...from the desk of Rande Wayne Smith D.Min., Th.M., M.Div.

Heaven – 1

SOMETHING MORE

John 14:1-3

“Do not be worried and upset,” Jesus told them. “Believe in God and believe also in me. There are many rooms in my Father’s house, and I am going to prepare a place for you. I would not tell you this if it were not so. And after I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to myself, so that you will be where I am.” 

May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion to His glory and our edification.  Amen.

The year was 1994 … and the setting was the Miss America contest … and the contestant was Miss Alabama. Miss Alabama had already demonstrated her great beauty, and her significant talent, now it was time to evaluate her intelligence. Each of the finalists was asked a question. This was Miss Alabama’s question … “if you could, would you want to live forever, and why?”
Let me read Miss Alabama’s response. “I would not want to live forever because we should not live forever because if we were supposed to live forever then we would live forever but we cannot live forever which is why I would not live forever.”

It should not come as a surprise, but Miss Alabama did not become Miss America in 1994. And contrary to the sentiments expressed in her response, my guess is that most people would prefer to live forever, if not upon this earth, then somewhere … maybe in a place called Heaven.

This morning I’m beginning a series about Heaven … and I want to use as an introduction a comment by Randy Alcorn in his book about Heaven. “The sense that we will live forever somewhere has shaped every civilization in human history. Australian aborigines picture Heaven as a distant island. Mexicans or Polynesians believed that they went to the sun or the moon after death. Native Americans believed in the afterlife that their spirits would hunt the spirits of buffalo. An ancient Babylonian legend refers to a resting place of heroes and hints at the tree of life. In the pyramids of Egypt the embalmed bodies had maps placed beside them as guides to the future world. And the Romans believed that the righteous would picnic in the fields while their horses grazed nearby.”
And then Randy Alcorn concludes with these words, “Anthropological evidence suggests that every culture has a God-given innate sense of the eternal that this world is not all there is.”

This is nothing new. Solomon said about 3,000 years ago, “(God) has set the right time for everything. He has given us a desire to know the future.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

God has given us a desire to know about eternity. We’ve been created with a built-in desire to live forever; to want something more than this temporal life offers. So, wouldn’t you like to know what comes next?

Now some people don’t because they don’t want to think about death. King Louis XIV of France had an official decree that stated that the subject of death, even the word, was prohibited to be spoken in his presence. A lot of good that did … Louis XIV died anyway. Death is inevitable.

There are a 100% death rates; that never changes. In fact I recently read an article which said that 3 people die every second … 180 people a minute … 11,000 people in an hour … that means that over ¼ million people will die in this world today. Death is inevitable. There’s no way we can get around it.

So, we need to face the reality of our own death, and start getting ready for what happens next.
In contrast to Louis XIV of France, Philip of Macedon, who was Alexander the Great’s father, commissioned a servant to stand in his presence and throughout the day look him in the eye and say, “Philip, you’re going to die.”

Good reminder … you and I are going to die. So let’s learn all we can about what comes next … and this morning we’re going to look at 3 evidences of this desire that God has placed in our hearts.

#1 … each and everyone of us has a longing for a lasting security.

I have a confession to make … there are some “chick-flicks” that I like. Okay, I said it. One of my favorites is Sandra Bullocks, “While You Were Sleeping.” And my favorite scene in that movie has Jack, who works with his Dad in the estate business … (they buy furniture of people who have passed away and then resale it) … well, Jack has decided that he no longer wants to sell dead people’s furniture with his Dad. He wants to make furniture on his own, and he’s pretty talented at it. But he knows that it breaking this news to his Dad will shatter his world. It says “Father & Son” on the side of the truck.

So he goes to have a talk with his Dad early one morning.
His Dad is sitting at the dining room table, in his bathrobe, reading the newspaper, and Jack arrives with some Dunkin’ Donuts, to break the news.

And he takes a breath to begin talking … but before he can say anything his father starts speaking. “Life can be a real pain sometimes; working so hard to provide for your family. But every once in a while (a smile crosses his face) there’s a minute of peace, there’s a minute when everything’s going well, there’s a minute when the family is together and everybody’s healthy, and feeling good. And in that minute (he leans back with contentment across his face) there’s peace.”

Jack clears his throat, “Pop, this isn’t that minute.”

