Drawing Near

I think an important part of the Christian life is for believers to remind themselves, and one another, of the blessed hope of heaven.  By God’s grace, we come to know salvation when we turn from our sins and enter the narrow gate of Christ.  Through faith we receive Him as our Lord and Savior, and upon receiving Him, we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of God’s dear Son. (Colossians 1:13)  To know Christ is to be made a child of God and a citizenship of heaven. (Philippians 3:20)  Like Abraham, the believer in Christ is looking “for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”(Hebrew 11:10)

Is this the way you live?  Do you live with a vision of these eternal realities?  Think with me for a moment as I list seven reasons why we should think of heaven and why this is critical to victorious, kingdom-focused living.

I.  Our Father is in Heaven and He is the source of everything, “Our Father, who is in heaven Hallowed be Your name.” (Matthew 6:9) He knows the sparrow that falls in the field along with the number of hairs on your head. (Matthew 10:29,30)  Before Him “we live and move and exist.” (Acts 17:28)

II. Our Lord and Savior is in Heaven, “Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” (Hebrews 9:24)  In the book of Revelation we read with breathtaking splendor of the Lamb who was slain and worthy to receive the praises of Heaven’s choir. (Revelation 5)   One of the puritan writers said that for the first thousand years in heaven all he wants to do is look at Jesus and then he will consider looking around.

III. Our Brothers and Sisters in Christ are in Heaven.  “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” (Psalm 116:15)  The Apostle Paul writing to Corinthians makes an incredibly hopeful statement when he states that he preferred “to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:8b)

IV. Our Names are in Heaven. In Luke 10:20, Christ told His disciples, who were casting out demons, “Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” By saying that our names are written in heaven, Christ assures us that we have a title deed to property there.

V.  Our Inheritance is in Heaven. I Peter 1:3,4 is one of my favorite doxologies in the Bible,  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.”

VI. Our Citizenship is in Heaven. The Apostle Paul taught the Philippians that “our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior.” (Philippians 3:20)

VII. Our Treasure is in Heaven. Jesus said that the only treasure we will possess throughout eternity is in heaven, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Truly, everything precious to the believer is Heaven and these are seven great reasons to keep seeking the things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. (Colossians 3:1) Treasure this hope in your heart and live for that day you will appear before Him.