Transcription
This morning is the third sermon on our series on the subject of heaven. And in the first week, I gave you four reasons why it's important to learn about heaven. The first reason it's important to learn about heaven is so we won't have any misconceptions about heaven. The second reason it's important is because God commands us to learn about heaven. The third reason it's important to learn about heaven is because it will inspire us or motivate us to live for God. And the fourth reason is because it to take away our fear of death.
Now, in the second sermon, I gave you the most common misconception that people have about heaven, which is the belief that when they die, they go to a place that they're going to stay for all eternity. In other words, they believe that they immediately go to their final destination. And people, that's just not true. The truth is, when we die and go to heaven, that is not our final destination. Yes, it's heaven, but it is a temporary and intermediate heaven. You see, there are several things that have to happen before we get to our final destination.
Now, most people have a hard time comprehending this until I explain a simple principle to them. And I also show them what's going to happen on a timeline. So, let me give you the principle, and then I'll show you what's gonna happen on the timeline. Here's the principle: As the Bride of Christ, we go wherever He is. You see, in our covenant relationship with Jesus Christ, we are joined with Him, and we become one spirit, just like a married couple is joined and become one flesh. Except our covenant relationship with Jesus is a spiritual marriage, not a physical marriage. So, Jesus is the bridegroom, and we are the bride. And as His bride, our place is by His side. And that's why when we die, we go to be with the Lord in heaven, and we remain with Him for all eternity. So, wherever He goes, we go. Wherever He is, that's where we'll be. You need to keep that principle in mind, and it will help you to understand basic eschatology.
Now, let's keep this principle in mind as we look at the timeline. As you can see, this timeline begins with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, that's what the cross represents. The cross represents the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Now, forty days after Jesus' resurrection, He ascended to heaven. And according to Colossians chapter 3, verse 1, and Psalms chapter 110, verse 1, He's now seated in the place of honor at the Father's right hand. And He's going to remain there until His enemies are humbled and they're placed under His feet. And when does that happen? During the tribulation. In fact, that's one of the purposes of the tribulation, to put an end to wickedness, into wicked people. And that ultimately happens at the Battle of Armageddon. In fact, that's what ends the tribulation. So, in essence, Jesus returns to end the tribulation, but also to set up His kingdom on this earth.
Now, according to Revelation chapter 19, verses 11 through 14, when Jesus returns to this earth, we come with Him, and we reign and rule with Him during this time period known as the Millennium. So, we are no longer in heaven at that time, but we're here on the earth, reigning and ruling with Jesus. Turn with me, if you would, to the book of Revelation, chapter 20, verse number 6. And I want you to notice what it says: "Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection." You see, there are two resurrections. There's the resurrection of the believers, that's going to happen at the rapture. And then there's the resurrection of the unbeliever, or the damned, that happens after the Millennium, right before the Great White Throne Judgment. So, notice what it says: "Blessed is the one who is a part in the first resurrection. Over these, the second death has no power. But they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years."
Now, after the Millennium, you have the Great White Throne Judgment, where unbelievers stand before God and they're judged. And most scholars believe that we're going to be spectators at the Great White Throne Judgment. Which makes sense, because I can't imagine Jesus not being there. And remember our principle: wherever Jesus is, that's where we'll be. So, if Jesus is at the Great White Throne Judgment, we will be too, but we'll be spectators. Now, why do I say spectators? Because Romans tells us that if you're a believer, there's now no condemnation. You don't have to worry about being condemned. In fact, when you stand before Jesus Christ, it's to find out what rewards you're going to receive. But for the unbeliever, it's totally different, because their sins have not been paid for. They rejected the only means for their sins to be paid for. They're going to stand before God to be judged.
