House of Faith Ministries

include suffering and pain? What about sorrows and sicknesses? Is there going to be torment or tormentors in such an eternity? In the absence of any of the aforementioned, will I ever get bored in such an eternity? I mean, after all is said and done, how much harp playing can one human stand? It is bound to get to you after a while, isn’t it?

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Eternity is something that its very hard for us mortal humans to comprehend since we are surrounded by a world that is full of beginnings and endings. We see people that are near and dear to us leave this world, and they never come back. In one sense, life is turbulent like the weather in a Midwest state, if you don’t like the present condition, just hang around, for it will change, and usually not for the better.

 

Ecclesiastes 3:14 “I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him.” 

 

If there is an alarm that rings loudly in the hearts of men it is, It shall be forever, and our text makes it clear that God does this on purpose, so that Men should fear before Him.

 

You see, according to the Bible, the human race in general, and individuals in particular, though we all had a beginning, we will never end for we are all eternal. And we have a choice as into which eternity we eventually end up in. An eternity that once we are in it, nothing can be added to it or taken away from it. So that we should not take it lightly, because sooner or later we will all enter into that eternal place.

 

There are two eternal places to which we can go, and the choice as to which eternal place we enter is made here on the earth before we die, for that is when we enter into eternity, right after death.

 

Luke 16:22-23 “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. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.”

 

Jesus is telling us that there are two clear and distinct destinations for all humans after they die and enter into their eternal abode. One is a place of comfort and the other is a place of torments, plural.

 

Luke 16:25 “...But now he (Lazarus) is comforted and you are tormented.”

 

And not only is Jesus telling us about the difference between the two destinations but He is also testifying to the fact that, once you get there, there is no way to get out, you are there forever.

 

Luke 16:26 “And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.”

 

Outside of faith, humans seem to think that once we die, since we are not in our physical bodies anymore, that we somehow are not really alive anymore and that the so-call torments of hell are not really real, but rather, something imagined. From every experience of the faithful into the spiritual realm, of which there are many Scriptural references, the spiritual realm is always a lot more real than our present reality could ever be, and that view is confirmed by our next verse of Scripture.

 

Luke 16:27-28 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’”

 

It does not sound like the man in the torments of hell was imagining things, if anything, he sounded very logical by saying that if he could not escape the torments that he was experiencing, that at least a warning should be sent to his five brothers that were still alive, to keep them from coming into the reality of this place of which he knew his brothers, like himself before them, did not believe existed, even though the law of Moses spoke clearly about it and warned against it.

 

Luke 16:29 “Abraham said to him, ‘they have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’”

 

Out of the mouth of Jesus Himself, He is telling us that failure in our part to act upon what the Scriptures teach about eternity, that if we abdicate our responsibility to choose into which eternal destiny we want to abide, in accordance with what the Scriptures teach, that that failure will cause us to forfeit God’s eternal comfort and peace and will cause us to end up in that dreaded place of torment.

 

Now why would someone fail to act upon such important matter as the one that deals with our future eternity? They may say that they don’t believe that there is an eternity to be had, but yet our opening Scripture declares that God has put eternity into our hearts, so that right from the get go they are in violation of the Holy Scriptures.

 

Let us look at a few Scriptures that deal with this very important subject.

 

Revelation 20:12 “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things that were written in the books.”

 

Let us begin by establishing the fact that there is, according to Scripture, a final day of judgment coming, that it will comprise the physically resurrected bodies of all who were dead, that have been brought back to life to stand before the great white throne of God’s final judgment, in order for them to give an account for the actions of their lives while here on earth in their physical bodies.

 

Revelation 20:13 “The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.”

 

Let us also establish that this judgment, although it comprises the multitudes that died throughout the ages, now appearing in their resurrected bodies, that it will be a personal judgment for each one of them individually. Each one of them standing or falling based on each one’s individual actions.

 

Revelation 20:15 “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”

 

So that all of those who ignored the instructions given by the Holy Scriptures on how to have one’s name written on the Book of Life, are cast into an eternity of torments with their eternally resurrected physical bodies into an Abyss from which they can never get out of.

 

Revelation 20:10 “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

 

So now that we have seen what this one eternity looks like, let us also take a sober look at the other eternity and see what it entails.

 

Revelation 7:9-10 “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’”

 

What a contrast! You can hear the jubilation in the voices of all the redeemed from all the ages, rejoicing in the God who saved them, and in the Lamb who had delivered them out of the trials and tribulations that this world had put them through.

 

Revelation 7:16-17 “They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

 

In the book of Luke chapter 16, Jesus told us about the man that ended up in Hades, how he was tormented by the flames and its heat, and how his desire was for Lazarus to dip his hand in some water and to touch his tongue with it, to relieve some of the torment that he was suffering.

 

Here we see the opposite, not even the rays nor the heat from the sun is able to touch them, and they neither hunger nor thirst, for to them have been opened fountains of living waters. And next we see that God wipes away every tear from their eyes; the scars caused by all their pain and sufferings are finally removed as they move into a state of perfect bliss.

 

1 Corinthians 2:9 “But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’”

 

Do not even think of getting bored in this eternity; we need to let go of those antiquated images of what heaven is like, you know, like sitting on a cloud playing with the harp all day long. We need to wake up to the reality of how vast and how great the present creation is, and how much more formidable and perfect the new heavens and the new earth that we will live on for eternity are going to be.

 

Our God is so vast, His love so profound, His goodness unending, that everyday single day with Him will be a brand new exciting day filled with astonishment and unending wonders, as we behold the great and awesome marvels that He performs continuously, but most of all our daily basking in the great and perfect manifestation of His love for us.

 

Sign me up! You say, How do I get my name written in the Book of Life?

 

Romans 10:9-11, 13 “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. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame...’ For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”

 

Pray this prayer: (say this outloud)

 

Dear Jesus, I confess with my mouth that You are Lord, and I believe in my heart that God has raised You from the dead. Therefore I now confess before You that I am a sinner and I ask that You forgive me all of my sins and that You cleanse me from all unrighteousness.

 

Thank You Lord Jesus for forgiving me all of my sins and for cleansing me from all my unrighteousness.

 

I declare that You are God, that You are good, and that You are Holy. I declare that You are my God, that You have been good to me, and that by the precious blood that Your Son shed for me, to cleanse me from all my sins, that You have made me holy and have written my name in the Lambs Book of Life. Hallelujah!

 

1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

 

God willing, I will see you all who prayed this prayer for the first time in heaven someday soon.

 

Amen!