The promise of eternal life

In My Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.

The Christian has that promise, that God has made a room for them in His house and that when our time comes, Jesus will come and lead us to that room. 

• How do you view this life? 

• Do you think it is a one-off event for you to make your mark on history, or is it an audition for the main event in eternity?

• Not convinced that there is anything to come?

Since the earliest times our species (Homo Sapiens) have had rituals around the death and burial of individuals. These rituals all seem to point to a hope that there is something more to come once our physical bodies cease to function. Grave goods to equip the dead for the after life were a common feature in most cultures.

• Have you ever stopped to question why this might be? 

• What is it in us that drives this expectation of an afterlife?

The Bible says we are made in the image of God. Physically we look like Him, Jesus is a man! But we also have other characteristics - admittedly spoiled by our fallen nature - things like a sense of justice, the ability to love and nurture. God is an eternal God as so if we are made in His image, there will be that sense that there is more to our existence than just his mortal life. The book of Ecclesiastes puts it like this.

"Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God?s work from beginning to end." (my emphasis).

God has planted eternity in our hearts and minds. That is where the longing for something more after our mortal life comes to an end. That's where the sense of "this life is not enough", comes from.

The Bible speaks about the promise of eternal life and the hope of better things to come for believers. Here are some of the verses that pick up that theme.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."

"In My Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am."

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

"So that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you."

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

The book of Revelation is the final book in the Bible. It recounts a vision or prophecy given to John about the last days. It speaks of 

1. God’s ultimate victory over Satan
2. The creation of a new unspoilt heaven and earth
3. The reward for those who have believed, accepted Christ as their Saviour and been faithful to Christ in the way they lived their lives
4. The punishment for Satan and all those who have refused to accept Christ as their Saviour

The whole of Chapter 21 in Revelation speaks of this new creation. A glorious place to live, God’s presence bringing light and life to all, no pain, no sickness, no dying, the church as a bride excited to meet the one who has given everything for her. The joy of being totally loved and accepted by God because you chose to follow him.

• Sounds good?

The same chapter also promises an eternal lake of fire for Satan and those who have refused to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.“

• But Jesus wouldn’t do that” is a protest that will be raised at this point. 

• If He loves us, how could He do that? 

Yes, He loves us, and He has made a way for us to come to Him, but His offer demands a response from us. Do we accept and receive an inheritance in heaven, or do we reject His offer and end up in the lake of fire? Jesus spoke of the lake of fire as a place to avoid. In Luke 16: 19-31 He tells the parable of a rich man, and a beggar called Lazarus...

19 Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. 21 As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

22 “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet.[e] The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and he went to the place of the dead.[f] There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

24 “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

25 “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’

27 “Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home. 28 For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

29 “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’

30 “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’31 “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

In chapter 25 of Matthew’s gospel (31-46), Jesus tells the story of how the sheep (those who love and serve Him) will be separated from the goats (those who have not fully given their life to Him) at the end of the age. Again, He makes it clear that for those who have not been born again, there is judgement to come.

• Do you still think there is no lake of fire?

The Luke’s Gospel also records twice in chapter 15 that heaven rejoices when someone gets saved. Those in heaven understand the implications of the lake of fire for unbelievers. They rejoice at the great news of salvation. They will be urging you to consider Jesus and accept the redemption He offers. It is your choice; He won’t force it upon you. Instead, He offers an invitation and waits, arms outstretched to welcome you into His presence.

• What will you choose to do with His invitation?

Ever since I thought of writing this piece the words of a song have been resonating in my head. The song is “Time” by Pink Floyd from their album “Dark Side of the Moon”. The lyrics tell of days passing almost without being noticed, of missed opportunities to do something worthwhile and the grim reality that our physical life will come to an end.

It’s a great song; the lyrics are powerful and in it is a challenge to make something of our life while we still have breath. Hopefully one day they will allow me to reproduce the lyrics here and include a link to the audio – until that day search for it and enjoy its artistry if you are interested in hearing it.

All this leaves me with that same question. What are you going to choose to do?

In the words of the old game show “the decision is yours”. Let’s hope it’s a good one!