Why does God give us a place with Christ in heaven? Paul says in Ephesians 2:7 that it’s “to show for all ages to come, God’s goodness to us.”
Everything you’ve seen in movies about heaven is 100% wrong. There has never been a movie about heaven that got it right. Us trying to understand heaven is like an ant trying to understand the internet.
What is heaven? Here’s a summary in 3 sentences.
- It’s a physical place. Heaven is an actual, literal, real place with a location.
Jesus says in John 14:2 that “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places…” God has a place specifically for you! Your heavenly Father wants His children to live with Him at home forever.
- It’s a permanent place
2 Corinthians 5:1 says “it will be a home in heaven that will last forever.” There are already millions of believers there and other millions will soon join with Christ there.
- It’s a reserved place
Heaven is not for everyone, it’s only for the children of God. He chooses who goes to it. You also get to choose if you want to be a part of His family. God invites everyone to heaven but not everybody is going because they don’t accept the forgiveness offered.
Revelation 21:27 says that “only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life will be able to enter.” The only way our names can be written is if we trust in the Son of God, the Lamb, who was sacrificed for me.
4 FACTS ABOUT OUR FUTURE
1. Believers will receive new bodies
When a Christian’s body gives out, their spirit goes to be with God. We don’t know much about the intermediate state other than we are with Jesus and that’s enough. When Jesus returns, followers of Jesus will receive new imperishable bodies.
2. The final destination is not up there but down here
God is going to do what he did in Genesis 1-2 all over again. Human history unfolds as a circle that winds us all the way back to where we started. We need physical bodies for the new earth.
3. Jesus is not staying up there, but He is coming down here
He’s coming to earth to be with us as He was with Adam and Eve. To come face-to-face with Pure Love will be incredible. I can’t wait to have every tear wiped from my eyes by the index finger of Jesus himself.
4. Jesus will create a majestic new city beyond our imaginations where we will live with Him on the new earth
Jesus the carpenter has been constructing a physical city that will descend onto the new earth. The Apostle John is given the dimensions of this city in Revelation 21:15-17. It’s essentially a 1500-mile symmetrical cube. Someone did the math and found that it would allow for 20 billion residents, each having their own 75-acre cube.
Revelation 22 depicts a crystal-clear river with the same water Jesus offered the woman at the well. It doesn’t just quench thirst, it sustains life eternally. For centuries people have attempted to find this Fountain of Youth but it’s actually in the middle of New Jerusalem. The best part of it all is that we will see God face-to-face!
We were once criminals and enemies of God, banished from His presence. However, this will no longer be our condition because we will be pardoned through faith in Christ and we’ll be able to gaze directly into His eyes.
To learn more about Pastor Chris and his teaching, visit us on the web at fcfamily.org and make sure you subscribe to receive these biweekly encouragements in your inbox.
