Summary: Many are fearful of death. We wonder if God will really forgive us and welcome us home. God sent Jesus to earth to reveal to us the reality of life after death and to secure for us a place in heaven. Learn more with today’s message

INTRODUCTION

Author Joseph Bayly wrote about death from

firsthand experience. He lost all three of his

children: one at eighteen days, after surgery.

Another died at age five with leukemia. His third

child died at eighteen after a sledding accident

complicated by hemophilia.As a committed

Christian Joseph Bayly knew that he would see his

children in heaven.In his book, The View from A

Hearse, he tells of what he said to offer hope to a

woman whose small son was dying.“It is good to

know, isn’t it,” he said slowly, choosing his words

with unusual care, “that even though the medical

outlook is hopeless, we can have hope for our

children in such a situation.”We can be sure that

after our child dies, he’ll be removed from sickness

and suffering and everything like that, and be

completely well and happy.”“If I could only believe

that,” the woman replied.“But I don’t. When he

dies, I’ll just have to cover him up with dirt and

forget I ever had him.” How sad, but more often

than not, this woman’s words express the hopeless

plight of so many people.Jesus spoke some last

words so we wouldn’t have to feel this way; so we

could know the truth about death and dying.

While hanging on the cross and waiting for physical

death to relieve His unbearable pain, the Lord Jesus

made it plain that life does not end at physical

death. There is hope even in the face of life’s most

tragic and painful experiences.After praying for His

enemies, Jesus turned to a repentant thief on a cross

and assured him that there was something beyond

life on earth.He told the dying thief that because of

his repentance and faith, he was going to heaven.

Uttering another statement from the cross, Jesus

said to the thief, “I TELL YOU THE TRUTH,

TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN

PARADISE.” The word “paradise” is an interesting

word. “Jewish theology had come to use this word

as a metaphor for the presence of God in the world

of unseen spiritual reality.It is only used on two

other occasions in the N.T., but in each case, in a

context which hints at the highest glories of heaven.

Jesus was telling that thief that he would pass from

the scaffold of shame into the joy of God’s

presence forever.”

HEAVEN IS REAL

God sent Jesus to earth to reveal to us the reality of

life after death and to secure for us a place in

heaven. To the grief stricken sister of Lazarus, our

Lord said, “I AM THE RESURRECTION AND

THE LIFE, WHOSEOVER LIVETH AND

BELIEVETH IN ME, THOUGH HE DIE, YET

SHALL HE LIVE.” (John 11:25 & 26) Addressing

his disciples just before His crucifixion, Jesus said

in John 14:2 & 3, “…I AM GOING TO PREPARE

A PLACE FOR YOU….SO THAT WHERE I AM

THERE YOU MAY BE ALSO.” God has a plan for

each one of us. He offers us something beyond this

earthly pilgrimage which is often marked by

sickness,sorrow, suffering and then death.

Although dismissed by many as less than real,

heaven represents ultimate reality. Reality consists

of much more than that which we can detect with

our senses.“Our image of reality is only a partial

picture.Our physical senses are very limited.

For example, if we want to see details of planets, we

need a telescope; if we want to see inside the human

body, we need an x-ray; if we want to look into a

living cell, we need a microscope.We hear

low-pitch sound at about 50 vibrations per second

and high-pitch at about 19,500. Dogs can hear at

24,000 vibrations per second and bats at 80,000,

well beyond our range.” The fact is that all of our

senses are very limited and thus unable to detect

great portions of reality including the existence of

life in the here-after. Not only does heaven represent

the ultimate in reality, it is our ultimate home. Our

fleeting years here on earth are but a minuscule

portion of our journey. Heaven is a place where we

will know life in all its richness and fullness. It is a

place where we will not need our physical bodies in

order to exist. Heaven will be wonderful, beyond

our wildest imaginations. 2 Corinthians 2:9 says,

“NO EYE HAS SEEN, NO EAR HAS HEARD,

NO MIND HAS CONCEIVED WHAT GOD HAS

PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.”

Heaven is unfathomable to our human minds and it

is our ultimate home. Scripture, therefore, refers to

us as “…STRANGERS AND PILGRIMS ON THIS

EARTH…” (Hebrews 11:13 & 1 Peter 2:1)

HEAVEN IS A GIFT

Not only did the Lord Jesus come to earth to reveal

the reality of heaven, He also came to provide us a

way to get to heaven.Heaven is a gift that God in

His grace freely bestows upon those who believe.

