CHAPTER 25: HEAVEN ASIDE...
In the last three chapters we have looked at the topic of eternity. We have looked at the subjects of hell-fire and judgment as well as the peace and eternal beauty of Heaven. The Bible says that God has put eternity in the hearts of men. This means that man in ancient times as well as modern times has an inward longing for something better than this present sin cursed world.
How many people at a funeral have said, "He/She is in a better place now."? Even people who are not religious have said those words. Yes atheists wouldn't say that but as CS Lewis has said:
"Even atheists have there moments of doubt."
Nearly every religion has their views of what a perfect afterlife will be. Even members of UFO cults believe that someday very soon an armada of spaceships will wisk all of them off to a distant planet where haterd, war, bigotry, and poverty will not exist. All of this shows that all of us have a longing for something better than this world. Something called Heaven. Could this be more evidence that we were created in God's image and long for His perfect presence?
"Okay okay", some skeptics might say, "I understand the 'gaining a ticket to Heaven' thing, but does the Gospel and the Person of Christ have any value beyond that? Is it of any value in the here and now?"
This question reminds me of a quote from the 1990 film Nuns on the Run. It went something like this:
"Some people sell life insurance. The church sells afterlife insurance. It's brilliant. It's something that most everyone should want but nobody can prove that you don't need it."
I find those words disturbing. Why? Because it assumes that our risen Saviour is little more than just a Ticket Master vendor. "Step right up and get your ticket to Heaven and then go on your merry way."
Is this how all of us are to view Jesus ? Certainly not! As believers not only do we want our souls redeemed and our sin debt cancelled, but the mature Christian will want to be everything he can be for God's glory, even in this life.
All of us have a vacuum in our heart that only Jesus can fulfill. Dr. Erwin Lutzer once said:
"All of us have a thirst for God. The problem is we 'satisfy' that thirst at other fountains."
Why do so many people abuse drugs, alcohol, sex, and relationships? Why do some people chase elusive dreams and even get their desires; yet they still feel empty inside after the cheering stops? Why do so many rich and famous people end their own lives? The answer is people need the Lord. In a world of broken dreams He's the open door.
Jesus said:
"The thief does not come except to steal, and kill, and destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly." (John 10:10)
God doesn't want just to save us. He wants each of us to live a fulfilling life this side of the grave.
Dr. Tony Campolo once asked a group of people, "How long have you lived?" Some of them answered, "Well I'm X number years old."
"No no", Tony would say, "That's just how long your heart has been pumping blood. How long have you really lived?"
Tony's point was, don't settle for mediocrity. Really live the Gospel in a way that shows newness of life. Don't settle for the passing things of this world. Allow God to show you His way. Live for what counts for eternity.
Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10:
"We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God has before ordained that we should walk in them."
What was just one of Paul's many good works that God pre-ordained for him?
"...I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me FOR YOU..." (Col. 1:25)
Here Paul was telling the small but growing church at Colosse that he was responsible to God to serve as their mentor. He was to be there for them. Clearly Paul had a life that was filled with difficult responsibilities. Yet it was a life that was filled with purpose and meaning.
Hebrews 11 contains name after name of such people who followed God and changed history. Abraham became a father of a great nation. Moses became a deliverer. Martin Luther, instead of remaining just another German monk, stood up and took a stand against the corrupt papacy. His 1518 stand sparked the Reformation. Today Luther is described as "a man who shook kingdoms." (Yes I know Luther's name is not found in Hebrews 11) The point here is that God can do some amazing, even history making things, through ordinary people who are willing to trust and obey Him.
In addition to victory over the grave and a meaningful life containing eternal significance, Jesus offers us strength for the day.
"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings of eagles." (Isaiah 40:31)
"Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." (Is. 41:10)
"...the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits." (Daniel 11:32)
"For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)
Yes God can give us the grace to do His will but does that mean that we will never fail? Does this mean God will never give us more than we can handle ? The answer to the first question is of course "No". The answer to the second question requires a little thought.
There is an incident recorded in Acts 19 where a group of carnal Christians attempted to perform an exorcism. They even exorcised the demon of the possessed man in the name of Jesus. Were they successful? No. Not only did they not succeed but the demon attacked them and left them spiritually wounded. What went wrong? They used the name of Christ but for whatever reason, they didn't have His power. Since they had no divine power they also had no divine authority or protection. The end results were failure, confusion, and discouragement. Demons love to win battles against carnal believers.
