When I was a youth, I imagined heaven to be a big, golden box where everyone present sat around and sang from a Baptist hymnal. I probably would have tried to use some elevated descriptive terms to make it sound better but inside I was never truly excited about my eternal home.
As I have learned more about God and His amazing creation, my view of heaven has expanded greatly. I once secretly hoped that I would not die before I had experienced some of the best things this world has to offer. One of these areas was marriage. I recently got engaged to the most lovely creature imaginable. More excitement is welling up in me than ever before concerning this new chapter in my life, but it still cannot begin to compare to what heaven will be like.
Paul said, “for me to live is Christ but to die is gain.” If we can imagine the best this fallen world has to offer, it is only a mere taste of what eternity has for us. The most intimate relationships, the greatest excitement, the fullest joy, the least insecurity, or the greatest moment of spiritual bliss cannot compare to what we will find on the day we stand before our Father.
All sin, heartache, insecurity and selfishness will melt away like ice in the blazing, summer sun. Our greatest gift will be right before us, and that gift is God, Himself. It will not be a crown or room or street made of gold in which we will glory. We will glory at the majesty of our Creator and His amazing love for His children.
C.S. Lewis imagined that God will send us to and fro across this massive universe He created (I’ll talk more next week about the unbelievable dimensions of the universe.) We will no longer be bound by time or space so adventure is limitless. As we discover more of this infinite God who created all, we will find our greatest joy in knowing Him. So the parallel is complete – in this life the greatest gift we can have is God. In the life to come, the same will be true. Let us seek to know the One who rescued us from eternal punishment and has a place for us to call home for all eternity. There will be no more need for light for He will be our eternal light.
Meditate on Philippians 2 and ask yourself how important knowing Christ was to Paul.
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Chad, this is my first trip to your blog (via, by the way, http://www.gospelposse.com, the embryonic site of the Spacemonkeys, if you didn’t know yet), and I just wanted to add my congratulations and hearty praise to the chorus that, I am sure, is already welling around you and your future bride. God will indeed be greatly magnified in you as you more learn how to best love eachother (which is a great deal any way you look at it). We will be praying for you. ENJOY the season of engagement. It’s a once in a life-time time which, surprising to me, I still miss.
Love you brother. Look forward to owning your new disc. Congrats on that too
-David Kneen