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WEEKLY
Volume 2 Number 8
22 July 2007
Heaven and Hell Are Real
(Message delivered by Rev Hien
Nguyen at the Sunday Worship Service, 2 pm, July 15, 2007)
Text:
Rev 21:1-8
We thank God for keeping Sis Susan faithful unto death despite her
painful illness. Now she is with the Lord, enjoying the eternal bliss in
Heaven. Many religious groups have different concepts or ideas of Heaven
and Hell, but without God’s truth, they are only the products of human
imagination. Many do not believe in Heaven or Hell, saying that when
they die, it is finished, so they just enjoy their lives and do not care
about their eternal future. When I talked with others about God’s
salvation, about Heaven and Hell, one said, “I like to be in Hell,” to
imply he did not care about the Gospel.
Then, are Heaven and Hell real? Without
God’s Word, the Bible, which is “true and faithful” (v 5),
trustworthy and sure, we will not know the truth about God and man and
God’s salvation for man. We neither know where we came from and where we
will be after death. We thank God that He has revealed Himself and His
truth to mankind through His servants, the prophets and the
apostles, and especially, through His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ, who came from Heaven and taught the truth of Heaven and Hell,
and because of His love, He died for the sins of mankind to bring those
who repent and believe in Him to Heaven. Here the apostle John received
the revelation from the Lord from heaven and wrote down what he had seen
and heard for us to read today.
Heaven
Paul shared his testimony when he was taken to the third heaven, the
paradise, the abode of God, “I knew a man in Christ above fourteen
years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the
body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third
heaven…How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable
words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter” (2 Cor 12:2, 4).
The Bible says, “Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the
LORD’S thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is”
(Deut 10:14; cf 1 Kings 8:27). Then, the word “heaven” in the Bible
refers to three spheres.
The First Heaven
is the atmosphere heaven, the sky from which there are dew (Deut 33:13),
rain and snow (Isa 55:10), wind (Job 26:13), and thunder (1 Sam 2:10),
and these remind us of God’s common grace and goodness to all mankind,
“for he…sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust”
(Matt 5:45), and the birds of the air remind us of God’s sovereignty and
loving care (Matt 6:26, 10:29).
The Second Heaven is the celestial heaven, the outer
space, the universe with the sun, the moon, stars and planets, turning
around in their own orbits, which remind us of God’s wisdom and power
and His common grace and goodness, “for he maketh his sun to rise on
the evil and on the good” (Matt 5:45), and without the sun, there
will be no light, seasons and time, and we shall be frozen to death!
“O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for
ever… To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for
ever” (Ps 136:1, 5).
The Third Heaven is the heaven of heavens (Deut 10:14),
the Paradise (2 Cor 12:2, 4), the Father’s house (John 12:2), the
kingdom of Christ and of God (Eph 5:5), the holy city, the new Jerusalem
(Rev 21:2), a better and heavenly country (Heb 11:16). It is the abode
of God (Matt 6:9; Rev 4:1-11), the Lord Jesus Christ (Heb 9:24), the
Holy Spirit (Ps 139:7-8), the holy angels (Matt 18:10), and God’s
children (Heb 12:22-23).
Because of love, our Lord Jesus Christ humbled Himself and “came down
from heaven” as the Son of man to die for our sins (John 3:13-16).
He rose again and “ascended up far above all heavens” (Eph 4:10)
and is now our “great high priest, that is passed into the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God” (Heb 4:14). After preparing a place for us in
His “Father’s house”, He “will come back, and receive” us
unto Himself (John 14:2-3). Our Lord confirms, “Behold, I make all
things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and
faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the
fountain of the water of life freely” (vv 5-6). How wonderful this
truth is!
The Heaven is real whether you and I
believe it or not. It is the place of eternal bliss of joy, peace, glory
and holy fellowship of believers with God, “Behold, the tabernacle of
God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his
people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their
God” (v 3). There will be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying,
nor pain (v 4), no more curse nor night (Rev 22:3, 5) nor marriage (Matt
22:30).
Proper Attitudes toward Heaven
Proper Desires: The Bible says, “But now they desire a
better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be
called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city” (Heb 11:16),
and “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth”
(Col 3: 2), and Paul said, “We are confident, I say, and willing
rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord”
(2 Cor 5:8). Knowing that the old heavens and earth are “reserved
unto fire…the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the
elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that
are therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3:7, 10; Rev 21:1), we will
not see this world as our home, but regard ourselves as “strangers
and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul”
(1 Peter 2:11). Then, do you and I really desire to be in Heaven?
Proper Preparation: Are you and I prepared for Heaven? The
Bible confirms that the unrighteous (1 Cor 6:9) and “flesh and blood”
or natural human beings shall not inherit Heaven (1 Cor 15:50). You and
I must be born again, or else we cannot see nor enter into the kingdom
of God (John 3:3, 5). You and I must be “found written in the book of
life”, or else we cannot enter into Heaven (Rev 20:15). You and I
must determine to trust in the Lord to overcome Satan, temptations,
sins, selfishness, and worldliness in order to keep on obeying His Word
since the reward of heaven is only for those who overcome, “He that
overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall
be my son” (v 7). My friends, our life in this world is so short but
it is so important because it is the precious time to prepare ourselves
for the eternity. Shall we not live and do all things for the Lord to
have our “treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief
approacheth, neither moth corrupteth” (Luke 12:33)?
