Understanding Eternity: A Biblical Perspective

Opening Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

We come before You today with hearts full of gratitude and awe for the incredible gift of life and the promise of eternity. As we gather to begin this sermon series on the afterlife, we ask for Your presence to be felt among us. Open our hearts and minds to the truths of Your Word.

Lord, we acknowledge that You have set eternity in our hearts, and we yearn to understand more about what lies beyond this life. Help us to grasp the depth of Your love and the significance of the eternal promises You have given us.

Guide us through Your Holy Spirit as we explore the Scriptures. Give us wisdom and clarity to comprehend Your teachings about Heaven and Hell, and let these truths transform our lives. May our understanding of eternity shape our values, decisions, and actions, drawing us closer to You and leading us to live in a way that honors You.

Bless each person here today. Soften our hearts to receive Your message and empower us to share the hope of eternity with others. We pray that this series will deepen our faith and commitment to You.

We dedicate this time to You, Lord. May Your name be glorified in all that we do and say. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Good morning, church! Let me first before we get started in today's message say a personal word of thanks to all the VBS works, could you please stand. We thank the LORD for each of you and how God used you and worked through your life to reach the kids with the message of the Gospel.

Today, we begin a sermon series on a topic that touches the deepest part of our existence: the afterlife.

Afterlife is a belief that refers to the continuation of a person’s existence after physical death; often associated with the concepts of heaven, hell, and judgment.

The book of Job asks a question about the afterlife very simply: “If a man dies, will he live again?” (Job 14:14). Asking the question is easy; more difficult is finding someone to answer the question with authority and experience. There are many in today’s world and age who do not believe in God and thus the afterlife

I don’t believe in an afterlife, so I don’t have to spend my whole life fearing hell, or fearing heaven even more. For whatever the tortures of hell, I think the boredom of heaven would be even worse.146

Isaac Asimov

G. B. Hardy, a Canadian scientist, once said,

“I have only two questions to ask. One, has anyone ever defeated death? Two, did he make a way for me to do it also?”

The answer to both of Hardy’s questions is “yes.” One Person has both defeated death and provided a way for everyone who puts their trust in Him to overcome it as well.

1 Corinthians 15:54–55 NKJV

54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”

We will explore what the Bible says about our eternal destiny, focusing on both Heaven and Hell in the coming weeks. Today, we start by understanding eternity itself.

We all ponder what happens after we take our last breath. This series aims to provide a Biblical perspective on this profound question. We’ll dive deeper into scriptures to understand the reality and implications of eternity, allowing these truths to transform our lives.

God Has Set Eternity in the Human Heart

Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart,” This verse highlights that God has placed a sense of eternity in our hearts, an inherent awareness that there is more to life than what we see.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 NKJV

11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.

The Inherent Desire for Eternity

The Human Longing for Something Beyond This Life

Every culture and civilization has grappled with the concept of the afterlife. There is a universal longing for something beyond this temporal existence, a desire for a reality that transcends the limits of our earthly life.

Cultural and Historical Views on the Afterlife

Throughout history, various cultures have envisioned different versions of the afterlife. Ancient Egyptians had elaborate burial practices to ensure a safe journey to the afterlife. Greeks believed in a shadowy underworld. Even today, many people hold diverse beliefs about what happens after death.

The Bible’s Unique Perspective on Eternity

The Bible offers a unique and authoritative perspective on eternity. It teaches that our souls are eternal and that there are two possible destinations after this life: Heaven and Hell. This dichotomy is not just about the afterlife but profoundly affects our present lives.

Jesus’ Promise of Eternal Life

Jesus Christ is the one person who can speak with real authority (and experience) concerning the afterlife. What gives Him sole authority to speak of heaven is that He came from there: “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man” (John 3:13).

The Lord Jesus, with His firsthand experience of heaven, provides us with three fundamental truths about life after death:

1. There is an afterlife.

2. When a person dies, there are two possible destinations.

3. There is one way to ensure a positive experience after death.

First, Christ frequently affirms the existence of an afterlife. For example, in an encounter with the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, Jesus said, Mark 12:26–27

Mark 12:26–27 NKJV

26 But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken.”

In another passage, Jesus comforts His disciples by telling them of the afterlife. They can look forward to being with Him: John 14:1–3

John 14:1–3 NKJV

1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 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. 3 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.

Jesus also speaks authoritatively about the two different destinies that await in the afterlife.

In the account of the rich man and Lazarus, Jesus says, Luke 16:22–23

Luke 16:22–23 NKJV

22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

Note, there is no purgatory for those who die; they go directly to their eternal destiny. Jesus taught more on the different destinies of the righteous and the wicked in Matthew 25:46 and John 5:25–29

Matthew 25:46 NKJV

46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

John 5:25–29 NKJV

25 Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice 29 and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.

Jesus emphasized that what determines a person’s eternal destination is whether or not they have faith in God’s only begotten Son. The need for faith is clear: John 3:15–18

John 3:15–18 NKJV

15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

For those who repent of their sin and receive Jesus Christ as their Savior, the afterlife will be an eternity spent enjoying God. For those who reject Christ, however, the afterlife will be quite different.

Jesus describes their destiny as “darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” Matthew 8:12

Matthew 8:12 NKJV

12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

As the heaven-sent authority on the afterlife, Jesus warns us to choose wisely: Matthew 7:13–14

Matthew 7:13–14 NKJV

13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Conclusion

Jesus has made the way for us.

John 14:6 “6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

John 10:9 “9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.”

We don’t deserve such a gift.

Romans 3:23 “23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Romans 6:23 “23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 5:8 “8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 10:9–10 “9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Romans 10:13 “13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.””

Ephesians 2:8–9 “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for setting eternity in our hearts and for the assurance of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Guide us as we explore these profound truths about the afterlife. Help us to live with an eternal perspective, prioritizing what truly matters. Strengthen our relationship with You, and give us the courage to share the hope of eternity with others. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.