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I Want To Go To Heaven
Heaven is the eternal inheritance of all
faithful children of God. “To an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and
that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.” (1 Peter 1:4) If we are
children of God then we are heirs of heaven. “If children, then heirs--heirs of
God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also
be glorified together.” (Romans 8:17) God blesses all those that live upon
earth, but this inheritance is to none but His children. By regeneration we
receive the promise of eternal inheritance. “And for this reason He is the
Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the
transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive
the promise of the eternal inheritance.” (Hebrews 9:15) Heaven is our
incorruptible inheritance. This inheritance is undefined; It
is reserved in heaven for you. Let us observe:
I want to go to heaven because I want
to be with the Lord. Sin separates man from God both now and forever.
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And
your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.” (Isaiah
59:2) The joy of the Christian is an eternity in the presence of the Lord. “For
the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an
archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And
the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And
thus we shall always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) The great joy
of heaven will be that we will see the Lord, enjoy His presence and be with Him
forever. Paul would have been happy to put off the rags of mortality to be
clothed in the glory of the Lord’s presence. “We are confident, yes, well
pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” (2
Corinthians 5:8)
I want to go to heaven because that
means an end to all the struggles of this life. John wrote, “And God
will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor
sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have
passed away.” (Revelation 21:4) Heaven will be free from all the troubles and
sorrows of this life. “All tears shall be wiped away.” All the pains of past
sorrow will be removed and all causes of future sorrows will be prevented. At
this “living fountains of water God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
(Revelation 7:17) Isaiah 25:8 says, “He will swallow up death forever, And the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces."
There is no more sorrow because sin is no more. “They shall obtain joy and
gladness; Sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” (Isaiah 51:11) It will be
wonderful to enjoy heaven where there will be no more problems! Peace, joy and
happiness will be there.
I want to go to heaven because I don’t
want my Lord to have to died in vain. The
gospel of Christ is the good news that Jesus died for sinners, was buried and
was raised as Lord and Savior. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) I do not want His death
to have been in vain. Paul wrote, “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin
for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians
5:21) The fact that Christ suffered sin’s penalty in man’s place is great
motivation for going to Heaven. Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled;
you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions;
if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”
(John 14:1-2) Heaven is man’s greatest goal to gain and greatest loss to loose!
I want to go to heaven because I surely don’t
want to go to hell. Hell is described as a place of “everlasting
punishment.” “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the
righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:46) Jesus warned us to “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." (Matthew 10:28) The
horries of that lake, burning with fire and brimstone are indescribable.
(Revelation 20:15) Hell is a place of “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew
13:42) It is a place of outer darkness inhabited by the Devil and his angels. (Matthew
25:30, Matthew 25:41) I want to go to heaven because surely I do not want to go
to hell.
I want to go to heaven because it is a
place of beauty and splendor. Our hope is, “laid up for you in heaven,
of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel.” (Colossians
1:5) Heaven is described as, “a better and an enduring possession for
yourselves in heaven." (Hebrews 10:34) Heaven is a “city which has
foundations, whose builder and maker is God." (Hebrews 11:10) Heaven is
that “
I want to go to heaven because it is
eternal - - everlasting life. Jesus said, “And these will go away into
everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:46)
Paul described heaven as an eternal place. “Therefore we do not lose heart.
Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed
day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for
us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at
the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things
which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
(2 Corinthians 4:16-18) Heaven is a place of eternal treasures. “Do not lay up
for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where
thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do
not break in and steal.” (Matthew 6:19-20)
I want to go to heaven because I want
to be with others who will be there. In heaven we will be in the
presence of the Lord. Jesus said, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I
will come again and receive you to Myself; that where
I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:3) In heaven you will also be with those
that have done the will of God and those who died innocent. David knew he could
be with his little child in heaven. “But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can
I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but
he shall not return to me.” (2 Samuel 12:23) In heaven you have the opportunity
of being with the redeemed of all ages.
