Introduction
D.L. Moody described our hope of heaven this way. “What has been, and is now, one of the strongest feelings in the human heart? Is it not to find some better place, some lovelier spot, than we have now? It is for this that men are seeking everywhere; and they can have it if they will; but instead of looking down, they must look up to find it. As men grow in knowledge, they vie with each other more and more in making their homes attractive, but the brightest home on earth is but an empty barn, compared with the mansions in the skies.”
Transition
We all have an internal longing for the eternal. It seems to have been built right into the fabric of our conscience. We all equally have a longing for something greater than what we experience in this broken sin-sickened world.
I’m convinced that the stain of sin and the echo of the curse that it brought upon the world resonate in every heart. We all seem naturally to have a sense that this world isn’t what it should be; that there is something better waiting; that somewhere someday we will find a more pleasant existence on a distant shore.
A hope for Heaven, it seems, has been written, etched, onto every heart.
CIT / CIS: Heaven is the hope and home of every believer.
Exposition
Who Heaven is For: Heaven is reserved for the elect. It is for those whose faith, who hope, whose life, is hidden with God in Christ. “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:1-3 ESV) Heaven is a promise to the saints of God. It is the reward of believers.
I like the way C.S. Lewis put it, “Aim at heaven and you get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.” Heaven is the future home for believers.
Where, What, and When Heaven Is: I’ve lumped these three ideas (where, what, and when) into one idea and then divided that into two parts. I assure you it’s not nearly as complicated as it sounds. In the English Bible the word “Heaven” is a translation of just two words, in almost every occurrence; the Hebrew word shamayim and the Greek word ouranos. Both of which have very similar meanings; literally the heights or that which is lifted up; that which is above.
In the Bible Heaven can describe the atmospheric heavens, the celestial heavens, Heaven as the abode of God, the possibility of a heavenly life now (heaven indwelling earth), and the resting place of the saints and apocalyptic home.
When the Scripture speaks of Heaven, of our eternal hope, of the glory to come, there are basically two places and times that we will focus upon.
(1) There is first the temporary or intermediate state for all believers who leave this life in physical death. (2) Then there is the life after the resurrection of the dead upon the return of Christ to enter into the millennial reign (1,000 year reign of Christ and the restoration of earth) which shall usher in eternity.
What we are here distinguishing between is what Heaven is like and what Heaven will be like. I think this is a point lost on many believers. The end or aim of the Christian life is not the present Heaven but the eternal state or Heaven to come.
I. Temporal Heaven (Intermediate State): The present state of believers who have left this life is glorious. We don’t have nearly the description of the present Heaven as we do of the glory of what is to come after the return of Christ.
But that’s not to say we know nothing. In the Scripture we find out much.
A. Abraham’s Bosom. Luke 16:19-31. In the account of the rich man and Lazarus we find out that Heaven, paradise, is a place of perfect rest and comfort. The poor man suffered much in this life but in paradise, the bosom of Abraham, he is comforted and at peace. By sharp contrast, those like the rich man who are in hades or sheol, awaiting the final judgment are in torment, apart from God; separated by a vast chasm that cannot be crossed.
It is far better to live in paradise with God than to wallow in riches in the world.
B. Heaven, paradise, the present home for saints departed, is the place of perfect peace for believers awaiting the resurrection. It’s not the end but a joyous place of union with God and communion among the saints of God.
“He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:5-8 ESV)
The Bible is clear that for saints to depart this body is to arrive at home with God in a place of perfect rest and comfort and union and communion. Heaven is:
1. A Safe-Deposit for Treasures.
a. Matthew 6:20. “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
b. So many believers are sowing seeds into earthly blessing while the harvest field for eternity is short of laborers. Where is your treasure?
2. Contains a Register of the Saints.
a. Luke 10:20. “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
b. There is no greater treasure than having one’s name written in the Lamb’s book of life from all eternity. If you are in Christ, it is not by accident. God has chosen you in Christ the way a man or woman sets their affection upon a baby in an orphanage. If you are in Christ you are secure and your name is written in the heaven!
3. Has Room for ALL Believers.
a. John 14:2. “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.”
b. When Mary and Joseph entered Bethlehem on the eve of the eve of the birth of Christ there was no room at the inn. Christ was born in the stable.
There is plenty of room in Heaven for those who find saving faith, according to God’s wondrous grace, through the one who was turned away because there was no room for Him. He who was ushered away at His birth welcomes all who will enter in by faith.