God wants us to be Jesus-sufficent not self sufficent. David won the battle against Goliath only because he relied on God not just his own human abilities. When we trust and rely on God He will give us the grace to face-down our "Goliaths". God's will done God's way will not lack God's support.
There is one other thing that needs to be said on the subject of strength, encouragement. Encouragement literally means to pour courage into someone's heart. All of us need encouragement from time to time. The two best places to find it are the Bible and a godly caring friend.
Believe it or not we are not expected to go through life's journey alone. God's people need eachother to help and encourage one another when bad times strike.
"Bear one another's burdens." (Galatians 6:2)
"Two are better than one...For when they fall one will lift up his companion." (Ecclesiastes 4:9 and 10)
King Hezekiah of Judah was one guy who really needed some outside help. Even though he was a godly, rich, and powerful king; the time came when he faced a powerful foe, the king of Assyria and his armies. Hezekiah had good reason to be concerned. The Assyrian king was on a winning streak. City after city fell to his army. Now he wanted to take Jerusalem and plunder its wealth.
I'm sure Hezekiah also realized that when two kings went to war, the losing king did not go comfortably into exile. In many cases the losing king was captured and executed.
Hezekiah did what he could to strengthen his little league army against a superior major league invading foe. But he did something else. He humbly turned to God. Shortly thereafter God brought a godly friend into his life, the prophet Isaiah.
Second Chronicles 32:20 tells us that the two men met together and prayed together about the dire situation.
"Now for this cause, King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah...prayed and cried out to Heaven."
They met. They prayed. And God acted. That very night God sent out an angel who brought death to the entire Assyrian army. Their wicked king rushed back to Ninevah on a fast horse and was later slain by one of his sons. Jerusalem was saved.
Having problems? Confide with a trusted and caring friend. For those facing extreme difficulties there are hotlines available. One is 1-800-SUICIDE which offers free and confidential services. There is also Thehopeline.com or 1-800-394-HOPE. This service is open 24/7 to callers under thirty. Callers over thirty are given a different toll free number.
There is also IMAlive.org which offers online counselling for those who are more comfortable communicating online rather than by phone. Trained counsellors are available 24/7 to work with people facing troubles such as domestic abuse, financial difficulties, trama brought on by a violent crime, and suicidal temptations.
Don't suffer in silence. A problem shared is a problem half solved. Hezekiah was a godly, rich, and powerful king and even he needed a listening hear. Don't hold to the false belief that if I have God, I don't need people. God often does His best work through people. Finally God has given us His eternal Word which can give hurting people hope.
1. The Bible reminds us that no matter how terrible this world becomes, Jesus will never forsake His elect.
"I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20)
What can be more comforting to a believer living in an uncertain world, that no matter how bad conditions become, Jesus will never abandon us? Our pain is His pain and our tears are His tears. Also His eternal home will be our eternal home.
2. The Bible reminds us that this present world is not our eternal home.
"... in the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
This present world can inflict a lot of rejection and persecution on those who stand for Christ. This world isn't everything. Peer rejection and persecution are temporary. Glory is forever. The Bible can remind us that no matter how nasty Satan and his useful idiots become, he will someday have his place in the lake of fire while the church is forever safe in Heaven.
3. The Bible reminds us that the cure for godly sorrow over past sins, failures, and bad decisions is confession.
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unright- eousness." (I John 1:9)
When King David committed adultry he went on to experience godly sorrow. Sin has a way of ruining our joy. In Psalm 51 King David confessed his sin. God forgave him and "restored onto him the joy of his salvation." If God can forgive David of the sins of adultery and murder then He can forgive you.
4. The Bible promises that evil will not have the last word.
"The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all nations that forget God." (Psalm 9:17)
Can restricting access to the written Word actually help ruin a country? Let's visit a small impoverished Carribean country about 600 miles off the American mainland that is about the size of Vermont - Haiti.
In the years following brutal French colonial rule, Haiti declared its independence in January 1804. What followed were struggles for national unification as well as good and bad presidents who came and went.
The worst chapter in Haiti's history started in 1957 with the election of Dr. Francois Duvalier as president. Duvalier was a medical doctor who received his degrees in medicine from the University of Haiti and the University of Michigan. Early on he worked in the countryside treating patients who were strickened with typhus, yaws, and maleria. At the time of his election Duvalier seemed like the right man for the job. He had many admirers and supporters who refered to him as "Papa Doc".
