that are open to Americans until they become American citizens. We also need to satisfy certain conditions if we are to enter the heavenly city. You do not have to pay anything yourself because someone else has already paid the price for your entry. All you have to do is to believe in Christ and what He has done for you and as a child of God you can enter as a citizen of heaven. As a citizen of heaven, you receive many privileges and opportunities and these are available to God’s children here on earth. They are appropriated by renewing the mind and believing the promises of God and by faith accessing the grace of God.
Application:
Are you experiencing the promises of God in your life? Every Word of God is true and in the words of Christ we become His ambassadors when we believe in His crucifixion, death burial and resurrection. Let us renew our minds and perform our duty as ambassadors of Christ.
Step Three: The necessary preparation
a) A life of faith
Belief in Christ meets the requirements for entry into the heavenly city. It, however, demands a change in the way we live. The Scriptures declare “The just shall live by faith”. To live by faith, we need to know the Word of God and have an intimate relationship with Him. We cannot say we know God better than His Word. Our knowledge of God is measured by our knowledge of His Word.
b) A spiritual walk
A necessary preparation for life in the heavenly city is a spiritual walk here on earth. The spiritual means available to us is the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. A spiritual walk is living in accordance with the Word of God. This is the only way to deal with a mindset that is contrary to the Word of God.
c) A life of obedience
A further preparation for life in the heavenly city is a life of obedience to God. When Christ saves us, He does not only give us a new life; He also gives us a new purpose. One of the most discouraging and depressing things in the whole world is a life without purpose. Have you ever met a man or a woman who is going through life without any purpose? As believers our purpose in life is to impact the life of others and bring them to know Christ as their Saviour and Lord.
Illustration:
The only things we can take with us to the heavenly city are the souls won for Christ. If we really value what Christ has done for us, we would desire to share the good news with others under the leading of the Holy Spirit. Paul understood what his salvation meant. He fully understood that his sins, past, present and future had been forgiven because of the shed blood of Christ. Paul who had once denied the Lord, persecuted His disciples and took part in the murder of Stephen could boldly proclaim in 2 Cor. 7:2 “we have wronged no one”. He understood the good news to the extent that he relied on the Holy Spirit for direction. When the Holy Spirit directed him to preach the good news in Europe rather than Asia he obeyed. For the first time the gospel was preached in Europe but what Paul did not know was that a time was coming when that same gospel will be brought back to Asia from Europe.
Application:
The good news is the best news we have to share. We all need to know about God’s forgiveness, God’s restoration, God’s gift of the Holy Spirit and the heavenly city Christ has prepared for believers.
Conclusion:
All believers believe that in the next age they will function in a totally different way. They will be set free from many of the limitations of their physical body. They will have a different kind of body and a totally different lifestyle. Believers are given a taste of this lifestyle in this present age. According to Paul in Ephesians, the Holy Spirit is God’s deposit in us for the next age. It is the down payment of the life in the next age and it is also the guarantee that Christ is coming back to complete the purchase. From this we realise that salvation is immediate but sanctification is a process that lasts a lifetime. After salvation we are to make our new position in Christ a daily experience fulfilling all His divine requirements. Adam and Eve, and each one of us, were created for a divinely ordained purpose. First of all, they were to fellowship with God. Secondly, they were to be fruitful and multiply and they were to subdue the earth." And finally, Adam and Eve were to be the caretakers of God’s creation. Christ has restored God’s purpose for our lives. He died for us so that we could receive eternal life through Him and be adopted into God’s family and fulfil His divine purpose.
Personal Response:
To prepare for the heavenly city is as simple as ABC. A - We must admit that we are lost and need God. We must admit that we have messed up our lives without Him and have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. B - We must believe that God loves us and sent Jesus Christ to die for our sins. We must believe that through Him, we can have newness of life. C - We must confess our faith in Jesus Christ. We must confess that He alone is our Saviour and our Lord. Let us be prepared for the heavenly city today as we follow these simple steps to the praise and glory of Almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
