Sermon John 14:1-2 “Eternity”

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
New Covenant Presbyterian Church
Sermon John 14:1-2  “Eternity”
November 18, 2018

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Today we turn to a topic we all think about from time to time.   What happens to us when this life is over?   Atheists say that nothing happens because this life is all we get.  Buddhists say that we will be repeatedly reincarnated as an elephant or maybe a mouse until we live the right way and achieve the nothingness they hope for.   Muslims believe in heaven, but you have to work really hard to get there.   None of these beliefs contain any hope.   And none of them are how the world really works.   So today we will ask the question, “What do Christians believe will happen with this life in finished?”   We will get to this, but first, let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

What happens when our lives end?  To answer this let’s take a look at the death of the great prophet, Elijah. 

2 Kings 2:1 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel.”
But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.

The life of the prophet Elijah was coming to an end.   He had lived a long life battling the evil of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel.    But now his life is just about over and the scripture teaches that this man of faith was going to heaven after he died.

Elisha was Elijah’s assistant and did not want the great prophet to die.  He wanted to be with his old friend for as long as possible.   And so Elisha accompanied Elijah all the way to the end.

11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.

When Elijah died God himself came to lead his way to heaven.   God mounted the fiery chariot and came to earth ready to accompany Elijah.   Elijah was lifted up on a whirlwind and carried off to heaven to be with God. 
But Elisha was left behind, filled with grief.   He experienced the loss of his trust mentor.  This is what happens when we die.  Our souls are carried up to heaven.  Our loved ones are left behind to grieve. 

We already know what grief is like.   We experience it ourselves.  So let’s focus not our grief but on heaven.  What is heaven like?  Let’s look at the story of Lazarus and the rich man.

Luke 16:19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side.

When Lazarus died, like Elijah, his soul went to heaven.   Why was Lazarus taken to heaven?    He was a poor beggar coved with sores.   There is no way he could pay for a ticket to heaven.  He wasn’t able to work for it.  So he must have received a ticket to be admitted to heaven as a gift.   We talked about this a couple of weeks ago.  Titus 2:11, “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.”   So the reason Lazarus is in heaven is because of the grace of God.

Lazarus is in heaven because of God’s grace.   But what about the rich man, the one wearing purple and ignoring Lazarus?   Where did he go?

22… The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue because I am in agony in this fire.’

So there seem to be two places where we might go after we die.   Lazarus has gone to the place where Abraham and Elijah live, this is called heaven.   The other place is characterized by torment, thirst, and fire.  This is called hell.
We know that people go to heaven by the grace of God through faith.   Those with faith go to heaven.   The Apostle Paul put it this way, Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”  Say publically that Jesus is your Lord and believe in his resurrection then you receive a free ticket to heaven to join Elijah, Abraham, and Lazarus when your days on earth come to an end.

As believers, we are all on a journey to heaven.  When we die we leave behind a useless body and grieving loved ones.  We find ourselves in heaven by the grace of God.   But this leads us to another question.  Is heaven our final destination?   Or is there some place where we will go after our time in heaven?   Let’s go back to scripture.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord, himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 

The day will come when Jesus returns to earth.   And when that happens all the souls in heaven will come with him back to earth.  Heaven is not our final destination.   We return to earth with Jesus.  So what happens after we get back here?

1 Corinthians 15:42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. 

When we return to earth with Jesus, God will make for us a new body.   Just as God made a body for Adam from the dust of the earth, so too will God make a new body for us.    This will not be our old useless bodies placed in the grave.  This new body will be imperishable, powerful, and spiritual.   Once God fashions a new body for us, what happens then? 

51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Once Jesus brings us back to earth and God has our new bodies ready then we will be resurrected.   Our souls, our memories, our thoughts, our feelings, our beliefs, will return with Christ from heaven to earth and be placed in our new bodies.   We will be resurrected from the dead.

We will be back here on earth with new resurrected bodies, but where how we live?  Jesus will build us new homes to live in.

John 14:1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 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.

So Jesus will make all the arrangements for us for the time when we return to earth.   Jesus will have our new houses ready.  But where will these houses by located?  What will the earth be like when we return?   We have an advance look at the earth we will return to. 

Revelation 20:21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘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.”

We will live in a New Jerusalem.   Jesus will there to provide us with everything we need.  We will live there for eternity.

When we die our souls go to heaven.   Our identities, our memories, our thoughts, and our feelings are all preserved.   And we live blissfully with other believers.   Then, one day, Jesus will return to earth.   God will make new resurrected bodies for us.   Jesus will get rooms ready for us to live in.   And a glorious new city will come down from heaven.  There we will live for eternity with our risen Lord.

Thank you, Lord for giving us this great hope of eternal life.   Bless us and our loved ones with faith and the promise that we will live again in the resurrection from the dead.   We look forward to the day when we will be with you, here on earth, in the New Jerusalem.  This we pray in your glorious name.   Amen.