To be in heaven you must, (a) Hear the gospel
of Christ (Acts 15:7), (b) Believe in God and in Jesus (Hebrews 11:6), (c)
Repent of sins (Luke 13:3), (d) Confess Christ as Lord (Romans 10:9-10), and
(e) Be baptized to wash away your sins. (Acts
- - - - Charles Box
News
& Notes
1. Prayer List: In Need Of Prayers: Jimmy
Allen, Deane
Autrey, Teri Bagents, Mae Beverly, Mary Frances Casto (sister of Betty
Findley), Nell Cates, Evelyn Duke, Nannie Gaylor, Birdie Lee Godwin, Roy
Goodwin, Judy Green, Montine Hardin, Evan Hartsell, Betty & Jimmy Hobbie,
Linda Holley, Dot Kill-ingsworth, Mary Lawrence, Abby Lee, Jeremy McGill,
Shaunnie McGough, Jo Ann Moorer, Curtis Newton, Romona Newton, Opal Missildine, Thomas Phillips, Mary Powell, Linda Sex-ton,
Don Shirley, Austin Shows, Joe Smith, Leroy Waller, Richard Watts, Elizabeth
and Price Williams and Mary Williams. Crowne Health Care: Mary
Alexander, Gladys Childs, Buddy
2. Baptized
Into Christ: Josh Till was baptized into Christ Tuesday afternoon. Josh is the son
of Jim and Tiffany Till. It is wonderful to see several generations of
Christians worshipping together at
3. Requesting
Our Prayers: David and Cody Pate have responded to our Lord’s invitation. They live
at
4.
Sympathy Expressed: Our love and sympathy is expressed to (a)
Bill Hammonds and his family in the death of his mother, Marie Walton and (b)
Steve Hoffman and his family in the death of his great-aunt, Mildred Roper.
5. Please
Pray For: The following people are serving in
6. Birthdays: Celebrating birthdays this week are: March
16th Mary Alexander, Betty Hobbie and Reese Raybon, March
17th Janice Box and March 19th Earl Acreman.
7. All Age Devo: All young people are
invited to an “All Age Devo” after services on Sunday, March 16th.
Please bring drinks, deserts, chips, and $1 for a service project.
8. Egg Hunt: Marty and Alicia Sexton are
hosting an egg hunt for our children on March 22nd at
9. Flowers Stand: Thanks to Nelson Daughtry for making the flowers
stand for the auditorium. It is attractive and effective!
10. Thank You: (a)
11. Walter
Johnson To
12. Prom
Alternative Banquet/Retreat:
13. Put These Dates On Your Calendar: (a) March 16th – 19th – Gospel Meeting – Grady Church of Christ – Speaker Kenneth Randolph – nightly at 7:30, (b) March 30th – April 3rd – Memphis School of Preaching Lectures – Theme: “Strengthening The Heart”, (c) June 22nd-26th – Vacation Bible School – Walnut Street Church of Christ, and (d) July 6th-13th – Backwoods Christian Camp.
Changes
Last weekend was very emotional for my wife,
Jamie, and me, as we announced that we will be pursuing some long term goals
that will require our departure from our wonderful church family at the
For those of you who were not present last Sunday, or who receive this publication by mail, I’ll repeat the details of our situation. I have desired for several years to be more closely involved in the work of Backwoods Christian Camp, a place to which I have family ties, and more importantly, spiritual ties. My experiences with BCC & other Christian camps have been of more spiritual benefit to me than most other endeavors of my life. Furthermore, I have great reason to believe that this is the case for the majority of young people in our country. As previously stated, I have desired to do this, but up until the last few months, no situation had presented itself that would allow me to pursue my goal. However, thanks to my uncle, Richard Powell, and my father, a great business opportunity has arisen, which will, Lord willing, allow us to begin serving the Lord through the various facets of BCC. We plan to make this transition near the end of this summer.
We ask for your prayers as we pursue these
goals, and we hope sincerely that our new work will allow us an unusually large
amount of contact with the church here in
- - - - Darrell Powell
Paul reminds
us that though we may be at the end of our “Rope,” we are never at the end of
our “Hope.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-12)
Don’t just own a Bible; read it!
(334-382-3001)