Now, while the Great White Throne Judgment is going on, the old earth and the old heaven pass away, and God creates a new heaven and a new earth. So, as soon as the Great White Throne Judgment concludes, the New Jerusalem comes down from God out of heaven, and it sits and rests upon the earth. So, you literally have heaven on earth. And people, that's where we're going to live for all eternity. All eternity. That is our final destination: the New Jerusalem on the new earth. And I want you to understand something: it is a physical city on a physical earth, just like this earth, and just like the city of Tahlequah, or New York, or any city that's anywhere else. So, you need to understand, you're gonna have a physical body because you're going to be living for all eternity on a physical earth.
So, look at the timeline once more. I want to make sure everyone gets this. From the cross to the end of the tribulation, you have the present heaven. In other words, that's where Jesus is right now, sitting at the right hand of the Father. And it's where you're going to go when you die, as long as you're a believer, or if you're alive when the rapture occurs, it's where you're going to go when you're raptured. Now, from the end of the tribulation to the Great White Throne Judgment, you have the Millennium. And during that time, Jesus is going to live, reign, and rule on the earth, and we as Christians are going to live, reign, and rule with Him. So, we're no longer in heaven at that time, but we're here on this physical earth. That's why I'm telling you, the greatest misconception that people have is that when they die, they immediately go to a place where they stay for all eternity. No, you're going to come back to this earth. You're gonna have a new resurrected body, a body that's like Jesus, and you're gonna be on this earth.
Now, after the Great White Throne Judgment, you have the future heaven. It's an actual city that comes down from God out of heaven, and it sits and it rests upon the new earth. And God's throne is in the center of this city, and Jesus Christ is sitting in the place of honor at the Father's right hand. And that's where we're going to live for all eternity. That is the future heaven.
So, here's what I want you to understand: You have a present heaven, and you have a future heaven. And in between the two, you have the Millennium. So, it's pretty easy to understand. You have a present heaven when you die, that's where you're going. But there's also the Millennium, so you're coming back to this earth. Is that your final destination? No, because during the Great White Throne Judgment, God creates a new heaven and a new earth, and the New Jerusalem is coming down to rest on it. And that's where you're going to be, because wherever Jesus is, that's where you are. And He'll be sitting at the right hand of the Father in the New Jerusalem. So, that's where you'll be.
Now, this morning, we're going to focus on the present heaven, where you're going to go when you die, or where you're gonna go if you're living when the rapture occurs and you're raptured. So, let's find out what the present heaven is like. What's it like when we die and we go to the place where Jesus is sitting on the right hand of the Father? Well, let's start with the basics. Turn with me, if you would, to the book of Ecclesiastes, chapter 12, verse number 7. Solomon, the great preacher, in fact, he refers to himself as the preacher in the first few verses of Ecclesiastes, tells us a little bit about what happens when we die. Notice what he says: "for then..." and then you have in parentheses, in italics, "when you die." That italics means that it's not actually in the original manuscripts. So, why is it added? Well, it's added because if you read this verse in context, what you find is that Solomon is telling you, don't wait until you're old and on your deathbed to think about God. Don't wait until you're just about ready to die to remember your Creator. No, you need to remember your Creator when you're young. You need to live for God throughout your entire life. But there are people who don't do that. In fact, they even get to their deathbed and they're still not remembering God. But here's what Solomon wants you to know: when you die, something's gonna happen. So, then he writes this in verse 7: "For then, when you die, the dust will return to the earth and the spirit will return to God who gave it."
In other words, once our life ends, our body begins to decay, or Solomon said, from the dust that was created and to the dust it will return. But our spirit returns to God who gave it. Now, that doesn't mean that the spirit of everyone who dies goes to be with God. No, that's not what this verse is saying. It simply means that when a person dies, their spirit is in the hands of God. It's in His control. It's in His power to do what He wants with it. You need to understand something: once you die, you're no longer in control of your soul. Where it goes depends upon God. It's in God's hands. It's in God's control. Now, you need to understand something: where it goes has already been determined by God, based on the choices that you made while you were living on this earth. If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I want you to understand, when you die, you don't have to worry about where your soul is going, because it's in God's hands. And because you've accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and your sins have been forgiven, then your soul will go to heaven. But if you reject Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, it doesn't matter how bad you want to go to heaven, you're not going to, because your soul is not under your control. It's in the hands of God. And where your soul is going to go is to a place called Hades. We refer to it as hell.
