Now they know!

And it’s only the beginning

The most joyous yet heart wrenching teaching in the Bible for me is the reality of eternity. For Jesus described a narrow road to life and a broad road to destruction, highlighting a choice between eternal life and eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46). God has put eternity into man's heart, yet man cannot possibly fathom what God has done and will do from eternity to eternity.

Jesus defined eternal life as “that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3). Eternal life is a free gift received through faith in Jesus, offering deliverance from perishing. Oh, but it’s much more than just that. It’s a moment by moment relationship with the One who created all things from nothing with His Word. If you want to learn more about the “Big Bang” see Genesis 1:1. We can trust God’s Word as written.

You and I were placed in this particular time and place for His purposes. It is an infinitesimally brief within the span of eternity. No matter how many “things” we accumulate in life or how many tasks we achieve, they are filthy rags apart from our devotion to Christ. Spiritual wisdom and understanding come from God alone and are gifted to those who seek the Lord with pure hearts. These are indeed eternal.

But Jesus also warns about the final judgment found in Matthew 26. “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Most of us don’t really think about this, perhaps ever. We’re too busy with life in Earth and all it has to offer. Indeed all that man has to offer, which is usually nothing more than smoke and mirrors. Those who have passed on before us, they now know about the reality of eternal life. I pray they made a wise choice. This is why it’s SO crucial to share the hope of the Gospel to those within earshot. Eternity is always one heartbeat away.

Rest assured that when you place your faith in Jesus Christ you are eternally secure, as no one can snatch you from Jesus or the Father’s hand (John 10:28-29). Moreover, eternal life begins now for believers, not just after death, involving a present transformation and a future hope of a unified heaven and earth. Eternal life is truly a gift, one that demands out total devotion to the One who died for us so we could accept it.

If you’ve ever seen James Cameron’s Titanic you’ll remember the scene at the bow as the “unsinkable” ship begins to recede into the ocean. The camera cuts to a “man of the cloth” who quotes part of Revelation: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”

This is our Creator speaking to us. Don’t make the mistake of worshipping the creation rather than the Creator. He is the potter and all of creation is His clay. At least that’s one way of looking at it.

Amen, come Lord Jesus!

Jim