There are lots of reasons to get excited about our eternal home, and I want to give you thirty-one of them. I’ve created this list to unleash within you the power of biblical hope. We always need something to look forward to in life, don’t we? For those who love Jesus, heaven is our greatest goal and surest outlook.
Heaven is the home we’ve never visited, the inheritance coming to us, and the consummation of our relationship with Christ. It’s closer than we know. Whatever your day looks like today, a better one is on the way, heading toward you at the speed of glory. Jesus is preparing a place for you, a land of many mansions with multitudes of angels and millions of friends.
Section 1: The Anticipation of Heaven
- It’s in our DNA
It’s in our DNA to yearn for a better place—to ache for a home way up high where dreams really do come true. There’s only one place like that. It’s heaven. And it’s a longing that will be fulfilled.
Life is about more than homes, titles, and bank accounts
Someday, each of us will leave it all behind. We’ll leave our homes, our titles, and our bank accounts. When that moment comes, one question will matter most: Do you have a home in heaven? I know someone who can take you there. In fact, He is the way.
Calms our daily fears
Pondering the realities of heaven assuages the uncertainty of life, comforts us at the moment of death, and brightens our pathway from here to eternity.
The more we study it, the better it becomes
The more we study heaven, the more we will discover about God’s precious gift of eternity and eternal life. The more we saturate ourselves in the truth of heaven, the more precious those truths and that gift will become to us.
New bodies
God is going to give us new bodies like in kind to the ones we have now, only completely made over and transformed, and capable of living in both the seen and unseen realms, which will have been brought together and united in Christ.
We will be with Jesus
We will see His face when we get to heaven (Revelation 22:4)! Jesus longs to be with us, and we long to be with Him—to see His smile, to hear His voice, to have His attention, to enjoy His friendship, and to worship His glory.
Pondering the realities of heaven assuages the uncertainty of life
Section 2: The Atmosphere of Heaven
- Heaven and earth as they were meant to be!
For thousands of years, humanity has been clumsily and inexpertly attempting to fix the corruption caused by sin. Thankfully, we are in the hands of a true Master. When the time is right, He will restore creation to His own, original intention where we will thrive as His living masterpieces. Forever.
- Discovering our eternal home
The heavenly city is huge, it’s holy, and it’s our eternal home. We’ll walk into this holy city
with jaws dropped and eyes widened in absolute wonder, for even the most beautiful places on earth don’t hold a candle to what God has prepared for us.
- The spectacular New Jerusalem
Five glorious features we should be excited about include: the street, the light, the tree,
the river, and the throne.
- Finding long-lost brothers and sisters from all the ages
When you get to heaven, you’re going to find a lot of long-lost brothers and sisters from all the ages living right next door. They will be fellow citizens, along with the angels and with the Lord God Himself—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
When you get to heaven, you’re going to find a lot of long-lost brothers and sisters from all the ages living right next door.
- The treasures of heaven
The only things you can take to heaven are the Word of God and the lives of those you help win to Christ. Let’s determine to take as many people as possible to heaven with us!
- The angels of heaven
We will walk, worship, and work right alongside the angels of heaven. Heaven will be a glorious reunion with long-lost family and angels from all ranks, together with Jesus Christ.
- Magnificent worship
Worship in heaven will never be dull or half-hearted. Instead, it will be continuous, righteous, vigorous, thundering, and magnificent. It will set the atmosphere for the new heaven and the new earth, and it will make New Jerusalem pulsate with praise.
- Heaven is filled with happiness
When we reach the eternal state of the new heaven and new earth, there will be no conclusion to our fellowship with God. No finale to our fellowship with one another. No end to the wonders and mysteries of creation. And no end to joy. Our joy—yours and mine.
- No more death, sickness, or pain
Scripture tells us, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Without sin, then, we will no longer be touched by death. Instead, we will fully receive eternal life and everlasting renewal. Death itself will be dead.
Section 3: The Appointments of Heaven
- Today becomes more important.
Everything we do matters! Every day is an opportunity to invest in the quality of the “house” we are building for Jesus—every hour, every minute, every second. Even when it seems like no one notices what you’re doing and nobody will ever appreciate your service, take heart! Because Jesus sees. Jesus notices. And He will commend you on the day of Bema Judgment.
