Heaven is a Real Place #3

by John Lowe
(Laurens SC, USA)

3 Nothing that God judges guilty will be in that city. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and God’s servants will worship him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads.
5 There will never be night again. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord God will give them light. And they will rule as kings forever and ever.

The curse of sin is gone. Sickness is gone. No more cancer, heart disease, diabetes, depression, or blindness. Today, you have the freedom and power to pray for healing, but in heaven the sickness, itself will be gone. Corruption will also be no more. All will be justice, fairness, and truth.

Finally, death will become a foreign concept. Once again, this calls for a whole new way of living, thinking and being. We will be released from the restraints of time and debilitation, to serve God purely, simply, directly, innocently and completely. There will be no hindrances of any kind. Won’t that be wonderful and glorious? We will know God personally, and we will clearly belong to Him. Nothing will exist to stand between the Creator and His creation.

John tells us that we will rule with God. This means that no matter how much God provides, we will still have meaningful work to do. Have you ever been a leader? Before you say “No”, consider that you have been a parent. Recall the time your child was sick, and you did not know whether to take him to the doctor, have him drink liquids, or simply to let him rest. You found the answer, and followed through, and became the hero. In the end, you felt good, but oh the anguish of those moments before you found the answer.

Our rulership with God will not be hard, because the answers will always be instantaneously there for us. Nevertheless, we will be engaged in the important and challenging work of rulers.

I believe that I have been very inadequate in my attempt to construct a picture of heaven. But do you get a glimpse of how marvelous it will be? We can say simply and confidently that heaven will be so wonderful. I want to be there. So I must follow Jesus, who is the only way to heaven.

And I want my loved ones there. So I must tell them about Jesus. Finally, I want everyone there, so I must tell them about Jesus.

We call the Second Coming of Jesus “the Blessed Hope.” God’s hope is, that this hope will be broadcast throughout the whole world, to every tribe and nation. Let’s seek the Acts 1:8 power from the Holy Spirit; the one who will empower us to be witnesses to the uttermost parts of the world.

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8 (NLT)