As Jesus prepared the Disciples for His death on the evening before His death in John 14, He started by saying, “Stop allowing your heart to be troubled, you believe in God, believe also in Me!” He goes on to share with them the truths of John 14:2-3. Here we are reminded that our comfort comes from trusting Christ’s preparation. Our separation from Christ is not permanent. His words, “If it were not so, I would have told you” assures the disciples that He was telling them the truth. He was going away in part to “prepare a place” for them, and in this promise we are reminded that His leaving was also to make sure that all who were His would have a special place. My friends, we have an expectation based on the promise of God to a better hope, and a better world. What we see around us is temporary at best, and the nature of our experiences is that they only last for a specific amount of time. As a follower of Jesus Christ, where He plans on taking us will be permanent, and secure. As we have just finished celebrating the reality of His resurrection, … READ MORE

What happens when you die as a follower of Jesus Christ? 2 Corinthians 5:1 reminds us that “if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” 2 Corinthians 5:8 tells us that, “absent from the body [is to] be present with the Lord.” Scripture refers to heaven more than five hundred times, the Book of revelation alone mentions heaven about fifty times. The Bible is very clear that heaven is an actual place, not a state of spiritual consciousness. We are reminded that it is a place, because some have gone there in glorified bodies, such as Enon in Genesis 5:24, Elijah in 2 Kings 2:11, and the Lord Jesus Christ in Acts 1:9. As we have already been reminded 2 Corinthians 5:8 That while heaven is far beyond the created world in another dimension, when believers die, they will be there immediately (cf. also Luke 23:43). We also are reminded in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-55 that a day will come when the Savior, Jesus Christ, will come back for His Bride, and all those who are a part of that Bride … READ MORE

Throughout the history of the church, God’s people have been preoccupied with heaven. Believers who do not have heaven on their minds trivialize their lives, hinder the power of the church, and become absorbed with the fading things of this world. A genuine and strong longing for heaven has many important implications and benefits for the Christian:1. This longing is one of the surest indicators of genuine salvation. Luke 12:334 says “Where your treasure is, there you heart will be also.”2. A genuine and strong longing for heaven produces the highest and noblest Christian character. Colossians 3:1 reminds us “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God.”3. A genuine longing for heaven brings joy and comfort in trials. 2 Corinthians 4:17 reminds us “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.”4. This longing becomes a preservative against sin. Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” 5. This desire for heaven gives us a desire to serve the Lord and other believers as we are able. Galatians 5:13 tells us, … READ MORE