Heaven!

HEAVEN!

We’re going to study about heaven today. It occurred to me a few weeks ago that I don’t know a whole lot about where I’m going. After studying this I’m more fired up to be going there. One things for sure Heaven is not a boring place to be.

Many view heaven as a boring place. There view of heaven is a bunch of plump cherubim lazily floating around on clouds, droopy eyed and strumming harps. That’s nothing like heaven!

Heaven is not boring! Heaven is where the real action is! Why do I say that? Because God is the Creator. It was Melchizedek who said in:

(Gen 14:19 NIV) and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth.

God is the creator of Heaven and because God is the creator heaven is filled with creativity. God’s creativity is eternal. We will never be bored around God!

Heaven is Heaven Because God is there.

Have you ever said. Ahh, this is heaven. I wish this would never end. Something you felt. Something you saw. Whatever it was that wasn’t heaven, that was a beautiful feeling or a magnificent thing, but not heaven. Heaven is heaven because God is there. I John tells us that God is love. Many of us have experienced an intoxicating type love. We know the feeling. It’s beautiful. To love and be loved. To have someone enthralled with who you are. Someone that excepts us. They know our weaknesses and still cherish us, love us and want to be with us. Love is powerful. We yearn for it and will sacrifice anything to get it We want it to last. When we fall in love, we’re sick. Head over heels in love. So much excitement, so much passion, can’t wait to be with the person, joyful, happy. We call everyday, chat about nothing for hours, hang on every word, do silly things (like write on other peoples property), dream big dreams, interested in every facet of the person, it’s just beautiful. Our hearts are enthralled. Love is intoxicating and we experience all that from a sinner! As sinners our love is imperfect. In heaven we are going to be in the presence of the source of pure love and loved by God who is love!

Tozer says this about God’s love. From God’s other known attributes we may learn much about His love. We can know, for instance, that because God is self-existent, His love had no beginning; because He is eternal, His love can have no end; because He is infinite, it has no limit, because He is holy, it is the quintessence of all spotless purity, because He is immense, His love is an imcomprehensible vast, bottomless, shoreless sea before which we kneel in joyful silence and from which the loftiest eloquence retreats confused and abused. THAT’S GODS LOVE!

In heaven we’ll be loved for eternity. In heaven we’ll be loved by someone holy, pure and righteous who always puts us before himself. Heaven will be heaven because you are precious to him. He will look into your eyes, bring you close to him and love you. You will never want to leave , never want it to end and it doesn’t have to because you are with him the eternal God. We’ll be loved perfectly by God.

Heaven is also heaven because God is beautiful. He’s the creator of beauty. There are certain people we say are beautiful. We use the term drop dead gorgeous. I remember the day when I realized Tres would be my wife. Beautiful. My world stopped. Almost 19 years later I still remember where I was, where we were going (on a double date going to the movies), her clothing, her hairdo. What a beautiful experience. God will be far better though.

I mean there are people that are stunning to behold. Stop staring! God made them all. Every one is a personal design of his. God knows beauty. He knows what drop dead gorgeous means. Of course God is the ultimate in beauty because he did tell Moses in Exo 33:20 But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." The beauty of God is so stunning, so holy that we would literally drop dead if we saw him. In heaven we won’t grow tired of looking at God. He’ll probably have to help us not to just stare at Him for a million years!

Look at what revelation says about heaven!

Rev 4:1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come." Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."