Now, here's what's interesting. Because you have 70% of the people in America who don't believe in hell. Listen to me: Jesus spoke more about hell than He did heaven. Hell is actually a holding place for non-Christians until the resurrection after the Millennium. And then at that point, they're going to stand before God at the Great White Throne Judgment. But this is what people don't understand: there is not just one resurrection. There are two resurrections. The first is the resurrection of the believers, that I've already mentioned, that happens at the rapture. Our bodies are resurrected, they're reunited with their soul, and we're going to have a resurrected body for all eternity. Why? Because we're gonna need it. We're coming back to this earth. And then after the Millennium, there's going to be a new earth. It's a physical earth, too, and we need a physical body. But the unbelievers will also be resurrected. That's called the second resurrection. And after the Millennium, their bodies are going to be resurrected, too. It's going to be reunited with their soul, and they're gonna stand before God to be judged in a resurrected physical body, and they're gonna be thrown into the lake of fire. Now, their body is going to be much like the bush that was burning that Moses saw. The fire was flaming, but the bush was not consumed. And the Bible says those who are thrown into the lake of fire burn forever and ever. They don't just burn up.
Now, once your spirit leaves your body and you're dead, your body will begin to decay immediately. But that doesn't mean that you are a disembodied spirit. It doesn't mean that you're a ghost floating around in heaven. We kind of have that perception. It's one of those misconceptions that I was talking about, that heaven is ethereal, it's non-material, we're all like ghosts and we're floating around on clouds in heaven. And if you wanted to, you could walk up to one of those spirits, stick your hand through them. Right? People, you're gonna have a body. But it won't be a physical body until after the resurrection, till after the rapture. But when you go to heaven, immediately, you will have a body. It just won't be a physical body. It will be a spiritual body.
Let me explain how we know that. Turn with me, if you would, to the Book of Luke, chapter 16, verses 19 through 31. This is a parable that Jesus told. Notice what it says: "Jesus said, 'There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury.' This man had it made. He didn't lack for anything. If he wanted anything, he just purchased it. He was well-off, probably inherited his wealth. Then it goes further: 'At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, who was covered with sores.' Now, why did he lay at his gate? Because he knew this man had money and he would beg from this man. As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man's table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores. Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and his soul went to the place of the dead. There in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side. The rich man shouted, 'Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.' But Abraham said to him, 'Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. And besides, there's a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.' Then the rich man said, 'Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father's home, for I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don't end up in this place of torment.' But Abraham said, 'Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.' The rich man replied, 'No, Father Abraham, but if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.' But Abraham said, 'If they won't listen to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even if someone rises from the dead.'"
Now, as I said, this is a parable, and a parable is used to illustrate certain spiritual truths. Now, in this case, this parable is illustrating spiritual truths concerning the afterlife, or in other words, what happens when we die. Now, remember that parables are allegorical in nature. That means that the people, things, or events in the parable have symbolic meaning. Now, here's what's interesting: the characters in this parable are symbolic, but what the two men experienced in the afterlife is not symbolic. In other words, the two men in this parable are fictional characters, but what they experience is factual. Let me say that again, because most people don't catch that. They read this parable and they don't realize that the whole reason Jesus gave this parable is to illustrate certain spiritual truths. And the spiritual truths this parable is talking about is the afterlife. So, you need to understand that the two men that are in this parable, the two characters, they are fictional. They were made up. But what they experienced is factual. It's exactly what we are going to experience when we die. So, we actually get a first-hand look at what it's gonna be like when we die.
