Is Heaven real?

Far, far away, in the vast frozen regions of the north, there is a great mountain that rises one hundred miles into the sky. That’s twenty times higher than Mount Everest. This fabled mountain is made of solid granite. According to the fable, once every thousand years (it is about to happen again) a little bird flies to the top of that great mountain, sharpens its beak, and then flies away for another thousand years. When that vast mountain of granite is thus completely worn away, one day of eternity will have passed.

Rather mind-boggling isn’t it, except, of course, it is not true. Not only does it not exist, but when ten billion trillion such mountains as this, if they did exist, were thus worn away, not one day, one hour, one minute or one second of eternity would have passed.

We have no concept of eternity.

God has placed eternity within our hearts, and dear friends, it does us good from time to time to stop and ponder that we have been created to live forever. That is a word that just presses down upon the mind, almost benumbing it. Never ending ... forever ... eternity.

WE: IDENTIFICATION (MAKE IT CLEAR THAT YOU STRUGGLE)

God has placed eternity in are hearts

We have been created to live forever.

This last Century secular humanism has been the dominant philosophy of our age.

It could be likened to a huge dome. A smoked glass dome that has descended upon the city of man. So that man is no longer able to see up to God. Nor forward to eternity. There is this life and this world and no more.

* It has so clouded the minds of humanity that they rarely think about forever.

*Rarely think about the God who has created them and has created them to live forever.

Yet God has placed eternity in are hearts and there is that dissatisfaction in our hearts. Yearning for eternity that is built into our hearts.

No matter how we ignore it we will never be satisfied with the things of this world

GOD: ILLUMINATION (THE GOAL IS TO RESOLVE THE TENSION

I. We were created with eternity in mind

A. Some three hundred times in the Scriptures, to be exact, we are told that eternity for some will be spent in heaven.

Some sixty times we are told that for others it will be spent in Hell.

B. We can see that God is a God of love, and He desires that we should be with Him in Paradise in the bliss,

* the intense happiness, the joy, the happiness—unmeasured happiness in immeasurable time. That is what God has for us, what He wishes for us.

C. Therefore, if eternity is that long and that important, surely every person on this planet should make every effort to prepare himself to make certain that he lives in heaven and doesn’t find himself an everlasting resident of Hell.

* there is an old story before the Civil War that took place in the south. It was a story about Ben and his master

* one day Ben was told that his master died and went to Heaven.

* Ben said no my master did not go to heaven. Ben shared stories about how his master prepared for trips and events. He never talked to me about heaven. He talked about all of his trips

* Well, folks, on that basis, how many people will believe that you have gone to heaven when you die?

I recall a little girl who came home from Sunday school and told her mother that we were going to live forever in heaven, and that this world was just a place where we prepared ourselves to go to heaven. Then she said, “But Mommy, I don’t see anybody making preparations.”

D. I visited a man dying of cancer several years ago. He told me that he didn’t want to be a hypocrite in front of his friends.

* I should have asked the question, and I would have, if he were not dying. It seemed to me that he wanted to be with his buddies.

* What about your Children do you want them to go to hell.

* I am not attempting t scare anyone but I wanted him to see a bigger picture.

II. Is Heaven Real

Today there are people who do not believe it is real?

If a man dies, shall he live again? Job 14:14 (ESV)

B. But Christ rose from the dead and He can say,

“I am he that liveth and was dead; and behold, I am alive forevermore” (Revelation 1:18).

Because I live [you who trust in me], you shall live also” (John 14:19).

* At last the greatest, most agonizing question ever wrenched from the lips of the bereaved was answered by Christ. He solved the greatest problem the world has ever known.

C. There are hundreds and hundreds of biblical statements about the fact that there is everlasting life.

Evidence that demands a verdict by Josh McDowell movie too

There is another movie The case for Christ & book Lee Strobel

D. Near death experiences

A dear friend shared this story. She died and saw her body as she hovering over herself. The doctor worked on her. She had peace and sensed that Jesus was near.

* Harry died from fumes in an old Jeep. He felt himself moving through a tunnel. Toward the light. Brought back.

III. WHAT IS YOUR HOPE OF HEAVEN BASED ON?

All across the country people are utterly deluded into believing they are going to go to heaven. “Be not deceived,” the Scripture tells us. Christ said,13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13–14).

There are a lot of people today who think that when they die they are going to go to heaven, but who are going to wake up to the biggest shock of their lives—and if you end up in the wrong hotel, it is forever. There is no checking out after you die.

WHAT IS YOUR HOPE OF HEAVEN BASED ON?

So how about you?

Do you really know assuredly that you are going to go to heaven?

What are you basing your hope upon?

The question that transformed my life is, “Why should God let me into heaven?”

Many people ask the question in a round about way when a family member dies.

I have heard the following answers:

“I’ve lived a good life.

I’ve kept the Ten Commandments.

I’ve followed the Golden Rule.

I’ve done the best I could.”

I was a good person lived a good life.…

There is just one problem with those answers. They are all wrong. But some of you can’t see any problem with them at all.

Why, that is just what you believe.

I hadn’t lived a good life. The Bible says,

All have turned away,

they have together become worthless;

there is no one who does good,

not even one.”

(Romans 3:12).

I hadn’t kept the Ten Commandments. Jesus said, “Did not Moses give you the law [commandments] and none of you keepeth the law?” (John 7:19).

I hadn’t lived by the Golden Rule, and I hadn’t done the best I could.

What have you done the best you could?

Are you the best son you ever could have been?

The best daughter?

The best husband?

The best wife?

The best father?

The best mother?

The best citizen?

The best church member?

I’m not the best anything I could be, and neither are you.

That is just a delusion. If that is what you are basing your hope upon—being good—you are basing your hope upon a broken reed that will give way beneath you and let you crash.

You can know you are going to go to heaven when you abandon all of those things you’ve done and realize that you don’t deserve to go to there.

I’ll tell you one thing about all the people in heaven—every single last person there is thoroughly convinced of the fact they ought not to be there.

And all of the people in Hell probably think they ought to be in heaven.

Salvation is by grace; heaven is a free gift: “I will give unto him that is athirst the fountain of the water of

life freely” (Revelation 21:6).

I hope you got that word. It is free gift. It was paid for at infinite cost by the Son of God on the cross, who endured the wrath of God for our sins.

Christ didn’t die for good people. He died for sinners like you and me, and He offers to forgive us and to cleanse us and to take us to heaven if we will turn from our sin and trust in Him and Him only.

Then we can know we are going to be with Him in paradise forever.

Do you have that blessed assurance, or are you deluding yourself with the presumption that there is something good enough about you to get you into heaven?

Wonder of wonders, marvelous to tell, God saves us not because of what we are, but in spite of what we are.

God saves us not because of what we have done, but in spite of everything we have done.

God saves us by His grace, because He is the God of all grace who is willing to freely forgive and receive all of those who will trust in His Son and invite Him to come into their hearts and lives as Lord and Savior.

Based on all the you shared I hope… you can know. If you don’t know you may not be going there.

I know I am going to go to heaven, though I know I ought to go to Hell.

I am going to go to heaven because Jesus Christ, the Son of God, suffered infinitely to pay my way in. Is that your hope?

Is that your assurance?

Is that your certainty?

we can know.

We must know. Do you?

YOU: APPLICATION (TELL PEOPLE WHAT TO DO AND WHAT THEY HAVE HEARD)

Conclusion:

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus I need You. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive you as savior and Lord. Thank you for forgiving me my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be. Amen

( Some of this material came from Dr. James Kenndy , prayer Bill Bright and Rick Warren, and some from me.)

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