- You will be rewarded
Christ knows our efforts, sees our burdens, uses our gifts, blesses our work, and gives us Himself as our exceeding great Reward.
- A future celebration and ceremony
The first ten verses in Revelation 19 describe that glorious marriage as two incredible events: a celebration and a ceremony. If you belong to Jesus, you’ll be there for both of them with a prime seat.
- Suffering saints rewarded
God will bless His suffering saints in ways we cannot even imagine. The hated on earth will be the heroes of heaven. In New Jerusalem, perhaps we’ll all be among the cheering crowds, thrilled at the procession of champions who, led by the Lamb of God, proceed down the golden streets in a ticker tape parade.
Section 4: Answers About Heaven
- Boredom will be banished
Make no mistake, our eternal home will be the most thrilling, joy-filled,
adventure-packed reality you’ve ever known, multiplied beyond anything you can imagine.
- Where followers of Christ are right now
If the loved ones you lost in death were followers of Christ, I can tell you for sure where
they are. Their bodies are in the grave, waiting for the day of resurrection at the Rapture; their souls and spirits are in heaven!
- Supernatural beings watch over us
There are eyes watching you from heaven. But I don’t think they belong to our loved ones. The Bible teaches that angels are aware of what’s happening on earth. Those supernatural beings watch over us, and we are glad for it! Most of all, the eyes of the Lord are on you and me (2 Chronicles 16:9).
There are eyes watching you from heaven.
- Enhanced minds and improved memories
Though we will not be all-knowing like our almighty Lord, we will have enhanced minds, improved memories, and unparalleled maturity. We’ll understand better. Until then, we walk by faith, and we trust God with unanswered questions.
- Reunion with children gone too soon
If you’ve lost a little one, let your heart and mind turn upward. Put your head on a heavenly swivel and let the soon-approaching joys of your coming reunion lift your mind to Jesus, who never saw a child He didn’t love enough to die for. They are all safe and happy in His heavenly home. Hallelujah!
- Suicide is not a mortal sin
Suicide does not disqualify a Christian from entering heaven. It is not a “mortal sin,” to use the vocabulary of the Catholic church. Anyone who has received God’s grace through faith need not fear that a moral failure will disqualify them from eternal life. We are eternally secure.
- From cremation to transformation
We need not agonize over what happens to our bodies on this planet. Let’s just ask God to use us while we are on earth. And when the glorious, upward tug of God brings us into His presence, we’ll rejoice with our new bodies.
- Heavenly surprises
God has some wonderful surprises for us in heaven. You may not like surprises as a rule, but you’ll like these! Our relationships will be deeper, our enjoyments richer, our recreation happier. If things are different in heaven, they will simply be raised to a new level of excellence.
- A place with animals
If God loves animals so much that He created them with all their diverse beauty (Genesis 1:20–25), if He cares for the sparrows and knows when even one of them falls to the ground (Matthew 10:29)—if He so delights in animals on earth, don’t you think there will be lots of animals, not just during the Millennium, but in the new heaven and new earth? I think so too.
God has some wonderful surprises for us in heaven.
Section 5: The Application of Heaven
- Future blessing awaits
I know there are many distractions in a given day that pull your focus downward—including many disturbances in your own body. You’ve been afflicted with sickness, sadness, weariness, and pain. But Christ’s promise to you is one of eternal renewal. Eternal perfection! Keeping your focus on that future blessing will help you maintain a heavenly mindset no matter what obstacles stand in front of you today.
- Motivation for today
Wherever life takes us, our eternal home is secure—a city built by God, prepared by Jesus. May we live with joyful anticipation as we await that final journey, and may we take as many with us as we can.
- A rich welcome home
Those who trust Christ alone for the safekeeping of their souls will receive a rich welcome when they enter the pearly gates. We will fall down before our Lord Jesus Christ, and we’ll thank Him for all He did to give us a life that will never end and a home that will never fade away.
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For a complete study of Heaven, request Dr. Jeremiah’s book, The Promise of Heaven: 31 Reasons to Get Excited About Your Eternal Home