So, let's look at what they experienced, starting with the rich man. First of all, I want you to notice that he was fully conscious of his surroundings and his past life on this earth. Let's read verses 23 through verse 28 again. I'm gonna point some things out as we read through it, and then I'm gonna expand on it. Notice what it says, starting in verse 23: "And his soul went to the place of the dead. There in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side." Now, let me explain something. Most people don't understand this. Jesus gave this parable before He went to the cross, before He died, before He was resurrected. Now, before Jesus died on the cross for our sins, when people died, they couldn't go to heaven. Why couldn't they go to heaven? Because their sins hadn't been paid for yet, right? So, they went to a place called the bosom of Abraham. The Bible indicates the bosom of Abraham was, in a sense, located near Hades, except it was a totally different place. So, those who were in hell could actually look into the bosom of Abraham, and those in the bosom of Abraham could look to Hades, but that was separated by a chasm. The people who went to the bosom of Abraham were the people who believed in God and were looking forward to the Messiah that He promised to come. So, everyone who died who believed in God and believed in the Messiah went to the bosom of Abraham, and they had to stay there until Jesus Christ paid for their sins.
Now, the Bible teaches that when Jesus died on the cross, His soul went to hell. So, everyone that was in the bosom of Abraham could look over the chasm and they could see Jesus Christ paying for the sins in hell. But here's what's interesting: the Bible says that Jesus preached to those who were in captivity. Now, I think, in all honesty, He not only had to say a few words, but here's the interesting thing: He gave the best object lesson in the world that any pastor has ever given in a sermon. Because here He is in hell, He's paying for these sins, and when all of our sins were paid for, God raised Him from the dead. So, while He was in the lake of fire, or I should say, hell, it's not the lake of fire, when He was in hell and paid for the sins, He actually came back to life. Now, the scripture tells us in the book of Ephesians that He took captivity captive. In other words, those people who could not go to heaven, who were in the bosom of Abraham, when Jesus was resurrected, all of those people went with Him. And when He ascended to the Father, they went with Him to heaven. So, now the bosom of Abraham is vacated. No one is there. When a Christian dies, when someone believes in Jesus Christ, when they die, they go to heaven. They don't go to the bosom of Abraham. And you need to understand that this parable was told before Jesus did that. That's why it talks about this.
So, let's keep reading: "The rich man shouted, 'Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.' But Abraham said to him, 'Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted. Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. And besides, a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.' Then the rich man said, 'Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father's home, for I have five brothers, and I want them to warn them so they don't end up in this place of torment.'"
Now, if you notice, in verse number 25, Abraham told the rich man, "Remember your past life." Which meant that his memory was intact. And as you can see in this parable, he knew who Lazarus was. In other words, he remembered him. And he remembered that he had five brothers. In fact, he remembered everything from his past life. And you will too, when you get to heaven. You're gonna know who your kids are. Some of you aren't gonna like this, but you're gonna remember who you were married to. You'll remember everything from your past life. You'll remember your childhood, when you went to grade school, you remember middle school, whether you were popular, you wore Bobby, where you hated everyone, or you loved everyone. You'll remember your life in high school, you'll remember your college years, your days of your youth, remember your midlife crisis, remember when you were older. You'll remember everything about your life. Your memory will be intact. You'll even know members of your family that have passed away and you've never met before, because you weren't even born when they passed away. And we know that because of what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration. If you remember Peter, James, and John, they saw Moses and Elijah, and they knew who they were without having to be introduced to them when they appeared with Jesus. Jesus didn't have to say, "Alright, just a second, Moses, Elijah. This is Peter, James, and John. Peter, James, and John, this is Moses and Elijah." Now, they didn't have to do that. I want you to understand something: the disciples had never seen Moses and Elijah before, but immediately they knew who they were.
But that's also how we know that even though you won't have a physical body until the rapture occurs, you will not be a disembodied spirit floating around in heaven. You see, on the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter, James, and John saw Moses and Elijah, and they immediately recognized them as Moses and Elijah. In other words, they didn't see them as some ghost-like creature, disembodied spirits, floating about six inches off the ground. They didn't go, "Oh my gosh, it's a ghost!" No, they saw them as Moses and Elijah. And the rich man in the parable saw Abraham and Lazarus, and he was able to recognize them. He didn't see them as some ghost-like creatures or disembodied spirits floating around in the bosom of Abraham. No, he saw them as Abraham and Lazarus. Now, think about it: if they were in a recognizable body, he wouldn't have been able to tell who they were. But he had no trouble identifying them. Lazarus would look like Lazarus. Abraham, even though he'd never met him before, he knew who he was, looked like Abraham.
