If you have your Bible, please open it to 2nd Timothy Chapter 4. A friend in front of me was coming out of the church one day, and the preacher was standing at the door as he always did to shake hands. He grabbed my friend by the hand and pulled him aside. Then the pastor said to him, “You need to join the Army of the Lord!” The friend replied, “I’m already in the Army of the Lord, Pastor.” Pastor questioned him, “How come I don’t see you except at Christmas and Easter?” He whispered back, “I’m in the secret service.”
If you look at the screen behind me, you will see that the title of my message today is When We All Get to Heaven. 2 weeks ago, I told y`all that the last part of the series was the message We`ll Work till Jesus Comes. Well, God had other plans and today makes the fifth and final part of the series on hymnals. In the last part of the series, we looked at our jobs as Christians as we wait until either the Lord calls us home, or the Lord comes back for the church. Last time, we looked at the point that we as Christians should be working. Today, we are going to look at why we should be working. Look at 2nd Timothy Chapter 4 starting in verse 6.
READ 2ND TIMOTHY 4:6-8
These are the last words in the last chapter of the last letter ever written by Paul. When he is writing this letter to Timothy, he is in one of the worst jails. Paul was imprisoned in Rome at the time, and he wrote this shortly before he was beheaded. Shortly before he became a martyr. He died for his belief in Jesus. So, Paul is at the end of his life, and he reflects over his time here on Earth. Paul reflects over his life, and he says:
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
Paul fought the good fight. He spent most of his time as an adult on the front lines of the ministry spreading the Gospel. Paul finished the race. He did not start his race very well. He spent his early adulthood killing Christians but look how he finished. He served Christ until the day the Romans beheaded him for being a follower of Christ. Paul kept the faith. He faced a lot of trials and hardships during his ministry, but he kept the faith and even died for it. Like we looked at 2 weeks ago, he worked through the tiredness. He worked through the temptations to quit. He worked through the price, and he worked through the noise. Paul fought the good fight, he finished the race, and he kept the faith. Look back at verse 8 again.
READ 2ND TIMOTHY 4:8
Paul builds off what he said in verse 7 and he says because I have fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith, I will one day be rewarded for what I have done. Remember what we said when we looked at When the Roll is Called Up Yonder. One day, we will all stand before God on Judgement Day and give an account for everything that we have ever done or said and on that day, we will enter into eternity in either Heaven or hell. Look at the fourth verse of When We All Get to Heaven:
Onward to the prize before us!
Soon His beauty we'll behold;
Soon the pearly gates will open
We shall tread the streets of gold.
Paul was at the end of his life and after reflecting over what he had done, he looked toward where he was going. As the hymnal says,
Onward to the prize before us!
Paul was focused on the prize before him... Heaven. He knew he was headed to Heaven. Look down at verse 18.
“The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”
Paul was getting ready to be with Jesus in Heaven. It was obvious that his life was coming to an end. He knew he was going to Heaven. He fought the good fight, he finished the race, and he kept his faith in Jesus Christ. He without a doubt went to Heaven. Look back at verse 8 again.
“Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved His appearing.”
We too have that opportunity to go to Heaven like Paul did. Like we looked at in the sermon When the Roll is Called Up Yonder, true born-again believers will one day enter eternal paradise in Heaven. Paul met that description. Do you? When you get to the end of your life, will you be able to reflect over it and say the same thing that Paul did? Did you fight the good fight? Did you finish the race? Did you keep the faith? Up until today, if your answer to that question is no, you still have time. You can still fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith. 2 weeks ago, we talked about serving God either until the day He calls you home or the day that Jesus returns and raptures the church. Whatever happens first. You still have time. Philippians 3:20 says this:
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ”
This place that we call Earth is not our home. Our citizenship is in Heaven. Our home is in Heaven. That is one thing that we as Christians have to look forward to. There is this song by Building 429 that says this in the chorus:
“All I know is I'm not home yet
This is not where I belong
Take this world and give me Jesus
This is not where I belong”
If you are a Christian, then Earth is not your home, Heaven is. This is one of the many reasons why I cannot understand why we spend so much time focused on and worried over things here on Earth. Our focus should not be focused on the little things here, but instead we should be focused on the salvation of others. We should be focused on their eternal destinations. Listen folks, one day Earth will fade away, but where someone spends eternity will not change once they get there. Romans 10:14:
“How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard?”
