We appreciate heaven only when we vividly contemplate it. Just as those who accomplish great worldly goals are those who keep their goals clearly in mind, those who aspire to heaven need to concentrate on it with a keen focus.
We need to understand that the object of the Christian’s hope is, as Paul says, our “adoption, the redemption of our body.” Christianity is first and foremost about eternity, and our hopes for this world ought to be minimal.
Here is a sobering thought: whether they are made under strong emotion or not, promises have to be kept. We are not later released from the obligations we bound ourselves to simply because “on further review” we see that they are inconvenient.
I know we don’t have the option of going to heaven until our work is done. But if today the Lord were to say, “Your work is done,” shouldn’t we be thrilled? Is there anything in this life that we wouldn’t gladly give up to be with the Lord today?
Whatever the reasons for our fixation on the past may be, we need to work on overcoming them. The Hebrew writer said, “Let us go on to perfection.” At times, we may need some help in seeing the importance of that effort.
We must picture hell as a state where everyone is perpetually concerned about his own dignity and advancement, where everyone has a grievance, and where everyone lives the deadly serious passions of envy, self-importance, and resentment.
To be a Christian means that we are continuing to grow. Never content with the progress we’ve made so far, we are always reaching for higher goals tomorrow. So we should not hesitate to say that the future will be the best of all.
In our resurrected and glorified bodies, we’ll enjoy an eternal maturity and wisdom that are unhindered by the disabilities that affect our joy and usefulness in this world. We will be perfectly “aged.” We’ll enjoy all the advantages of having “grown up.”
Let us not dictate to God the terms of our service to Him. He asks of us an unconditional commitment to serve under any circumstances. When our service involves difficulty, as it often will, let us endure. Even when we can’t see the end, let us still endure.
The work of the kingdom is hard work. We need to take heed how we deal with difficulty. The Lord has always been patient with those who are willing to keep trying. But those who quit trying shouldn’t expect the Lord’s praise or anybody else’s.
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