In fact, let me show you something interesting, and then we're going to come back to this parable. Turn with me, if you would, to the book of Second Corinthians, chapter 12. We're going to read verses 2 through 4. Very interesting passage of scripture. Notice what Paul writes: "I was caught up to the third heaven 14 years ago." Now, if you have the King James Version, this is written in the third person. In other words, Paul says, "I knew a man 14 years ago." And the reason he writes it in the third person is because he doesn't want to boast. And if you understand anything about their culture, one of the things that you would do when you wanted to relay something but you didn't want to boast, as you would say it in the third person. If I was talking about myself and didn't want to boast, I would say, "I knew a man who was 55 years old, one time, bald-headed, fat, ten with a beard." You'd put it in the third person. So, Paul did that. Well, this is the NLT, and as a result of that, it just tells you who it is, it's Paul. So, Paul says, "I was caught up to the third heaven 14 years ago." Now, you need to understand what the third heaven is. The third heaven is where God's throne is. See, the Bible mentions three heavens. You got the heaven where the birds fly, that's our atmosphere. And then you have the heavens where the stars and the planets are, the Bible refers to heavens as that. And then you have the place where God abides, and that's the third heaven. So, Paul says that he was caught up to the third heaven.
Now, that phrase "caught up" is translated from the Greek word *harpazo*. That's the very word that's used that we translate as "raptured." Paul says that he was raptured to the third heaven 14 years ago. "Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know. Only God knows." Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside of my body. Now, why in the world would he state it again? Well, he does it because he's trying to emphasize something. And this is the point that we're gonna try and get out of this. He's emphasizing the fact that when he was raptured to the third heaven 14 years ago, he didn't know if he was raptured in his body or if he was out of his body. And then it goes further: "But I do know that I was caught up (*harpazo*) to paradise and I heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell."
Now, in essence, Paul didn't know whether he was in his body or out of his body when he was raptured to the third heaven. But here's what's interesting: the word "body" is translated from the Greek word *soma*. *Soma* means a physical, material body. In fact, if you were to go back in Paul's day and you would say, "What does the word *soma* mean?" Here's what they would probably tell you: "It is what creates a shadow, and not the mere shadow itself." Do what? Yeah, if you ever looked this up in Kidd's Theological Dictionary, basically what Plato and some of the other Greek philosophers said when they talked about *soma*, the body, they were referring to a material, tangible body. It's something that causes a shadow, and it's not the mere shadow itself. So, what Paul was saying was, he didn't know if he was in his physical, tangible body when he was caught up to the third heaven or not. But the reason he didn't know is because he didn't notice anything different about his body while he was in heaven than he was when he was on earth. Now, you would think if he wasn't in his body, he would have known. But there must be something about the spiritual body that is so similar to our physical body that you can't tell whether you're in your body or you're not.
Now, there are scholars that say that's not what Paul was talking about when he wrote this. Paul didn't know what he was saying was, Paul didn't know whether he had a vision or whether he experienced astral projection. Not astral projection, this astral, a-s-t-r-a-l projection. How many even know what astral projection is? It's when your spirit leaves your body. So, what he's, so what scholars say he was saying, he didn't know whether he had a vision or whether he experienced astral projection, or maybe he just had some type of revelation, and that's all he's saying. But actually, I don't believe that. And the reason why is because when you study the Old Testament prophets, they always knew when they had a vision. John had this great vision, and he, and he wrote the book of Revelation. That's really what it is, it's a revelation of Jesus Christ. And he knew that he had this vision, and he even says he was caught up in the third heaven. But here's the interesting thing: he knew he was in the spirit at the time. So, I don't believe that's what Paul was saying. I believe that what Paul was saying was, "I was raptured up to the third heaven, but I want you to understand something: I couldn't tell whether I had a body or I didn't, because I couldn't tell that I was any different than when I was on the earth."
