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Chuck's Article
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Chuck's Article
In my Father’s house are many rooms...
With these words, Jesus sought to bring comfort to the aching hearts of his disciples. Little did they understand the significance of what He was about to do, let alone where He would ultimately go. The cross and the tomb would be the final leg of a journey on His way back to His rightful place of glory alongside the Father.
I am going there to prepare a place for you... Isn’t it nice to know that our future is not just an afterthought? That Jesus himself is preparing, making ready, putting the final touches on our new home. I don’t know about you, but I am hoping our new home has a big porch with a swing on it; lots of climbing trees in the yard and no mosquitos! Sound too good to be true? Well, it’s even better than anything we could ever imagine.
My thoughts have been wandering a bit today. I received news from a cousin of mine that my Aunt Dorothy passed away at the age of 91. She was a gracious woman. An expression of Jesus’ love. Only four years ago my father passed away. I still miss him dearly as I sift through the old photographs and letters he wrote. This morning, my dad and his big sister enjoyed a mini family reunion, along with other loved ones who have gone before. Once again, I am left to imagine just what that reunion will be like.
That you also may be where I am... As great as that family reunion sounds, seeing Jesus will be the ultimate joy of our homecoming. This joy has been expressed in the words of hundreds of gospel hymns and worship songs. From the old standby, “When We All Get To Heaven” to the contemporary “I Can Only Imagine.” The many songwriters have captured the incredible delight of what we now can only imagine. “When we all see Jesus, we’ll sing and shout the victory!” Does this get your heart reeling a bit? Does the thought of Heaven excite you? Does the anticipation fill you with a sense of wonder? Is your mind filled with questions about what Heaven will be like? Or perhaps you are like the little boy who was not too thrilled about the preacher’s sermon on Heaven. When asked why he was troubled the lad replied, “I thought they were loading a bus this afternoon!” As Christians, we live in the tension of the ‘here and now’ and the ‘not yet’. We’re excited about the prospect of Heaven, but we would just as soon wait for the next bus. Or, like Paul we might be saying, “what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.” He sums it up with these words, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Think about it this way... either way I win!
On March 30 we are going to kick off a series of messages on Heaven with a musical tribute to Heaven. We’ll be singing lots of hymns and worship songs that remind us of the joys of Heaven. Then in the following weeks we will be studying what the Bible has to say to us about Heaven. Are you ready for the fun? To get things started, we are inviting you to submit a photo or two of somebody you are looking forward to seeing again in Heaven. Pick up an information sheet at the church office and turn your photos in no later than March 23rd.
You know the way to the place where I am going. By the end of this series of messages, my prayer is that we will not only have a better understanding of what Heaven will be like, but we will be excited about sharing the hope we have in Christ with others. The fact is, unless the prospect of Heaven excites us we can not expect others to be too thrilled about spending an eternity in the presence of the Lord. See you Sunday! Chuck |
