Fellowship Bible Church - Mullica, Hill N.J.

Looking forward to heaven:

•The resurrection of Jesus assures us of a restored relationship with God the Father (John 20:17).
•The resurrection of Jesus allows us to look forward to heaven with certainty (John 14:2)

John 20:17
Jesus said to her…go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

4 Stages to Restoration with God
#1: We were created to live and not die (Gen. 2:7)
#2: We chose sin and sin brought death (Gen. 2:17)
#3: Jesus chose death and paid our debt (2 Cor. 5:21)
#4: We are recreated and restored to God (2 Cor. 5:17).

#1: We were created to live and not die (Gen. 2:7)

Genesis 2:7
Then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

#2: We chose sin and sin brought death (Gen. 2:17)

Genesis 2:16-17
16 And the LORD God commanded the man… 17 of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

"Life in the Garden of Eden was like living in heaven. Everything was perfect, and if Adam and Eve had obeyed God, they could have lived there forever. But after disobeying…if they had continued to live in the garden and eat from the tree of life, they would have lived forever. But eternal life in a state of sin would mean forever trying to hide from God."
The Life Application Bible

#3: Jesus chose death and paid our debt (2 Cor. 5:21)

2 Corinthians 5:21
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

#4: We are recreated and restored to God (2 Cor. 5:17).

2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself…

God is the best at taking what is wasted and redeeming it. Taking what is broken and restoring it. Taking what is enslaved and freeing it. Taking what is dead and raising it.

John 14:1-7
1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. 4 And you know the way to where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

3 Truths about Heaven

# 1: Heaven is a place that’s real (Jn. 14:2)
# 2: Heaven is a place you’ll want to be (Ps. 16:11)
# 3: Heaven is a place that’s available to you (Jn. 14:6)

# 1: Heaven is a place that’s real (Jn. 14:2)

John 14:2
In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

# 2: Heaven is a place you’ll want to be (Ps. 16:11)

•You’ll want to be in heaven for what isn’t there (Rev. 21:4)

Revelation 21:3-4
3 “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

•You’ll want to be in heaven for what is there (Ps. 16:11)

Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Paradoxes in Heaven :

•Jesus is fully God, yet his humanity also remains intact (Acts 1:11; Rom. 8:34).
•Jesus is worthy of worship, yet he will joyfully serve (Rev. 4:11; Lk. 12:37).

By incarnation, the Son became more than he was before, and a human element became integral to the ongoing life of the Triune God…Christ’s glorified humanity, which is a template and link for the glorification that is ours, must go on forever.
J.I. Packer

This is a mystery so great it should leave us breathless.
Randy Alcorn

We’ll worship Jesus as the Almighty and bow to him in reverence, yet we’ll never sense his disapproval—because we’ll never disappoint him. No skeletons will fall out of our closets. Christ bore everyone of our sins. All barriers between us and him will be forever gone. He will be our best friend.
Randy Alcorn

Hearts on earth may say in the course of a joyful experience, “I don’t want this ever to end.” But invariably it does. The hearts of those in heaven say, “I want this to go on forever.” And it will. There is no better news that this.
J.I. Packer

God is the highest good of the reasonable creature, and the enjoyment of him is the only happiness with which our souls are satisfied. To go to heaven to fully enjoy God is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows. But the enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the fountain. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.
Jonathan Edwards, 1773

Jesus is worthy of worship, yet he will joyfully serve (Rev. 4:11; Lk. 12:37).

Revelation 5:9-10
9 And they sang a new song, saying,
Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

Revelation 5:11-12
11 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”


The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Re 5:11–12). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Luke 12:37
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.

# 3: Heaven is a place that’s available to you
(John 14:6)

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 11:25
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”