As sinners we do not deserve and we cannot

possibly earn heaven.We all fall far too short of

God’s requirements.Many erroneously believe that

if their good deeds outweigh their sins, they will

spend eternity in heaven.That is not true because the

problem of our sin still remains and a holy and just

God cannot close His eyes to sin.God, therefore,

sent Jesus to earth to die for us and in so doing He

paid the just penalty of our sin.In Jesus, God has

provided us with the only way to heaven.1 Peter

2:24 declares that “HE HIMSELF BORE OUR

SINS IN HIS BODY…” Heaven is a free gift that is

bestowed upon those who believe and trust in the

finished work of Christ.

While dying for our sins, Jesus turned to a dying

thief and promised him, “TODAY YOU WILL BE

WITH ME IN PARADISE.” Many wonder what

warranted that kind of a promise to a common

criminal.Only one thing: God’s mercy and grace!

God, in His mercy, does not give us what we

deserve - eternal separation from Him. Rather, in

His grace, He gives us what we don’t deserve -

heaven. This promise of heaven is offered to anyone

irrespective of their past. In John 6:37 Jesus says,

“WHOSOEVER COMES TO ME I WILL NEVER

TURN AWAY.”That means you and me and the

thief on the cross.The sins of the thief on the cross

are in God’s sight no different than your sins or my

sins.From God’s holy perspective the sins of pride,

lust, materialism, hatred, gossip and the sin of

ignoring God are just as serious as the thief’s sins.

Our sins need to be confessed, repented of and

covered with the blood of Christ just as much as the

sins of the thief.The promise is that if we turn to

Jesus as did the thief we, too, can receive the gift of

heaven.

CONVERSION

Scripture tells us about the crowd that had gathered

to watch Jesus die, crucified between two criminals.

The rulers were there and they sneered at Him,

mockingly saying, “HE SAVED OTHERS, LET

HIM SAVE HIMSELF IF HE IS THE CHRIST…..”

The soldiers ridiculed Him, shouting, ‘IF YOU

ARE THE KING OF THE JEWS SAVE

YOURSELF.”Even one of the crucified criminals

contemptuously shouted at Jesus. The other

criminal, however, rebuked him saying, “DON’T

YOU FEAR GOD? WE ARE PUNISHED

JUSTLY, FOR WE ARE GETTING WHAT OUR

DEEDS DESERVE. BUT THIS MAN HAS DONE

NOTHING WRONG.” Then he turned to Jesus and

said, “REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME

INTO YOUR KINGDOM.” Recognizing who Jesus

really was, this criminal turned to Jesus.And Jesus

said to him, “TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME

IN PARADISE.”Jesus promised him a place in the

Kingdom of Heaven.

In Matthew 18:3 Jesus said, “EXCEPT YOU

BECOME CONVERTED…..YOU SHALL NOT

ENTER THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.”

Conversion is the key to heaven. The basic idea of

the Greek word for converted is “to turn.”The

conversion experience has two aspects, namely that

of turning away from displeasing God to pleasing

Him. Repentance comes before conversion. People

do not repent and become converted until they know

they are sinners who need the Savior. Convicted of

sin we repent and turn from it and with God’s help

determine to make our lives conform to the will of

God. Such is conversion.

That is precisely what happened to contemporary

Christian musician Kathy Troccoli. She was a

rebellious teen who partied wildly and was caught

in a vicious cycle of bulimia. But at a summer job,

she couldn’t escape the Christian witness of

co-worker Cindy. Troccoli says, “She was the

epitome of a girl I could not hang out with. When

she started telling me about Jesus, I made fun of her.

And yet, deep down inside, I admired her. I liked

that she didn’t seem to care what people thought

about her. I even suspected that she was right and I

was on the wrong path.” “Finally, Cindy said to me,

‘You know, Kathy, Jesus is Lord whether you

accept Him or not.’ I went home thinking about

that. If Jesus was real, I had to check Him out.

I plowed through the Gospel of John and when I got

to the end, I knew I had to make a decision.

Everything would have to change……..and sixteen

years ago, it did.”

THE MIRACLE OF CONVERSION

When a person repents of his/her sin and turns to

Jesus a miracle takes place.The spiritually dead

sinner is raised to newness of life and eternal life.

