Imagining Heaven: Prepare for an eternity of serving God

Many of the ideas and Scriptures used in this article are from the book “Heaven” by Randy Alcorn.

We have been imagining what Heaven will be like as we have studied the Bible in hopes of seeing more clearly what our future home will look like. Jesus purchased people from every tribe, language, people, and nation with His blood. There will be a great multitude standing before Jesus wearing white robes and holding palm branches.

That picture reminds me of Palm Sunday. The singing and celebration that accompanied the distribution of palm leaves was exciting. I am also reminded that shortly after people welcomed Jesus to their city they crucified Him.

Our opening message of this series stressed the importance of making sure our RSVP was returned to the Host of the banquet. Once we have believed in Jesus we can trust the Holy Spirit to help us and teach us how to live our lives in submission to Jesus. We can confidently look forward to our eternal home with Jesus.

What will Heaven be like? Imagine the best food you have eaten on this earth and then remember that we are still affected by the sin of Adam and Eve. The food we eat in Heaven will not be tainted by sin. Our new bodies will be forever free of any sickness, ailment, illness, disease, infection, or affliction. We will still have the same gender we have on this earth. That means both men and women will be recognized as men and women in Heaven. All of us are being prepared to be a pure, holy, and spotless bride for Jesus. I don’t know how that will look in Heaven but I know that current godly marriages are a foreshadowing of Christ and His bride.

After His resurrection, Jesus prepared a meal of bread and fish for His disciples. In His resurrected body Jesus ate and we will eat with Him in our resurrected bodies. I will enjoy eating in Heaven but I am really excited to see what God will reveal to me about my life on this earth. Randy Alcorn states, “We’ll be stunned to learn how God orchestrated the events of our lives to influence people we may have forgotten about”.

It is possible that some of us have entertained angels. It is quite possible that we have helped people and we don’t even know how much of an impact we’ve had on their lives. I find it exciting that I will hopefully find out how many different people helped me or prayed for me that I did not even recognize while I was on this present earth.

While He was on this present earth Jesus grew in wisdom and stature. In heaven I believe that we will continue to learn and grow. When we talk with each other as people who fear the Lord and honor His name God listens to our conversations. We are going to be rewarded for our acts of faithfulness. We will rest from our labor and enjoy our work in Heaven as we serve Him.

We are to abound in every good work and work as if we are working for the Lord on this present earth. This will help us prepare for an eternity of serving God on the New Earth. Our desire should be to hear the words recorded in Matthew 25:23 which state, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.”

While we are yet on this present earth we are to use worldly wealth to gain friends. We can love God by loving people. We need not become overwhelmed by the instructions from God to us in the Bible. Philippians 1:6 encourages us that “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

May God bless you big.

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This is the ninth in a series of articles examining the Christian view of heaven by Kevin Barsotti, pastor of Ark Church in Havre.