So, the scripture seems to indicate that when you die, you receive a spiritual body that functions just like a physical body. In fact, in the parable, the rich man could see, he could hear, he could feel, and he could even taste. Remember what he told Abraham? He said, "Let Lazarus dip his finger in water and come and cool my tongue." In other words, all five of his senses were working, even though he didn't have a physical body. And he could see others, and he could recognize them, and they could see him and recognize who he was. So, my point is this: even though your soul leaves your body when you die, you are not a disembodied spirit floating around in heaven. You might not have the physical body, but you have a spiritual body. Now, once the rapture occurs, and we're gonna look at this next week, you receive a physical body. Your physical body will be resurrected and reunited with your soul, and you will truly have what the Bible calls a *soma*, a physical, tangible body. It will be the type of body that Jesus had when He told Thomas, "Here, feel me. Touch me. Handle me. Put your hand in the nail print. Put your hand in the side where the spear went in." Because it's going to be a physical, tangible body. But we're going to talk about that next week. It is the coolest body that you'll ever see. Can't wait to talk about that.
Well, let's answer the question: Will we be able to see what's happening here on this earth when we go to heaven? That's what most people want to know. You know, they want to know what type of continuity there is between this earth and heaven. So, the thing they wanted us, when they get to heaven, do you know, do they remember everything? We already found that, yes, you're going to remember everything about your past life. But do you not get a chance to see what's happening here on this earth, or do you get a chance to see it? Well, before I give you a definite yes or no, let me qualify my answer. You can search the entire Bible, and you won't find one verse that explicitly states that people who died can see what's happening here on this earth. But you will find numerous verses that imply it. So, the Bible doesn't explicitly state that you can see what's happening on this earth, but it does state it implicitly. How many of you know the difference between the words explicit and implicit? Let me make sure you understand what I'm saying. Explicit means it clearly states it in black and white. He explicitly said it, and he said it word-for-word, black and white. Implicit means it's implied or understood, though it's not directly stated. So, even though the Bible doesn't just come out and say, "Yes, you're going to be able to see what's happening on this earth when you're in heaven," it does imply that you will, and it implies it in such a way that we know for sure that, yes, you will be able to see what's happening on this earth when you're in heaven. So, the answer is yes, you will be able to see what's happening on this earth, and you will know what's taking place. That's part of what makes heaven great.
Turn to Hebrews chapter 12, verse 1, and I'm gonna prove it to you. Notice what this says: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Now, in this verse, Paul is comparing Christians, or a Christian, to an athlete, and our life to a race. Now, this race in life isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. And the course of the race is different for each person. So, it's God who's the one marking it out, just for us. Every one's race is different. In other words, your race is different than mine. And God marks out the course for you. Whether or not you win the race is up to you. But your life is compared to a race. Now, here's what's interesting about this verse: in the ancient world, athletic events were very, very common, and almost the entire community would turn out to watch the athletic event, especially races. And almost every large community had an amphitheater, and the amphitheater actually had seating for spectators. And people, that is the picture that Paul is painting in this verse. Paul says that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses as we're running this race called life. Now, the word "witnesses" is translated from the Greek word *martyres*. And *martyres* can refer to one of two things. It can refer to a person who's testifying in a court of law to what he's seen. So, in a sense, he's what we think of as a witness. Or it could refer to a person who's watching an event, like a spectator. Now, the context of Hebrews chapter 12, verse number 1, fits the second definition, not the first. So, the word *martyres* refers to people who watch an event, spectators, if you will. So, what this verse is saying is this: it's saying that we have a great crowd of spectators watching us run this race called life. And because Paul uses the word "cloud," that gives the impression that the witnesses are up, we're up there, they're in heaven. So, this verse implies that those in heaven are watching us run this race called life. So, yes, we will be able to see what's happening on this earth. In fact, our loved ones are watching me right now. Both sets of my grandparents are watching me preach this sermon. My mother is close to the end of her life. In which she passes away, I will know that every time I get up to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, she'll be watching me do that. Every one of your loved ones who've died and gone to heaven are watching what's happening on this earth. If you have loved ones that aren't in heaven, they're in hell. I want you to understand, they don't know what's going on. They're left in the dark. The Bible says, "But not those in heaven. You've come into the light." People, you're no longer in the dark.
