Eternal Destinations

 When we leave this world for what lies ahead, each of us will take our memories and our senses.

In the parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), Jesus tells us of the consequences of not believing God (the first man's destination) and of believing God (the second man's destination).
Verse 23: The unbeliever knew pain. He had sight and could recognize other people.
Verse 24: The unbeliever could speak. He knew thirst but he was still selfish.
Verse 25: The unbeliever could hear.
Verse 26: The unbeliever had the memories of his family. And the unbeliever knew he didn't want any of his family in the horrible place he was in. But his desires were limited to those of his own family. He couldn't cross from hell into Paradise after he was dead.

Back up to Verse 23, the unbelieving soul saw the beggar he had despised near Abraham, (whom he recognized though Abraham had died long before either man was born) in Paradise. The believer knew rest, peace, comfort. And while he had all his faculties, the unbelieving soul's wants were not directed at him, though some were about him.

Paradise is where the righteous went before Christ Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead. But we know that now, when we die, we will see Jesus immediately. Acts 7:55-56. We will have all of our faculties intact. And we will see Jesus. That's the believer's destination.

BEST OF ROBIN MARK COMPILATION (listened to this while I studied)

A Crucified Life - - Is At Home With The Lord

 

2 Corinthians 5:8

We are confident, then, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 1736

At Home:  to be in one's own country, to be at home

From the Greek word 'endémeó' (pronounced en-day-meh'-o): to be among one's own people, dwell in one's own country.

    Someday. Someday always comes. God's people have been longing for someday ever since we became separated from God in the garden of Eden. We look forward to the day when we are no longer apart and are in His presence permanently.

    On this side of heaven we get glimpses of eternity. We read of this place called heaven in the Scriptures. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:12 "Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."

    Its size cannot be measured. Its landscape is dotted with a variety of buildings, animals and trees. Its population consists of God, His angels and His people.

GOD

>Only One God - Deuteronomy 4:39, 6:4; 1 Corinthians 8:6

>Father  - Matthew 6:9

>Spirit - John 4:24

>Love - 1 Corinthians 13:8

>Holy - Leviticus 11:44; 1 Peter 1:16

And so much more than this, God is.

HIS ANGELS

    We read of some of the different types of angels and their ministrations in God's kingdom. Seraphim (Isaiah 6:2-4) and cherubim: (2 Samuel 22:11 [living chariot]; Isaiah 37:16  [His throne]; Ezekiel 1:4-14 [descriptive].

   Archangels [chief angels, rulers of angels], mentioned specifically as archangels occurs twice in Scripture (1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Jude 1:9). All other references to archangels refers to them as princes [Daniel 10:13] and guardians [Daniel 12:1] and defenders [Revelation 12:7].

HIS PEOPLE

>Children of God - John 1:12; 1 John 3:2 

>The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD - Isaiah 62:12

>A chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession - 1 Peter 2:9 

>Martyrs - Revelation 6:9

>A great cloud of witnesses - Hebrews 12:1

Giving you just a few verses of our relationship with God.

HIS HEAVEN

>An Unshakeable Kingdom - Hebrews 12:28

>Eternal Day - Revelation 22:1-5

>Filled With Worshipers - Revelation 4:8-11; Revelation 5:11-14; Revelation 7:9-12 [point of fact: the Book of Revelation is filled with instances of worship]. 

    Someday. Someday soon. 

AT HOME WITH THE LORD

I Can Only Imagine - MercyMe

What Happened To Your Hands - Tammy Jones

Scars In Heaven - Casting Crowns

There Will Be A Day - Jeremy Camp

Hymn of Heaven - Phil Wickham

If I Could Take My Family - Tammy Jones

Holy - Jeremy Riddle & Tayla Rede

To Worship You I Live 

I Go -- Spirit Song

 I GO (for Gloria Brostowski) 

June 21-23, 1995 Matthew 6:20; John 14:1-2; Revelation 3:20

In my Father’s house are many mansions, 

Many treasures, Many crowns.

I go to prepare a place for you.

-Chorus-

I go to prepare a place for you.

When you come home, 

I’ll be waiting there, too.

I’ll have My hands outstretched to welcome you,

I go to prepare a place for you.

Truly the harvest is plenty, but laborers they are few.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations. I go.

-Chorus-

I go to prepare a place for you.

When you come home, 

I’ll be waiting there, too.

