One thing that seems fascinating to me is the fact that as believers, we have a hope at the end of our lives. Unlike Atheists, who believe that there is nothing to look forward to when their life ends, our trust is in God’s Word, which tells us that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
2 Corinthians 5:8 – NIV – We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
There is a “confidence” that we have, a deep inner witness from the Holy Spirit that when this earthly tabernacle of ours fails that we will be with the Lord. And not just for a limited amount of time, but forever. There is also an assurance that we will see our loved ones who preceded us in death who also knew the Lord, being together forever with them in Heaven and in the world to come. The hope of eternal life for mankind was in the heart of God as stated in the Scriptures:
John 3:16 – NIV – For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Because of what Jesus Christ did, in coming to the earth, showing us who the Father truly was (John 14:8-9), lived a spotless life before us (1 Peter 1:18-19), died, making an atonement for our sins (1 John 2:2;Hebrews 7:27), then rose again from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-4;1 Peter 1:3); He made it possible for all who accept Him as their Lord and Savior to once again have fellowship with the Father.
What Jesus did was incredible and we will always be eternally grateful for all that He did on the cross. But again, what seems so fascinating is what He provided for us. It says that we shall not perish, but have everlasting life. Have you ever thought why would we need to live forever? In addition to the fact that God just loves us and wants us to be with Him, here is another reason why we would need to have eternal life. The Bible says this:
Psalms 90:2 – NKJV – Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
God is an eternal Being. When it says that from “everlasting to everlasting, you are God”, it speaks of His eternal nature. It’s mind boggling to realize that God never had a beginning nor never will have an end! He truly is the Great “I AM” as He stated to Moses in Exodus 3:14. He always existed and He will always exist. King Solomon, when building a temple for the Lord had this to say:
1 Kings 8:27 – NKJV – “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!
How big is God? Solomon said that the “heaven of heavens” could not contain Him! Scripture says that God “inhabits eternity”.
Isaiah 57:15 – NKJV – For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
As incredible as it sounds, God transcends time, space and the entire universe. He is bigger than all of His known creation! That being said, the reason why we will need to live forever is that it will take all of eternity to learn of Him. We never will never know everything there is to know about God because He is simply too big!
Imagine, spending all of eternity learning of the One who loved us so much, that He sent His Son Jesus Christ into this world to reveal to us who He really was (Hebrews 1:3) and to die for the sins of mankind, so that we could be called His children and be able to fellowship and have a relationship with Him throughout all eternity. What love! Here’s what the Scripture says:
1 John 3:1 – NKJV – Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
So, why eternal life? Why live forever with bodies that will be resurrected and transformed when He returns for us in His 2nd coming? (read1 Corinthians 15:35-58). Well, because, that’s about how long it’s going to take to get to learn of Him. All of eternity! And as the saying goes, even that will be a “drop-in-the-bucket”……
God Bless!