Proper Hope and Joy:
Our Lord Jesus says, “Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the
spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because
your names are written in heaven” (Lu 10:20), and “Rejoice, and
be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted
they the prophets which were before you” (Matt 5: 12). Let us put
our hope in the Lord and His Heaven and rejoice in Him and rejoice that
our names are written in Heaven. May God help us always remember this
truth. It is more precious than the whole world! May the Lord help us
count all things but loss (Phil 3:8) even “reckon that the sufferings
of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which
shall be revealed in us” (Rom 8:18) so that we may endure all things
with joy and hope and will not fear death, which only brings us to our
blessed rest with the Lord in Heaven, “Blessed are the dead which die
in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest
from their labours; and their works do follow them” (Rev 14:13). It
is a foretaste of Heaven while we are living in this world because
“the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). Wherever the Lord
is, it is Heaven, and “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink;
but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom
14:17). Thank God for His presence, His righteousness, peace and joy in
us, and that is Heaven on earth!
Our Tears in Heaven:
“God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (v 4). Why shall
we be in tears in Heaven? Yes, we shall be touched to tears when we
understand God’s great love toward us and how He has saved us and kept
us although we used to grieve Him, disappoint, dishonour or sin against
Him through our pride, unbelief, indifference, disobedience,
unfaithfulness, or failures. We shall be moved to tears when we are with
our Saviour Jesus Christ, see the marks of the nails in His hands
because of our sins, and hear from Him how many times He has delivered
us from the snares of Satan and made all things work together for our
good! We shall shed tears of regret when we have not done our best for
the Lord or served Him with zeal and fervency. And our eyes shall fill
with tears when we do not see our loved ones in Heaven. Where are
our Dad, our Mum, our spouse, our children, our brethren, our close
friends? My friends, may God’s love constrain us now so that we may cry
for the salvation of our loved ones and others in prayers and then share
the Gospel with them. May the Lord help us not waste our time and our
lives for vanity but redeem “the time, because the days are evil”
(Eph 5:16).
Hell
Many think that God is so good and loving that He cannot create Hell or
put human beings in Hell. They forget that God is holy and righteous and
He cannot ignore sins but will surely judge the wicked and condemn
sinners to Hell. Actually, God has prepared Hell for Satan and his
fallen angels, but God has to put sinners to Hell because they reject
His love and salvation in Christ and instead of following the Saviour
with trust and obedience, they follow Satan or their own will and lusts,
“Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me,
ye cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels”
(Matt 25:41), and “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the
abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and
idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which
burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death” (v 8).
Hell is real whether you and I believe or not. God’s Word confirms that
it is a place of “everlasting fire…everlasting punishment” (Matt
25:41, 46), “torments” (Luke 16:23), “everlasting destruction
from the presence of the Lord” (2 Thess 1:9), “a furnace of fire:
there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 13:42, 50),
“the lake of fire” (Rev 20:15), “and shall be tormented
day and night for ever and ever” (Rev 20:10). Do you and I believe
this sure truth?
Proper Attitudes toward Hell
Fear God with Humility and Gratitude:
As Hell is real and all
sinners will be condemned to Hell, we must fear God and be always
thankful for His grace and mercy and salvation in Christ, “And fear
not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but
rather fear him which is able to destroy
both soul and body in hell”
(Matt 10:28). “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet
to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath
delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the
kingdom of his dear Son: In
whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of
sins:” (Col 1:12-14), and
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according
to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance
incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in
heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3-4). If you and I remember that we
deserve condemnation to Hell for our sins, we shall not be proud or
murmuring or complaining, but be humbly grateful to the Lord for His
grace and mercy and salvation in Christ.
Not Envy the Wicked:
We sometimes may envy the wicked who
live in sins, or those who are against the Lord and His Word or those
who oppose and persecute us but are prosperous and successful. Let us
hear what the Psalmist experienced, “For I was envious at the
foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked...Until I went
into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.
Surely thou didst set them in slippery
places: thou castedst them down into destruction”
(Ps 73:3, 17, 18). My friends, let us think of the end of ourselves and
that of others so that we will not be envious of them or angry with them
but will have pity on them and pray for their salvation.
Share the Gospel:
If we do believe that Heaven and Hell are
real and that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only Way to Heaven and if we
do love our loved ones and friends and mankind, we cannot just sit there
and fold our arms to see their end in Hell, being tortured in the lake
of fire day and night and for ever and ever, but we will cry unto the
Lord for their salvation in prayers and seek opportunities to share with
them God’s salvation. Sometimes, they may misunderstand or misjudge our
motives and think that we want to lure them into our faith or our
church. May the love of Christ constrain us so that we may endure all
things and keep on sharing the Gospel to others.
Conclusion
My friends, Heaven and Hell are real. To
be in Heaven, you and I must be born again. Trust in the Lord to
overcome Satan, sins, selfishness and worldliness. Desire and prepare
for Heaven with humility, joy, hope, gratitude, faith and obedience. May
the Lord help us see the end of our lives and that of others and
constrain us with His love so that we will not be “ashamed of the
gospel of Christ” (Rom 1:16), but pray for our loved ones and
friends and preach the Gospel to them until our Lord comes back. “And
the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me
unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen”
(2 Tim 4:18).
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