Why you? Why not you?
4. The Glorified Christ Entered into it.
a. Acts 7:56. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
b. St. Stephen, the first Christian Martyr was stoned in this life and in an instant he was with God in the place reserved for the saints of God.
c. Stephens Vision: Heaven is a real place. Acts 7:54-60 (READ)
5. Built by the Hand of God.
a. Hebrews 11:10. “For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” Better to dwell a day in the house God built than eternity in the house of man.
6. Where the Redeemed of All Nations Are Assembled.
a. Revelation 7:9. “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.”
b. Friend, if the blending of human lives, the human family, into one gathering, worshipping God and doing life together is a problem for you then you will have no place in Heaven.
c. Heaven is a place where the sin that divides us from God and from one another is washed away by the blood of the Lamb. There is no racism in Heaven, nor should there be in the Church if Heaven is a place we long to call home.
II. New Jerusalem / Ushering In Eternity: Heaven, as we commonly consider it, Abraham’s Bosom, is not really the emphasis of Scripture. It is a real place of consolation for saints but it is not our ultimate destination. We sometimes make so much of Heaven when a believer physically dies that it’s easy to forget that isn’t the end of their story or ours. Present Heaven is not the final destination.
We looked just now at Stephen’s vision of Heaven as he was stoned to death, martyred for faith in Jesus Christ, as saints of God have been martyred and are being martyred from the inception of the Church – giving this entire world away for an inheritance vastly more complete than this entire world.
What about John’s vision of the New Earth – Heaven entering this earthen realm?
Revelation 21: 1-7. (READ) The ultimate promise of God is not merely that saints will enjoy a blissful spiritual reality in Heaven after departing this life.
The New Jerusalem, the New Earth, the Millennial Reign of Christ which shall usher in eternity with God is the ultimate promise of God and hope of the Church!
How like squanderers of a grand inheritance are we when we forget the ultimate hope that we have of a new Heaven and New Earth! We become consumed with life “down here” and meanwhile, all we are doing down here is being prepared for life up there and later when up there joins down here!
Why Heaven Matters: A right doctrine of Heaven and an active approach to the reality of Heaven gives us a clear understanding of our destination in this arduous journey. The road is long, the battles hard fought, but our destination is Heaven!
This earth waits the time when Christ shall return with His saints in glory and all that is broken will be healed and all that is dishonoring to God and destructive to His people will be washed away! These present sufferings will soon fade away as all of God’s creation is ushered into perfect communion with God.
Conclusion
Ever since I visited Jerusalem I have been homesick to go back. It is God’s holy city, where His presence seems to be in every corner of every ancient street. Everywhere one turns there is evidence of God at work in the history of His people. On the Temple Mount one may touch ancient stones from the time of Christ. On the Southern Steps one may sit on the very stone steps where Jesus routinely taught His disciples. On the ancient city streets one may walk where David walked; take the very journey Christ took to the Golgotha on your way to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher or take communion in Gethsemane.
How much more rich is the actual presence of God in Heaven! Rather than the evidence of God at work in history He is there! The light of His beauty illuminates the hearts of all the saints who worship at His throne!
How much grander shall His appearing be in the New Jerusalem, in the Holy City of God! There we will no longer be pilgrims to the ancient City of God; we shall be residents, inhabitants of the very City of God where the light of the countenance of God shall be the very light of that grand city!
Friend, our hope of Heaven is not a passing notion of a vague desire for something better than this life. It is the promise of God who is making all things new, who said He would never leave us or forsake us. Our hope is secured in the resurrection of Him of whom the angels said would come back in the same manner in which He ascended into Heaven to rule and reign.
The only lock on the gates of heaven is one opened by the key of grace which God grants to all who hear the Gospel and respond in faith. Heaven is a place where the invitation is penned in the blood of Christ on a parchment of mercy.
God grants His unmerited favor in Christ and we access that mercy, according to God’s grace, through turning away from this world toward Heaven; from letting go of worldly things so that Heaven may reign in our hearts on earth.
Thomas Manton wrote that “None are translated into heaven but such whose hearts are there first.” Where is your heart today? If it is entrapped on earth, oh you are to be pitied. But if it is loosed unto Heaven, filled with the Holy Spirit, my friend, your hope, as is mine, is found in nothing less that Christ righteousness which carries us aloft to Heaven and because of which we shall live and reign with Him in the new Jerusalem, that Heavenly city when all shall be made new.
Amen.
