When our kids were little, we would tell them about Heaven. Grace’s dad was a pastor who passed away when the kids were still young. After grandpa Gib went to be with Jesus, our kids had a lot of questions about what it would be like in eternity when we got our perfect resurrection bodies, Heaven and Earth came together, and everything and everyone was made whole and well forever.
The entire point of Sabbath rest that is highlighted throughout Scripture is to prepare us for Heaven. A Heavenly rhythm is six days of honest productive work, and one day of total rest for the body, mind, and soul to replenish and recover by doing whatever makes you healthy, happy, and holy. From this, we learn four things about why a day off is Heavenly.
God is better to most people than they are to themselves. According to reports, people are working more hours and sleeping less hours than ever before. Many people rarely take a day off or really get a vacation break. The opening pages of the Bible say that God worked and then took a day off as an example for us to follow. In Heaven, we are told that we will have work to do and rest to enjoy. So, to be healthy we need to work hard and rest well. Most of us work hard and rest far too little. God created the Sabbath to give us a break from work before we break ourselves by working too much.
A few years ago, when our family was gearing up to plant The Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, we prayed a lot with the kids that God would provide a building. God supernaturally provided a historic, midcentury modern church named one of the coolest in our Valley. The original design of the building was incredible. Sadly, over the years, various tenants had departed from the original design plan and made a mess. It needed a lot of work but I’m happy to report that we’ve made incredible progress on the building, and it’s returning to its former glory.
When kids are little, they can be very impatient – especially when the know something wonderful is about to happen. This explains why they keep asking to open their gifts the night before Christmas, and repeatedly shout from the back seat on the drive to vacation, “Are we there yet? Why is this trip taking so long?”
In this life, people are motivated to work hard and invest smart so that their efforts are rewarded with a return on investment. When it comes to eternity in God’s Kingdom of Heaven, however, there is a common misperception that all of one’s doing of the “good works” (Ephesians 2:10) that God has given us in this life are for naught once we die.
In our study of Heaven for the Good News sermon series, one question has been asked online perhaps more than any other. Since Satan and the demons who started as angels sinned in the perfect environment of Heaven, and Adam and Eve joined them by sinning as perfect people in a perfect place, will it be possible for us to sin in Heaven after the resurrection?
For some years, I have answered a question that someone has sent to our ministry inbox or posted on our ministry social media. One question that, much to my surprise, has been among the most asked is whether or not someone can still go to heaven if they were cremated. This is likely because the majority of people who die in America today are cremated instead of buried.
For parents who have lost a child, the gospel of Jesus Christ is a great comfort. God is a Father, and Jesus Christ is the Son of God. When the Son of God died on the cross, the Father experienced exactly what it feels like to lose a beloved child.
My wife Grace has miscarried and whenever I think about it, I tear up as it feels like someone is missing and our Fab Five should be the Stellar Six. I pastor men and women who ask me, with tears streaming down their face and trembling in their voice, what happened to their deceased child. Some have suffered miscarriages, others had abortions, some experienced stillbirths, and others had a baby die in infancy. One woman I know has endured some 20 miscarriages. For me, this issue is not merely theoretical but deeply personal, pastoral, and emotional.
One of the most painful counseling sessions I have ever sat in as a pastor was with a godly young couple. Sitting in my office, they began by smiling as we opened in prayer together. I had no idea what they wanted to discuss with me and so I asked them how I could serve them.
When people have a question about the Bible, they often ask their pastor. When their pastors are not sure about the answer, they tend to ask a theologian who has studied the issue to help them formulate an answer.