Eternity

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end" Ecclesiastes 3:11.

God created us as creatures of eternity. Even though our physical body dies, our spirit continues to live forever. God has prepared an eternal dwelling for us called heaven.

Heaven

"...God is in heaven and you are on earth.Therefore stand in awe of God" Ecclesiastes.5:2,7.

We do not know fully what heaven is like, but the Bible does tell us a little about what it is:

The dwelling place of God (Job 22:12; Deut.26:15).
The throne-room of God (Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 66:1).
The place of God's full glory (Daniel 7:9-10; Acts 7:55).
The home of believers who have died (2 Corinthians 5:1).
The future home of all believers (Revelation 7:9-10).

Heaven is a place far beyond anything we can possibly conceive (1 Corinthians 2:9;13:12). But though the Bible doesn't paint for us a totally clear picture of what heaven is like, it does give us some clues as to its nature. Heaven is:

A place of great glory

"Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father." Matthew 13:43.

A place of continual worship

"After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: 'Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: 'Hallelujah!' For our Lord God Almighty reigns.'" Revelation 19:1-6 (see also 5:11-12).

A place that will never end

"...and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" 2 Peter 1:11 (see also 1 Peter 1:4).

A place untainted by evil

"Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life" Revelation 21:27 (see also Ephesians 5:5).

The Book of Revelation describes the New Jerusalem, coming out of heaven, as a place without night (22:5), without curse (22:3), without pain (21:4), without crying or sorrow (21:4) and without death (21:4). This is because the nature of heaven is a product of the nature of God. Heaven is the full manifestation of His presence. That means that what God is like, heaven is like: a place of holiness, full of glory and without end.

Our Link With Heaven

As believers, we now live our lives in a special relationship with heaven, because:

We belong to heaven (Heb.12:22-23; Philippians 3:20).
We are seated in heaven (Ephesians 2:6).
We have our source of life in heaven (Ephesians 1:3).
We have our names written in heaven (Luke 10:20).
We have been sent from heaven (John 17:16,18).
We have our eyes fixed on heaven (Colossians 3:1-4; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18; Hebrews 11:9-10,14-16).
We have our treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20).
We are being called back to heaven (Philippians 3:13-14).

Hell

"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels'" Matthew 25:41.

Heaven is not the only eternal place prepared for people. There is another place called hell (Luke 16:19-31). This place was not originally prepared for people, but for Satan. But when Adam sinned, all of mankind aligned itself with Satan and became enemies of God (Col.1:21). For all who refuse God's offer of salvation, their destiny is to join Satan in eternal separation from God (read John 3:17-21). But the wonderful news of the Gospel is that Jesus became the escape route from eternal judgment in hell. He became our passport to heaven.

"For God... gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" John 3:16.

Eternal Life

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" Romans 6:23.

Eternal life is part of the total package of salvation that has been presented to us in Jesus Christ. This eternal life is certain because we are now in Christ (John 5:24; 6:40; 10:28).

" And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son" 1 John 5:11.

Jesus himself, before returning to heaven, made a very special promise to every believer:

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And.I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" John 14:1-3 (see also 17:24).

The Eternal Purpose

"...according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord" Ephesians 3:11 (see also 1:9-10; Romans 8:28).

We have not just been saved from God's judgment. We have also been saved to the eternal purpose of God. This purpose includes four things:

We are being conformed to the image of Jesus (Rom.8:29).
We are being trained as heirs of God (Rom.8:14-19).
We are being prepared to contain and reveal God's full glory (2 Cor.3:18; 4:17; Rom.8:17-18; 2 Thess.2:14).
We are being prepared as a bride for Christ (Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:7; 21:2).

"Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen" 1 Timothy 1:17.

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