But let's go further. Turn with me, if you would, to Luke chapter 9, verses 28 through 32. Notice what it says: "After eight days later, Jesus took Peter, John, and James up on a mountain to pray. And as He was praying, the appearance of His face was transformed, and His clothing became dazzling white. Suddenly, two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared and began talking with Jesus." We've already talked about this, right? We're gonna go a little bit more in depth. They were glorious to see, and they were speaking about His exodus from this world. Everyone knows what exodus means, right? It means a departure. In fact, the book of Exodus, that means their departure out of Egypt, which was about to be fulfilled in Jerusalem. Peter and the others had fallen asleep. When they woke up, they saw Jesus' glory and the two men standing with Him. Now, those of you who are familiar with the Bible, you're familiar with the story, and this is known as the Transfiguration because the face of Jesus was transformed and His clothes became dazzling white. And as a result of that, it's called the story of the Transfiguration. But here's what I want you to notice: Moses and Elijah instantly appeared with Jesus, and they talked with Jesus about His exodus. What do they mean, His exodus? It means His disembarking, His exit, His leaving. You see, He was going to have two exoduses. One was when He left this earth and died, and His soul went to hell. And the other, He was resurrected, He ascended to the Father. So, Moses and Elijah, they showed up to talk about Jesus' death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. Now, did you catch that? Moses and Elijah knew what was happening on this earth. They knew what Jesus had been doing. They knew what His assignment was, and they knew that it was about to happen. This takes place shortly before Jesus goes to Jerusalem. So, they knew what He was about to do, and that's why they were talking with Jesus to encourage Him, to tell Him, "We've been watching you run the race. We've watched what you've done, and you're getting close to the end of the race. All heaven is praying for you. All heaven is watching what you're doing."
Now, Acts chapter 10, verse number 34, says that God is no respecter of persons. So, if Moses and Elijah, who were in heaven at the time, knew what was happening on the earth and they knew what Jesus was doing, and what He was about to do, don't you think that those who are in heaven now know the very same thing? Well, of course they do. Just think about it. If God let Moses and Elijah see what was happening on this earth, and He's no respecter of persons, then why wouldn't He let all the others see what was happening on the earth?
Now, turn to Luke chapter 15, verse number 7. It says, "In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away." Now, let me ask you a question: How does heaven know when a sinner repents? How does heaven know when someone's saved? Now, of course, we know that when someone's saved, God instantly knows because He's omniscient. He knows everything. And because God is omnipresent, that means He's everywhere at all times. So, nothing happens that God doesn't know. So, when someone gets saved, God knows it. But how does the rest of heaven know? Is there an intercom system in heaven? So, when someone gets saved, God says, "I need to let him know." So, he gets on... There's just no, there's no intercom in heaven. Not at all. What's happening is, the saints are watching what's happening here on this earth. And when they see those people that they love, their friends, their family, when they see them accept Jesus Christ, people go nuts, and all of heaven goes nuts with them because they rejoice over them rejoicing.
Now, let me show you one more scripture, and I love this scripture because it tells us a lot about what we know and what we don't know in heaven. This is First Peter chapter 1, verse 12: "They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this good news, this gospel, has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven." In other words, these prophets prophesied this, but I want you to understand something: they preached in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit's the one who sent them from heaven, or was sent from heaven. "It is also wonderful that even the angels..." Why does it say "even the angels"? We know that the saints are interested in what's going on in heaven, but it says, "even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen." Do you see that? The angels are eagerly watching these things happen. But what I want you to see is that they're watching it as it happens. They're seeing it in real time.