The eternal destination of other people should be our primary concern. Making sure people have heard about Jesus and what He has done for us. John 14:2 says this:
“In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
Our citizenship is in Heaven and Jesus Himself goes to make it ready for us. Look at verse 1 of When We All Get to Heaven:
Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,
Sing His mercy, and His grace;
In the mansions bright and blessed
He'll prepare for us a place.
Jesus is going to prepare a place for us. A place that we will go to either when we die, or Jesus comes back for the church. Whatever may happen first. A place called Heaven. Over the past few weeks, we have talked a lot about Heaven and hell. Today, we are going to look at 4 things we will do in Heaven one day:
1. We Will Worship
When we get to Heaven, we will worship. Revelation 5:11-14 says this:
“Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
And I heard every creature in Heaven and on Earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,
“To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.”
One of the many things that we will do in Heaven one day is worship God. Back towards the beginning of July, we looked at How Great Thou Art. A hymnal that talks about the greatness of God and we looked at why God is worthy of our worship and praise. We said that God is merciful, God is powerful, God is eternal, and God is kind and because of those things, God is great, and God is worthy of our praise. We will get to spend an eternity praising and worshipping God. I found this quote that says this:
“Jesus said, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve". It is interesting to note that Jesus did not say "praise and serve." Even the briefest examination of the word praise in the Bible quickly shows it is a verbal thing and is for the most part singing. Worship, however, is from the heart. Worship manifests itself in praise. Serving God is worship, and Scripture is clear we will serve God in Heaven. "His servants will serve Him.”
Worship and praise come from the heart. It is more than just singing a song. It is so much more than that. The chorus of How Great Thou Art says:
“Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee;
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
When was the last time that you put everything aside and just praised and worshipped and focused on God? When was the last time that you did not focus on what you are going through or what responsibilities you have in the church or things you need to get done and just focused on praising God because of how great He is? Now, when I say worship and praise Him, I do not mean just merely sitting or standing there reading lyrics and moping through the song. That is not praise or worship. When is the last time you sang from your soul to God? When was the last time that you poured your heart out to God? That is praise and worship. We serve a God worthy of our praise and worship. When we get to Heaven, we will worship God for an eternity. There will no longer be those who mope through the church music or pout because they do not like the style of music that is being played. We will worship God.
2. We Will Fellowship
When we get to Heaven, we will fellowship. Hebrews 12:22-24 says this:
“But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.”
One of the many things that we will do in Heaven is fellowship. Dr. Jeremiah said this about fellowship in Heaven:
“In Heaven, we will have fellowship like never before! … Imagine having the unlimited opportunity to fellowship with people from all ages of history – even people we have only read about in books…. We will be able to know and fellowship with our Lord in a way that we cannot possibly comprehend…. Our Savior will be our personal friend, and we will fellowship with Him forever and ever.”
Not only will we fellowship with Jesus, but we will also fellowship with one another. In Luke 16, Jesus tells the story of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man died and went to hell while Lazarus died and went to Heaven. The rich man looks out and he sees Lazarus walking with Abraham. Lazarus and Abraham were fellowshipping together in Heaven. They did not even know each other on Earth. Abraham died thousands of years before Lazarus was even born. So, yes, we will fellowship with those we knew here on Earth and those we did not know here on Earth. When we get to Heaven, I believe all our Earthly grudges and things that we are mad or upset about here on Earth will no longer matter. No longer will we be focused on those things because we will be focused on God and Christ. I have a friend whose dad dated someone before he met and married his wife. The girl he dated before meeting his wife was physically abusive towards my friend. She passed a few years ago, but about a few years before she passed, she accepted Christ. One day, he will see her again in Heaven and when he sees her, he is not going to focus on what happened and what she did here on Earth, but instead they will fellowship, and they will praise the King of Kings together. Y`all can be mad at people all you want to, but there is a good chance that one day you will look at them in Heaven and the reason you are mad at them will no longer even matter. We are going to fellowship with one another in Heaven.
3. We Will Work
When we get to Heaven, we will work. Isaiah 65:21-23 says this:
“They shall build houses and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
They shall not build and another inhabit;
they shall not plant and another eat;
for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
They shall not labor in vain
or bear children for calamity,
for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord,
and their descendants with them.”
Despite what many people may think or say, when we get to Heaven, we will not be sitting on clouds playing the harp with a halo over our heads. That is not going to happen. When we get to Heaven, we will work. We will work and serve God.
Revelation 7:15 says this:
“Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve Him day and night in His temple;
and He who sits on the throne will shelter them with His presence.”