I’ll have My hands outstretched to welcome you,

I go to prepare a place for you.

The Holy Spirit is now among us; We are ready and 

We are here To reap the harvest of the nations.

We go.

-Chorus-

I go to prepare a place for you.

When you come home, 

I’ll be waiting there, too.

I’ll have My hands outstretched to welcome you,

I go to prepare a place for you.

*When I lived in Lake Geneva, one of the churches I became attached to was the local Assembly of God Church. This was written for my pastor's wife, Gloria. 

This is one of my Just For You songs. There are a few. 

The Five Senses In Eternity

THE FIVE SENSES IN ETERNITY

When God creates us, He creates us with a body, a soul and a spirit. When we die, His will has ordained that our body, our soul and our spirit be separated from each other. While our physical body remains in the ground, our soul and our spirit are taken into an eternal place. If a person is born-again according to the Word of God, then that person’s soul and spirit are taken into God’s dwelling place, heaven. If a person is not born-again before death, then that person’s soul and spirit are taken to hell. And, in either destination, we take with us many invisible aspects of our lives. 

For example, we know that our soul consists of our thoughts, our emotions and our will. Our spirit is the breath of life that was in us, placed there by God when He created us. In our soul’s mesh of thought +emotion+will is our five senses. We know this because we have in God’s Word the parable of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar, who both died, yet ended up in two entirely different places.

It is more than hot in hell, it is horrible: Luke 16:22 “the rich man was tormented”. What do we read in the next verse? The rich man could move (he lift up his head) and see (he saw the beggar in paradise). 

In verse 24, the rich man in hell could speak, feel the heat of the fire and knew thirst. Now, I looked up this chemical fact of fire to see if fire has a smell, which it does; depending on what started the fire, the smell of that fire will differ from other fires. But this is basic: Fire is the result of a chemical reaction called combustion. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames are produced. Flames consist primarily of carbon dioxide, water vapor, oxygen, and nitrogen. (from the thought company). So we know that the rich man in hell could also smell the fire that was around him. 

Verse 25 tells us the rich man could hear “But Abraham answered”. The man to whom Abraham spoke also had the ability to understand Abraham’s statements. His selfish request for the beggar to leave paradise and come to hell to aid him was denied. Not only was this denied but even if a person wished to travel between both destinations after death, it was impossible, for the chasm which separated them was far too wide to traverse (verse 26)

His selfishness (his will) continued in verses 27-31 by begging Abraham to send the beggar back topside to tell his brothers who still lived how to avoid this hell in which he found himself. For surely they would believe a dead man should he rise up out of the grave and speak the truth. Again, his request was not only denied but explained. And here the conversation, as well as the parable, ends. 

  
But it is enough for us to see that hell is real and is not a destination we should look forward to. No, the destination our souls and spirits should want to be in is the eternal dwelling place of God. There our souls are satisfied (Psalm 63:5; Psalm 34:8). There our spirits take rest (Matthew 11:28; Hebrews 4:3). In heaven we can hear, taste, touch, smell, and see. For this knowledge we turn to The Revelation of John, the last Book in our Bibles. 

Revelation 19:1 We can speak in heaven “a great voice of much people”. But not a clamoring: worship to our God. Verse 5 tells us we can hear “And a voice came out of the throne, saying”. Verse 8 we are “arrayed in fine linen”: our sense of touch is intact. Verse 9 tells us that we can taste for we are “called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb”. Every supper can be smelled, too; so we know that our sense of smell works in heaven. 

Eternal means forever, without end. Both destinations are eternal and without end. But the choice must be made now, on this side of eternity. Which destination do you want to make yours? One destination, hell, is eternal separation from God. One destination, heaven,  is eternal dwelling with God. 

While hell’s access door is unbelief (Revelation 21:8), heaven’s access Door is Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God (Acts 10:43; Romans 10:9; John 10:9; John 3:16; 1 John 4:9). While there are many more such verses which tell of God’s means of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ, these are the ones the Spirit led me to. 

Now it is your turn. Now you must make a decision and choose which side you are on: there is no middle ground here. The Word says “To day if you will hear His voice” (Psalm 95:7-8; Hebrews 3:7, 15) and again, “Today is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). 

“The Spirit and The Bride, they say, Come!” , Revelation 22:17, “Let him that is hears, come. Let him that is thirst, come. And whosoever will, let him take the Water of Life freely.” 

Ya Think?