Yet Dr. Duvalier had a darker side. Shortly after coming to power he had his political rivals murdered. He created a rural militia called the Ton Ton Macout who terrorized the citizenry into submission. This state terrorist militia would rape women and torture and hack to death with machettes anyone who opposed the regime. The result of all this oppression was a"brain drain" in which many of Haiti's highest skilled and educated professionals fled the country. All who were left were the poor and uneducated.
Dr. Duvalier also tried to use the voodoo religion to instill fear in his people. In 1964, when he proclaimed himself "president for life", he claimed that he was the incarnation of a voodoo spirit, a strange claim for a born-Catholic turned atheist. He restricted religious freedom and even changed the words to the Lord's Prayer, by mandate, so that Haitians would pray only to him.
All toll the Duvalier regime claimed between 30K to 60K lives. Duvalier's reign of tyranny continued until his death in 1971.
That year his son Jean Claude took over the reins of power. But there was no change in government policy. The Ton Ton Macout continued their unholy rampages in the countryside while Jean Claude used his position to pocket millions of dollars in corporate export profits for himself. He feathered his own nest while most Haitians lived in extreme poverty. All of this continued until he was urged to step down in 1986 thanks to pressure from the Reagan administration.
The Duvalier father-son combination did much to ruin the country. Today Haiti is the only non-African country that is among the ten poorest countries in the world. Wouldn't the Haitian people and their leadership had faired better had they feared God and honored the Bible?
Why do dictators hate the Bible so much? Here are three reasons.
1. The Bible is divinely revealed truth. In John 17:17 Jesus prayed, "Thy Word is truth."; not "Thy Word is some abstract unknowable version of Your view of truth." The Bible is the epitomy of truth. Therefore it is possible for us to know truth.
The first step in resisting a lie is spotting a lie. We do this by examining man's words in light of the Bible. If the propaganda ministry claims that the dictator is above God's law whereas the Bible says that God is no respector of persons (Romans 2:21) and that He alone is sovereign, then who do we believe?
2. The Bible is to be the final authority in a believer's life. It doesn't matter what politicans say on an issue, what matters is what God has already said in His Word.
A question critics might ask is "Where in the Bible does it say that the Bible is always to be the final authority?" When Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days, the day came when the devil tempted Him to turn the stones to bread and have a meal. How did Jesus respond?
"Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." (Mat. 4:4)
Why did Jesus resist the temptation? What is wrong with eating bread when one is hungry? Most of us eat bread and breaded products most every day. Bread was kosher. It wasn't like He was tempted to eat pork.
Most likely Jesus made a vow to His Father to fast for 40 days. If He had obeyed His hunger and ate, He would have compromised His integrity. He would have sinned. He would no longer qualify as our perfect sinbearer.
The word "bread" obviously refers to the food that we need to eat. However the word, at least in this passage, could also serve as a metaphor to represent the temporary things of this present world. This would include the commands of authority figures like business bosses and government officials.
When a boss or a government official issues an edict, that authority is a type of "bread". Note that Jesus respected civil authority but He also put divine authority over human authority. Therefore that "bread" isn't necessarily bad unless it conflicts with divine commands.
Example: When a boss pays you to do a job, you do the job. When a boss tells you to do something that is illegal or even unethical, you don't do it. God's Word is to be held in higher esteem than the boss's "bread".
Now let's get back to government. Yes we as Christians are called upon to be good and godly citizens (Dictators love to quote Romans 13:1). However just as in the above example, when government "bread" clashes with divine law, then we are to obey God by honoring His Word. The aim of the true believer is always to please God. What the dictator says or thinks is secondary.
Imagine if a law were passed anywhere in the world that would prohibit parents from teaching their children the contents of the Bible. Now Deuteronomy 6:7 commands (not suggests) that we are to teach our children the contents of God's Word. Why? Because their souls are precious to Him. He loves them and He wants them to be all they can be for HIS glory. How should we respond?
"We will obey God rather than man." (Acts 5:29)
Jesus reminds us:
"Do not fear those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him (God) who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell." (Mat. 10:28)
The Psalmist wrote:
"I will speak Your testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed." (Psalm 119:46)
As parents we have a God given responsibility to teach our children right from wrong. It is right to give God the glory due His name and it is wrong not to give God the glory due His name. This type of God-centered obedience, based on firm conviction, isn't always easy or popular but it is necessary. Not to take a stand would be to put the dictator above God which would make the dictator into an idol.
All of this shows us why complete religious freedom and complete totalitarianism cannot possibly co-exist. True religious freedom is not only being free to worship as we choose but also to be free to say "No" to the government when our religious convictions are being violated. It is government's responsibility to defend not infringe on that freedom.
