Unravelling the Mystery of Heaven

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES Eternal Realities

Unravelling the Mystery of Heaven By Rick Warren — Mar 20, 2015 “No eye has ever seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT, second edition) My family lived in Northern California when I was a little boy. One time we took a family vacation to Disneyland. As we were driving, my dad tried to explain to me what Disneyland would be like. It was a waste of time, because you can’t understand Disneyland unless you experience it. Some experiences are simply unexplainable. The same is true about Heaven. We can’t compare Heaven to anything we’ve experienced on Earth. The planet where we now reside is just a poor — very poor — carbon copy of the place God has prepared for us in eternity. The Bible hints at this mystery in 1 Corinthians 2:9: “No eye has ever seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (NLT, second edition). Although human words can’t properly explain the divine mysteries of Heaven, we do know a little about what Heaven will be like. We’ll be reunited with every other believer. (Hebrews 12:22-23) The book of Hebrews tells us that every believer who has ever lived will be in Heaven with us. That includes every person you’ve ever known who followed Jesus and the children who never had the opportunity to make that decision. We’ll have rewards. (Luke 6:35) The Bible mentions rewards in Heaven often. You’ll be rewarded for your good actions — your generosity, your service, and your good character. God watches everything. You have to decide where you want to be rewarded — on this, temporary side of eternity or on the side that lasts forever. We’ll have responsibilities. (Luke 16:10-12) You’ll work in Heaven. Here’s the difference, though: You’ll use your God-given SHAPE to do what you love to do. You’ll be 100 percent fulfilled by the work you do. I don’t know what your responsibility will be in Heaven; Luke 16 says that will depend on how you handled your responsibilities here on Earth. We’ll find rest in Heaven. (Hebrews 4:9-11) For many of us, eternal rest in Heaven sounds really good. After a lifetime of work, we’ll rest in Heaven like never before. Yes, we’ll work, but our work in Heaven will be a restful joy, not a burden. We’ll rejoice in Heaven. (Matthew 25:21) We’re going to celebrate in Heaven! We’ll enjoy being with God in Heaven. We’ll enjoy being with one another. We’re going to “party” for eternity in Heaven. The bottom line is this: In Heaven we’ll do what we’ve been practicing here on Earth. It’ll be an amazing adventure! No one can fully describe it on this side of eternity. But you won’t want to miss it. PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over Try to explain to someone the most amazing place you’ve ever visited. After you do so, ask yourself why it’s so hard to explain Heaven to others.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IlVfkY5q54 Who is someone you’re looking forward to being reunited with in Heaven? Why? If you’re going to work in Heaven and do something that fits you perfectly and you love doing, what kind of work do you think you’ll do?

A Habit of Prayer TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “To You, O LORD, I called, and to the Lord I made supplication.” (Psalm 30:8, NASB) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria God promises so many things to those who call on Him. He is always listening, He is always ready to receive us when we come to Him. The question is, how often are you calling on Him? A lot of times people think, “Oh I need to pray about that.” But then they get busy about their day and distracted with life. But thinking about praying isn’t the same as praying. Knowing that you need to pray isn’t the same as praying. We have to be diligent to make time every day, throughout the day, to stop and pray and call on Him. One way to develop a habit a prayer is to have a prayer partner, a friend who you agree to connect with and pray together. It doesn’t have to be long or formal. But scripture tells us there is power in agreement. When two or more come together in His Name, He is there. If you don’t have a prayer partner, Jesus will be your prayer partner! Just make sure you carve out time each day to develop a habit of prayer! A PRAYER FOR TODAY Father, thank You for Your promises and many blessings for those who are faithful to seek You in prayer. Help me to be faithful, help me to be diligent to keep you first in everything I do. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.