I love that scene because it’s so true to life. Just when we think everything is going great … bam! Life hits the fan; disaster comes out of nowhere, and our sense of security is shattered. That describes me last Saturday afternoon driving home. Kids are okay, grandchildren are okay. Kathy and I were going to get to spend some quality time together this week … and then we walked into our home … bam!

That’s actually the background of the passage we read a few moments ago. John 14 begins what we could call Jesus’ farewell speech to His closest followers. He’s been with them for about 3 years.
He’s about to set in motion the events that will lead to His crucifixion, His resurrection, and His return to Heaven. And here He’s breaking the news to His disciples. And it’s going to shatter their world.

Up to this point everything had been going so great for them. Not long before this Lazarus had been raised from the dead. Jesus speaks a word and His good friend comes out of the grave, and the crowds are amazed. The disciples are thinking, “Wow, this is fun!”

The next thing we find is Jesus entering Jerusalem like a conquering king on the back of a donkey, and the people are cheering. And again the disciples are saying, “It doesn’t get much better than this.”

But then we come to the Upper Room where the disciples are enjoying this personal, intimate dinner with Jesus. And Jesus drops the bomb. He says, “One of you is going to betray me.” John 13:21 And then Judas slinks out of the room … the disciples look at each other. And then Jesus tells them that He’s going to leave them, and they “cannot go where (He) is going.” John 13:33 And the disciples don’t like the sound of all this. And then to top it off, Jesus turns to Peter, the leader of the group, and says, Peter, tonight “you will say 3 times that you do not know me.” Matthew 26:34 And the disciples are thinking, “Peter is the rock … how bad is it going to get if even Peter is going to turn coward?” The roof comes crashing down.
Has anything like this ever happen to you? Life seemed so good, so secure … what could possibly go wrong? And then you find out. Your job disappears. Your taxes have doubled. Your Dr. finds a suspicious lump. Your car’s transmission conks out. You find out that a family member is addicted. And you’re reminded once again that there’s no such thing as lasting security … in this world.

And that’s the background of our Scripture passage this morning. “‘Do not be worried and upset,’ Jesus told them. ‘Believe in God and believe also in me.’” Now the interesting thing here is that even though Jesus is talking to the disciples plural, the words He’s using are all in the singular. It’s as if He is saying, “Do not be worried and upset, Matthew. Do not be worried and upset, Philip. Do not be worried and upset, Andrew.”

This is good stuff for each of us. Most of us have a list of things we are worried about and upset over. Those are 2 emotions that touch everyone. No one is exempt from them. The journey of life is full of things to be worried about and upset over.

Wouldn’t you love to experience lasting security? Wouldn’t you love to experience a security that couldn’t be taken from you? That can’t be ripped away by unforeseen circumstances? I want you to know this lasting security this morning.
Now Jesus is ready to tell us a little bit about what eternity is going to be like, but first He gives us a command, because He realizes that there’s some time between today and eternity, there’s some time before that moment of lasting security. So in the meantime, when life hits the fan, He says, “Believe in God and believe also in me.”

It’s amazing, if you stop and think about it, that Jesus puts believing in Him on par with believing in God. If this is not a clear illusion to His deity, I don’t know what is. Can you imagine these words coming from the lips of anyone else in history? Can you picture some world leader standing up today and saying, “Just as you believe in Almighty God, so believe in me”? George Bush wouldn’t say that. Barack Obama wouldn’t say that. No Dr. would wheel you into surgery saying, “Just as you believe in God, believe in me.” (Now, I know some Dr.s who may think that, but none who would actually say it.) Not even a religious leader would say that. Why can Jesus say it? He can say it because He is the God that can be believed in.

“Believe in me” Jesus says. “Believe” is one of John’s favorite words. It’s sometimes translated “trust” and it’s used some 98 times in his Gospel. John wants to make sure that when you’re done reading his biography of Jesus that you’ve put your trust in Him.
That you trust Him for your eternal salvation; that you trust Him to forgive your sins; that you trust Him to transform your life; that you trust Him to be the Lord of your life. And day by day when life hits the fan … you trust Him. God has put a longing in your heart for lasting security, but until that day comes … trust Jesus.

There’s a second evidence of this longing in our hearts … for a permanent home.

Story is told about 3 people who pass away. They were at Heaven’s gate being interviewed by Peter. Peter turns to the first, “what did you do on earth?” “I was a Dr., and just so you know, there was many an occasion when I offered my medical services free of charge for those too poor to pay.” Peter says, “Go on in.” (Don’t think too hard about the theology here.)