Now, how do I know that they're seeing it in real time? Because that phrase "eagerly watching" is written in the present tense. And if you understand Greek grammar, you know that kind of action takes preeminence over time of action. When we talk about tenses in English, we always want to know, is it present, past, or future? And that's what the tense is doing in Greek grammar. But you need to understand, it does something else. It also gives you the kind of action, and that takes, takes more importance than even time of action. So, this is written in the present tense, and it denotes continual action. So, what this is saying is, the angels are continually watching in present time the things that are happening on the earth. But here's what's interesting: it says "even the angels." And the reason it says that is because you would wonder, why are the angels so interested in what's happening in heaven? But we know who would be, and that would be our loved ones who died and gone on, and they want to know if their kids and their grandkids, are they getting saved? Are they living for the Lord? Are they doing what God has called them to do? But this scripture tells us that the angels are watching it in real time as it's happening. Now, if the angels are watching these things in, in real time, don't you think the saints in heaven? You bet you, they are.
So, the Bible might not explicitly state that we see what's happening here on this earth, but I want you to understand, it does implicitly state it, and it does so in such a way that there's no doubt. It's pretty convincing. Now, I don't have time to talk about our mansion in heaven. We're going to kind of look at that next week, because God, Jesus said that "I go to prepare a place for you," and that word "place" is very interesting in the Greek. But here's something I want you to know before we dismiss, and if you're taking notes, I want you to write this down. It's not going to come up on the screen. There is continuity between your life here on this earth and your life in heaven. Let me say that again: There is continuity in your life on this earth and your life in heaven. It doesn't just stop, and all of a sudden, we don't think about earth anymore. Do you need to understand something? Your memory will be intact. You will remember everything about your life. You will know who your children are. You'll know who you were married to. You'll know people in your family who passed away before you were ever born, and they're waiting for you to get there. Everything you do on this earth has a bearing on what takes place in heaven. Whether you lay up treasure here, or whether you lay up treasure in heaven. If you're doing things that will give you, or or or allow you to be honored with crowns that will determine how you rule and reign. You need to understand something: that continuity is not broken. Heaven is a wonderful place.
There is one argument that everyone makes that doesn't believe it when you go to heaven, you see what's happening here on the earth. And this is the argument: the argument is, "Well, if we knew what was going on on the earth, we couldn't be happy in heaven." And we'll never heard that. Let me just tell you something: if you understand the timeline that I gave you, you get to the new heaven and the new earth, and this New Jerusalem comes down from God out of heaven and sits on the earth. Only then does it say that God wipes away every tear. How do you know people aren't sad in heaven? Well, there's heaven. Well, you have all these other misconceptions about heaven. Let me tell you something: I think that there's regrets in heaven. I think there's regrets that we didn't live for the Lord. I think there's regrets that we didn't share the gospel with certain people. That's why when the New Jerusalem comes down and we reach our final destination, only then does it say that God wipes away the tears, and our sins are remembered no more. But it doesn't say that until the final destination arrives.
Now, if you're here this morning, you've never received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, let me just say this: once you die, where your soul goes is out of your control. It's in God's hands. But God determines where your soul goes based on what you do here on this earth. If you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I guarantee you, when you die, God will say, "Your soul is going to heaven." But if you reject Jesus Christ, God will direct your soul to go to hell, because your sins have not been paid for. You told God, in essence, "I don't want Jesus paying for my sins. I'll do it myself." And you will. So, if you're here this morning, you've never done that, let me beg you to do that, because heaven is real, and continuity is not broken from earth to heaven. You want to go to heaven, accept Jesus. I'm gonna make it very simple for you. I'm gonna say a prayer. If you want to receive Jesus, all you have to do is repeat this prayer after me. The prayer is not magic. You don't get to go to heaven just because you say this prayer. But if you believe what you're saying, your sins will be forgiven, Jesus will become your Lord, and when you die, your spirit goes to be with God. In other words, it's in His hands. He says that one's going to heaven because his sins have been paid for.