He is brought from darkness to light. He

experiences a new birth, as the Holy Spirit takes us

residence in his life. A fundamental change occurs

deep within that person and he/she begins to think

and act differently; spiritual pursuits become

important.Values, priorities, goals, and behavior all

change. This is the experience of every converted

sinner who turns to Jesus Christ and trusts Him as

Savior. But the circumstances that surround

conversion vary greatly.

In Acts 9 we are told of the Apostle Paul’s

conversion which was traumatic and spectacular.

He saw a light! He heard a voice! He saw the Lord

Jesus. At that moment he believed and surrendered

his life to the Lord. He stopped ridiculing and

persecuting believers. In Acts 8 we have the account

of the Ethiopian nobleman’s conversion. After

reading Scripture and then having it explained to

him, he made a calm, reasoned and deliberate

decision to trust Christ and follow Him. Sometimes

conversion is an ecstatic and highly emotional

experience accompanied by tears. For some it is a

very quiet and peaceful experience. Some folk can’t

even tell the precise time that it occurred. Although,

figuratively speaking, conversion experiences come

in different sizes and shapes, they all have one thing

in common. Conversion occurs when a person turns

from sin and self to the Lord. It occurs when we

allow the Lord God His rightful place in our lives.

When we allow Him to save us from the penalty and

power of our sin we are converted. God forgives our

sins and changes our attitudes, perspectives,

behavior, goals, priorities and way of thinking.

Jesus said in Matthew 18:3, “…EXCEPT YOU

BECOME CONVERTED….YOU SHALL

NOT ENTER THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.”

- Jesus made it clear that the paradise or heaven He

promised the thief comes through conversion and

conversion alone. This is the clear message of

Christ’s second word from the cross. The penitent

thief admitted that he had done wrong.” “WE ARE

GETTING WHAT WE DESERVE,” he said. “Not

only did he admit to wrong and guilt, he accepted

the punishment he deserved.” In verse 41 he said,

“WE ARE PUNISHED JUSTLY.” “After

recognizing who Jesus is, he turned to Jesus for

help.” That is when Jesus said to him, “TODAY

YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”

We can’t earn heaven by just living a good life.

Going to church, giving money, teaching or helping

others, as important as they are, can never get us to

the point where we will deserve heaven.No, our sins

prevent that from ever being a possibility.

Conversion, turning from sin to Jesus, is the only

way to gain heaven.Through Christ we receive

God’s grace and mercy. Heaven them becomes our

ultimate home.

BREVITY OF LIFE

Life is fleeting and brief. James says that your life is

like a “MIST THAT APPEARS FOR A LITTLE

WHILE AND THEN VANISHES” Job cried out

saying, “MY DAYS ARE SWIFTER THAN A

WEAVER’S SHUTTLE…” The Psalmist said,

“MY DAYS ARE LIKE THE EVENING

SHADOW…” It doesn’t make any sense to just live

for this fleeting life.Why would anyone exchange

the wonder and splendor of eternity for 60, 70 or 80

fleeting years of trials, troubles and heartaches here

on earth?Jim Elliot, the martyred missionary

summed it up best when he said, “He is no

fool who gives that which he cannot keep to gain

that which he cannot lose.”

CONCLUSION

Your most important decision in life is where you

will spend eternity. Amazingly, it is your choice.

You decide for heaven when you decide for Christ.

“Tie A Yellow Ribbon” was the name of a popular

song.It tells of a man who’s been sent to prison.

He’s served his time and is now coming home on

the bus. He admits that she who once loved him has

every right to reject him. He’s to blame. So he’s

written to tell her that if she forgives him, she

should “tie a yellow ribbon ‘round the old oak tree.”

If there is no yellow ribbon, he’ll just go riding by

on the bus.As the miles roll by, all the man thinks

about is that oak tree. Will it have a yellow ribbon

on it? As the bus approaches the oak tree the man

sees not one but a hundred yellow ribbons.

Like the man on the bus, many are fearful of death and what’s ahead. We know our hearts,

we know our failures and we wonder if God will really forgive us and welcome us home.

The good news of the Gospel is that he will! When we, like the thief on the cross, turn to

Christ for salvation, God will welcome us into heaven. The yellow ribbons will be