Next in line is a woman. Peter asks, “What did you do on earth?” “I was an educator, and I worked especially with educationally challenged children.” Peter says, “Go on in.”

The third guy in line, kind of nervously shuffles up to Peter, his head held low. Peter asks, “What did you do on earth?” “I managed an H.M.O.” Peter said, “Go on in … but you can only stay 3 days.”

Wouldn’t it be awful to get to Heaven and discover your reservation was only good for 3 days?
A second evidence that God has set eternity in our hearts is that we have a longing for a permanent home. Homes are not permanent in this life, are they? Some homes have been destroyed by fire, floods, hurricanes. Here’s a picture of the home I grew up in … my parents home. My Dad built it. It no longer exists. This home is now covered by about 40 or 50 feet of dirt … with a Super Wal-Mart sitting on top of it.

Homes are not permanent in this life. Homes can be taken away by disasters, job relocation, divorce. But there’s something deep inside of us that longs for a sense of a permanent home. That’s why Norman Rockwell paintings have been so popular over the years. He has a way of capturing the essence of this … the family gathered together in a safe place called home.

With that in mind listen to Jesus’ words, “There are many rooms in my Father’s house, and I am going to prepare a place for you. I would not tell you this if it were not so.”

Isn’t it neat how Jesus refers to Heaven as “my Father’s house”? One of the things I hope we accomplish during this series is to correct some of the erroneous mental pictures some of us have of Heaven. If you’ve been imagining sitting on a cloud for all eternity and having to learn to like harp music … I have good news for you.
Jesus describes Heaven as “my Father’s house.” And His house has “many rooms.” There’s room enough for all who have come to faith. Nobody’s going to be excluded because of a lack of space. They may be excluded on other grounds, as we’ll learn in upcoming weeks, but not because God hasn’t made ample room.

And then listen to what comes next; which I think is the best part of the passage. Who’s getting the home ready for us? Jesus! “I am going to prepare a place for you.”

Some of us here this morning are so in touch with this longing for a permanent home, and we hear Jesus say, “my Father’s house” and “there’s a room for you” and “I will come back and take you there” … and we say, “bring it on!”

On the other hand, maybe you don’t sense that longing today. Scripture warns that we can get so attached to our material houses in this life; we can become so preoccupied with expanding and decorating and landscaping that we lose our appetite for our Father’s house.

Does that describe any of us here this morning? Are you so caught up with the temporal that you’ve lost sight of the eternal? God has set eternity in your heart. God has put that desire there. Don’t squelch it.

You may need to do some reprioritizing; you may need to stop spending so much energy, time, and money on the material home of this life and start making those same investments in building the Kingdom of Christ … something that will last forever. “For your heart will always be where your riches are.” Matthew 6:21

One final evidence that God has set eternity in your heart … a longing for a forever friend. I’ve been privileged to have a variety of friends in this life, but without a doubt my closest friend is Kathy. Some of you could probably say the same thing … that your best friend is your spouse, if you’re married.

I’ve often reflected that whatever I have enjoyed, experience wise in this life, it always is more enjoyable if I’m doing it with Kathy. And conversely, on those occasions when Kathy is not present, the most enjoyable of experiences seems a bit empty. And I find myself thinking, “I wish Kathy were here.”

You understand what I’m talking about because you’ve discovered that the enjoyment of life’s experiences are increased hundreds of times over when shared with a good friend. And the saddest thing in the world is when one of these earthly friendships breaks up … because earthly friendships don’t last forever. It’s terribly sad when someone moves away, or there’s a disagreement, or worse, when there’s a death.

One of the evidences that God has set eternity in our hearts is that we have this deep longing for a forever friend.

Now I want to tell you the best news in the universe. God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, wants to be that forever friend. Listen to Jesus’ words, “And after I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to myself, so that you will be where I am.” Jesus wants to be your friend!

Do you want to be with Jesus as much as He wants to be with you? He went to the cross so that your sin could be forgiven, and nothing would stand in the way of your being with Him forever.

Everyday you wake up at the top of His agenda. He wants to spend each day with you. Is that the desire of your heart? This forever friend wants you to embrace Him, wants you to walk with Him, as His desire is to walk with you.

God has set eternity in our hearts, and that’s evident by these deep longings we have to experience lasting security, a permanent home, and a forever friend. In the coming weeks we’re going to discover more about what this Heavenly home is like.

 

MARANA THA