In the last few weeks, we’ve been barraged with news about how lawless our world is. One can’t look at the media without being bombarded with reports about another victim of injustice, mass shootings, or geopolitical turmoil. Economic woes and uncertainty about pandemics only serve to solidify a sense of foreboding that many people have. Because the world is coming unraveled, we could easily slip into despondency If it wasn’t for the promises in God’s word. If you are a Christian, I want to remind you about your bright hope for tomorrow.
The Lord tells us that He’s coming soon, and to underscore the point, He says it three times in just one chapter: Revelation 22:7, 22:12, and 22:20. We don’t know the day or hour, but we can look at the world and know our redemption draws near (Luke 21:28). Friends, it’s possible that Jesus could return in our lifetime. Regardless of when He returns, any one of us could be with Him before the day is over through our death (2 Corinthians 5:8).
People we know and love die and go into eternity. Does the Christian have hope of seeing other believers again? According to the Bible, yes, we do. Paul takes great care to inform us about this blessed reunion with other Christians (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14). One day, everyone who loves Jesus and has been separated by death will be reunited. It doesn’t negate the fact that many hearts grieve for loved ones, but it does give us the certainty that we’ll be together again.
We live in a world marred by sickness and disease. You can enjoy a television show and suddenly be confronted with a child fighting a terminal illness like cancer. Although Children’s Cancer hospitals do amazing work, it doesn’t negate the reality that our world is broken, and people, including children, deal with pain, suffering, and chronic illness. Pain will be a thing of the past when Jesus comes back. He will eradicate pain instantly, never to reappear again (Revelation 21:4).
Are you lonely or suffering silently? I want to encourage you because, one day, you will dwell with the Lord. No more distance because the Bible tells us He will dwell with us! Friends, consider your amazing future and God’s promise to be with us forever (Revelation 21:3). In the interim, He knows right where you are and will give you His peace (John 14:27). Reach out to other Christians; let’s bear one another’s burdens, and don’t be afraid to ask for help and prayer (Romans 12:10 and 15).
Sometimes we can become jaded because we get so accustomed to hearing about heaven and eternity. Before we know it, we might even view the next life with an apathetic yawn as we ponder sitting on clouds all day and playing harps in the Sweet By and By. Many people don’t look forward to heaven because of the plethora of erroneous teachings and confusion regarding the afterlife. A beloved Christian writer explains one reason for apathy regarding heaven this way:
“Most of us find it very difficult to want “Heaven” at all except in so far as “Heaven” means once again meeting our friends who have died. One reason for this difficulty is that we have not been trained: our whole education tends to fix our minds in this world. I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country.… I must make it the main object of life to press on to that country and help others to do the same.” C.S. Lewis – Mere Christianity
As believers, we await the blessed hope we see in Titus 2:12-13. While we watch and wait, how do we occupy in the meantime? We live out the great commission in our daily walk. People are drowning in sin and hopelessness. We have Christ in us, the hope of glory. If we can even scratch the surface and understand the immeasurable length of eternity, we will be compelled to share the gospel with everyone. In his excellent book, one dear brother and well-known author details the quandary in every heart that longs to be with the Lord.
“In all honesty, however, the longing to be raptured home to heaven imminently does not come easily. There should be a great conflict in the heart of every true Christian. On the one hand, there ought to be a genuine longing for Christ to return so that we can see Him at last, fall at His feet, and enjoy the bliss of His presence forevermore. On the other hand, however, there ought to be a passion to win the lost to Christ before it is too late, and that would cause us to want more time in which to fulfill the Great Commission” (2 Peter 3:9). Dave Hunt –Whatever Happened to Heaven?
I don’t expect this life will become easier as we approach the return of Jesus. He tells us to expect trouble (John 16:33). Jesus will help us stand as we wait for The Day. My pastor explains our enduring until the end like this:
“Our endurance and ability to make it to the end is strengthened by this future day of reckoning. Judgment day helps me to live right now. How? Because I can live with the assurance that God knows what is true about me.” Mark Vroegop – College Park Church Indianapolis
Dear Christian friends, one day, Jesus will wipe away every tear from our eyes. There will be no more crying, mourning, or pain, and death will be no more because the former things will have passed away (Revelation 21:4). While we watch, wait and endure until that day, be encouraged about our bright hope for tomorrow.
All for Him,
Howard