73. We Have A Heavenly Home. 2Corinthians 5:1.

Few things in life compare to the excitement of moving into your dream house. But if you are a redeemed child of God, Here’s the score; No matter how beautiful your house on earth may be, it’s nothing compared to the one you will have in eternity. That’s why Jesus said, in (John 14;2) ‘ In my Father’s house there are many mansions; if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” When it comes to the house we want to live in, certain questions arise. First, What’s the price? Answer: More than you could ever afford! In order to redeem you and take you to Heaven, “God gave His only begotten Son” (John 3;16) “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son….” Nobody in Heaven will ever be able to say, ‘Look at what Jesus and I accomplished.’ That would make you a co-redeemer with Christ. And that would be an insult to the Cross. You would be guilty of a level of pride that would make it impossible for you to live there. Hymnist Horatius Bonar wrote ‘Upon a life I have not lived, Upon a death I did not die, another’s life, another’s, death. I stake my whole eternity.’ The Bible speaks of labouring and working for God, but don’t get it mixed up. You don’t work to be saved, No, you work because you are saved. You don’t labour for your redemption, you labour for your reward, that is so ‘God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of His Grace and Kindness towards us.’ (Ephesians 2:7) When it comes to the house we want to live in, Here’s another important question; What kind of people live in the neighbourhood? Describing the joys of Heaven, John the apostle wrote, (Revelation 7:9-10) “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number of all nations, peoples, tribes 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 (who is Jesus)’ Author Max Lucado tells this story of his friend Joy, who was a Sunday school teacher and had a timid nine-year old girl named Barbara in her class. She was an underprivileged child from an impoverished area of town, and Lucado writes; Barbara’s difficult home life had left her afraid and insecure. For the several weeks my friend was teaching this class, Barbara never spoke a word. While the other kids talked and played, she just sat. When the others sang songs she was silent When the other kids giggled, she kept quiet. Always present, always listening, always speechless. Until the day Joy gave a class on Heaven. Joy talked about seeing God She talked about tearless eyes and deathless lives. Barbara was fascinated. She couldn’t release Joy from her stare. She listened with real hunger on her face Then she raised her thin hand and said “Mrs. Joy, Is Heaven for girls like me too.?” Joy was stunned, that child had never asked a question before. Joy took Barbara in her arms and said “Yes Barbara especially for girls like you’ When you think about your dream house, Two more questions arise. How close is it to where I work? Have you ever wondered what you will actually do in Heaven? Since heaven will be Paradise regained,. Read this; God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; Have dominion over every living thing that moves on the earth”(Genesis 1;28.) The Bible does not provide specific job descriptions for what we will do in heaven, but the first Paradise gives us two important clues. a.’Be fruitful and multiply.’ You wont struggle to make ends meet. You wont live with crushed hopes and disappointments. Every dream and creative idea you have will be fulfilled. b. ‘Have dominion over every living thing that moves.’ The word ‘dominion’ means ‘to rule over’ So we will be promoted to positions of leadership or management. But here’s the difference in Paradise lost, God said to Adam, in (Genesis 3:17) ‘Cursed is the ground for your sake, in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.’ But in Paradise Found God said in (Revelation 22;3) ) ‘There shall be no more curse. Gazing up at the stars one night a little boy said to his Dad, ‘If the wrong side of Heaven is so wonderful, what must the right side be like’? So here’s the next question. Are you going to Heaven when you die? Are you sure? You can be-- In 1.John 5;13 he says--’These things I have written to you who believe in the name of The Son of God that you may KNOW that you have eternal life.’ At present we live in a fallen world where we loose sight, hearing, limbs and loved ones. But Heaven will make up for all we’ve lost, we will be reunited with our redeemed loved ones, and we’ll have bodies free from sickness, pain and every sort of limitation. ‘There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’ (Revelation 21:4) and on that day you will live in your dream house. Thank you for reading my thoughts on ‘Heaven’ ‘Your dream house’. God Bless, See you there!!! Phaline. -------------------------