The Voice of the Martyrs Ministries has produced an excellent book entitled Hearts of Fire. It is a collection of eight different true stories of eight different women from eight different countries. These women experienced rejection, depravation, imprisonment, and physical abuse from Islamists, communists, and tribal chieftans because of their faith in Christ. Because of all the events of abuse of power, this book is difficult to read. Yet God was with them and was able to deliver all of them from captivity. Anyone who does not appreciate our American freedom needs to read this book.
Fortunately we Americans do not live in a dictatorship Our Founding Fathers wanted a country that valued and offered religious freedom. Bear in mind that many people fled Europe for America to escape religious persecution.
However in modern times those freedoms are eroding. Militant secularists are doing what they can to impose more and more restrictions on religious expression. The day may come when preaching against sexual sins or preaching against a false gospel will be considered "hate speech" or a "hate crime".
As Thomas Jefferson has said:
"The price of liberty is eternal vigilance."
Here is a question I would like to ask to anyone living in a repressive country like North Korea, China, Laos, or Cuba: Will any of those party or government bureacrats care at all about your soul once it is cast into the lake of fire? Jesus would care. Why not live for Him instead?
3. The Bible tells us that we are to serve one another. Every believer is called to be humble, patient, selfless and caring.
"The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them ...but not so among you...he who is greatest among you let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves." (Luke 22:25 and 26)
Dictators are boastful and proud. Jesus demands humility and godliness. We are to live out the active ministry described in I Corinthians 13. Here is a short test: whenever the words "love/charity" appear in verses 4-8, insert your name. Do these words describe you?
When God grants someone political authority, He always holds that person accountable as to how that authoriy is used. Authority brings responsibility and all of us are responsible to God. Also bear in mind that power in and of itself is not a virtue unless it is used to help the innocent.
Some people are meant to be leaders while others are not. Yet all of us are called upon to be servants of Christ. No political leader has a right to stand on a pedestal and demand worship and unconditional obedience. That position is reserved only for our Heavenly Father. Only Jesus has a right to be called "Master". God does not want to have egomaniacs and kleptocrats in His ranks.
One more point on leadership needs to be made. In ancient Israel the Israelite kings were required by God's law to know and study the Word of God.
"...you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses,...when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write a copy of this law in a book...And it shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes." (Dueteronomy 17:15,18, and 19,)
Wouldn't this be a better world if more political world leaders valued and studied God's perfect Word?
So in our post-modern world, is the Bible still needed? Is it still relevant or is it as out-dated as the tales of Greek mythology? Consider these important observations.
1. The Bible serves as a moral compass so that we can know good from evil and truth from lies.
"Thy Word is truth." (John 17:17)
In our post-modern world of moral relativism, the Bible teaches us to think with our biblical convictions instead of just our emotions. We learn to make decisions that will enrich rather than ruin our lives. How many young people got into drugs or porn only because their friends thought it was a cool thing to do?
When public opinion, an influential scholar, the liberal media, a respected politican, or even a Bible teacher says ____ yet ____ is contrary to the Word of God then we still are to side with the Bible. We are to be like the Berean Christians in Acts 17:11 who:
"...searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so." God declares His Word to be true therefore:
"...let God be true but every man a liar." (Romans 3:4)
2. The Bible reveals all the spiritual absolutes that we NEED to know in order to come into a right and meaningful relationship with God.
How do we know that God is holy? The Bible declares it.
"...For the Lord our God is holy." (Psalm 99:9)
How amazing is the glorious holiness of God? Consider this conversation that God had with Moses:
"And he (Moses) said, "Please, show me Your glory."
Then He (God) said, " I will make all My goodness pass before you and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you...You cannot see My face for no man shall see Me and live. Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen." (Exodus 33:18 -23)
God's holiness is a trait that we take too lightly. His holiness and His awesome glory go together. I can't imagine what it must have been like for Moses to have lived through that event!
How do we know that man is sinful? The Bible declares it.
"But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags." (Isaiah 64:6)
How do we know that sin offends God? The Bible declares it.
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness..." (Romans 1:18)
How do we know that God will judge sinners? The Bible declares it.
"Then He will say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you are cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matthew 25:41)
How do we know that the real Jesus of the Bible is the ONLY hope for anyone to escape this judgment? The Bible declares it.
"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Along with attacking the relevance of the Bible, post-modernists will claim that the Bible is anti-science. Unlike medieval superstition, the Bible is not anti-science. Science and the Bible are partners. Science gives us an understanding of our natural world. With that understanding we can find cures and treatments for diseases and find ways to make our lives better.