We will continue to serve God even in Heaven. Yes, we will worship God and we will fellowship together in Heaven, but we will also be working and serving in Heaven. Working and serving in Heaven will not be like working and serving down here. On Earth, it gets difficult. Spiritual Warfare is at an all-time high it seems like. Evil is rampant. We get tired, worn out, and burned out. We get old and cannot do as much as we used to. Working and serving God gets hard here on Earth, but that will not be the case in Heaven. Revelation 21:4 tells us this:
“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
In Heaven, we will not have the pains that we have here on Earth. We will no longer deal with Spiritual Warfare. We will no longer deal with evil. We will no longer deal with being tired or being burned out or getting old because in Heaven, none of those things will exist. Instead, we will be working and serving God and we will enjoy it. Isaiah 65 told us that we will no longer labor in vain. What a day that will be.
Folks, if it is important enough for us to work and serve God in Heaven, it is important enough for us to do it here. If God saw the need for us to work in Heaven, then I believe He sees the need for us to work while we are here on Earth. Scripture is full people serving God and it is full of commandments for us to also serve God. Like we looked at 2 weeks ago, there is no age requirement to serve God, but there is also no age cut off on serving God. Jesus was 12 years old teaching in the temple and Sarah was 99 years old and had a child. David was around 16 years old when he slew Goliath and Noah was about 500 years old when he built the Ark. You are never too young, and you are also never too old to serve God. If you are a true born-again believer, then you can and you ought to be serving God.
4. We Will Rest
When we get to Heaven, we will rest. Yes, we will work and serve in Heaven, but we will also rest. Isaiah 57:2 says this:
“For the righteous man is taken away from calamity;
he enters into peace;
they rest in their beds
who walk in their uprightness.”
The righteous person will one day find peace. They will one day rest. They will rest from their toils and labor. Here on earth, we mostly either work too much and we do not rest enough, or we lay around and rest too much and we do not feel fulfilled in our work, but in Heaven it will be the perfect balance between the two. Here, we must work hard because the world was cursed by sin. In Heaven, we will not have that problem. Heaven will not be cursed by sin. Revelation 22: 3, it says this:
“No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will worship Him.”
Heaven will not be cursed by sin, so we will have to painfully toil and labor. Revelation 14:13 says this:
“And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!””
In Heaven, we will find rest. Yes, we will still work and serve, but we will also have peace and be able to rest. 2 weeks ago, we looked at the hymnal We Will Work till Jesus Comes where in the verses, the author talked about how much she longed for rest and how much she longed for a break, but she followed each verse up with the chorus that says:
We’ll work till Jesus comes,
And we’ll be gathered home.
In each verse, the author talks about how she longs for rest and in Jesus she will have that rest, but then look at the chorus. We will work until Jesus comes. I am tired, but I will work until Jesus comes. I have not had a break in a long time, but I will work until Jesus comes. I am old and have been doing this for a while, but I will work until Jesus comes. If we all have that attitude and mindset, this church and this country would be completely different. Look at verse 3 of When We All Get to Heaven:
Let us then be true and faithful,
Trusting, serving ev'ry day;
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils of life repay.
Serving seems difficult now like we mentioned earlier. Anytime you are doing what God has called and told you to do, the devil will attack you. This church has been heavily attacked by Spiritual Warfare for a while now and as hard as it has been, it is also a good thing because that means that we as a church have been doing something right and have been moving in the right direction. The devil is not going to attack a church that does not pose a threat to him. Things may be hard now, but there is coming a day when we all can look back and say it was worth it. Verse 2 of When We All Get to Heaven says this:
While we walk the pilgrim pathway
Clouds will overspread the sky;
But when trav'ling days are over
Not a shadow, not a sigh.
We grow weary and tired here, but there is a coming day when we can finally rest and have peace. Until that day, let us work till it gets here. The title of the hymn and the message is When We All Get to Heaven. When it says “we,” it is not referring to everybody. It is referring to Christians. Only Christians will enter the gates of Heaven. When we, the Christians, get to Heaven, we will worship, we will fellowship, we will work, and we will rest. If you leave Earth either by death or when we all stand before the judgement throne and if you are not a Christian when that time comes, you will not enter eternal paradise in Heaven. Instead, you will enter eternal torment in hell. That Bible makes that clear. So today, if you have not accepted Christ, what are you waiting on? We are never promised tomorrow. We are not even promised to make it home from church today. Let today be the day.
Maybe today you are part of those that will one day enter the gates of Heaven, but right now you are struggling. Maybe through spiritual warfare, or something happening at work or at home. Why not come down to the altar and just pour your heart out to God? Why not come get right with God and see what He would have you do? Let us pray.
