{"id":485,"date":"2021-12-06T18:04:07","date_gmt":"2021-12-06T18:04:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/?p=485"},"modified":"2021-12-06T18:04:56","modified_gmt":"2021-12-06T18:04:56","slug":"heaven-dont-miss-it-for-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/?p=485","title":{"rendered":"Heaven – Don’t Miss It for the World!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is heaven?<\/strong> Heaven is defined as \u201cthe dwelling place of God, the\nangels, and the spirits of the righteous after death.\u201d Figuratively, heaven is\na place or state of supreme happiness. When someone dies, we often use the\nclich\u00e9, \u201cThey\u2019re in a better place.\u201d However, heaven is not just a \u201cbetter\nplace\u201d\u2014it\u2019s the best possible place! Jesus promised, \u201cIn My\nFather\u2019s house are many mansions <\/em>[dwelling places] . . . I\ngo to prepare a place for you<\/strong>. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I\nwill come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be\nalso\u201d<\/em> (John 14:2-3, NKJV). Christ has been preparing that place for 2,000\nyears (what a place it must be). He is also preparing us for that place. So,\nheaven is a prepared place for a prepared people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the three heavens?<\/strong> Paul\nspoke of being caught up into the \u201cthird heaven\u201d (2 Cor. 12:2-4). The first heaven is the atmosphere around the earth (where\nbirds fly, clouds form, and winds blow). The second heaven is outer space (the vast,\ngalaxy-filled universe of planets and stars). The third heaven is God\u2019s\ndwelling place (where God, angels, and the spirits of redeemed saints live). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where is heaven? <\/strong>God only knows. The Bible does not specify a place you can\npinpoint on a map or with GPS. When Jesus ascended into heaven, He went UP (Ac.\n1:9-11) and when He returns, He will come DOWN (1 Th. 4:16). Is heaven up\ngeographically or dimensionally, or both? Heaven knows. Wherever it is, you\ncan\u2019t reach it in a rocket (no astronaut has ever seen it from space). You can\nonly reach it by faith in Christ via the rapture or resurrection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is heaven literal or spiritual?<\/strong> Yes, it is both! Heaven is a literal place we will enjoy\nin the future but it is also a higher dimension we can experience to some\ndegree now. Paul wrote that we are seated together \u201cin\nthe heavenly places in Christ Jesus\u201d<\/em> (Eph.\n2:6). In a spiritual sense, the Kingdom of Heaven is wherever God\u2019s presence\nmanifests and the King is in authority. So, spiritually speaking, when we are\nborn again and submit to the King, we can live in a heavenly realm. Being a\nChristian means experiencing a foretaste of heaven here in this life. At the\nresurrection, we will experience and enjoy it in totality.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What will heaven be like?<\/strong> The best description of heaven in the Bible is in Revelation\nchapters 21-22, but it isn\u2019t called \u201cheaven.\u201d Instead, John the Revelator used four\nanalogies comparing heaven to earthly things we can relate to and imagine:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. A City:<\/strong> New Jerusalem<\/strong>\u2014Rev. 21:2, 10-21. When God moves to\nearth, He\u2019s bringing a whole new city with him. This massive city (1,500 miles\nlong, wide, and tall, bigger than half of the U.S.) will be a haven of rest eternally.\nSome say New Jerusalem is just the capitol city of a much larger heaven.\nSurely, it\u2019s the city that Abraham and the Patriarchs longed and looked for\u2014\u201cHe\nlooked for a city<\/strong> which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God\u201d<\/em>\n(Heb. 11:10). Old Jerusalem was David\u2019s capitol where he moved the Ark of the\nCovenant and where Solomon built the Temple (God\u2019s headquarters on earth). Ironically,\nJerusalem means \u201cpossession of peace,\u201d although it\u2019s been a most war-torn city.\nMuslims, Jews, and Christians, all claim it as their spiritual capitol. New Jerusalem\nwill dwell in permanent peace because the Prince of Peace will rule over it. John\ndescribed it is a majestic city with walls of Jasper, gates of pearl, and streets\nof pure gold like transparent glass (Rev. 20:14, 18-21). <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. A Bride:<\/strong> The Lamb\u2019s Wife<\/strong>\u2014Rev. 21:2, 9-10. John also compared New Jerusalem to the bride of Christ. But Christ\u2019s bride is not just a building; His bride is His church (Rev. 19:7-9). A city consists of its citizens. You\u2019ve probably heard Squire Parson\u2019s famous song \u201cBeulah Land.\u201d The name \u201cBeulah\u201d means \u201cmarried\u201d and is found in Isaiah 62:4-5, \u201cYou shall no longer be termed Forsaken . . . but you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah<\/strong>; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married<\/strong>. For . . . as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.