The Bible gives us an understanding of our spiritual world. The above mentioned "must knows" ( the holiness of God, the sinfulness of man, and the plan of salvation) are spiritual truths that are covered in the Bible. Without the Bible those same spiritual truths would still be out there but we would have no knowledge of them. God has taken the inititive and has seen to it that we have access to those truths by giving us His written Word. What more could we ask?
The Bible is truly a remarkable book. It contains fulfilled prophecies and it has withstood the test of time. It is tangible proof that the words of Christ outlasted the mighty Roman Empire.
The French skeptic Francois Voltaire once predicted that Christianity and the Bible would vanish from the world stage within 100 years after his death.
Since Voltaire's death in 1778 the Bible has been translated either whole or in-part in over 1000 of the world's languages. This means that its influence can be found in many places throughout the globe. And why not? No other book offers its readers such things as: knowledge of spiritual absolutes, warnings to the ungodly, comfort to those who have faced tragedy, and the revelation of future eternal victory for all of God's elect. Clearly the Bible tells us what we need to know rather than what we want to hear.
"It is an invaluable and inexhaustable mine of knowledge and virtue." - John Quincy Adams
"The whole hope of human progress is suspended on the ever-growing influence of the Bible." - William Seward
"I believe the Bible is the best gift God has given to man. All the good from the Saviour of the world is communicated to us through this book." - Abraham Lincoln
"Heaven and earth will pass away but MY WORDS will by NO means pass away." (Mat. 24:35)
The Bible tells us in I Timothy 4:8:
"...godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life THAT NOW IS and of that which is to come."
This verse really cuts to the heart of the matter. It is really answering the "Heaven aside..." question; that is Heaven aside is there any value to the Christian faith aside from gaining a ticket to Heaven? Or putting the question another way; has the Christian faith enriched our present world in any way over the past two millenia?
First let's look at Christianity's biggest rival, Islam. What has Islam given the world? Islam has a 1400 year history of bloodshed, honor killings, child brides, wife beatings, anti-Semiticism, and the rise of Islamic theocratic fascism that denies basic human rights to Christians, Jews, and atheists in 44 countries.
Islam has an undying hatred for the modern state of Israel and an undying hatred for America and the American way of life.
Represenative government and religious freedom are not part of the Islamic mindset and never will be. Anyone who disagrees is just plain naive. The events of 9-11 plus countless other jihad terrorist attacks prove that our world has much to fear from this religious "Frankenstein".
Now let's look at Christianity. On page 3 of his book "What if Jesus Had Never Been Born?" the late Dr. D. James Kennedy wrote:
"Despite its humble origins, the Church has made more changes on earth for the good than any other movement of force in history."
Since Jesus came into our miserable sin cursed world and uttered the words:
"I am come that they might have life and that they may have it more abundantly"
...He did more than just pay the penalty for our sins. His life radically transformed the world and changed the course of human history. He affected not just religious studies but ALL studies. The arts, the sciences, the social sciences, economics, politics, and education have all been advanced because of Christian influence.
Dr. Kennedy's book shows that Christianity has brought about many blessings and advances such as hospitals, public education, literacy for the masses, university education, advances in medicine, private enterprise, represenative government, elevation and respect for women, the abolition of slavery, higher moral standards, the civil advancement of primative cultures, and countless charities such as the Salvation Army which was founded by William Booth, a Methodist minister.
Yes the sins of the church are not simply brushed aside but condemned. We cannot deny that many who claim Christ are not Christ-like. The Crusades, the Catholic Inquisitions, the witch hunts, and the terrorism and murders done by klansmen were all tragic realities, done by religionists, that deserve harsh denunciation.
More recently were the sex scandals of the late 1980s involving well known tele-evangelists. Of course all of that spawned several late night comedy routines.
Mahatma Ghandi once said:
"I like your Christ but I don't like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."
Satan loves to point out to his people the hypocrisy that exists within the church. Therefore let us all remember that we are here to represent Jesus and not ourselves.
The fact still remains that the true body of believers over the centuries has made astonishingly positive strides to better our present fallen world. No skeptic should ever say that human history would have been better had Jesus never been born.
"He was born in an obscure village. He worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30. He then became an itinerant preacher.
"He never held public office. He never had a family or owned a house. He didn't go to college. He had no credentials but Himself.
"19 centuries have come and gone and today He is the central figure of the human race.
"All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that One Solitary Life."