\u201d<\/em> Heaven is not really about mansions and gold; heaven is about a passionate, love relationship with our heavenly groom. This is a love story, a divine romance\u2014the Creator of the universe is head over heels in love with us (His Bride). God is meticulously preparing heaven for us the way a bride prepares for her wedding day. Think of all the preparation that goes into a wedding: clothes, hair, make up, flowers, jewelry, nails, music, food, place settings, cakes, drinks, etc. Endless preparation goes into every detail so when the bride strolls down the aisle, she looks her absolute best and captures the eye and heart of her groom. Heaven is not just a physical place but also a spiritual marriage to our Maker (Eph. 5:25-27, 31-32).    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. A Tabernacle\/Temple:<\/strong> John also compared heaven to a Tabernacle\u2014a place of perfect fellowship. <\/strong>\u201cBehold, the tabernacle of God<\/strong> is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God\u201d<\/em> (Rev. 21:3). The main reason God created mankind was for communion, which was broken by Adam\u2019s sin. Ever since, God has been restoring it. Notice His purpose for building Moses\u2019 Tabernacle, \u201cLet them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them<\/strong>\u201d<\/em> (Ex. 25:8). That wasn\u2019t fully realized in the Old Testament. There was always a barrier between a holy God and fallen man. Jesus removed the barrier, the veil was torn in two, and the relationship has been repaired. Now, God is not interested in merely visitation; He desires habitation! God doesn\u2019t want just visitation rights on weekends (church on Sunday); He wants full custody (a daily walk)! Strangely, there will be no churches in heaven. \u201cBut I saw no temple<\/strong> in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple\u201d<\/em> (Rev. 21:22). We won\u2019t go to church in heaven; we will live in God\u2019s presence 24\/7. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. A\nGarden: <\/strong>Rev. 22:1-3. John\nalso compared heaven to a garden of perfect provision, an Eden-like paradise. Remember,\nGod planted the Garden of Eden perhaps as an earthly version of heaven (Gen.\n2:8). The pure River of Life will flow from God\u2019s throne to quench our thirst. Plus,\nthe Tree of Life, the same food source Adam and Eve enjoyed, will bear twelve\nkinds of fruit continually to satisfy our hunger. Furthermore, its leaves will release\nhealing and health to the nations.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There will be at least ten\n\u201cNo Mores\u201d in heaven:<\/strong>
\n1. No more sea\u2014Rev. 21:1.
\n2. No more death\u2014Rev. 21:4.
\n3. No more sorrow\u2014Rev. 21:4.
\n4. No more crying\u2014Rev. 21:4.
\n5. No more pain\u2014Rev. 21:4.
\n6. No more curse\u2014Rev. 22:3.
\n7. No more night\u2014Rev. 21:23; 22:5.
\n8. No more devil\u2014Rev. 20:10.
\n9. No more evil\u2014Rev. 21:27.
\n10. No more sickness\/disease\u2014Rev. 22:2.
\nDoesn\u2019t that sound like the kind of place you want live eternally?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Universalism\nteaches that everyone eventually goes to heaven. Many think that no matter how\nthey live, or what they believe, or what religion they follow, they will make\nit. That\u2019s not what the Bible teaches. Don\u2019t be deceived, friend, not all roads\nlead to heaven (Jn. 14:6, Ac. 4:12). The Bible is crystal clear on who will and\nwho won\u2019t make heaven their home (Rev. 21:8, 24, 27; 22: 14-15). Certainly, God\nwants everyone to go to heaven (2 Pt. 3:9), but none of us deserve it. The good\nnews is He extended an open invitation to all\u2014\u201cWhosoever will<\/strong>, let\nhim take the water of life freely\u201d <\/em>(Rev. 22:17). Your free ticket has been\nbought and paid for by the blood of Jesus if you confess, repent, and believe (Rom.\n10: 9-10, Eph. 2:8-9). Nothing in this world is worth missing heaven for. Don\u2019t\nsell your eternal, heavenly heritage for a cheap, carnal counterfeit.\nHeaven\u2014don\u2019t miss it for the world!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is heaven? Heaven is defined as \u201cthe dwelling place of God, the angels, and the spirits of the righteous after death.\u201d Figuratively, heaven is a place or state of supreme happiness. When someone dies, we often use the clich\u00e9, \u201cThey\u2019re in a better place.\u201d However, heaven is not just a \u201cbetter place\u201d\u2014it\u2019s the best […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":487,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=485"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":488,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions\/488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goodspringsfgc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}